Jaunt (jônt, jänt) n. A short trip or excursion, usually for pleasure; an outing
Plain and Simple’s roving reporter/man about town and clubbing addict Jammy brings you his eye view of the event he was partying at in the last week… This time he spent his special extended jaunts at Be@TV presents Eastern Electrics pre-party, Funkyzeit, and Fabric.
Hello and welcome to Jammy’s Jaunts! Your weekly clubbing review of London! This jaunt covered the midweek Be@TV presents Eastern Electrics pre-party, Funkyzeit, and Fabric. So let’s begin and go straight into the action with the very special Be@TV presents Eastern Electrics pre-party on the Thursday. This was held down at Hidden in South London and Eastern Electrics have done their previous pre parties down there using one of the main rooms. The lineup for their party included Shadow Child, Matt Tolfrey and Laura Jones as the main headliners. I arrived around 19:30 and it was nice to catch up with the Eastern Electrics crew as I got there and they always throw a good party! Playing in the main room was Shadow Child and he just about finished by the time I got there. The crowd was obviously very different to the normal crowd that I usually see out and about and there were a lot of students there. I managed to catch up with lots of friends who were there too and the vibe was really cool for their Eastern Electrics party. Linking to this is the Found Festival on 15th June in Haggerston Park from 11am-9am which is a definitely worth going to if you fancy a great day out in the sun! As mentioned before in the jaunts, this midweek trip out for a few hours is nice and makes for a good start in the weekend. Next up was Matt Tolfrey (Head of Leftroom Records) who came on and really brought the groove up. He got a great ovation as he came on and he actually played really well. I’ve seen him play many times before and he has always played pretty edgy and decent tech-house and this was perfect for the night and he read the crowd really well.
As the night went on, I was conscious that it was a school night so obviously I had to go home! I was having a good time and it’s always hard to leave a decent party! Nice to see the crew at Be@TV too recording the whole night. Next to come up was Laura Jones also from Leftroom/Visionquest. She kept the vibe going well into the night and technically she was very good. I’ve seen her many times back in the day and has always impressed with her own technical flair crossing over between house and techno. Her bassline groove was really infectious and the crowd loved her track selection. The room was packed and the turnout over the evening was very good, especially for a free party tucked away in South London. The last to play were the Eastern Electrics residents who closed the party. By then the crowd were still up for it and a good number were still there having a great time. From what I heard before I left, I liked and it sure was a good ending to a midweek jaunt!
As the weekend fully began the next jaunt was the special Funkyzeit party over at Crucifix Lane on the Friday. Playing for them were Dense and Pika (live) who are Alex Jones from Hypercolour and Glimpse. Stroboscopic Artefacts label head: Lucy also played as well as the Funkyzeit residents. By the time we got there, Crucifix Lane was buzzing and the crowd filled the place comfortably. It was nice to check out what was being played by Dense and Pika and the crowd were really enjoying it and it was surprisingly decent. The crowd were very different and young too, compared to the normal parties/nights that I usually go to, but as long as you’re having a good time, and the music’s that’s all that should matter! Next up was Lucy. This was the moment I had been waiting for the entire night and his set was pretty incredible. I’ve seen him and the SA collective play all over London including the now closed down Cable for Jaded, Corsica Studios, Fabric, Rhythm Factory , Crucifix Lane and of course Berghain! From start to finish the set was hypnotic, twisted and purely the sound of SA. Even friends who I were with, who had never seen him play before were impressed! It was techno of the highest quality and he dropped some incredible tracks! Very thoroughly enjoyable! The crowd by then were really up for it and by the time Lucy came on, the crowd filtered out and the ones who came to see Lucy play, stayed till the end. In some parts the music was brutal and crushing through the Crucifix Lane soundsystem and it sounded exceptional! It’s always a pleasure to hear Lucy and the SA crew in London and I definitely recommend that you see him or anyone from the SA roster play out. It was a real treat! What a great Friday jaunt!
Next up on Saturday was the home of underground Techno in London: Fabric. This jaunt was very special as it was the Fabric debut of Rrose who I caught at Berghain as part of the SA lineup and accompanying him in room 2 was longstanding stalwart of Fabric: Terry Francis and Regis alongside James Ruskin. It was supposed to be Function but he was unwell and couldn’t make it. Francis played from 23:00 – 02:30, Rrose 02:30 – 03:30, Regis and Ruskin 03:30 – 06:30 I arrived around 01:30 and Terry Francis built up Room 2 really well. I have always loved his warm-ups in room 2 and it’s such a special skill to have to play the warm-up set. Room 2 was packed by the time Rrose came on and it was great to see him finally play in London. A lot of mystery and secrecy surrounds the elusive Rrose. He came on with his live set and it was very dark and hypnotic. He pulled in the crowd and every drop he gave they crowd went wild! He packed so much into his hour live set and he really was incredible. The techno was ruthless and it wasn’t even what you would call ‘fast’. Slow, menacing bassline stabs and pounding kick drums hammering through the room 2 soundsystem! In parts also it dipped into a very experimental sound to bring the crowd back down again and before you knew it, he brought it back up again! A great hour of pure music excellence!
Last up was the duo of Regis and Ruskin. A massive ovation was given to them as they started and it was great to see Ruskin come on as a last minute replacement for Function. They carried on the vibe from Rrose and completely went for it! It was techno of the highest order and everyone seemed to be losing it all around me! I love the feeling techno gives you, when you are totally in your element! This works with whatever music you’re into and it is the perfect remedy to any troubles/pain! Rolling techno bassline after bassline was perfect as Regis and Ruskin hammered it out. It was great to see them close room 2 and end the weekend’s jaunts on such a high! Wow! What a weekend eh?! Same time, next weekend? 🙂
