You can count on one hand the number of times Dandy Jack has played in London. This time the maverick Chilean-in-Berlin was headlining a true warehouse shindig. We arrived at the venue, an understated Bethnal Green warehouse/snooker hall, at around 1 a.m. My first impression was that this event promised to be a true warehouse party. People had brought their own alcohol, and the security staff were even smiling - these are sights not often seen in London. The orderly queue looked pretty happy too, not too trendy, but very much aware of the line up. Inside the space was clean and spacious, and most importantly there was a nice warm sound system.
The residents warmed up the speakers with the likes of Samim’s remix of ‘Hay Consuelo’ before Michal Ho powered up his controller and laptop. The mood of his set was deep and consistent, the crowd got bigger and bodies began jigging like kids who’ve drunk too much Coca Cola. The number of women present was very nice to see – a real change from the usual throng of men with beards and thick glasses out in force trying to memorise every track and loop (I include myself here).
Then arrived Dandy Jack, a huge smile brimming on his face as he stepped up to his MPC, Ableton and mixers for the evening. What followed was very interesting: Dandy Jack worked edits, clever vocal snippets, rhythmic elements and loops to slowly raise the intensity. By the time ‘You Wanna Fight’ floated from the speakers, Dandy was having a dance off all by himself. It was a nice change to see a DJ actually looking like they want to be there. Of course all good things come to an end and the next thing you know my ‘best buddies’ arrived, truncheon and walkie talkies in hand. Neighbours had complained about the noise to police, apparently. The party stopped at around 4 a.m. Despite the interruption, the night was a great success – the crowd were up for it, the programming was strong, and the music was top notch. LikeThat is a bit of an underground gem. Let’s hope not too many more people discover it, including the police.
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