- After successful parties featuring Sasha last year, this time around Smirnoff Experience had chosen John Digweed to bring to India. After two simmering nights in Delhi and Bangalore, anticipation was high in Mumbai as this was Digweed’s first trip to the city.
Taj Land’s End, a swanky hotel by the sea, turned their three large banquet halls into a main room, a side room and a chill out zone for the occasion. Support came from DJ Iwan, Nikhil & Siva Sound System, and Iwan warmed things up nicely in the main room to a packed room while Digweed gave interviews for Indian TV channels, Room two was none too crowded, but chunky drum ‘n’ bass had people coming in and out.
To get us in the mood, a silver mannequin-like creature was stationed near the entrance, surprising people with sudden reactions, while in the main room an eight-foot high lady on stilts towered over the crowd. Also on offer were vodka cocktails served in rugged copper mugs, which were a big hit. MC for the night was Nikhil Chinnapa from MTV India, a house DJ himself, who made sure Digweed got a warm welcome. He did a great job!
The main room was jam packed when Digweed came on at quarter to twelve. Starting with smooth basslines, cracking riffs, sweet grooves, and quite a few tracks from his ‘Transitions’ album, the crowd’s response was warm. Post midnight the highlight was ‘Plastic Rubberband’ by Catwash, with curvy dance girls by the speakers banging hard by now – the crowd, a mix of locals and internationals, both loved these dancers!
The second hour turned out heavier basslines and an uptempo feel. The crowd too had an edgier feel now, with sections going berserk near the speakers. The rest were lost in transition – did more than a few psychedelic lovers change loyalties that night?
The music was chunkier, and the mixing was top notch with lots of effects in use. ‘Flake Escape’ by Diringer was there and Digweed turned out big room riffs and breakdowns. A track which more than a few were anticipating was the Lützenkirchen remix of ‘Warung Beach’, but in the end it didn’t feature.
The last hour had a techier sound, which was great as everyone wanted a broad set by John and he delivered. Tracks by Tiefschwarz and Luke Fair sounded great on the excellent sound system.
At around the four and a half hour mark Digweed stepped down to massive cheers from the crowd. The crowd filtered out slowly, and lots of people were hanging around, just amazed by music they’d just heard. People spread out onto the driveway and into the carparks, with many just talking about the music. The early morning witnessed a sorry sequence of events with five people who were sleeping on the pavement run over by a car filled with partygoers from the event. Condolences to the families of those killed.
A big thanks to all the organisers and specially the Smirnoff team who are gaining a cult status, churning out great nights across India. ‘Can’t wait for the next one’, most said.