- Cutloose have built up a reputation in Manchester as the home to eclectic DJs like Theo Parrish, DJ Spun and Brennan Green. Thus, when Cutloose announced the idiosyncratic Moodymann as their next spinner, it seemed like an obvious choice. The night has been held most often at the Roadhouse, a dark and dingy sweat box and one of the city's finest intimate venues. The rectangular dance floor, minimal lighting and hefty sound system lend itself to dancing and little else. It's too dark on the floor to check out what people are wearing, and it's too loud to chat. The club doesn't offer many home comforts either, so little time is spent propping up the bar.
Photo credit: Nik Torrens
Not that many had a reason during Moodymann's set. From comments made during his performance, Kenny Dixon Jr has a special affinity for Manchester. His home city of Detroit and Manchester share similarities, of course, as both are post-industrial cities that are probably more famous for their musical past than present. His earliest visits to the city in the mid-'00s saw him playing at cult parties like Eyes Down and Electric Chair. They were messy affairs, more a cross between a comedy show and an overblown live gig, conducted from behind a sheet. In 2010, Dixon is still a singular figure behind the decks. But now the sheet is gone and he's tightened up his act as a DJ. He even posed for photos, something unheard of a number of years ago.
Photo credit: Nik Torrens
Musically, KDJ began with a mixture of slo-mo house and hip-hop, warming up the crowd slowly with things like Georg Levin's edit of Wahoo's "Don't Take It Personal." Often stopping the music to tell stories or ask for requests, his peaktime consisted of various styles and tempos, from grunge to techno. High points included Telex's jolly "Moscow Disco," his own "J.A.N." and Nirvana's "Come As You Are." As expected, the clubbier material received the best reaction. But the usual Cutloose mixture of musos and cooler clubbers—with an extra contingent of geeks and old faces—seemed to enjoy all of it. Nearly as much as KDJ himself...who even sang along to some of the records he played off the mic.