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CRASHER HYPER ROYALE17TH MARCH 2007 HyperRoyale – GatecrasherOne We arrive at GatecrasherOne shortly after 10pm to be welcomed by the familiar deep decibels and subtle chords of a Riley & Durrant warm up set. The décor was impressive with the bridge giving way to a decadent backdrop and the trademark ‘Crasher’ banner. As the Foyer begins to fill there is a rising energy level and anticipation which has become standard at this legendary venue. Across in the electric box the red room turns up the heat with some downright filthy house and jackin beats. An oversight for many – it’s hard not to get caught up in the groove laden room two, for an alternative selection. Back in the Foyer, as the progressive sound of Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars (Blake Jarrell and Topher Jones Remix) drifts across the room, the crowd begins to build, eager to get onto the main dance-floor. Not long after our wishes are granted and the masses descend to the main arena which soon fills the void. The atmospheric blue uv lighting casts its glow amongst the famous Crasher lions which are suspended above the crowd. Extended LED strip lights flash slowly at first, increasing in intensity as the chunky bass grows in momentum. As the distinctive tones of Sasha & Emerson’s – Scorchio (Zak Quiney) filters through the sound system a jet of mist descends on the vibrant crowd. By the time Sean Tyas steps into the Crasher booth the dance floor is fired up ready for his debut performance. Demanding attention his set launches with a signature drop and kick, bringing the beat back to the forefront and lunging at you with vengeance. From the off it was clear Tyas meant business, soaring breakdowns find you in clarity, but only momentarily. Within minutes the interludes soaked with emotion give way to pounding, dark basslines. As his remix of Rank 1’s Airwave throws out its memorable melody the crowd go mental, dancing as though it’s their last night clubbing. Even though Tyas is on an early set time he has everyone hanging from the rafters with his powerful lesson in the science of dance. As the beat darkens and the tempo shifts up, the twisted vocal from Blake Jarrell’s ‘Dood I Just Wanna Dance’ fades into the mix. Like most tracks in Sean’s set, it has had the special Tyas remix treatment. With the vocal ‘At the end of the night they turn on the lights the music goes off and all you can hear is beeeeeeeeeee…..’ the siren then drifts into the background as a thunderous bassline erupts from the speakers. Crasher enters the twilight zone as the modest lighting is now replaced by a fountain of colours, spiraling from the strobes and lasers at the front of the dance-floor. His forthcoming ‘One More Night Out’ goes down a storm, blistering its way through the woofer, whilst enforcing chronic dancing. Tyas’ ascension is smooth, with crisp and clinical mixing, gliding into a tease of synths and driving bass. As his new cut ‘Drop’ ripples from the speaker its clear he has provided a fever induced trip that any dj would find hard to follow. Closing with the Aly & Fila mix of ‘Why’, the evocative vocal layers over a bliss melody, remaining glued to your subconscious. It is clear from this blinding debut performance, Mr Tyas will be back soon for a peak slot to rip the Crasher dance-floor to pieces. A hard act to follow, the world’s number 4 dj, Christopher Lawrence was also making his debut performance. Having recently mixed the latest Gatecrasher cd, the expectations were high for this Los Angeles based dj. Shying away from the euro influenced breakdowns favoured by many of the top jocks in the business, Lawrence prefers darker cuts that allow him to build a tension of his own. Using influences from psy trance, techno and hard edged progressive, he blends an enticing selection of underground sounds. As the temperature rises he brings in his own ‘Beyond the Limit’ a storming production with the Crasher favourite John oo Flemming. Quirky squelches are complimented by spacey stabs and a relentless rythmn. The energy is incredible! Just as you think you have lost perspective of where you are, the cosmic feel of ‘Backlash’ by Jussi Sorro brings back your senses with a raucous kick drum. The eerie and warped strings accompanied by consistent percussive prosac sends your blood rushing. Glancing up, you see a torrent of neon, your ears awash with a thumping rhythm and astral synths. Towards the end of his set the epic ‘Lift’ from Sean Tyas courses throughout the club. A departure from his usual growling sound, his set was well structured, expertly mixed and delivered with style. As the scintillating ride comes to a close, Lawrence leaves everyone somewhere in the depths of his spellbinding underground. Up next was a producer who has become a Crasher favourite, with his huge slices of euphoria, Giuseppe Ottaviani. Performing a live set, he blesses the crowd with the monstrous ‘Through Your Eyes’ and ‘Linking People’ to rapturous applause. We are now into typical Giuseppe territory, a plateau of uplifting and melodic trance with crisp galloping percussion. The warm and summery chords are in stark contrast to the twisted psy that Lawrence had previously laid down. The variation worked and the dance-floor was once again a collective ‘hands in the air’ atmosphere. Ottaviani’s live rework of PVD’s ‘For an Angel’ received a huge response, as did nu-nrg’s ‘Dreamland’ at the end of his short set. Following this was the former resident who needs no introduction, Judge Jules. With a later set than recent months, Jules opted for some harder tried and tested cuts. Working the crowd with his enthusiastic style he moves into the tech trance genre as the main room grows in intensity. The Paul Webster remix of Warrior ‘If you Want Me’ goes down a treat as the fog thickens and the crowd goes into overdrive. Russ James’ – ‘My Mind’ brings the tone up a little before dropping into a frenetic bass line. Jules clearly thriving off the peaking atmosphere grins incessantly as clubbers bounce to his rising rhythm. Guaranteed to cause plenty of dance-floor damage, Jules signals his farewell as he hands over to Marco V at 4am. As Marco V commences, the lighter more melodic aspects which had shaped the earlier musical offering, made way for a more techy, electro approach. With succinct dj skills and a trademark V sound Crasher was hit with a hybrid stew of beefy techno and rupturing bass. Moving between his own productions and cuts from Benjamin Bates, he keeps the pace rolling and funky, alongside the bass that remain ever chunky. As his set develops, reverbs and echoes begin to dance amongst acidic stabs and electro licks as the tunes move towards a new level. By the time Marco V’s remix of ‘Higher State of Consciousness’ is dropped the still busy dance-floor finds a new lease of life. Playing on for an extra half hour, Marco V brings an exhilarating night to its conclusion with his own ‘Red Blue Purple’. Once again Gatecrasher provided proof that using mind blowing production values with world class djs, results in a party of epic proportions. Words: Liam Postlethwaite |
