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Features
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| Introducing NEM3SI$’s new label Infinite Resistance! | | Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! | | Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! | | Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! | | Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. | | Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! | | Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! | | NEM3SI$ - I Live for the Night – talks superficiality, psychopaths, and bittersweet success, ahead of a plethora of evocative, emotional, and passionate upcoming melodic techno releases! | | Psy-Sisters Spring Blast Off! We talk to DJ competition winner ROEN along with other super talents on the lineup! | | Blasting towards summer festivals with Bahar Canca ahead of Psy-Sisters Spring Blast! | | Shyisma talks parties, UFO's, and Shotokan Karate ahead of his upcoming album 'Particles' on Iono-Music! | | SOME1 talks family, acid, stage fright and wolves - ahead of his upcoming album release ‘Voyager’ on Iono-Music in February 2023! | | The Transmission Crew tell all and talk about their first London event on 24th February 2023! | | NIXIRO talks body, mind and music production ahead of his release 'Planet Impulse' on Static Movement's label - Sol Music! | | Turning the world into a fairy tale with Ivy Orth ahead of Tribal Village’s 10th Birthday Anniversary Presents: The World Lounge Project | | The Psy-Sisters chat about music, achievements, aspirations and the 10-Year Anniversary Party - 18/12/22! | | A decade of dance music with Daniel Lesden | | Earth Needs a Rebirth! Discussions with Psy-Trance Artist Numayma | | Taking a Journey Through Time with Domino | | New Techno Rising Star DKLUB talks about his debut release White Rock on Onhcet Republik! | | PAN expands on many things including his new album 'Hyperbolic Oxymoron' due for release on the 14th April 2022 on PsyWorld Records! | | Psibindi talks all things music including her new collaborative EP 'Sentient Rays' on Aphid Records, her band Sentience Machine and 10 years of Psy-Sisters! | | N-Kore talks Jean-Michel Jarre, unfinished tracks and fatherhood! | | Celebrating International Women’s Day and Ten Years of Psy-Sisters with Amaluna |
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Frantic Valentine's Ball - Review
Reported by billy boy
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Submitted 18-02-02 17:24
It was the night of the Valentine’s Ball. Though I felt a bit foolish turning up to a Valentine’s Ball all on my own, I was determined to make a good night of it. And Phil and Tara Reynolds were playing a B2B set, which was I was looking forward to immensely. As well as promising a storming set of relentless hard dance tunes, it was just sooo Valentine’s to have a couple playing B2B – bless ! 
When we arrived, Ed Real was in charge of the main room. Unfortunately, due to the perennial Winter time issue of cloakroom queues at Camden Palace, we got to enjoy most of his set from the foyer…  When we finally made it inside we didn’t hesitate to charge headlong to the front of the dance floor and start jumping around to Ed’s bouncy, uplifting brand of hard house.
Next up to the decks was Steve Hill, who proceeded to play a set of what can only be described as ‘uplifting trance’. This was a really upbeat and happy set, some of which could hardly be described as ‘hard trance’ and some which could even be described as ‘girly trance’ !! And we were loving it !  The crowd really started getting going now, with more and more arms going up in the air and people screaming and whistling.
Towards the end of Steve’s set, we decided to make a dash upstairs to see how proceedings were going up at the Bar Room. We arrived just as James Lawson was taking charge. Now, the first thing I noticed was how small the crowd was. James has a loyal following and at previous Frantics he has had the Bar Room absolutely jumping. I can’t really comment, because I wasn’t there earlier but I guess either the previous DJ – Odyssey – had lost the crowd or maybe the music was just too good in the main room for people to tear themselves away. Once again, the quality of James’ set was first class – hard but energetic – he deserved a bigger gathering.
Whilst we were bouncing around in the Bar Room, Spencer Freeland had taken charge of the wheels of steel in the Main Room. When I first started going to Frantic a couple of years ago, Spencer was one of the big names in the scene alongside Phil Reynolds. As far as I know he has played at pretty much every single Frantic since then – he’s certainly played at all the ones I’ve been to. In my opinion, mid-way through 2000 his style went deeper and harder without necessarily incorporating a lot of the bouncy, energetic elements of a set that can make a hard set enjoyable without a lot of uplifting trance – basically his sets were often a bit boring. 
In the past few months however, he has come storming back with some outstanding performances behind the decks. His sets are still not in the relentlessly uplifting mould, however, they demand to be danced to. And judging by the mood on the dance floor and by clubbers’ comments at this Frantic his resurgence in popularity is continuing. This set was hard and uplifting, incorporating quite a few tunes that are more seldom heard played at Frantic – he had ‘Palace jumping. 
As 3am approached we jostled for prime position on the stage so as to be able to see Phil & Tara at work whilst soaking up the carnage they were creating out on the main dance floor. Personally, I’ve found some of Phil’s recent sets a little disappointing. Don’t get me wrong, they were still brilliant, but not as outstanding and uplifting as a lot of his work of just a few months ago. One or two recent sets I’ve heard could almost be categorised as ‘hard and steady’ with occasional euphoric moments, rather than the kind of unrelenting, scorching hard trance sets, which historically has set him apart from many of the other hard dance DJs on the scene.
So, that being said, I was very interested to see what he’d come up with playing back to back with his wife ! I saw Tara play a number of times at Who’s Your Daddy? at the Rhythm Factory last year and her style is not dissimilar to Phil’s – uplifting trance incorporating a good mix of classic and recent tracks. Given Phil’s recent tendency to play harder I wondered what effect it would have on his style playing B2B with her.
The only time I had previously seen Phil and Tara playing B2B was at a Friday 13th party at Jerusalem Bar over Easter last year. That was truly a rampaging set with some entertaining shenanigans going on behind the decks including Tara playing every tune Phil had ever made before he had the chance to get to them. It was a private party and they basically laid on an hour and a half of non-stop crowd pleasers. 
I am extremely pleased to be able to report that the Reynolds’ set at Frantic was a stormer. Slightly harder than some of Phil’s offerings of last year, but overall a lively, uplifting set that sent the ‘Palace ballistic.  A clear highlight of the set for me was when Tara slapped down her very own tune – the inaugural one she has put together for release. It is the first time I can distinctly remember it being played and I only realised it was hers because she was grinning like a Cheshire cat and everyone in the DJ box was looking out at the crowd and pointing at her. I’m not sure of it’s name, but I can tell you that it is a real beauty and definitely one we’ll be hearing a lot more of. I expect she’ll keep it in the family and be releasing it on Impact Records (Phil’s label). In any case – a tune worth looking out for – well done !!
By the time the Reynolds had finished with us we had given nearly all we had to give. What might have kept us in full flight would have been another set of particularly inspirational hard trance. Next up to the decks though, was Andy Farley, who launched into a hard, thrashing set that left no doubt as to who had stepped up to the decks. His mixing and all-round technical skills are first rate and in the middle of the night a hard set like this was would have gone down a storm. In the closing stages of the evening, and following a set like Phil and Tara had just served up, it just didn’t quite have the uplifting qualities to keep us going. We retreated to the balconies to soak up the vistas from there before sneaking out (with faces covered!) a little early...
Overall, Frantic must be congratulated on delivering yet another stomping night of hard dance. If you go to Frantic (or Convergence or Hard House Academy) you know what you are going to get – pounded to within an inch or so of your life by the best DJs, with the best tunes and at the best venues in London. The consistent excellence of their parties is what brings the clubbers back in droves year after year. If you’ve never been to Frantic at Camden Palace my advice is: Get the fuck right in there as soon as you can !! 
Meanwhile, bring on the Hard House Academy and bring on Mainframe !!
See you there.
Billy Boy
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Other Features By billy boy:
Synergy Anthems - Review
Tasty 2 - The Valentine's Love Dance - Review
Interview with Matt Clarke
Fevah - Review
Frantic XMas Ball - Review
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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