- As the New Year came to a close I found myself wondering up the stairs of the Globe one last time for 2002. The excitement of a New Year was in the air for some but, for others, the excitement of seeing one of the world’s most consistent and prominent house producers was a far more exciting proposition. The Globe was quiet at 10pm but as the year ran away with rapid pace, the anticipation and population of the club grew. When midnight struck the now crowded upstairs area celebrated the New Year with some of the best music Sydney has to offer, a full dance floor and whole lotta party-poppers.
Julian Jason kicked off the house music for the night, pumping up the crowd with some fairly jackin’ house, keeping the tempo moving for the enthusiastic crowd. Some would argue that the tempo and tracks may have been a bit too heavy as a lead up for the main act of the night, but for the Globe regulars (who constituted a vast majority of the crowd) it was a stylised set of Julian’s that so many have come to enjoy.
Chris took to the decks shortly after 2am, when the crowd were nothing but anxious to hear the deep house master. From a man who created such phenomenal pieces as “Big Tool”, “Funky Monkeys” and “You’re Mine” in the space of the year, one could only expect a wicked set of music to transpire. Chris’ set actually began by bringing the tempo and energy of the music down a notch. Chris clearly wanted his set to be a set, not a rough and tumble ride of sounds. The beginning hour of his set was certainly testament to his current surrounds. Ultra-deep west coast sounds, subtle and slowly moving basslines, and deep, soulful overtones always emanating from his records. It was a refreshing flavour of house music to hear in a Sydney club but received mixed, and understandable reactions from the audience. On the flip side of deep, brooding music comes an appreciation of subtler sounds, something that, although beautiful to enjoy, may not have suited a New Year’s set. However, when the crowd did start to show immediate signs of disinterest Chris knew how to recover. All of a sudden the Globe was thrown into the more “Chris Lum and Jay-J” style of house the Moulton Studios has produced over the last year - jazzy keys, funky basslines and enough fun without cheese to entertain the Globe’s patrons.
As his set progressed the Globe found itself immersed in the “old school tribal” Chris had talked about in recent interviews. The driving kicks and more jagged sounds worked well in the later stages of his set, driving the night further and darker into the varying sound-scapes of Chris’ set. It was nice to hear and experience a structured set that wasn’t so rigid as to ignore its audience. Although the set certainly had defined stages, he would still loosely interject funky tracks and deeper tunes throughout the night, always keeping the crowd on their toes. I failed to reach the end of Chris’ set, fatigue and the ominous NYD spectacular loomed and bed was the sensible but difficult option. After hearing a bucket-load of Chris Lum productions (some new, some to be released), some very cool, unknown tunes and all the others the Globe wanted to hear, it was time to head off to bed so I could catch Chris’ set at Field Day in the next few hours.