Mulletover Halloween Special
Mulletover’s Halloween Special held at the EQ Warehouse on Saturday 29th October 2005
One small step for technology, one massive leap for mankind!
Having been absent from the club scene for nearly 14 years! ( I am an old school veteran) I was re-introduced to it in April of this year. Frequenting nights that mostly promoted ‘funky house’, I was amazed that the House scene was still alive and kicking but felt that something had been lost. Where had the promise of technology taken House? The classic spearheading tunes of yesteryear that filled dance floors with their innovative drum loops and breaks, driving ‘acid’ bass lines, quirky sound effects, spacey production and psychedelic overtones seemed to have been left behind. What I was experiencing was plainly disco over a 4/4 beat, where was the legacy of such tracks as Voodoo Ray and French Kiss?
I found it on Saturday night at Mulletover’s Halloween Special held at the EQ Warehouse in Hackney Wick on Saturday 29th October 2005. The night was heralded as being a night of deep electro, techno and alternative dance with a crazy crowd and unusual madness. I had not heard of Mulletover before but the recommendation was so persuasive that I was seduced into going.
Immediately it struck me that the security staff at this venue were friendly, inviting and laid back – always a good sign for a party; being the first faces you come into contact with the security set the tone for the evening- bolshie, invasive and stand-offish security often makes for a hostile mood not conducive to letting oneself go for a night of reckless craziness. These guys were cool for school!
Walking into the warehouse was like taking a step back in time and forward into the future at one and the same moment – trippy! Instantly I felt like I was back in an old airplane hanger and expected to see loads of tie-dye, pagan ‘bling’ and longhaired guys. Concurrently, I experienced a scene from Bill and Ted when they are propelled into the future where they attend a party playing what their music is to become. I had left homogenous empty time and entered simultaneous time: the past and future had conflated with the present, there was only the here and now but it was a space pregnant with what had been and what was to become.
The party had only been on for about half an hour and yet the place was buzzing. Not unusual for a good house party no, but what was unusual was the whole vibe of the place. There was a sense of knowing that you were at the start of what was going to be an absolutely fantastic aural/dance trip for the next 6 and half hours. The mood was so relaxed and inviting that you compulsively fell into it.
The kaleidoscope of electronically and digitally created sounds and complex drum patterns infused their way through the pores of your skin and like a parasite takes over the will of its host, you were seduced into giving yourself over to the will of the music. DJs Giles Smith, Coley, Konrad Black and resident Geddes spun the decks with what proved to be a seamless textile of interwoven aural delights from the very edge of the musical horizon.
The dance floor in front of the DJs was packed but fortunately there were two dance floors to the side that offered some room for those of us who like to spread their wings and fly through the universe for the night! The PA system was fantastic and finely balanced giving great compliment to the lower steering bass lines, the mid range drums and the top level of accompaniment. The sound quality was superb and well up to carrying its load of frequencies. I have to admit that Konrad Black’s stint was my highlight of the night. The acid and techno tracks he spun upon us were, in a word, amazing! This was the future of House, technology fused and used in such a way as to generate new and innovative sounds that pushed your body to its limits and carried you off on a sensuous journey through sound and rhythm. If Tchaikovsky were alive today he would be Konrad Black!
Attention had also been given to the finer details, including fruit trays, uniquely designed projections depicting gruesome Halloween phenomena (courtesy of Kurrage, J1200 of Strictly Left - a club promotion team run by Aaron Newton aKa DJ Trigga that closely support Mulletover) and the efforts by some to dress up for the occasion as the walking dead.
However, the place was pumping with the energy of life. The dancing didn’t stop all night with a freeness and uninhibited-ness that every soul yearns for. It was, without a doubt, the best night of music that I had experienced for years. If you consider yourself a music connoisseur and dance enthusiast, or just want to experience something new and cutting edge that opens your mind to the future yet carries the sentiment of those heady days of yore when raving was all about the music and the vibe and being a part of something new and ahead of itself, then Mulletover is for you.
Thank you guys for a truly fantastic night!
Check out the photos from the event
Look out for the next Mulletover event
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Article by: Liz EJ