Just Jack's 11th Birthday at Motion
Posted on: 2017-02-04
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We spend the eleventh hour within the halls of Motion to celebrate the eleventh birthday of one of Bristol's finest dance music institutions, the masters of their trade, Just Jack.
The word ‘Just’ possesses many meanings which can appear to contradict each other. On one hand the adverb can mean ‘merely’ or ‘barely’ and represent the locution of not very much; as in: “I can’t be a wizard. I’m just Harry - just Harry!” (Rowling, J.K., Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, London: Bloomsbury, 1997). Or it can succinctly convey an absolute, a totally exacting perfection; as in the 2015 Bicep track of the same name. And when it is suffixed with the word ‘Jack’, it is very definitely the latter which we should apply.
In the eleven years since their inception, illustrious party-throwers Just Jack have been purveying the very best in progressive, underground dance music offered both within these shores and further afield. With a list of their recent guest selectors (which includes the likes of Ricardo Villalobos, Hunee, Marcel Dettmann, Prins Thomas and Legowelt to name a very few) reading like a who’s who of contemporary house and techno, it has grown increasingly tough for the Bristol-based company to improve upon each of their previous line-ups. As such, the task of planning their 11th birthday bash must have been a daunting one; especially since their marathon ‘10 ‘til 10’ decade celebration last year was such a resounding success.
The line-up for this latest knees-up however, even when judged against the stellar standards which they themselves have continually set, managed to surpass expectation in its perfect balancing of auspicious house and pedigree techno. Representing the latter category were, by royal appointment, the kings of Detroit, DJ Bone and Robert Hood, while housey-er inserts are promised courtesy of Midland, Optimo and the precocious Soichi Terada.
Inevitably with a bill of such quality comes clashes, and arrival in Motion’s cavernous expanse brought with it the dilemma of a choice between Jayda G, who kicks things off proper in the tunnel, and DJ Bone (above) who takes the helm in the main room. In the end it is señor Bone who wins our ears by apparently landing a spaceship, masterfully negotiating a series of tech movers like Jeff Mills' 'The Bells' and a rework of 'I Feel Love', which really put the room’s sound system through its paces.
Meanwhile, Optimo, the Glaswegian duo of Twitch and Jonnie Wilkes have opened up in the Marble Factory. The extra space on offer in this room is particularly suited to their infinitely movable set, which is split 50-50 between two solo mixes and offers up smashes at an impressive rate. Among the highlights are Tessela’s ‘Hackney Parrot’, an edit of ‘Blue Monday’ and ‘Jaguar’ by DJ Rolando, which are mixed in with real style.
Eschewing the second half of their set in favour of Soichi Terada’s hour-long live stint, the tunnel is significantly sweatier than on previous inspection. The more intimate surround perfectly suits the emperor of the good time, who never breaks from his beaming grin and ecstatic demeanour - even whilst throwing down some of the hottest cuts of old school house and grooving funk. That the majority of the crowd look to be having even half as much fun as the man from Japan is testament to the quality of his selection.
After that hour has passed all-too quickly, the only choice is to head for the main room where headliner Robert Hood (below) has progressed from examples of the Detroit techno on which he cut his teeth (including a spinning of ‘Chained to a Dead Camel’ by Clouds) to laying down a number of the Floorplan classics which have borne his trademark in this decade.
Rustling through ‘Baby, Baby’, ‘Tell You No Lie’ and the standout ‘Never Grow Old’, the Prince of Thieves also plays a number of tracks which have inspired these ones, with a couple of Frankie Knuckles numbers getting a look in. He finishes at 5am on a set that has been, in a word, jubilant.
The final hour before lights is spent in the company of Midland as he rolls the ‘Final Credits’ in the Marble Factory. The standout track of 2016, with which Harry Agius has become accustomed to concluding his sets, receives the biggest reception of the evening and is even treated to a follow-up in the form of Prince’s ‘Baby I’m A Star’ which does, ultimately, drop the curtain on these birthday celebrations.
Just brilliant.
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An ardent Geordie minus the accent, Sam seemingly strove to get as far away from the Toon as possible, as soon as university beckoned. Three undergraduate years at UoB were more than ample time for Bristol (as it inevitably does) to get under his skin, and so here he remains: reporting, as Assistant Editor, on the cultural happenings which so infatuated him with the city. Catch him at sam@365bristol.com.
