- Workshop has unrelentingly delivered delicately crafted productions that have effortlessly redefined the murky waters that drift between the shores of deep house and techno. Carved into each imprint is a series of untitled industrialised analogue sounding grooves by underground evangelists such as Kassem Mosse, Even Tuell and Lowtec. Most of these I've picked up along the way and still revel in playing them to myself and others alike. No doubt the meandyou promoters have done exactly the same and this, one would assume, is the reason they handed over their entire night to the Berlin-based trio.
Photo credit: Nik Torrens
The sharp, destructive chords and low swinging basslines of Leveon Vincent's "Woman Is the Devil" were crawling hauntingly from the speaker stacks when I arrived. The interior of Bookbinders has become a welcome monthly backdrop for me as familiar faces scatter the '80s memorial carpet. The horrors contained within their vodka mixers and stained low ceilings are unsurpassable yet strangely help to make the event what it is.
This is now the fourth, perhaps even fifth, meandyou review I've written, but still I find myself lost in a sea of inspiring memories that excite me to my keyboard. As I begin to look back at Lowtec and Even Tuell's first few hours I remember a series of marching and mostly unidentifiable tracks. They seemed to bring the room up to a level and hold them there for the entirety. If I were to define a warm-up set musically then I'd take a recording of that set leading up to 1 AM and throw a stamp on it that simply said "done." They seemed to be in a world of their own, smiling brightly from behind the decks as the crowd gravitated towards the dance floor.
For an hour the procession was handed over to the fresh faced Kassem Mosse. Laptop-enabled he played an hour long live set that, again, kept the four-four faithful cruising along. I revelled in the simple rhythms that crept out from the dance-inspiring basslines. Unlike many producers who seem to regurgitate a selection of their proudest sounds, Mosse showed huge diversity in his set which was never devoid of intoxication. He is definitely a producer to watch.
Photo credit: Nik Torrens
Tuell and Lowtec steered the closing two hours, resuming their march through electronic wonderment. The pace quickened and slowed with natural aplomb as their set took in a wide variety of sounds that were somehow wrapped up into a single vibe. At one point they even dabbled in classic garage, playing "Follow Me." But it was towards the end of their set that I finally lost what cool exterior I had as they unexpectedly dropped Pépé Bradock's remix of Iz and Diz's "Mouth." By the time I'd finished telling everyone in the room how much I loved that record the night was regrettably all but over. Like most others at the night, I left in pure amazement at what had just took place. I still think the Slowhouse meandyou was my favourite, but had I written this review on another day perhaps I may have said this one. Glorious, glorious times.