Reviewed: Defected at Ministry Of Sound NYE

After all of the December shenanigans of Christmas, Boxing Day and all the trimmings, before you know it you find yourself in the position for one final rave up to celebrate the new year. Choosing that final party is always a hard choice but it’s safe to say that a Defected takeover at Ministry of Sound is pretty hard to turn down. Coming through with a seriously stellar line-up fronted by Sonny Fodera, Roger Sanchez, Josh Butler and more we knew we were going to in for one hell of a party.

So as usual once we had skipped past the queue and searches we headed towards the club and darted straight into The Box, a room synonymous for its ridiculously good sound system. Kicking things off for us was no other than the Defected head honcho himself, Simon Dunmore and there was no one better to get everyone in the celebratory mood. As expected, his seamless mixing and spot on song selection had the atmosphere at an absolute high in the build-up to the countdown. Shelling out every party loving tune you could think of, Dunmore didn’t disappoint by delivering Patrick Topping’s new one ‘Be Sharp Say Nowt – Patrick Topping’. An absolute crowd favourite, as the vocals blasted through the room, filling everyone with nothing but happiness. The countdown, met by a roar of excitement, hit the screens and as it struck zero Dunmore took the chance to play a song that’s been on the end of everyone’s tongues since its release. None other than ‘Cola – Camelphat’. The distinctive vocals and slow build up met by a shower of confetti was what everyone had been waiting for as the first kick drum of the song blasted through the bass filled sound system, giving 2018 a proper introduction.

https://soundcloud.com/defectedrecords/camelphat-elderbrook-cola-2

One thing that’s good about a New Year’s rave up is that it gets into full swing from the off, as soon as the classic celebratory countdown and hurrah has happened, everyone is ready to take it up a notch, especially the DJs. With the standard of the night already exceeding expectations, it was time for Josh Butler to step up. Butler has really stamped his own footprint into the scene over the past few of years and has become one of the most revered DJs in the game. Known for his experimental, hard house sounding style, Butler is a name that everyone loves to see on a line-up and we were just as excited to see him. Butler had taken the party into his own hands by getting straight into the action with some hard hitters such as one of his new remixes, ‘Dark Science – Prophecy (Josh Butler Remix)’. A proper stomper of a tune capable of getting anyone to do a two-step. The fun didn’t stop there as Butler went on to belt out an array of bangers, really putting his own spin on the night, such as another crowd favourite, ‘Call you Back – Josh Butler & Bontan’. A tune that I’m sure everyone has heard at a rave this year.

Before we knew it, the time had struck 2am and we thought now would be a good time to amble on over to room 103, the room that welcomes you when entering the club’s main entrance. In charge of the decks in room 103 was D-Vine Sounds DJ Jess Bays, someone who’s been a bit of a ‘one to watch’ over the past couple of years. With a bunch of edits and remixes, Bays has been making waves in the scene with her chunky house vibe with a fresh old school sound. After seeing her a week before at XOYO, we knew just what was going to be in store for her set. As expected, a vast number of uplifting vocals were met by some serious mixing of underground tech sounds. Blasting out tunes such as ‘Love Stream – Mat.Joe’ and ‘What A Bam – George Privatti & Guille Placencia’, Bays was taking room 103 by storm and had everyone bouncing.

Time was moving on ever so quickly and we were well into the early hours of New Year’s Day as Defected heavyweight Sonny Fodera took to the decks to close up the final two hours of celebrations. Admittedly we’d rather have seen him in The Box, however take nothing away from Fodera who jumped on the decks with energy as if it was only midnight. Kicking things off with his festival hit, ‘Always Gonna Be – Sonny Fodera ft. Alex Mills’, Fodera took the final two hours under his wing and mixed his way through a fine selection of thumpers and groovy numbers to keep everyone dancing until the end. Firing out vocal filled tracks such as his remix, ‘Drifting ft. Spencer Nezey (Sonny Fodera Remix)’, the vibe in the place was just what was needed to close up the night in true Defected style.

The time struck 6am and marked the end of another Defected New Year’s Eve takeover at Ministry of Sound. A truly perfect way to top off another year of raving and let’s be honest if you haven’t yet experienced a Defected New Year’s Eve party, you need to!