Soul Inspired@ Moso Moso Saturday 15th November 2008
Review - Tracy
Those of us who have been part of the Soul scene in Manchester over the last two decades, will know the name Soul Control. The men behind it have always been respected for playing quality music at decibels that would make the space shuttle launch blush. Tracks which have kept us discerning members of the dance population screaming for a "REWIND!!" are usually the order of the day and Saturday 15th November at MOSO MOSO was NOT an exception!!!
The queue for the venue was daunting to say the least BUT is that a good sign?
Yes, it's the where everybody wants to get into, the place to be. OH MY SHOCK ATTACK!!! I think H'verybody from Manchester must have been there!!!
The place was wall to wall people. The atmosphere was electric and there were bodies everywhere. Was this a good thing? YES if you had room to move around and possibly even dance BUT sadly this was not the case. It felt like Chinese New Year in Chinatown. We were heel to toe with each other and had to walk in a soldier like shuffle to move around. BWOY I'm glad I had a bath and applied my deodorant before departing my home beforehand, because I was getting whiffs and mouthfuls of armpits left right and centre because of the sweat generated!!! Too up close and too personal would be the phrase!!!
Thank Funk for Upstairs. The Soulful House Arena provided a welcome bit of space and much needed air. I always enjoy this arena because it’s a completely different pace of music and atmosphere. The tracks are always current and returning fresh from The Southport Dance Weekender, we took a momentary rave down memory lane. The DJ’s in this arena pulled no gimmicks and as with all Soul Control nights the music spoke volumes!!!
Because the Soul Control Arena was far too FULL (maybe this was because of such an amassed following over the years) it made the night unenjoyable for those of us who like to fling a foot in formation style!! No room to swing a cat let alone Ya Batty!! Despite Def D's attempts to get da crowd swaying, our collective feet were crunching in ‘da crush’!!! All the same, much loved tracks such as "We've got the funk - and "Candy - Cameo" helped to keep the party mood grooving, so it was just a case of 'hold ya corner'!!
The three people deep queues at the bar led to further frustration, especially when the staff were not serving in order of customer arrival! After the same issue earlier in the year (in this venue) I was hoping there would not be a repeat performance, but sadly this was not the case.
These nights are few and far between, and much looked forward to, so, it is a pity that bad organisation of the bars and the Soulful House Arena upstairs not being strong enough to counter-balance the Soul Control effect downstairs let the night down. The last thing you want to do is spend the night propping up the bar (and not because you are worse for wear, because of the liquor you've consumed).
I was thrilled to see that friends we acquired in Southport (who live in Leeds) made the effort to come and see, after all these years, if Soul Control could still ROCK da PARTAY!!! I am proud to pass it on that they enjoyed the night and are looking forward to the next one.
Soul Control Verdict:
Despite the problems, it was great to see all the friendly faces, and receive the hugs and kisses. These nights always bring like-minded people together, young and experienced clubbers who want to dance and in a hassle free atmosphere.
Roll on New Years Eve!!!!
Hopefully it will be in A MUCH BIGGER VENUE!!!!
Soul Control Rating:
