- Remix duo and DJ/Producers Masters at Work returned to London for an amazing night by Soul Heaven at Canvas. The night was supported by DJ Jazzy in the second room and the regulars in the front room and downstairs in the Key.
The revered production team, Masters at Work (“Little” Louie Vega and Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez) have been behind classic house mixes such as ‘To be in Love’ featuring India and ‘I am the Black Gold of the Sun’ from their Nuyorican Soul mix album. They have been involved in the house scene as DJs and producers from the late 1980’s and are best known for their hip-house live production sets.
Punters arrived to some confusion as closed streets forced them down side alleys. However this was to aid security getting people through to The Key, The Cross and Canvas - formerly Bagley’s which has recently undergone renovations cleaning up the main rooms and turning the terrace into a great outdoor space with comfy chairs, palms and shade cloths.
Soul Heaven had chosen a great space for what must have been a sell out performance based on the size of the crowd. At first it seemed as if everyone was expecting a rock concert with people were standing around and chatting (turn up the volume!).
"...with Kenny producing the beats and Little Louie mixing in, they played separately and together through to the after six finish."
It wasn't until 2am when Kenny Dope came on and finally took control of the crowd. Known for their live DJ production sets with Kenny producing the beats and Little Louie mixing in, they played separately and together through to the after six finish. The crowd cheered at the end of each of the last few tracks and with the lights down low a final few tunes were played, sending everyone home excited to have experienced this amazing night.
The front room and bar area showcased the usual Soul Heaven DJs keeping the crowd happy with spaces to investigate and chill. DJ Jazzy Jeff attracted his own crowd in the second room playing hip hop and doing some occasional MC’ing.
The crowd was clearly into it or at least attracted to the group of girls dancing on the stage. Throughout the night, the Key downstairs was also open playing house and breaks. This was a good idea but also problematic as you couldn’t easily move from the main room downstairs or back due to the mass of ravers packed in the main room.
Tonight was the first of two Masters At Work nights in London, the duo performing again with Soul Heaven @ Fabric on June 18th.
Get to it if you can (or if you want to experience a piece of house history).