Abiding Presents X Brick Lane Project at 93 Feet East, 15.12.17

Abiding Events and Management have been making their mark on the scene this past year, with a series of events, radio shows and artist representation under their belt in a short space time. They've even gained a group of resident DJs along their new journey, and invited us down for their penultimate event of the year, to show what Abiding is all about.  

Venue 

True to it’s home location, 93 Feet East is a quirky, eccentric and promising medium size event space. Offering a tasteful graffiti art setting and stripped-back industrial feel, which has attracted many brands and renowned DJs to grace the area. Welcoming Groove Armada and housing Enzo Siragusa’s Fuse residency has been just some of iconic moments which make up the venue’s history, since being established back in 1999. In January 2018 the venue is set for a large refurbishment, with a raw and industrial theme at the heart of the enhancements. We’re excited to see what’s in store, as the venue already boasts a diverse range of rooms and areas which make up The Old Truman Brewery.

The London space has been the common venue of choice for Abiding as part of their collaboration with Brick Lane Project. Their final event of their would mark the 4th visit to Shoreditch, utilising one main room for their throwdown inside of the venue, along with a outdoor cobbled area which looks perfect for a summer party.

Drink Prices 

Fairly standard and reasonable considering we were in the heart of Shoreditch, some prices even lower than the capital’s other rave venues with mixers at around £6.40, Beers at £5 and water for £2.50.

Heat

Points in the night did reach a hot temperature with the venue filling up, we imagine this could be uncomfortable in the summer, so adding some ventilation and fans to their new refurb would be a great addition. 

Venue Staff

Two bar workers were present for the majority of the night and although they were serving fast, the queue can build up with this being the only bar in use.  

Crowd 

Family vibes throughout. A real welcoming and positive atmosphere where it seems a tight-knit following and crowd has been formed, for both for the venue and the event runners. Even ourselves who were meeting many of the Abiding family for the first time, felt right at home and a part of the proceedings.

Production/Sound

Production

Light touch but provided an adequate setting. The standard outdoor lighting next to the main room did however keep the space slightly too bright, which counteracted the indoor production. A square rig in the middle of the main room held two rotating beam lights, along with some par lights which were also dotted around the venue to further the lighting's reach. The vintage disco ball was a nice touch though, we'd love to see some further production in the form of some strobes, LED visuals and everyone's favourite - lasers, factored into the refurb.

Sound

An impressive sound offering which boomed through the walls and provided a solid audio experience for the night. A large speaker and sub stack on one side of the venue did most of the work, with additional dual speakers either side of the DJ booth to finish off the job. 

DJ Sets

ELDE b2b Eliot Harris

The opening set of the night was given to the up and coming London duo, and long standing residents ELDE b2b with Eliot Harris. Holding the task of being the pacesetters, the opening set can sometimes be intimidating but nothing was stopping these boys. Keeping a steady rhythm whilst also delivering some stompers to lure people into the venue and kickstart the night. Frankey & Sandrino’s 'Wega' was a key moment for us, with it’s exotic vocals over a techy groove, it was a clear insight to the night’s agenda. Before handing over to the next set of residents, an absolute classic was played to finish their set, “Lola’s Theme” by The Shapeshifters. Met by an emphatic cheer, this fan favourite certainly did their reputation no harm and demonstrated their diverse archive of tracks. 

Vincent Mackay b2b Joe Ellis

Taking over for the second set of the night were the exciting duo of Vincent Mackay and Joe Ellis. You could say they’re the new boys on the scene, being residents for just two months. Despite this, without knowing you’d be hard to tell, as they already look like part of the Abiding family and bounce off each other in their sets perfectly. Vincent in particular is enjoying a purple patch in the scene at the moment, recently announcing that he will be playing for Habitat at Upminster’s electronic music utopia; WE ARE FSTVL. Their b2b set began to pick up the tempo, throwing in some bassy selections and devastating drops, used to maximum effect with the help of the venue’s impressive speakers. The fold lean tape version of Audion’s huge track, 'Destroyer' certainly doing some damage, the gentle vocals on the track really compliment that bad-boy bassline. A strong showing from Vincent & Joe, and a clear sign of how much the next generation of DJs are developing. 

Wilber b2b Swift-O

The final set of the night was from Wilber & Swift-O and what a set it was! Right from the word go we were treated with banger after banger. Reading the crowd well, they drew on tracks that kept the fans pumped till the very end. Cramming bodies into the venue from an early stage of their set with big hitters like Mark Jenkyns’ 'Sirens', and Hot Since 82’s ‘Evolve or Die’, with it’s melodic build up dropping into a deep tech frenzy. This b2b meant business and kept us grooving till the lights came on, before rounding off the set with ‘Be Sharp Say Nowt’. The Patrick Topping recent release matched with some trickery on the decks was a touch of brilliance and ended the night on a high.

Overall

There's no doubt that Abiding are one to watch. To have such a strong vibe and welcoming atmosphere created this early on is something to reckon with. It's clear they have the core foundations in place and are committed to their brand - we even saw them cleaning up a spilt drink to keep the venue up to scratch - dedication! With the combination of 93 Feet East's exciting new refurb destined to be a feature for their venue choice, we're keen to see how 2018 pans out for the events & management team that is, Abiding. 8/10