Derrick May & DJ Rolando @ The End, saturday 29th jan. 2000 London, UK
Whatta night! Watch out cos' May is on fire! No one could touch him on saturday! Derrick May stepped up to the decks and immediately stamped his authority on the world of techno music. I found myself making comparisons with various performances by Jeff Mills. (Like it or not no one can argue the fact that Mills is the greatest (techno) DJ on the face of this planet!) But on saturday night I don't think Mills could have played better than the innovator. He was staright into the mix starting of with the whole lost/killa bite/bango kinda feel, played for about 20 mins/half an hour then... boo yah. He enlightened us all with what can only be described as 'tribal rhytyms'. Someone mentioned he had been played Fema Kuti (ex. sp.) tracks lately that could have been it, it was briiliant! He then took us back in the mix continuing to produce one of the mixes I've ever seen. Unfortunately there was no 'Stings of Life', damn, I'm still waitng to hear him play that track. Unlike his last performance at lost, where he played a more housy kinda mix, this was... shit what can I say.... this was.... unbelievably excellent. Watch out cos Derrick May has stepped into the 21st century! It was always going to be hard for any one to top that, Rolando gave it ago but never really came close to what May had produced and his performance wasn't any better than that of when he played at Fabric at the end of December. (on a night when Carl Craig produced one of the best live performances!) Saying that it was still a better DJ set than any average DJ could produce, it's just a shame he had to go on after what May had just done. It was nice to see that his only trick doesn't consist of doubling Fix's 'Flash'. Rolando ended the night with a new/extended mix of 'Nights of the Jaguar' which was great! It was a moving and inspirational night thanks to; The End, Derrick May, DJ Rolando and most importantly Detroit. Colin McBean added some amusement in the DJ booth and the kid with an MD and a mic. attempting to record the whole thing has to get a clap too. A couple of Q's Who has the info on Technasia, a mate of mine pointed out that May played a couple of there tracks, damn they where good. The 'tribal' track, real nice percussion, jazz loop style. Anyone know the track? Thats all for know, sorry if I've missed anything out, Laters, WorkZ -------------------- talk21 your FREE portable and private address on the net at http://www.talk21.com
