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Another night, another party done and over with.
Anyone out there familiar
with the phrase ‘addicted to bass’?
Some of us could really relate to that. But tonight
a different addiction took over... and it had
absolutely nothing to do with any sort of substance.
Honest.
 Azzido da Bass, more famously known for his track
‘Dooms Night’ which won Muzik’s
Remix of the Year in 2000 by Timo Mass, descended
on our shores and delivered an unforgettable performance
- but more on that later.
First, there are a few things that one might
have noticed about Backroom
that night. For starters, the atmosphere seemed
to be different. As you walked down the stairs,
photographers lay in wait to take your picture,
making you feel like a VIP making a grand entrance.
Inside, there were people painting faces and coffing
their tresses into funky hair-dos. And it was
also slightly brighter for a club that is notorious
for being dark and moody. Even the screen displayed
adverts of High Street brands such as Top Shop
and Ms Selfridge. There were also live mannequins
standing on both side of the stairs opposite the
console stole the show at times.
This was all part of Kent's new direction for
its clubbing campaigns. Instead of concentrating
solely on the music or big events, the tobacco
company is moving towards 'lifestyle' packaging,
which means more fashion, art, and performances
instead of the tired imported DJ formula. Handling
these new duties for Kent is Concrete, a relatively
new promoter on the scene, but one with an impressive
DJ roster (including Masters at Work and Kerri
Chandler) and track record (they've done parties
in Amsterdam and elsewhere in Europe). Indeed,
the night's theme at Backroom was 'London', hence
the paparazzi photographers, High Street fashion,
and the choice of Backroom's grittiness. As they
say, 'It's a London ting!'
But back to the music. At approximately 12.15am,
the wee man with the big tunes hit the deck. The
first track had a melodic female vocal layered
over a throbbing bass, quickly followed by a remix
of ‘Billie Jean’. For the assembled
frequenters of more discerning dancefloors, it
began to look
promising. After an hour into the set, things
started to accelerate. ‘Dooms Night’,
of course, was dropped and the crowd lapped it
up. The track may be a little old by clublife
standards, but everyone still went nuts for it.
Just when you thought that things were starting
to get heavy, clubbers were treated to some retro
tunes! Tim Deluxe’s ‘Without You’
was slipped
in, all racy and seductive and was immediately
replaced with his signature
steady basslines. The diversity of songs are the
kind of tunes that showcased his quest for diversity
as well as a display of non-stop energy.
Punters were seen raising their arms into the
air every time the music
peaked. But the downside of the set was probably
the repetitive cuts that
could have annoyed some at times. Nonetheless,
the floor was awash with
sweat and writhing limbs all the way to the flying
finish of ‘Speed’ at 3am.
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