I WENT TO MK, AND HE DIDN'T JUST PRESS PLAY

If you were active on Facebook at all last week, the likelihood is that you’ll have seen a lot of posts saying things along the lines of “Anyone selling a ticket for MK?”. That’s right, arguably one of the most well-known faces of house music was gracing the city of Southampton once again.

Last time he came, it was a sell-out; this time he came, it was a sell-out. But often when things like this get hyped up so much that they can end up not living up to expectations and unfortunately, in my eyes, it did not.

The first act in the line-up was Kidnap Kid. Kidnap Kid is awesome. The guy dresses like an absolute champion, produces top class music and is absolutely cracking live. Did he disappoint? No he did not.

Banger after banger after banger and the crowd absolutely loved him. The crowd, by the way, was not like those at Seth Troxler or Viva Warriors, so obviously many of them may not have known of Kidnap Kid. But speaking to a few people afterwards they seemed convinced that they’d just discovered a hidden gem, many even saying he was the highlight of the night.

He was not mine, however. Step in, Toyboy and Robin. I didn’t even know they were playing, had never seen them live before, but wow, they were good. Their set was so energetic and lively, combined with a banging sound system. It was an absolute winner. There really isn’t much more I can say about them, they were just excellent. If anyone from DBP reads this, please book both them and Kidnap Kid again soon pls?

Then it got to MK. Now, I’ve seen MK before and, I have to say, I do not enjoy his sets. The tempo is not lively enough and the tunes are all too familiar, and I feel that his relative level of celebrity status in the genre means he has to play a certain type of music to please a certain crowd of people. I love standing near the speakers at Switch, because that’s where the sound is the best, but as soon as MK appeared people rushed forward trying to get him to take photos and, call me a snob, but I found it really irritating.

As a producer and as a bloke, the guy is fantastic- he’s such a friendly guy. His music production is also of a high pedigree, and he has been around since the early 90s, I think even maybe the late 80s, so pretty much since the birth of the genre.

Like it or not, he is the face of house music in the mainstream. But coming from a purely house point of view, I was disappointed that he opened with My Head is a Jungle and some of the other tracks he played, the likes of which I could hear in Oceana on a Wednesday.

BUT, I know that hundreds of others loved it, and that is what it comes down to. I think 75% of the night was a house night, and a bloody good one at that, and 25% of the night was meant for the experience of seeing someone like MK play, not necessarily for an intricate and innovative set.

What I refuse to believe though, is that at this event OR the Freshers ball did he just turn up and press play. That is nonsense. No respected DJ in the world would do that, and I think that is more down to people not understanding how a live DJ set works than him actually doing such a thing. But, overall, not my cup of tea.

Highlights of the night: Being pleasantly surprised by Toy Boy and Robin, seeing Kidnap Kid smash it again, and for the second time in two Warehouse Presents, finding a five pound note on the floor. Also, it wasn’t actually that hot- I think they may have sorted the temperature thing.

Moans of the night: Sorry M to the Kizzle but you just didn’t do it for me mate. My Head is a Jungle is a tune, I just hear it pretty much every other night out. <3

Rating: A Solid 3.5/5

This Saturday I’m going to be going to Groove Armada and Tough Love, pretending like this is a really hard serious job and that I don’t love going to all these events…

Were you at the event? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!