Ark, Thomas Melchior and La Pena in London

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  • Cable is a great venue. Set in the old arches of London Bridge, it oozes industrial charm. The sound system is of impeccable standard, sending reverberations through the brick arches and spacious maze of rooms. But within a music scene that is currently dominated by East London, the outstanding qualities of venues like Cable are irrelevant. It's simply on the wrong side of the river. Couple this with a rainy Saturday night and a slate of bank holiday weekend parties, and it was no surprise that Rhythmatic's recent night celebrating the release of Ark's new album on Perlon wasn't as busy as it should have been. Those who were there—a balanced mix of serious late 20s dedicates and young music lovers—clearly enjoyed the warm-up sets. And rightly so. Rhythmatic's residents Wesley Razzy, Silky, Betoko and Stathis Lazarides play a big part in Rhythmatic's success. Producing quality music, each in their own unique style while holding the anticipation of a crowd is not an easy task, and this quartet pull through, time after time. Einzelkind and Kia followed with a bouncy, crowd-pleasing set that justified the praise that currently surrounds La Pena, whose recent releases received praise from critics for cleverly combining minimal techno with deep house and soul. One of the most eclectic live sets I've ever heard was up next. Ark's genre-spanning performance pushed the boundaries of what you might call "techno." The crowd seemed to agree, sharing my confusion when for a moment it sounded like we had been unwittingly dropped into a West End R&B club. It was only one hour, but the French producer went from Berlin techno to dub to minimal and then straight into warm Detroit and Chicago-inspired disco and house. His diverse set wasn't appreciated by everyone. Especially the sound engineer, who seemed to spend nearly as much time behind the decks as Ark, correcting the headliner's "enthusiasm" on Cable's equipment. You couldn't deny the showmanship, however. In true Ark style, his top came off as he threw himself around the booth with reckless abandon. He even turned the music off a few times to shout something indecipherable at the audience. Next came a DJ set from Thomas Melchior, a cutting-edge artist whose involvement in the electronic music scene goes back further than most of us can remember. In 2008, Melchior said that he thinks "obsession usually leads to preciseness." A man to his word, his set was impeccable. There wasn't a bad mix to be heard, no technical glitches, every record melting into the next with professional ease. Indeed, my disappointment with the night only comes through expectation. I was far from disappointed with Rhythmatic. Ark, Thomas Melchior and La Pena all delivered as well. I'm disappointed in London mostly. It's a city which claims to be bursting with educated music lovers. Where were they on this night? My guess is that it was the other side of the river, wrapped up in the hype.
RA