30th May
Not So Secret Warehouse
9/10
After being introduced to Rødhåd at last year’s Selective Hearing Dimensions launch party – where he blew Ben Klock out the water – I was delighted and unsurprised to see the Berlin born DJ booked again. Joining him on the night were DJ Deep and DVS1, a line up reflective of Selective Hearing’s status as the biggest techno night in Manchester.
DJ Deep was the first headliner to step up at 10pm; he spins a building set, raising the crowd up from house selections to a climax of techno. The soulful vocals of tracks such as Mr. G’s ‘Music For All’ become the creepy synths and relentless hi hats of Insolate’s ‘Epic’. This sets the tone well for the following b2b from resident Reflec and Setaoc Mass. The pair combine to ramp the energy in the room, drawing for increasingly explosive techno records.
Then it’s time for Rødhåd, and once again he takes things to the next level, pushing the sound system to its maximum capability with a chaotic set. The packed room goes absolutely wild for every selection, screaming in appreciation as Digital Express’s ‘The Club’ transforms the room into a sweaty mass.
The set is a master class, and a very tough act to follow; it’s inevitable that DVS1 afterwards is a slight come down. His set is dark and percussive, characterised by Savas Pascalidis’s ‘Mechanic’, but doesn’t quite match the energy of Rødhåd. That is until the two join forces for a spontaneous b2b, and with their combined might close out the night in tumultuous fashion.
