Victoria has once again survived Snowmegeddon and there’s only one way to celebrate, with a visit from two of Electronics’ hottest names, courtesy of Blueprint Events and Midnight Project. Australia’s X CLUB. & Ireland’s KETTAMA made their way to Capital Ballroom as part of the Western Canadian Ripper tour. The co-headlining gig also included an opening set from Victoria’s own John Truly. Nothing like dancing to keep warm during these winter months and judging off the packed room, I wasn’t the only one with the same mindset.
When it comes to our local electronic scene, one name who has been putting in the work is John Truly. With a monthly show taking place at The Downbeat Event Centre, John has established himself as a solid booking on any house/techno event. His blend of the two genres made for a well-rounded set, but I found his time on stage to be shorter than normal for him. Whether or not the set felt shorter, it was still a great set which matched the sound from the headliners quite well. The talent coming out of our city is unmatched, and John Truly is one of those talents.
If we are looking at the electronic music giants of the world, Ireland is on top. Is it the dedicated Irish fans who rally to no end for the genre, or the production level being a bar raiser that make Ireland’s Electronic scene so fascinating. The answer is up for discussion but what’s not debatable is the talent of Ireland’s very own, KETTAMA. Having first heard his song, Slaap Lekker during Salute’s 2022 Boiler Room performance in Melbourne, I knew KETTAMA was going to come in with some heat and he did. His mix was filled with gems including Won’t Stop (Don’t) by Chris Stussy, which is an absolute heater of a track. Fantastic showing from KETTAMA and I hope he’ll return to the island in the near future.
For those of you who have been following my writing journey, you’ll know this isn’t my first time writing about Australia’s X CLUB. For the first time, we have to go back to my Top 10 Boiler Room sets of 2023 article, where you’ll find the familiar name make an appearance on that list. As you could imagine, I was pretty stoked when their show announced for Victoria. Seeing them live was a whole different experience but also not a full experience. For a majority of their time on stage, X CLUB. was joined by KETTAMA and essentially performed a b2b set with him. This was a pretty exciting update to the show and the set ended up being next level as expected. Most memorable moment from the set came when the group spun their newest release, Frankie Knuckles. The speed and power of this track are unmatched and you could see the crowd eat it up. The only song missing from their set was Block Rockin’, which comes as a shock since it’s a pretty iconic song of theirs. Besides that, the set was perfect in every way imaginable and hopefully they also return to the island, especially during festival season. The last thing I’ll mention about X CLUB. is that Rocktographers had the opportunity to have a quick chat with the duo, so stay tuned for that release!
House and Techno continue to be a strong seller in our city and yet it feels like there is so much potential left untapped. For example, one noticeable trait from the night was the younger demographic that filled the room. During the winter months, we tend to lack on newer electronic artists as they play mostly during festival season. However, this should be the time when newer artists get booked because post-secondary students are still in session and it gives them an opportunity to go out. This show proved that and hopefully this momentum is built off of.
