- Meandyou has quickly established itself as eminent amongst the many house/techno parties in Manchester. And with a booking policy seemingly focussed on talent that's often overlooked, Move D looked like the perfect guest.
D's been around for a while. He set up Source Records way back in 1992 and has been releasing deep house, techno and acid cuts since. Both his own releases and the Source label output vary in style but are always of the highest quality. Recently he's been working with super cool labels like Workshop and Running Back, but it was his connection with Manchester's Modern Love records that brought him to the rainy city, headlining a label showcase for the deep techno imprint, along with fellow Modern Lover MLZ.
Bookbinders, where the gig took place, feels most like a good old British working men's club—albeit one tucked away in a city centre basement near Manchester's Canal street. Low ceilings are normally desirable in a club, mirrored walls less so. But no problem, it added glitter proceedings and made the venue seem as expansive as the performer's selections. The crowd was cool, youthful and eagerly anticipating headliner Move D's set.
Residents Dan Mumberson and Joseph set the tone, shimmying between lush deep house and acute, functional rhythm cuts. They sneaked the odd epic techno dub track in as well—a style the night has championed thus far. Unfortunately I must have missed fellow resident Arnaldo's set; his techno leanings might have added a bit of grit to proceedings. Abstract Earth and Craig Boylan were apparently responsible for the excellent visuals—apt and un-intrusive.
When, D took to the decks, the dance floor immediately filled. Leaving his laptop at home, he DJ'd tracks that built on the sound work of the residents, taking us further into the realms of the deep house groove. I can only guess at the gems that must weigh down his record shelves, but he gave us a glimpse tonight. Tight and efficient mixing, and a classy sound that was all restrained emotion and super quality productions.
MLZ, on the other hand, ranged around the musical terrain in an hour-long Ableton live set. From a dubby techno starting point he was quickly into more irregular beat programming. Whilst impressive in its range and movement between styles, it did sound a bit well behaved, lacking the anger of aggressive dubstep or the weight of techno dub. Although a seemingly imposing rig, the sound was a bit light, and with the nature of the music played you need some deep bass to really make it physical.