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Features
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| Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! | | Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! | | Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! | | Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. | | Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! | | Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! | | NEM3SI$ - I Live for the Night – talks superficiality, psychopaths, and bittersweet success, ahead of a plethora of evocative, emotional, and passionate upcoming melodic techno releases! | | Psy-Sisters Spring Blast Off! We talk to DJ competition winner ROEN along with other super talents on the lineup! | | Blasting towards summer festivals with Bahar Canca ahead of Psy-Sisters Spring Blast! | | Shyisma talks parties, UFO's, and Shotokan Karate ahead of his upcoming album 'Particles' on Iono-Music! | | SOME1 talks family, acid, stage fright and wolves - ahead of his upcoming album release ‘Voyager’ on Iono-Music in February 2023! | | The Transmission Crew tell all and talk about their first London event on 24th February 2023! | | NIXIRO talks body, mind and music production ahead of his release 'Planet Impulse' on Static Movement's label - Sol Music! | | Turning the world into a fairy tale with Ivy Orth ahead of Tribal Village’s 10th Birthday Anniversary Presents: The World Lounge Project | | The Psy-Sisters chat about music, achievements, aspirations and the 10-Year Anniversary Party - 18/12/22! | | A decade of dance music with Daniel Lesden | | Earth Needs a Rebirth! Discussions with Psy-Trance Artist Numayma | | Taking a Journey Through Time with Domino | | New Techno Rising Star DKLUB talks about his debut release White Rock on Onhcet Republik! | | PAN expands on many things including his new album 'Hyperbolic Oxymoron' due for release on the 14th April 2022 on PsyWorld Records! | | Psibindi talks all things music including her new collaborative EP 'Sentient Rays' on Aphid Records, her band Sentience Machine and 10 years of Psy-Sisters! | | N-Kore talks Jean-Michel Jarre, unfinished tracks and fatherhood! | | Celebrating International Women’s Day and Ten Years of Psy-Sisters with Amaluna | | A Catch Up with John Phantasm ahead of his upcoming set at the Tribal Village 4 Day Outdoor Event in Kent 6-9 May 2022! | | 'The Maestro that is Tristan talks barn owls, Shazamming and keeping it Psychedelic ahead of his upcoming performance at the Tribal Village 4 Day Event in Kent 6-9 May 2022! | | DJ talk with Psyrenzo ahead of his debut set at Tribal Village, the Steelyard this Friday 14th January 2022! | | TENZO aka Overdrive talks freely about launching his new act which will be showcased at Tribal Village, Steelyard on 14 January 2022! | | A long overdue catch up with JourneyOM ahead of his next Tribal Village party this Friday 14th January 2022 at the Steelyard, London! | | Goa based party animal and artist extraordinaire Nirmal talks punk concerts, metal sculptures, flying and rippin' it up on a High Tide! | | DJ Wired talks to us about the Rise of the Hope and parties, ahead of his upcoming set at Tribal Village on 14th January 2022! |
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Knowwhere at the Fridge Reviewed
Reported by josie
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Submitted 20-07-04 16:40
Trance lovers have had a bit of a thin time of it recently. Firstly there was the misery that was ‘progressive’ (excepting Sasha and perhaps John 00 Fleming). Not to mention clubs ditching ‘pure’ dance music in favour of nights where punters spend more behind the bar. Never mind they get in fights and shoot each other. I’d started to think perhaps I was getting too old for clubbing and it was time to start going to bars, or maybe even (deep breath) live music (Lord have mercy). Thankfully Paul Van Dyk at Heaven cured me of that sort of nonsense, and what with the techy, harder sounds of Heat, becomeone, and Wildchild, and the more euphoric and uplifting Trance Generation and Knowwhere, trance is looking a lot healthier.
Of these, Knowwhere is my absolute favourite, standing out way back with its smiley, energetic sound and blissful crowd. From early days in the, um, informal surrounds of Brixton’s Club 414, it upgraded to Heaven’s cute kid brother The Soundshaft, and then in May of this year to the dizzy heights of Brixton’s newly revamped Fridge. I’ve been going for ages, and always said they were going to be huge, but it’s not until the last few months that the night has really hit the big time.
The first Knowwhere at The Fridge was a nerve-racking affair. Would they fill such a large venue? Would it be as good as I remembered? Would the ladies loo by the entrance still be full of gay men? In the event, it all went scandalously well – the place was packed, everyone had a fantastic time, and reviewers kindly didn’t mention the dodgy live bit. Even lardy Dave Pearce, who everyone was quite prepared to hate, knocked out a very credible set… thank you very much. The frenzied roar from the crowd when Ian Betts played his own track Love Resurrection probably damaged everybody’s hearing forever, but it was worth it.
Nor has Knowwhere disappointed since. Since its tarting up early this year, The Fridge is a glittery, hot, sexy place to be – for some reason full of beautiful people with nice skin and great bodies. I’m just saying. Bubbles periodically cascade down from the ceiling, and with the razor-sharp lasers, it’s rather like some sort of ethereal fairyland or clubbing Paradise. Where I’ll end up if I’m good.
This Friday’s offering was at the same high standard. Midnight to 1am saw Euphoria’s Adam White doing his thing behind the decks. Whilst there was the teensiest bit of continuity or fluidity lacking through his set, he consistently turned out the most interesting and varied material, a lot of which I can’t identify. Things really kicked off with the original mix of Duderstadt’s Sunrise, a proper old-school trance belter that had a forest of arms in the air. The deal was sealed with the huge 'Airscape' by Sosei.
Adam was followed by ex Gatecrasher resident Scott Bond. Named ‘the authentic voice of British clubbers’ by Mixmag, counted in the top 5 of the world’s top 100 DJs, and named resident of the year 1999, Bond is an example of the extremely high quality of DJ Knowwhere is attracting these days. Not quite what I expected, his set had more than one breaksy moment, and some pretty brave changes in pace. For me, they were a bit too extreme, feeling like you were starting all over again. The crowd were good-natured enough about it though, and Scott obviously thought Duderstadt’s Sunrise was worth a run out too, because he played it as well. Highlight of his set was probably Arc in the Sky’s massive, spacey ‘Vainquer’ – a driving, ‘head-down’ track that gets everyone rushing and going a bit crazy on the dancefloor. One of Bond’s best qualities is his showmanship behind the decks – really leaning into the mixers, giving it some on the breakdowns, and getting the crowd on his side.
Bigshot producers Binary Finary were next, best known for the seminal trance classic 1998, and with quite a techy, bassy sound. The same was true for one time Escape from Samsara resident Sol Ray, who was the last of the guest DJs, and incidentally not a bad looking bloke at all. Again, I’m just saying. The breaks and techy directions seem to be two ways that trance is currently evolving – AVB down the breaks route, and Ferry Corsten down the techy one, to name just two. The night was brought to a close with a textbook sexy, energetic set from Knowwhere promoter Anthony Dean, who must surely be one of the UK’s most experienced and talented trance DJs.
Anyway folks, Knowwhere is without doubt the best regular trance night in London, and the only choice for those with a leaning towards the euphoric and uplifting. The line-up for August’s Knowwhere, and indeed that for August’s TranceGeneration is positively stellar. Look out for such bright stars as Scott Bond , Agnelli & Nelson, The Thrillseekers, Ehren Stowers, Matt Darey, and Ian Betts. You won’t see me there, as I’ll be in Ibiza, but you can’t have everything.
With thanks to Stevie for the use of his pics 
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Other Features By josie:
It's the Generation game featuring Agnelli & Nelson, The Thrillseekers and Lange
Peach at Heaven: Reviewed
The Gallery at Turnmills: Reviewed
The International Indoor Festival at SeOne: reviewed
The double ender: interview with trance legends Darren Tate and Mike Koglin
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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Great reviews guys, all your hard work is paying off
