Like what it says on the tin really - another fantastic night put on by the guys at Ultra+. James Zambiela is a bit of a wizard on the decks, and Ultra+ had the bright idea of hooking up a  camera and projecting it on a nice big screen so everyone could see what was going on. One of the most excited crowds I’ve seen at the Factory for a while. There seemed to be an unusually high number of complete nutters (good nutters, not punch your face in nutters), making up an awful lot of high energy in the main room. Something in the water perhaps? I think the photos speak for themselves really. Someone made off with Shiela the Ultra+ mascot, a life size blow up doll of dubious origin who looks down upon the party goes from the rafters. Anyone with knowledge of her whereabouts is urged to keep it to themselves.

23rd - 25th May 2008 | | Birmingham Gay Pride

Despite there being no parade at Birmingham Gay Pride this year, it was the best Gay Pride I’ve ever been to! The sunshine was a definate improvement on the gloomy Prides of past, if you don’t count Sunday’s washout.

In the past I’d only watched the Gay Pride parades but with that cancelled I made my way to Hurst Street, it was entirely closed off and really impressive, full of bars, stalls, a funfair, music, a main stage and happy people.

‘Brotherhood of Man’ were the music highlight for me, with their winning 1976 Eurovision classic “Save All Your Kisses For Me”, they knew how to work a crowd and put last years losers ‘Scooch’ to shame. ‘Scooch’ were so uninspiring I just had to walk away. Still, even they didn’t manage to put me off Birmingham Gay Pride, I can’t wait for next year already! Maybe I just love funfairs and parties too much but I think it was more than that, there was a feeling of being part of a community that I’ve never felt in Birmingham before.

This was a fun packed family and friends day out, I’d recommend anyone to go, be it gay, straight, bi, transgender or whatever! ..Especially if the sun is out.

Words/Pics Christine Tellier

www.flickr.com/photos/cristilina

10th May 2008 || Spectrum presents DJ YODA`s Magic Cinema Show which combines visuals and music!

Super hot weather combined with a tragic warm up Dj playing a hellish assortment of R&B and Speed Garage (WTF???) resulted in the night starting off with practically everybody outside of the medbar sitting around the pool. Infact there was hardly any surface not covered by groups of people chatting, wearing shorts, and generally not dancing or getting involved in the night. It was more like an afternoon in the park playing Frisbee than a night of aural goodness.

Luckily the night cooled down a bit, and the offending Dj was booted off the decks accompanied by a small cheer. Tentatively, people started to migrate into the medbar, where some decent music had been started up.

Dj Yoda was met with a somewhat hesitant audience - some people had bought some Magic Cinema Show popcorn from a stand and were munching on it expectantly, others looked on at the popcorn munchers wondering wherever they should be eating popcorn too, or wherever they should be sitting down and worrying about the tall person in front. Some looked as if they were still trying to get over the Speed Garage, and many had clearly been in the sun too long.

I guess people just didn’t know what to expect from a live visual and audio show. I remember seeing Yoda at the med bar a few years back, and it was rammed full of static people staring at the screens for an hour or so, you couldn’t really move, and you wouldn’t want to dance in case someone turned round and said “excuse me could you not do that, I’m trying to watch the show!”.

This time around was completely different, aside from being able to move (It was still incredibly warm inside, and only the brave ventured up onto the stage), the show had plenty of opportunities to have a good ‘ole boogie without worrying too much about what was happening on any of the three huge projection screens. Dj Yoda has got this performance down pretty tight, and the latest show is whole new experience with fresh new material. Certainly not bad when you consider hes just one guy up there doing everything, when comparable acts such as ColdCut have a whole multitude of peeps and at least a thousand laptops, gixmos and gadgets interconnected by ten miles of cables.

I didn’t stay around for Atomic Hooligan, but I have it on very good assurance that he was bloody ace, and theres a pic of Pete Jordan poking him in the ear to prove it. See Below::

Words/ Pics Tom Horton

Photos Tom Horton Photography

03/05/08 Drop Beat Not Bombs

Drop Beats Not Bombs @ The Rainbow..etc

This latest Drop Beats managed to recapture the magic that has been a little lacking in recent Drop Beats Events - it was reminiscent of those crazy early days. The whole street closed down and several venues and spaces joined together to raise awareness for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and Campaign Against Arms Trade. Highlights included the Stage Bus which is a converted double decker bus / mobile sound system that can blow your trousers off- and the Rainbow Warehouse which boasted the almighty Trigger Sound System and the mind bending holographic visual interface. The beach area was also a real winner, it managed to give the whole event an almost festival feel - someone mentioned the term “blissed out”, and I think that pretty much sums its up. As with most events, one of the biggest factors that can determine a good time is the sort of people and crowd that turns up. Drop Beats was a place full of happy, smiley, friendly people - and I don’t mean the kind that have had one or two many liquorice allsorts towards the end of the night, but the genuine people you always hope to meet at a gig.

Photos / Words Tom Horton

03/05/08 Sven Vath @ QClub

Eclectricity are proud to welcome Cocoon, Sven Vath`s Frankfurt techno brand to the Que Club in Birmingham with an unmissable all-star line up.

The Q Club was particularly busy for this bank holiday event, and drawing a good crowd is essential if the vibe in this massive venue is going to be any good. Thankfully the amphitheater was heaving, even the surrounding balconies seemed to be filling up with more than usual array of peeps looking for a bit of space to chill and sit down. Sven Vath put on an truly slick set, marred only by a brief loss of sound which was soon rectified by the quickest moving sounds techs I’ve ever seen.

Spectrum were hosting the chapel with the likes of Pete Jordan, Switch and Stanton Warriors kicking big lively breakbeat sounds. I for one preferred the closer friendly feel of the chapel area, I felt more connected with the music. Don’t get me wrong, the amphitheater is a truly impressive space, and the crowd did it justice by filling it up with the massive amount of energy it requires to feel good. It’s just that I sometimes find that amount of space a bit disjointed unless it is totally rammed and I can’t move.

Words / Photos Tom Horton