EVENT REVIEW: Charlie Darker at Adelaide Hall 05-23-14

My very first experience at Adelaide Hall was a low-key yet positive one. As I walked through the entrance and looked over the balcony onto the stage, I had a clear view of JRSTK, a local Toronto DJ who had already begun spinning before 10 p.m.

Playing Bass guitar since he was younger, and now mixing the heavy bass beats at the clubs, but I had no idea that JRSTK is actually not only a DJ, but a producer and painter! His set was a good mix of chill beats, which complimented the Dutch-House and Tech. The environment felt very relaxed which might seem odd at first for a Big Room House show, but there were many moments where the builds were enough to get us pumped and then mellow the crowd out again.

After taking in the overhead view from the balcony, I ventured downstairs to the dance floor and found a scattered crowd who seemed dedicated enough to let loose to the chill vibes.

With the support of Chuckie, Sebastian Ingrosso, Markus Schulz and BBC Radio1, Paul David kept energy levels high and the bass down low. Around 11 p.m. DJ Paul David came on and won me over with some Electro House, Melbourne bounce, and Moombahton. Although these subgenres seemed to have the best reactions from the crowd, they were too scarce in my opinion and spread out among a lot of Big room tracks. It was obvious that the set would have been better received if there were more of a crowd to fill in the big hall for all the Big room songs. There also seemed to be a few technical difficulties and slips, but Paul David laughed it off and kept the good vibes coming regardless.

Although the hall was still slightly empty, I could see the bartenders bobbing their heads from their spots, wishing they could join us on the dance floor. Paul David had kicked off those summer big room beats for me, sometimes leaving some jungle influences in there or a smidge of electro, almost as a tease. It was enough to look over to the bar and see the desire of the staff to dance.

At 12:30 p.m. Charlie Darker came to the stage and hung out for a bit before beginning his set. After a couple quick tracks, he announced that the mixer was giving technical difficulties. The problem was soon fixed and the crowd was revived upon hearing the Botnek remix of Martin Garrix’s Animals. Although that track isn’t one of my own personal favourites, it had everyone moving in no time.

Then I realized the owner of the venue had jumped in the crowd with us and danced with a lot of soul. She unknowingly encouraged a lot of us to jump in with her and go nuts to Tech-House. Our little crew of people merged with other little groups and before we knew it, I had made a few new friends.

Towards the end of Charlie Darker’s set, I unfortunately started feeling under the weather. I had to leave early to make the drive back home safely.

The closing set was from ASMR who played a weird, robotic, dissonant techno set. And I mean weird in all the right ways! Some of his beats are darker while others are more chill with good percussion breaks and funky synths. Li5ten Up! chose him to close the show for a reason! He was a hidden treasure to the line up! I’ve heard that his small selection of tracks on SoundCloud does NOT do him justice.

I look forward to the next dance event that Li5ten Up! presents us. Until then, keep dancing!

LINKS:

Charlie Darker
SoundCloud

DJ Paul David
SoundCloud

ASMR (formerly Subwulf)
SoundCloud

JRSTK
http://jrstk.com/

DiGo SyN 
https://facebook.com/DiGoSyNpromotions

BNE Event Services
https://www.facebook.com/BNE.Events

 Serafina Thoma – EDM TOR