- I often forget the simplicities of adrenaline, over-excitement and a nice can of Red Stripe. It's Friday night of the Bank Holiday weekend and the smell of Hospitality is in the air. We arrive at the good ship Thekla nice and early, before the crowds, and settle down outside on the deck for a smoke and a drink whilst Bristol Hospital residents, Boro and In:sight, do some damage downstairs in the main room. With the bass vibrating through the decking and wooden seats we can, quite literally, feel the energy and vibes of Hospitality beginning already!
First up, we witnessed Gerard hitting the decks with a perfect mood-setter for the rest of the night; he played some jazz-y, melodic numbers with bass-ridden bite, as well as atmospheric tracks with gorgeous vocals, a catchy beat and wicked b-lines. The Jakes Project's "Swerve" goes down a treat and got us all going on the dance floor. Gerard's selection of tunes were beautifully tailored for the audience, and we seemed to all be vibing off each other, as he showcased the fresh and new, alongside old favourites and classic sounds.
Next in the line of fire, man of the moment, Blame, played a smashing set which totally blew me away, kicking things off with one of my favourite tunes ever—Shy FX's epic "Ra." I began to forget everything else around me, including the crowds pushing, all trying to get prime position at the front line, centre stage of the dance floor. The MCs, Wrec and Ruthless, did a great job, causing some serious lyrical damage and hyped up the crowd (not that it really needed it). The crowning glory was Blame's own remix of L.A.O.S "We All"—orchestral flourishes, anthemic house vocals and a rolling beat—it captured the vibe of the night.
As Blame neared the end of his set, the battleground for prime dance floor position thickened as High Contrast approached. Mad, bad and wicked, the Welsh wonderboy lived up to form and completely destroyed the dance floor. For a while I had to stand my ground as the crowd got rowdy, mixing "If We Ever" into Hazard & D*Minds "Mr Happy," and almost causing a riot in the process. Everyone got crammed in and hyped up for "In-a-gadda-da-vida" and "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," but after the initial surge everyone mellowed out a bit. The forthcoming Confidential full-length and its "greatest hits" ethos was reflected in his set, as High Contrast played a mixture of classic tunes, remixes and current smashers, like Nero's "Act Like You Know," which got the techno/house vibe kicking off nicely, with reverberating vocals and a pummeling b-line. He proved he's not just about the anthems though, dropping in some more melodic numbers as well.
Perhaps one of the defining moments of the night, as High Contrast passed over the duties to Danny Byrd, was the opening tune of his set, Spor's almighty "Aztec." Admittdly, I have a soft spot for the neuro-tech side, and am massively digging Spor's forthcoming new 12-inch, but this was undoubtedly a fantastic opener for a set by the Supersized Hospital resident. He kept the vibes going, dropping more D&B bombs, including the classic crowdpleaser "Back to Your Roots."