Briefly there, just for a second you forget the music completely, as you look at DJ Food. Behind the decks, he has the luminescence of a man who is enjoying being in the right place at the right time.
This party is the right time for such sentimentality, since it has been ten years since the birth of the British dance label Ninja Tune. And tonight's line-up, stopping off on the latest leg of the Ninja's celebratory European tour, offers such rich and tasty variety that all connoisseurs of the label's cerebral dance music are sure to be satisfied. Dressed in cords, Carhart and combats, the audience is subtly sexy in a sleepy kind of way. One million shades of grey. No Tiaras.
Coldcut are next with a show which mixes both sound and visuals. It's fantastic! The banter is British, and so a bit lost on the Brussels audience, with references to the Criminal Justice Bill, or samples of David Attenborough being accepted on an aesthetic level rather than on the passionate political or cultural one which Coldcut might have hoped for.
Though not deafening, Coldcut's sound fills the hanger-like space and purrs over the skin. As you feel, see and hear their music, submission to the Coldcut mission appears the only viable option.
Kid Koala meanwhile, seems to take full responsibility for our "good time". Moving with a mixture of Ninja-like dexterity and Koala cuteness he nips about the stage between microphone, decks, and keybords. He scratches one second, hands out free tapes the next, plays ambient soundscapes with his band and then jumps around to more uptempo tracks from his recent album.
Koala's show, with its mix of breakbeats and semi-stoned grooves has that North American, over-the-top, call-and-response touch which can get under the skin this side of the Atlantic. He is so honest in his energy though, his antics, backed by his effortless skills seem genuinely motivated. But while the Brussels audience will sway to the rhythm, it won't respond to his calls.
DJ Vadim's Russian Percussion is in "the club" area upstairs. The area is vigorously air conditioned, and having moved from the clammy room downstairs, the joys of oxygen are giving this audience a heady enthusiasm. A touch of the Siberian winter already, then, as Vadim spins his unique blend of eclectic sounds with a touch of humour, confident in his bizarre world. The audience, while increasingly intrigued are only half included.
The Herbaliser's (pictured) set, on the other hand seems bland, the dark and sinister layers of their recorded music diluted and all running into one magnified mush. The dryness and clarity of Herbaliser's 'Very Mercenary' CD is not done justice here. Nevertheless, European hip hop has an audience of unwavering loyalty, so Herbaliser enjoy their set, their popularity in Brussels further secured.
The Ninja Tune posse have thrown the finest of birthday parties tonight. The Brussels mob have had a fine time and clearly those at Ninja feel the same. Screened on the backdrop at the end a typed message reads "Brussels…always wicked, XXX Coldcut."
