29 July 2010

If you're setting up a new, groundbreaking record company, there are a few promotion options available to you.

Rent a helicopter with a big flag underneath with your logo all over it and fly it over London. No? Well how about dancing girls in skin tight costumes handing out flyers made of silken moonlight? Or, alternatively, you Words: Will Jobbins
Pics: Will Poolecould launch your label with a big event at Parker McMillan near Barbican, showcasing your best talent and allowing those involved with all the various aspects of the Virus Project to combine their various skills
Well, considering that everybody worked together through nothing else than a sense of duty (ie no wages), it went pretty well. With separate Virus personnel in charge of the various aspects of the event - décor, music, lighting, front of house, venue liaison etc - tasks were delegated in a very democratic manner, and in a real testament to the entire team the most major fuck up of the night involved running out of toilet paper halfway through a pre-performance crap by one of the DJs. Which one? Well, that'd be telling...

First to grace the decks was Ade Laugee, Planet Angel resident and purveyor of fine, funky beats. Hand-picked for the opening set, he specialises in uplifting, bouncy tunes ideal for people to 'arrive' to. By the time he finished he'd already got many still-sober members of the audience up and dancing - no mean feat at 9pm! Quick to follow was Vaetxh, a producer whose tunes are sublime exercises in minimal, dubstep-driven glitch. Stumbling beats and brutal, darkly psychedelic basslines made it difficult to dance to but amazing to experience, and Vaetxh cemented his reputation as one of Acidic Records' key players. Shortly after that it was Wingnut (yes kids, that's me, the only DJ who doesn't get a mention on the vid but am I bitter? No, I'm just going to play shitloads of Abba at the next Acidic Records event...) who stepped into the booth. I murdered a selection of psybreaks tracks but somehow managed to get a few people moving before Acidic producer Cellardore took the reins and played a full set of his own productions for the first time, to a great crowd reaction.

Website
www.acidicrecords.co.ukAs expected, he got the place absolutely banging before relinquishing the crossfader to DJ Fiend who poured a set of relentlessly pounding drum n' bass into the audience before making way for Andy Bellenie - aka Mr Strangelove, who was on loan from Wonky Disco for the night. Mr Strangelove laid down psytrance banger after psytrance banger, including a very wonky version of the Crystal Maze theme tune, and danced around like a mental case behind the decks. By the time the plug was pulled at 2am, in line with Parker McMillan's licence, the small dance area was absolutely packed and everyone seemed to be having a great time - one person even being so moved as to later write a poem about it here.

For a first time event it was an absolute corker, and with the second event only weeks away you'd be plain mad to swerve it. A much bigger line up for October's event through two rooms is planned, with Far Too Loud headlining and support from the Equalizers, Cellardore, Vaetxh, Wingnut (the twat) and more. See the full line-up, venue information and all the relevant shiznit you need to know here.