- It may only be five releases deep, but Whities has already gained a reputation for quality since it launched in 2014. There's a sense of inclusivity to the label's aesthetic: you're as likely to hear the carnivalesque melodies of Reckonwrong as you are eyes-down rollers from Terron or Kowton. This was writ large across the label's recent showcase at The Waiting Room. From the intimacy of the small venue to the friendly security and the camaraderie among the three DJs, this was a night that placed fun firmly before image.
A good DJ knows their time slot, and Tasker (Whities' founder) was in warm-up mode, building from an empty room at 11 PM to a packed dance floor at midnight, mixing colourful house, African rhythms and smokier Detroit sounds, eventually finishing with Newworldaquarium's classic "Trespassers." By then the crowd was ready to go darker, and Minor Science delivered, nimbly transitioning from Tasker's warmth into a kaleidoscopic array of drum workouts, keeping the crowd onside with the occasional swaggering bassline or choppy vocals in the UK tradition. Reckonwrong's early selection of party tracks got the crowd going, cycling from techno to ghetto tech to ballroom, mixed so fast it sometimes felt difficult to settle into the groove. Fortunately, he dug in for the second hour, mining deeper sounds that included some stellar Italo basslines and a huge, proggy guitar riff that had the crowd swaying blissfully.
As good as each individual set was, the night's undoubted highlight was when the three DJs went back-to-back for the last 40 minutes. They pushed each other into increasingly unhinged transitions and selections, giving the crowd what they wanted and what they didn't know they wanted, culminating in a selection of UK Funky and garage that detonated the dance floor. The energy hit a second peak around 4 AM when Minor Science dropped a spectacular grime cut, sending one woman rushing to the front, gesturing frantically. He responded enthusiastically, pulling it back for a rewind—before it became clear that the woman was actually the manager, trying to tell him that it was closing time. The end couldn't have been further from our minds.