This was my first time at the new SE1. We got to the venue just after 10. There was only a small queue which was moving quite quickly. We were in within a matter of minutes. They also had the Raindance Clockwork Guard handing out these illuminous smiley face badges (I lost mine later in the venue). The security were quite thorough on the entrance search. Inside the main lobby area there was a free pen and paper point and large cloakroom. This room was adjacent to the Drum & Bass arena. We went into the next room which was the Jenkins Lane reunion arch. There was a merchandise stall and plenty of seats. The music in here was good all night. It was mainly 88-90 Classics. Joey G played the first set which was really good. I checked out a bit of the venue and decided to catch Squirrel in the main room. He was playing a Hip House set. He played loads of classics such as 2 In A Room's "Take Me Away" and "The Dance" by Rhythm Is Rhythm. An excellent set. Up after him was DJ Jedi. He played a wicked 92 set. Including tracks such as "Time Of Our Lives", "Manic Stampede" and "Upside". A very good set. In the Hardcore room Cris E Manic was finishing up with an upfront selection of Hardcore which was good. Up next was one of the sets I was looking forward to, Slipmatt's 95-96 set. He did not dissapoint. He played tracks from labels like Knitforce, Remix and Impact amongst others. There was no MC on either which was a nice change. I decided to check out the rest of the venue. I made my way into the Drum & Bass arena. I was not really in the mood for any Jungle, but I caught a bit of MC Moose and he was sounding good. The atmosphere in this room was alright. I have been to a lot of the mainstream raves and I have found that there is just too much attitude. Maybe this has something to do with the artists that are booked and the crowds they attract. Raindance have decided not to get in on the whole superstar MC Culture. I then went into the Pussina House arena. This room was host to the Euphoric House and Trance. Slipmatt was playing. He played his own track "Space", being the only one I recognised. This room was nice and cool. The venue was not bad on the heat front. As there was air conditing and plenty of free drinking water available. This was available outside the main toilets which were pretty clean. There were other smaller toilet areas in the venue. They also had attendants keeping them in order. In the main room Ratpack were on and I decided to check them out. They were playing their usual set, but with a few Nu Skool remixes of old tracks. I stayed for most the set. But went back into Jenkins Lane. Jack Bass was spinning some classics. He played "Right Before My Eyes" amongst others. Up after him was Flapjack he continued to roll out the 88-89 Anthems. This room had a good atmosphere and the temperature was spot on. I stayed in there for a while. But headed back into the main room for the last couple of hours. At 5am. Flashback stepped up. He played a wicked 92-92 Jungle Tekno set. He played some real underground classics. This in my opinion was easily the best set of the night. The atmosphere in this arena was really good and friendly. The best in London. For the last hour was Danny C. I had never heard him before, but he played a good set. A great selection of tunes such as "You Got Me Burnin'", "Rush In The House" and "Bish Bosh" to name but a few. The last two sets in this arena were so good that I danced solidly during them. I was still up for more when 7am came. All in all it was a top night out with a friendly crowd, excellent music and in a decent venue. I will definately be at the next one.
