After wowing fans last New Years at the Docklands in Melbourne (where he went back to back with no less than Sven Vath), I was hoping for an equally impressive performance here, from Canada’s Richie Hawtin, one of techno’s finest and most innovative exponents.

The Adelaide scene had come out in force to support not only Hawtin but the local techno scene as well. The 500 strong crowd was already moving to the sounds of local lad Kristian on the decks as the dance floor was beginning to gain momentum. The general layout of this venue is perfect for an event of this nature, where the front room and upstairs balcony are used more for socialising, playing the odd game of pool and getting a drink, leaving ample space in the main room to be able to dance and move about with ease. The decor on the night was also top notch with large cutouts of ‘plastikman’ and red light district logos adorning the walls and stage as well as the projector showing images of local and interstate parties, adding a party vibe to the night.

Outpost Incorporated, in his last live set, delivered thirty minutes of his trademark sound to the now rapidly swelling dance floor. Featuring dark and trippy techno influenced beats he finished with an up tempo rhythm which provided the perfect warm-up to the main event.

By now the floor was a buzz with anticipation and excitement as the ‘plastikman’ took the stage with his Final Scratch system in tow, ready to unleash it on the eager punters. The first half of his set was a journey through funky tech house and techno that saw the crowd lose it many times with screams of delight and hands in the air action! The projector screen was now showing live footage of Hawtin on the decks, which made the night surreal and entertaining on another level. I was amazed at how well he controlled the energy level throughout the set with periods when it was so dark and dubby you were left wondering what would come next as he experimented, looped and sampled his way across two and a half hours of bliss.

By the time the last track was dropped, we had been taken on a roller-coaster ride through the depths of techno and back again as he delivered an impressive performance that left no doubt as to why he is one of the heavy weights in the scene.

A big thankyou goes out to the Red Light Crew once again for coming up with the goods in providing Adelaide with another quality international act.

Matthew Hall

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