Some are wading into these first two weeks of May with caution before the big club opening parties boot us into a hazier dimension, and others are getting stuck right in regardless. Unusual Suspects was one of the first club residencies to dig in for dance floor dirt, and going purely on the fact that I gave last season's opener a slammer of a review, I expected that I´d be left spewing out positive words once again.
It takes humans just seven seconds to get first impressions on each other, and often that science can be dropped straight into the clubbing environment. To echo last year's words, just a few heated moments through Sankeys' door was all it took to confirm that this would be another winner. One of the reasons being that Unusual Suspects drew in a crowd of mixed nationalities, and that I believe creates the kind of melting pot that clubbers want to greedily feed from. It was no different this time round, and you just had to have one loose sweep around the outside deck to hear a flurry mix of dialects.
The Basement is your entry point to Sankeys, so it's here you get your first taste, and Berlin-born and raised techno mistress Janina was the booth technician until 3.30AM. With Unusual Suspects' leafy décor, clubbers feel as though they are flung into an urban jungle, which suits our escapist needs just fine. She had us twisted in the murky gloom to Pheek's '5AM' (Butane Remix). While she ushered in the deep infusions, she also gave us punch, with the likes of 'Hous-O-Matik Hom-O-Patik' (House Of Ties Feat.Monetefiori Remix) by B.A.D.S, which broke out into fury of kicks, and whistle-packing moments at Montefiori's saxophone.
Unusual Suspects regular Federico Grazzini had the LAB locked in as he fired out house and tech house, with St Germain's 'How Dare You' (Romain Poncet & DJ Deep Mix) and Robags Edna Mompf Remix of Luna City Express' track 'Mr. Jack.' The following slot in the LAB had been reserved for Bristol heavyweight Eats Everything, but after a missed flight the call went out and Darius Syrossian stepped in. High energy tech house thunder cleaned up the dance floor, and as that was a one-off appearance from Syrossian for the Unusual Suspects crew, we'd ascertain that he was more than happy to have been torn away from the pasta and that Manchester United game.
tINI, who debuted for Unusual Suspects back in December, checked in for round two and what her track selections roused on that dance floor was first-class. More than a few punters lauded her for giving them the deadliest set of the night, with deeper touches of atmospheric groove that suited the distinctive feel of Unusual Suspects.
If you didn't witness any of the action in the main rooms, you might have been mucking in with the mob in the toilets. And where else can you do that on the island?
WORDS l Aimee Lawrence PHOTOGRAPHY l David Holderbach
