- With the unrelenting harshness of winter now fully upon us in London, being able to take refuge in the hot and reassuringly familiar surroundings of a warehouse space on the weekend is a warming thought. Promoters L.E.D know this well, and take full advantage of London's appetite for such venues. On this night, Tobi Neumann was the latest host in their series of A Night With… events which feature eight hours of only one DJ. Neumann has a strong reputation as a long-established member of the Cocoon label and has been a widely recognised name on the techno circuits of Berlin, London and Ibiza for over a decade.
The secret venue was announced last week as 82 Great Eastern Street, a brand new space located in the basement of a building in London's East End, an area now synonymous with some of the most successful and unusual electronic music nights. Arriving about an hour into his set, the room was starting to fill up nicely and Neumann already had the early arrivals moving their feet, keeping the music selection to comfortable tech house. The venue was a single room with a bar on the far side and a small chillout area round the corner with a second bar. One feature which I particularly liked was the massive graffiti piece covering the back wall, which really added to the underground feel of the space.
Photo credit: Nik Torrens
Before long the room had filled to capacity, and the wintery conditions outside were all but forgotten. One of the great things about nights like these is the crowd. Neumann's impressive skill in the manipulation of the EQs ensured a smooth transition from the softer tech house into the slightly harder and more demanding techno that began to engulf the room, and the general consensus around the club was that this was Neumann at his best. Towards the end of the set, the more minimal sound built up to two vocal remixes. The first was the Armand Van Helden remix of Tori Amos' "Professional Widow," but the real gem was the Marvin Gaye bootleg remix that Ricardo Villalobos is rumoured to have given to only a few select friends and can only be acquired on vinyl.
The night overall was hugely enjoyable. And for anyone who isn't sure about listening to eight hours of the same DJ, I can give you my word that with someone packing as much skill, diversity and experience as Tobi Neumann at the controls, these worries are unfounded.