Lachie Gordon helps Phonica blow out the candles on their eighth birthday.
Phonica Records has come a long way in its eight years of existence. With the simple combination of a welcoming, homely atmosphere, and exceptionally knowledgeable staff, the Soho store has created its own cult following. If you want to hear the latest, freshest mutations of techno and house, Phonica is the place to go. Which is why a night curated by the staff from the shop should be so special. Who better to chose a line-up than the people who spend all day, every day listening to records?
The venue tonight is the Great Suffolk Street Warehouse/Ewer Street Car Park (there seems to be some confusion about the name). Although it is literally a car park, the venue is one of the most impressive in London, with three huge brick arches which, if you were so inclined, you could easily park your double decker in. The rawness of the space lends a sense of excitement that is missing in established clubs, with a touch of an illegal rave vibe, compounded by the portaloos by the entrance. The only problem is that as it’s not a managed club, each promoter has to bring and set up their own soundsystem. This can be very tricky in such a big space as the odd acoustics make things difficult for engineers. Sadly at Phonica, the engineers failed in the main to overcome the sound problems, resulting in many of the sets being indistinct, and sometimes even distorted.
Luckily the impeccable programming shines through and each of the artists lives up to their reputations. Whichever of the arches you find yourself in, it is the same quality. Boston-based pair Soul Clap stand out in the Phonica arch, their hip hop-tinged house dappled with some slightly more heavy beats than they are usually know for. Joy Orbison also rocks it in the same room, bringing more of a British feel to the table, his sometimes spluttering drum rhythms reminding us that UK garage is still a huge influence in our burgeoning music scene.
In the Leftroom space, Benoit and Sergio’s live set is blighted a little by distortion in the system, but still has a high impact, showing why this German pair’s shimmering, melodic style has been charming the industry so much since their debut in 2009. Visionquest, one of the labels of the moment, are represented by Shaun Reeves, Ryan Crosson and Lee Curtis tonight. The supergroup live up to their formidable reputation with their deep tech house selection, the soothing nature of the tunes at odds with the effect that they have on the crowd, who are dancing as if Daft Punk have just popped on stage.
Phonica’s Birthday party is a fitting celebration for such a highly regarded institution: the venue’s grand simplicity, the imaginative visuals and most of all, the banging music throughout. But why oh why didn’t someone sort out that soundsystem?
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