4CLUBBERS - DROPOUT LONDON HOUSE & TECHNO REVIEW (22nd Nov 08)
Written by John Abernethy go to article

When London’s had twelve months dominated by closures and goodbyes, it’s become clear that the future of the capital, whatever the superclubs may tell you, lies with the underground. Whether it’s the established likes of Mulletover, DDD and Secretsundaze, or a legion of smaller nights, the lifeblood of London’s scene is as much in the hands of the very people that have filled its coffers over the past decade, with many of the newest nights borne from a desire to establish a night in their own image when the capital is now facing a lack of spark at the top of the tree.

One of this new wave is DropOut. Relaunched (or simply renamed, depending on the perspective) after spending the drop out london house technomajority of 2008 in the mists of Stoke Newington, it’s relocated to the heart of Shoreditch, to the much-loved Horse and Groom, perched at one end of Curtain Road. Formed at the start of the year by a quartet of ex-Leeds dwellers and Londoners, its m.o. was simple – a move away from the monster clubs and shiny, polished VIP rooms, and a return to their roots with unreconstructed raving where the cost of entry is less than a pint.

Seven months on, and shorn of a resident, it’s a leaner and drop out london house technomeaner DropOut that hits the straps in November, enlisting the assistance of one of London’s heralded new-school: Mark Sun. The Aussie has long been based in the capital, and while its music played, he was one of Turnmills’ Future Heroes, ploughing a confident furrow of tech and deep house.

In its new surroundings, equally plush and laid-back, the warm-up is served with a deft touch by resident Guy Hornsby. Celebrating the recent release of his DropClick remix on Liberttas Music, it’s an exercise in scene-setting that proves the art of the warm-up isn’t a lost one. Subtly raising the tempo and laying down a swathe of deep electronic house – Bearweasel’s dub of Boris Horel’s Is That A Yes and Lee Curtiss’ Sexy Dancer standing out - thedrop out london house techno room is soon piled with smiling faces, shuffling and nodding to the early-evening fare.

Guest Sun takes to the decks with confidence and weaves a mix of past and present, showing why the affable Australian is still one to be taken seriously. Passing through the entire spectrum from deep and groovy, to acid and tech-house, it was two hours of unashamed pleasure-inducing music that shook the room of one of Curtain Road’s more individual boltholes. With so many DJs on the scene in the capital its hard to rise above the parapet, but Sun’s done this time and again.

The Horse and Groom’s polished pub-cum-club persona is the better of many of the myriad of venues that litter the triangle from Old Street’s drop out london house technoroundabout along Curtain Road, Great Eastern Street up to Shoreditch High Street, forming the eastern epicentre of London’s electronic music patchwork, an area whose influence is ever-growing as bigger venues and their licences prove to be the enemy of many of the city’s councils. It’s the reason that nights like DropOut are fighting to stake their claim in a sea of smaller nights.

Fellow residents StefJam (Stefan Lesik and Jamie Richards), meanwhile, close out proceedings once again, in a slot they have made their own since the night’s birth at the start of the year. The easy-going pair have the telepathic understanding that makes DJ duos tick, and seamlessly shift between CD and laptop, using Traktor to drop new productions into the mix as four-o-clock approaches, limiting any excuse those present have to leave the dancefloor. When the close finally arrives, the lights are met with groadrop out london house technons when the morning’s entertainment is finally over.

In a climate of closing clubs and shrinking dancefloors, this is a party with no delusions of grandeur. Delivering on music and atmosphere that belies its stature, it’s part of an army of smaller nights that are springing up as the bigger venues stress and strain, evidence that bigger names and bigger door prices aren’t the sole arbiter of quality in the naughties. On this showing, the capital’s underground is alive and well…