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Introducing NEM3SI$’s new label Infinite Resistance! | Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! | Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! | Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! | Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. | Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! | Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! | NEM3SI$ - 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! |
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Hardhouse Academy 3rd Birthday - Review!
Reported by Dory-EE
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Submitted 30-10-03 00:00
It’s that time of the year where you have a bubbling excitement brewing inside you that causes you to phone up old, ex, current and non-clubbing buddies. Organising tickets and orchestrating your life and everyone else around you, according to Hard House Academy, especially as it’s their 3rd Birthday this year!!
Let me try to explain WHY this is the ONE party you don’t want to miss. (1) There aren’t enough adjectives in the English language to fully define the overpowering joy and fun that can be had in one such night. (2) You will bump into at least one person from your past that you least expect to see there. (3) You meet so many like-minded human beings and human doings it's frightening, (4) you make a best friend and (5) you’ll have a least 6 things in common with the sexy Kiwi guy whom you met at 4 in the morning…
The thought of overwhelmingly hard quality music from a cocktail of superior DJ’s, is so heavy in my head that I have to tell somebody and everybody…even my dearest mother. So when mom asked me: “What you doing this weekend?” I had to tell her: “I’ve been invited to a birthday party mommy and we'll be dancing a lot, but don’t' worry there will be lots of water and Special K for those who stay till morning”…
Although the clocks went back an hour, it was more a night of timelessness. Stepping out of rat race (cause the rats win anyway), and stepping into the massive playground of Brixton Academy…where only mature children are allowed…
Major downer on the night was the qqqqqqqqq!! I mean, I know we were 4 500 sexy eager bodies but so much confusion re where to q? Especially when being told to q in a different q TWICE – just to be sent back to the original q!!! Then once inside, q’ing up to an hour for the cloakroom before letting your feet loose (that's just unwanted teasing)… I was lucky in the sense that I only waited 25min in the bag q, but some have been q’ng for 45min and as they got to the front, the cloakroom closed!!! So something needs to be done in future to make this smoother as it can create a dark cloud for every silver lining!
Best advice is COME EARLY, i.e. 9pm, get in, get uncloaked, identify a meeting point (stable structure, not next-to-the-girl-with-the-bright-orange-suit…she moves around too!!) for when you loose your friends during the night (cause you do)!
Once inside; electrifying atmosphere! The beats from the foyer chases your heart beats and then races it around the lights – definitely not for the faint-hearted… Energy Dai was in charge in the foyer (23h30) and produced hard jumping material with the occasional soft surprise; just enough time to catch your breath, pass a comment to your lovely, and stretch a limb, before he starts building up again!
Checking out the main room around midnight to find that the Welsh geniuses Cally & Juice had the crowd hypnotized. But what entertainment they delivered to the hungry ears. Dancing to their music was like river rafting – scratching, build-ups, lots of notes and beats resembling the white water, and then suddenly entering the calmer-yet-strong-current-parts of the river, as the beautiful melody surfaces.
What was with the MC guy in the main room? I guess his aim is to psyche the crowd up for the current Dj, but is that really necessary? He was seriously p*ss*ng on my battery cause it took the focus away from the Dj and his music. So left the main room to catch Mr. James Lawson (foyer) around 1am. It felt like we were part of a photo shoot cause people were dressed up uniquely, creating endless amounts of poses, under the influence of the music and with the lighting and reflectors highlighting your emotions. I had to stop for a while to just make sure that the moment was real. A simply lovely lovely feeling hey Nicci? On one side you have a Simon shouting Kia Kaha (“Stand Strong” in Maori) and saying harder, faster, stronger in body language, while you have another Simon behind you just smiling and absorbing the moment. Such a multinational crowd coping extremely well especially when Barry Connell (new DJ to me) produced stabbing good beats, not too much, but leaving you wanting more.
Just when we thought we can handle the pace, Barry Connell decided to play “put your hands up in the air” (don’t know the real title, sorry)…and blew the happy faces into open mouthed smiles by doubling the volume when the chorus kicked in, as if the speaker was there all night but no-one had the courage to turn it on…nice one!
Make sure you explore the whole of the academy. Those chill-out seats are a treat and a retreat. Here you can regain strength while being part of the massive entertainment. Lasers bouncing off the ceiling and running over your face, reflected by the glitter snowing down – what a view too.
If you know how to get to the secret Funky/VIP room, well done. It's very hidden and very exclusive (you either love it or not at all). You have to go down a few steps on the right of the foyer first before climbing up and up to a secret room. Nice alternative though.
Needless to say that Phil Reynolds raised the thousands to their feet, got us jumping in unison, with our arms spontaneously whipping up and down while we laugh uncontrollably because inside these walls, ANYTHING goes!!
Organised chaos, moving madness and pure pleasure broke out when Andy Farley addressed the decks (02h30)…Well-timed Fireworks galore - Well done Frantic!
I wished that I could listen to more of BK, but after enjoying his ever-so-popular "Evolution", I made my way to the foyer again to catch the Queen of all Dj's, beautiful confident Tara Reynolds.
She absolutely rocked Brixton into another postal code!! This is exactly what I needed at 4 in the morning. Her love for the music, her fresh energy, and her passion for the people in front of her, beamed out of her and infected us all. That's what Hard House Academy is all about, it just gets better and better as the night draws to a close.
I would have loved to hear The *Ting* too - I'll have to catch her at the next one…is it in March 2004??
There has been so much to absorb, digest and remember tonight that you would need a week before you can walk, hear and speak normally again, but what a privilege this has been too!
Dory-EE
Don't live a little, Live ALOUD!
With thanks to Sim Pat for the use of his photos
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Other Features By Dory-EE: CREAMFIELDS 2003 - Old Liverpool Airfield - 23rd August 2003 Review Demented @ the Elektrowerkz - 30 May 2003 - Review UNITY: Frantic meets Sundissential & GoodGreef - Review Mainframe Outdoors - Review Heat - Review
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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Comments:
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From: anarchi on 30th Oct 2003 17:46.19 Wonderful words D. Although I couldn't make it your piece took me there -from the anxious frustration and expectation of the queing to paddling down the river of sound to that moment early in the morning when you begin to think it's probably not legal to be having this much fun. Hope your faculties have returned and you can walk again. E-ya later xx
From: Will Frantic on 30th Oct 2003 18:06.36 Add your comments here !
From: Will Frantic on 30th Oct 2003 18:16.55 Frantic do work closely with the Venue managment who run the cloakrooms and the entrance into the venue to make sure everything runs as smoothly as possible and we would ike to extend our apologies for any hassles on the night.
3 Steps to better cloakrooms:
-We are hoping to open the event at 830pm next time so that there is more time to get through the cloakroom.
-When all 4500 clubbers try and arrive between 11 and 12 this is when the venue's staff are put under pressure, so please try and arrive a little earlier, so that the cloakrooms have a more even flow of clubbers.
-Please avoid bringing bags as this really slows the Q as attendants are putting away 2 items for a clubber rather than 1.
Please pm or call me on 07958 439 581 if you have any other concerns...
The next HHA is on Feb28th
From: Dory-EE on 30th Oct 2003 22:53.55 Luke, thanks for comments, hopefully you'll join me in February for the next chapter...xxx
From: Dory-EE on 30th Oct 2003 22:55.51 Will, thanks for reply. that's a great idea opening it at 20:30, i understand the pressure the cloakroom staff were in and want to thank you for putting together such a top class night. see you in Feb 04!
From: anarchi on 31st Oct 2003 02:10.45 Absolutely - even speaking as a bag fanatic I promise to leave mine at home for the night, ... and be there at 20:30 in Feb. Chapter 4 sounds like a date - and here's wishing *Ting* will be there again - as her loyal worshipper I can wish for nothing less.
There with Cartwheels.
Peace.
xx
-- Know the power of the Welsh- Thy non-welsh-power-knowers
... and weep.
From: Kromos on 31st Oct 2003 12:11.51 nice one DOR-EE ! ! !
From: Red5 on 31st Oct 2003 15:56.49 Fantastic review! Spot on
From: Miles Gorfy on 3rd Nov 2003 18:47.30 You really should've got in at 9pm, I really enjoyed my set.
From: Lx on 4th Nov 2003 11:33.21 HHA was rocking,no doubt about that. The bag issue - well still bit upsetting.I brought my bag coz i put all my stuff that i needed nxt day in AND my coat as well.I suppose all those bag people had the same idea.If there`s such a big event u can expect people from different places in UK not only London,so they need bag where 2 keep their stuff.Im talking about cameras,new clothes 4 changing,make-up n who knows wot else.So i dont think u can avoid this nxt time,only have 2 wish they will come asap 2 make sure there will b space 4 their bags
From: UFS… on 4th Nov 2003 13:18.15 Nice1 sweets - pretty much sums up me nite!
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