- Belfast's Shine has long been an institution of the Northern Ireland's clubbing community, and recently commemorated its 16th year of operation (a great milestone for any club) with a healthy cast of international jocks. The sizable lineup comprised of artists both familiar and unfamiliar to Shine, and the fact that it was Halloween, meant that the recent celebrations drew a strong crowd. A long queue stretched outside the Student Union building that houses the venue for hours. Upon entering, it was clear to see that most people were getting into the spirit as clusters of animated characters in fancy dress congregated around a congested stairway.
While Scottish duo Slam's set bellowed from the Mandela Hall, the club's cavernous main room, Swiss veteran Deetron held down the smaller Bunatee Bar. He built the tension expertly as the room's warm glow and hard-hitting sound system made it the more viable option for manoeuvre. The soulful percussion and funk-filled chords of Dennis Ferrer's "Transitions" increased the tempo as more people arrived. Deetron continued to punish the sound system, dropping Hotflush label boss Scuba's latest hit "Adrenalin." The track's heavy-hitting analogue bassline surfaced, leading eventually into an epic breakdown that lasted for over a minute until the bass returned, whipping the crowd into fifth gear.
Meanwhile, downstairs was filled to capacity. M.A.N.D.Y.'s Phillip Jung was at the controls, laying down some birthday-themed classics, with Cajmere's "Perculator" even getting a rinse. Back upstairs, Nina Kraviz lit up the room with Steve Poindexter's ghetto house anthem "Work That Mutha Fucka," the track's Casio drums and playful vocals keeping everyone grinning throughout. Kraviz's charisma behind the turntables charmed onlookers as a barrage of cameras surrounded the DJ booth, something I'm guessing she's used to. The night was kept on a high with a mixture of Detroit-laden techno and upbeat Chicago house tracks, finally ending with "Storm" by In Sync.