Soulwax DJ’s, Belgium due David and Stephen Dewaele, best known together as 2manydjs, open their set my with Chemical Brothers’ ‘Hey Boy, Hey Girl’, replacing the synonymous “Superstar DJs” with “2manydjs”, pulverizing the PA into ruthlessly unforgiving ear drum perforator.
They pick their set-list expertly, blending an unconventional mix of underground dance, 80s new wave and indie rock classics, encapsulating genre defining tracks of every musical era and tweaking them into their own collective sound on the decks.
Without allowing a flicker of distraction from the crowd the Dewaele brothers join forces to work on their ventriloquistic and symbiotically induced wheel spinning, turning various dials, switches and knobs without any semblance of eye contact or communication between them.
It is a classic ‘Radio Soulwax mix’ tonight, which includes some old and some new with the Dewaele brothers seamlessly infusing such tracks as Shaka Khan, ‘Rock the Casbah’, Pink Floyd’s ‘Money’, ‘Zombie Nation’, D ‘I Feel Love’, ‘Sweet Dreams’, Sparks’ ‘Beat the Clock’ and a deluge of many more within their two-hour set.
More recent tracks consist of Lil Wayne’s ‘Amelie’, Justice’s ‘Phantom ll’, Crookers, Tiga’s ‘Your Hair is Such a Mess’, Proxy Raven Turbo, Deadmau5’s ‘The Reward is More Cheese’, Harry Thuman, ‘Robot Rock’, LCD Soundsytem and Carte Blanche’s ’Gare Du Nord’.
They save the best for last with ‘Over and Over’, ‘Fools Gold’, The Prodigy remix ‘Outer Space’ Supergrass’ ‘When We Were Young’, ‘Drop it like it’s Hot’, ‘Girls and Boys’ and finishing with an absolute belter of a tune in Arcade Fire’s ‘Sprawl 2’, remixed by the boys themselves (only complaint being that they didn’t play it long enough).
Crowd favourites included MGMT’s ‘Kids’ and Hot Chip’s ‘Over and Over’, which rustles up the inevitable alcohol fuelled ‘sing-a-long-even-if-you-don’t-know-the-lyrics’, or for some, even-if-you-don’t–know-where-you-are, as there are definitely a few in the crowd who went over their daily sugar limit.
It’s also worth noting, although it’s something that comes as a given with the duo’s nights, is the outstanding audio visual synchronizations, with the visuals adding an extra element to the low dynamics (with the lights coming down, sometimes blackening the hall, and the build ups, which create both the auditory and visual marvel.
When the brothers finish their set, they grab all their paraphernalia, including winter hats, jackets and their bottles of water and leave the stage all smiles.
Words: Derek Robertson
Photos: Jayjay Robertson
