Another Psychedelic Babylon event has come and passed, this time their Winter Madness edition, and my attachment is rising for this growing community of people that just straight-up love Psytrance. Once again at Sound Xchange, coming together with this tightly knit group of people really opened my eyes to how passionate they are about what they are trying to accomplish. Huge shout out to Junior Silva and the gang for throwing another amazing event with great vibes, and even better people!
I arrived at the venue around 10:30pm to ensure I didn’t miss the first set of the night. No longer nervous about going solo, as I mentioned in my last review, I marched into Sound Xchange thirsty for the heavy bass that could be heard outside, in the heart of Chinatown. I was welcomed wholeheartedly by management manning the door, and was treated like a friend more than anything else. After I said hi to everyone, I got rid of my pesky jacket and off I went to the dance floor.
Nocturne Live was just getting warmed up when I arrived. He played a solid set with tons of drops, solidifying the fact for me that these events are not messing around – they mean serious psy business straight from the get-go. At this point in the night not a whole lot of people had shown up yet, but the people that were there were already rocking out, hard. Nocturne played quite a few familiar tracks, such as Armin’s collaboration with Vini Vici’s Great Spirit and Outbreak by Chris & Matt Kidd. It was my first time seeing Nocturne spin, and it definitely won’t be the last.
Next up was Magic Mushroom, and it was already about an hour and a half(ish) into the night. This having been my second time seeing him, I’m beginning to understand his style – he goes fast, hard, and dark. The basslines are unrelenting when Magic Mushroom gets up there. He threw down tracks such as Tristan & Aardvarkk’s Daws of Perception and Invisible Reality & One Function’s Esoteric, which showcase his dark Psy-Trance preference. I felt as if time stopped and sped up at the same time during this set, as the tracks largely sounded similar to me, although not in a boring way. I will welcome Magic Mushroom to any lineup in the future!
These seamless transitions brought Timelock and Weekend Heroes’ (Felix Nagorsky’s other alias) sets together in a way that made many of us quietly ask one another whether Weekend Heroes had actually begun. These questions were more inquisitive than anything, though, as it was clear that crowd was still having a blast regardless of the answer. Eventually it became clear that Weekend Heroes had indeed blessed the stage, as the tracks began getting lighter, more bouncy, and less psychedelic. For me, this was a welcomed break between sets, as most of the night thus far comprised track after track of booming, high bpm psy. The beats were lighter, which relaxed my legs a bit in anticipation for the rest of the night. Weekend Heroes played a lot of his own tunes, although once again Shazam was failing me (insert huffing emoji here).
The crowd applauded Weekend Heroes/Timelock as he finished his back-to-back sets. This appreciation was cut short, however, by what was once again an abrupt transition to the next artist. The sound cut in and out, and one individual shouted “silence is beautiful!” through the silence while we all patiently waited for the bass to bless our ears once again. Leave it to trance fans to find magic in everything, especially at 3:00am.
ABTunes was unable to make this event, as he was back home in Iran. I was happy to hear that Zev was playing in his place, though, as he didn’t make it to the last Psychedelic Babylon event! Zev did not let the energy slow down, and he played the h*ll out of his one hour set. I distinctly remember feeling as though I was on a spaceship the entire time, floating through the music. He played Pavel Tkachev’s Surena at one point, which is a long track that takes you on a journey just on its own. I have to say, I was impressed by Zev’s ability to stimulate the crowd after the headliner, specifically in a way that allowed for ebbs in the bpms. Catch him next time – he’s worth it!
Last but not least, Alien Pilot hit the decks at 4:00am and played until he closed off the night at 6:30am. Just like the last Psychedelic Babylon event, he hit the crowd with heavy, unrelenting drops. You can tell he’s in the zone while he’s spinning, as he hardly looks up at the crowd – it seems as though there is nothing stopping him. He dropped quite a few recognizable tracks, which was welcomed for me at this point in the night because it kept my energy levels up and my feet on the dance floor. To name a few, he laid down Vini Vici vs. Bizzare Contact’s remix of Answer from the Stars, Astrix’s Deep Jungle Walk, and mixed in I Only Smoke by Coming Soon!!!. He also dropped Shibass & Pure Vida’s Light in Your Eyes, which my sources tell me was for a particular person in the crowd (juicy!). Even if his transitions seemed abrupt, they were still somehow seamless, which gives this Windsor-based DJ the impact of a headliner. I see great things coming from him in the future!
LINKS:
Timelock
Weekend Heroes
Alien Pilot
MagicMushroom
Nocturne Live
Amber Wilkinson – EDM TOR
