Putting a shine on Club 120 last Friday night, Eye Candy, a premier joint venture of PixelCorn and Electric Star Productions, lit up the January gloom with a twisted techno and colour circus. I arrived at the venue just a little after ten, and the first thing I noticed, once I was in the door, were the beautifully puffy clouds hanging over the dance floor. Colourful lighting played through them in tiny rainbow storms and the lights danced across their fluffy white surfaces.
The music was already in full swing with Paul Savage behind the decks. Releasing some tumbling percussive beats, including Get Down Tonight and What A Feeling. Cheesier than his usual fare, this opening set warmed up the dance floor nicely, as those of us making up the sparse crowd present couldn’t keep from moving to the bouncy, active rhythms. As Paul Savage handed control of the decks over to Elle Nocturnal, though, I took a break from moving to the beats to take a better look at the decor I had been admiring from the dance floor.
As I climbed the stairs to the second level in order to get closer, I was treated to an unimpeded view of the customized signs above the stage that spelled out each promoter’s name. ESP’s sign blazed with multicoloured lights on a stylized star-shaped background, while the 8-bit-styled letters of PixelCorn cycled through colour tones, accenting the other sign and the rainbow storms in the dancefloor clouds. A unique ESP and PixelCorn animation played via projector against the back wall of the venue, starring one of PixelCorn’s original mascot-creatures – an adorable animal that appears to be an amalgamation of a squirrel and a butterfly, but boasting an alicorn (which, if you didn’t know, is the appropriate term for a unicorn’s horn) situated on its forehead.
I found a great spot on the upper level that had both a great vantage point for admiring the deco, and a view of the DJ booth and the dance floor. With Elle Nocturnal‘s smooth techno as backdrop, I caught up with several friends who had come in with the growing trickle of arrivals. A very compact and contiguous set with House-like overtones; I enjoyed the way it continuously returned to its theme. I soon made my way back downstairs to return to the dance floor in anticipation of the next DJ.
Frequently hailed as a local psy-trance hero, Audi Étoffe switched gears for the night to deliver a spectacular techno set every bit as textured and multi-layered as I had come to expect from his psy-trance. Solid builds and drops dipped and danced around a rolling beat that was bouncy and demanded dancing, yet held a viscous, almost jungle-reminiscent quality. Darker and heavier than anything yet, it kicked the speed up a little and got the entire venue – which was quite full by this point – moving.
After a solid hour of dancing, I finally made my way to the bar from the dance floor as the first headliner, Addy, began his hour and a half set. Taking advantage of the drink specials, I sipped a favourite as I admired the colourful outfits attendees showed off, including multiple unicorn onesies (a popular theme, I saw at least four or five outfits based on unicorns or sporting alicorns), full body frog and squid costumes, a stunning rainbow mohawk, and dozens of other amazingly creative and colourful outfits, which added to the theme and atmosphere of the night.
A distinctly different flavour from Audi, Addy‘s techno beats were more classically techno than anything played yet that night. Blending in more of a club feel, it had a more detailed and airy feel, with light melodies atop the bass. Yet this set did not stand out for me as much as some of our ESP residents’. My sentiments seemed to be my own though, as the dance floor remained so full that I took a moment to check out the upstairs photo booth that had been set up. It was difficult to find enough space to dance freely and I welcomed the change.
A brightly lit pinwheel spun before the photo booth, divided into segments, detailing ideas for fun picture poses like “Rockstars”, “Kitty Cats”, and “Body Builders”. Behind the wheel, the photo booth attracted a steady stream of attention as a unique way to preserve the memories made at Eye Candy as well as part of the fantastic custom-made PixelCorn decor.
As Addy’s set wrapped up, there was a distinct shift in the tone of the night. Ticky Ty‘s phenomenal energy behind the decks burst out in her music and the personality visible in her performance, and spilled out onto the dance floor, infusing new energy into the crowd with her crisp, fluid techno beats. Dropping a couple of recognizable tracks at opportune moments – including Ori Tali Ma by Sander Van Doorn – her smooth mixing and eye for reading the crowd delivered a mind-blowing, high energy set that burned up the dance floor. Ticky Ty’s reputation is definitely well-deserved – she was a pleasure to listen to, and her passion is evident, instilled in every note! From her opening bars to finally stepping down from the decks – to a standing ovation – and handing things over to the night’s last DJ, there wasn’t a free space on the dance floor while Ticky Ty remained.
Taking over the decks next, closer Tim Shannon may have had a hard act to follow, but he was certainly up to the challenge. Almost immediately, he began to raise the bpm, increasing it significantly and diving straight into some dark and grimy techno. Taking a completely different direction from any other DJ that evening, his sound was unique and distinct, smoothing building in layers and building soundscapes that played with beat-skips, pulling both listeners’ and dancers’ attention to his manipulation of rhythm and flow. Club 120 slowly began to empty, as everyone slowly gathered their coats and said their goodbyes.
Tim’s beats followed me out the door and up the street as I reluctantly exited, attempting to connect to transit – a true feat after 1am in Toronto some nights – keeping a tune in my head and a shuffle in my feet long after I left the venue. I thoroughly enjoyed the night at Eye Candy, particularly the unique melding of club and rave culture, attention to detail – especially with deco – and Ticky Ty’s amazing performance! Hopefully the future holds many more PixelCorn & ESP collaborations across the horizon, each as awesome as this inaugural debut!
LINKS:
Event Page
Electric Star Productions
PixelCorn Productions
Club 120
DJ Addy
Facebook
Twitter
Soundcloud
Ticky Ty
Website
Facebook
Soundcloud
Audi Étoffe
Website
Facebook
Soundcloud
Mixcloud
Paul Savage
Facebook
Soundcloud
Elle Nocturnal
Facebook
Soundcloud
Tim Shannon
Facebook
Jade – EDM TOR
