Anthems @ Arkaba, Adelaide (25/02/05)
Reported on Tuesday, Mar 01, 2005. 13:19 by Raveprincess
Read the original article on inthemix.com.au!
Walking up Glen Osmond Road coming up to the Arkaba, my partner and I were accosted by a bunch of young ‘uns asking us “Excuse me – is this where the anthems show is? It’s just that the music we can hear out here isn’t exactly what we were expecting…” Indeed, the strains of some bloke with an electric guitar belting out…well, I’m not exactly sure what it was, but something along the lines of Toto or Neil Diamond or possibly ELO (will someone please make sure Eric Prydz never goes along to the Ark on a “normal” Friday night – God forbid he should get any more ideas!) “Yep – you’re in the right place lads, but thankfully anthems is upstairs.”
Things have certainly gone back in time a lot further than is necessary at the Arkaba, and it’s not a pretty place on a standard Friday night, unless you’re keen to catch up with single grandparents “lookin’ for lurv” the second…or third…or fourth time around (If that attempt to paint you a mental picture didn’t warn you off Time Warp @ the Ark, then you’re much braver than I thought!) Thankfully, PaulHamon managed to barricade the top room @The Ark against these natural enemies of the clubber and re-create an environment that takes us back to the heyday of dance music discovery in Adelaide. A time when there was no division between genres and it was all quite rightly known as “techno” - music produced with “technology” rather than the traditional musical instruments.
It was therefore wonderful to see so many different types of clubber united together on the night – from the girlies in minis and fur gaitors who would’ve barely been out of kindy when some of the anthems tracks were released, the black-clad “whistle-possie” boys who knew every word to every track, the 30-somethings reliving memories in their phat pants & comfy slogan tees, to the casually dressed toe-tappers who observed the dance-floor action from the sidelines.
All smiles and happiness, the crowd was somewhat larger and more varied than the previous instalment of Ark anthems – which is testament to the growing reputation of this awesome night. Each of the DJs more than qualified for the title of old-skool vinyl spinner, with every one a serious contributor to the Adelaide scene over a minimum of 10 years - Brendon, ATB, Madness, Andy J, Mr S, George The Boss, Noddy and H-Bomb. MC Tim, Maestro D and Rude Boy kept up the vocal performances we’ve become accustomed to from them, hyping the crowd and kickin’ it to ‘em.
Interestingly, the format of each individual set was also a bit of a throw-back. Whereas lately, whole events are devoted to a particular style of music and are very rigid in their definition of a particular sound, the vinyl warriors of old took us on a musical journey within their own set. Moving through various genres, starting with the likes of Robyn S’s “Show Me Love” and ending somewhere near Dyewitness or Ultra-sonic, with side trips brought to you by The Prodigy, K-Class and Bizarre Inc. I’m pretty sure all the guys managed to dust off some of their old favourite records, give them a decent work-out to an appreciative crew and, with any luck, bring back a few special memories for themselves.
Everyone has their own favourite anthems tune, and judging by the grins that occupied every face in the room, most people had found a recollection or two to accompany the fabulous tunes on offer. Hopefully a younger generation also received a bit of an education, particularly from Noddy and H-Bomb, who proved that hard-core certainly wasn’t invented in the last few years – as some would have you believe!
My personal highlights for the evening – Quadrophonia’s storming track of the same name, Alpha Team’s “Speed Racer”, which pretty much epitomises the whole anthems era for me, Human Resource’s “Dominator”, inspiring loads of dance-floor posturing, particularly amongst the boys, The Ethics’ “To the Beat of the Drum”, which always reminds me of my best friend’s 21st birthday party, and of course the Prodigy. I know I’m not alone in the Prodigy being the bait that lured me into the devilish world of dance music (damn your genius, Liam!) and their track “Charly” was the soundtrack to my electronica epiphany, so I was very happy that it was played. “Outer Space” also got a run, and guarantees a rowdy dance-floor sing-along quicker than Tina Turner’s “Nutbush City Limits” inspires a floor full of silly co-ordinated dance-steps!
Thank you once again PaulHamon! We are most pleased to hear that anthems will now become a more regular event, so all us oldies have a reason to don the flashy-glowy accessories every so often and get out of the house more! If you’ve never been, give it a go when the next one comes around – and in the immortal words of Molly Meldrum “Do yourself a favour!” I promise you won’t be disappointed - you’ll definitely come home with a musical education and a few new friends to boot!
Reported on Tuesday, Mar 01, 2005. 13:19 by Raveprincess
Read the original article on inthemix.com.au!
Walking up Glen Osmond Road coming up to the Arkaba, my partner and I were accosted by a bunch of young ‘uns asking us “Excuse me – is this where the anthems show is? It’s just that the music we can hear out here isn’t exactly what we were expecting…” Indeed, the strains of some bloke with an electric guitar belting out…well, I’m not exactly sure what it was, but something along the lines of Toto or Neil Diamond or possibly ELO (will someone please make sure Eric Prydz never goes along to the Ark on a “normal” Friday night – God forbid he should get any more ideas!) “Yep – you’re in the right place lads, but thankfully anthems is upstairs.”
Things have certainly gone back in time a lot further than is necessary at the Arkaba, and it’s not a pretty place on a standard Friday night, unless you’re keen to catch up with single grandparents “lookin’ for lurv” the second…or third…or fourth time around (If that attempt to paint you a mental picture didn’t warn you off Time Warp @ the Ark, then you’re much braver than I thought!) Thankfully, PaulHamon managed to barricade the top room @The Ark against these natural enemies of the clubber and re-create an environment that takes us back to the heyday of dance music discovery in Adelaide. A time when there was no division between genres and it was all quite rightly known as “techno” - music produced with “technology” rather than the traditional musical instruments.
It was therefore wonderful to see so many different types of clubber united together on the night – from the girlies in minis and fur gaitors who would’ve barely been out of kindy when some of the anthems tracks were released, the black-clad “whistle-possie” boys who knew every word to every track, the 30-somethings reliving memories in their phat pants & comfy slogan tees, to the casually dressed toe-tappers who observed the dance-floor action from the sidelines.
All smiles and happiness, the crowd was somewhat larger and more varied than the previous instalment of Ark anthems – which is testament to the growing reputation of this awesome night. Each of the DJs more than qualified for the title of old-skool vinyl spinner, with every one a serious contributor to the Adelaide scene over a minimum of 10 years - Brendon, ATB, Madness, Andy J, Mr S, George The Boss, Noddy and H-Bomb. MC Tim, Maestro D and Rude Boy kept up the vocal performances we’ve become accustomed to from them, hyping the crowd and kickin’ it to ‘em.
Interestingly, the format of each individual set was also a bit of a throw-back. Whereas lately, whole events are devoted to a particular style of music and are very rigid in their definition of a particular sound, the vinyl warriors of old took us on a musical journey within their own set. Moving through various genres, starting with the likes of Robyn S’s “Show Me Love” and ending somewhere near Dyewitness or Ultra-sonic, with side trips brought to you by The Prodigy, K-Class and Bizarre Inc. I’m pretty sure all the guys managed to dust off some of their old favourite records, give them a decent work-out to an appreciative crew and, with any luck, bring back a few special memories for themselves.
Everyone has their own favourite anthems tune, and judging by the grins that occupied every face in the room, most people had found a recollection or two to accompany the fabulous tunes on offer. Hopefully a younger generation also received a bit of an education, particularly from Noddy and H-Bomb, who proved that hard-core certainly wasn’t invented in the last few years – as some would have you believe!
My personal highlights for the evening – Quadrophonia’s storming track of the same name, Alpha Team’s “Speed Racer”, which pretty much epitomises the whole anthems era for me, Human Resource’s “Dominator”, inspiring loads of dance-floor posturing, particularly amongst the boys, The Ethics’ “To the Beat of the Drum”, which always reminds me of my best friend’s 21st birthday party, and of course the Prodigy. I know I’m not alone in the Prodigy being the bait that lured me into the devilish world of dance music (damn your genius, Liam!) and their track “Charly” was the soundtrack to my electronica epiphany, so I was very happy that it was played. “Outer Space” also got a run, and guarantees a rowdy dance-floor sing-along quicker than Tina Turner’s “Nutbush City Limits” inspires a floor full of silly co-ordinated dance-steps!
Thank you once again PaulHamon! We are most pleased to hear that anthems will now become a more regular event, so all us oldies have a reason to don the flashy-glowy accessories every so often and get out of the house more! If you’ve never been, give it a go when the next one comes around – and in the immortal words of Molly Meldrum “Do yourself a favour!” I promise you won’t be disappointed - you’ll definitely come home with a musical education and a few new friends to boot!