One of the surprises of last year was the last minute inclusion of Freeformation to a free evening at Hidden. Having been to Freeformation in the past, I knew what to expect and it was just as well as there was no big fanfare to accompany this event's announcement, in fact, for a long time, all we had was a photocopied preflyer before the mainlinup (and main flyer) was handed out. However, it would seem that a lot of other people were just as in the know as I was. I'm preparred to admit, that free entry for an all night Hardcore rave might have had something to do with it, but the fact remains the first Freeformation to kickstart "The Hidden sessions" got over 700 people through the door, all of them 'avin it to the finest Hardcore, Hard Dance and Old Skool right till the end. In terms of atmosphere, lineup, music and sheer success, it was definitely something to write home about, not to mention something to go back to once the second round was announced. Handily enough, this was done in the latter part of Febuary, complete with the trademark understatement that I am increasingly coming to expect from the promotors. No aggressive marketing from the Freeformation crew, more a simple statement of fact. "Yeah we're doing another one. Yep, hidden again. Fancy it? Nice one. See you there." I was one of those firmly in the "Fancy it" catagory. Like I said I went to this party in its first incarnation and as such I knew what to expect. Most prominantly, a unique take on the music that I love which was reflected in the DJ lineup and the music I knew and was reliably informed would be played. Like I said, a unique take on Hardcore Rave music. What this boils down to is DJs you dont see anthing like as much as you'd like to in solo and b2b guises, together with DJs that you cant get enough of on a weekly basis. And that was only the half of it. Just when you think there was room to get complacent and think you knew what to expect from a DJ, then you saw the contents of the brackets by the DJs name on the flyer. By that yardstick alone this was as close to a "must attend" as possible, I've never seen Kev Energy do a DnB set. To top it all off, this event was faithful to the original spirit of Freeformation. All you had to do was secure entry was email the freeformation crew, send back the number you received by reply to confirm you'd got it and thats it. Entry was 100% free. No matter how late you turned up. Not that this bothered me of course, I was GOING to be there early. With good reason too, cos when i rounded the corner, I was confronted with a sizeable queue, all of them waiting to get in. I joined them and after getting my name ticked off, I went in after the customary pat down for weapons by security. Once I was in I was also pleasently surprised to find a room changeover had taken place. Hardcore was now in the main arena with Hard Dance in the second room to the left as you go in. Old Skool was still in the middle bar arena, I was sure to be spending some time here. But not for the moment, cos my first port of call was the main room where Rik Arkitech and Ethos were in full effect, entertaining the ever increasing crowd with my first set of the night. As always, it was high energy Hardcore all the way with these guys. Mostly based around the upfront Freeform sound, with most of it being unknown to me, but all of it being exceptionally danceable, especially when "Never Say Die" and "Life is a Construct" came in. However I only got to see the closing 20 minutes of this set, but that werent the end to one of the DJs entertaining me, cos I followed Ethos through to the old skool room where his next set was another I was determined not to miss. Ethos has done precious few Old Skool sets that I have seen, but those I have have left me seriously impressed. This was no exception, with a nicely full dancefloor to entertain he got down to business in n uncertain terms. Best of all, he weren't anthem bashing by any stretch of the imagination. Displaying an inspired ear for tune selection which I had no complaints with at all, the hour with Ethos at the controls was definitely one of my favourite of the night, if nothing than for the feeling of not knowing what was coming next. This was mostly down to his constant varying of the BPMs, with them taking a distinct downturn for the first part of the set, before coming right up with "now is the time" before coming back down again with "To the Beat of the Drum". Next up was a change of Dj, but not a change of room. Staying right where I was was next on the agenda, especially when Marc Smith was up next. An exact opposite of Ethos, Smithy's Old Skool sets are well documented, with his name being suffixed on the flyer with the words "Rez Set". This meant only one thing. Bouncy techno all the way. As promised, the glorious bouncy goodness was in full effect from the word go and I and the rest of the ravers in the place were loving every minute. I dont get to listen to this sort of music that often so I was taking full advantage and as such I was going for it non stop from start to finish. The place was rammed out at this point, with the last remaining ravers outside in the queue making their way inside and joining their like minded associates inside and getting on it. Smithy, for his part was immersed in his music, with the gems from his record bag getting dusted off and slammed onto the decks in quick succession. "ECreation", "Detonator", "Fuck my best friend", "Boom and Pow" and "Jee Ha!" all featured heavily in Smithy's set, not to mention a sweaty astraboy getting on it in front of him. Top set. After another sublime set from Smith, I wanted more of the same, so I made my way to the main arena. It wa not that hard a decision to make, you want a set of unexpected tunes and goings on that will make you raise an eyebrow then you get yourself in the place when Luna-C is on. Together with a third appearence from Ethos, this time in his very capable MC guise, I knew it was going to be something special. And it was. Right from the beginning, it was exactly what I was looking for. Plenty of tunes, but interspersed with numerous genre hops and lots of instances where you are scratching your head going "Eh?" one minute and going crazy to the music the next. This was underlined by Ethos hyping up the assembled masses like the professional he is. As the set progressed, Ethos quickly settled into his preffered persona of host for the set, as well as occasional inclusions of some of his more popular lyrics, such as "U.N.I.T.Y", "24-7, 365" and "Wakey Wakey" Of course, the DJ was just as involved as the MC was, with serious amounts of new stuff to pique the interest of the ravers. I was a particular fan of his inclusion of the Chavbot's finest moment, "Angels", as well as more serious efforts such as "My Angel", "Super Sharp Shooter" (Which I've not heard out for ages) and "Fugees or not". Lastly, some of his less rave oriented tunes were also of note, with "Taintes love" and his (I think) set finisher of "Take on me" being most prominent, not to mention his trademark of leaving the crowd somewhat purplexed as to what they have just experienced. If mild confusion was the name of the game, for the preceeding set, then it was a trip down memory lane thfor the next one. With another voyage into the arena of discovery that is the Old Skool room being, frankly, compulsary, for Sharkey and UFO's "Trancecore Classics" set. I knew it would be good and the packed dancefloor of similarly enlightened ravers on my arrival backed this up. As an extra bonus, not only were Sharks and UFO in full effect, but Druid was also in the place to fill any gaps that may appear. Not that there were many, but I didn't have any problem with him being there, especially when, with the benefit of hindsight, I knew what I was about to experience. Undoubtably the set of the night, for sheer intensity alone, but also for musical content and not forgetting the amount of times I rushed hard enough to have to prop myself up against the wall. It was glorious, no other word can describe it, partially because the tune selection was so damn good, but also becuase everyone, bar none was loving it. Even people, who, how shall I say, are more selective than others with regard to what they dance to were going for it non stop. Easily done when the set included numerous underplayed blinders such as "Temporal Rift", "Waves of desire" and "Trip to the other side". As well as that, the 100% MC free rule had gone out the window too, but that werent exactly the problem some might say it was, especially when it included Sharks welcoming us to "The Birth of Freeform" and the ever capable MC Knight taking over thereafter and keeping things well undercontrol as always with his understated running the joint, lyrics such as "Hardcore raver in the place". Not sure if it was next or not, but the next thing I remember was being back in the main room for the start of Carbon Based' set. It was actually a joint collaboration from Carbon Based and Dj RX, which was not originally on the flyer, but I based on previous experience, I knew the addition would be worth it. As it turned out, it was one of the stranger sets of the night. Firmly rooted within the genre of Finnish Freeform, this is a seperate entity which has been allowed to grow independently of other influences, consequently, the sound is unique to say the least. This was apparant due to the fact that the set consisted of tunes which were utterly unknown to me. However, just because they were all new to me didnt stop me from being seriously impressed with what was on offer. This was mostly due to to the numerous different interpretations of the freeform sound within their set. The music stayed the same with regard to the genre, but the individual tunes were wide ranging, with party, anthemic, epic, then hard all getting a look in during the first 15 minutes or so. Thereafter, with one of the DJs making his presence felt by taking his top off and getting on it on top of the speaker stacks when he werent playing CDs its was minimalist all the way till the end of the set. Even though some of it was bordering on the strage side, it was still something to behold, not to mention something very different from the norm. Mind you, if you wanted different, then how does a die-hard Freeform jock playing a classic DnB set in the middle room grab you? By the knackers if you're anything like me, so as soon as I had been Carbon Based, I got myself in there like a shot. I had never seen this before, hell, I'd never even HEARD of this before, so what followed next was a rare treat, a change from the norm, a chance to see someone stretch their musical legs and the crowd to love every minute of it. With the evening being previously dominated by relentless kicks, it was refreshing to hear some DnB breakbeats in the place so when Kev Energy got down to business, I did the same. It was fair to say I was flagging a little by this point, but there was no way I was going to waste this opportunity. Neither, by the look of things was the DJ. Not only did Kev explore the full history of DnB in his set, but he also managed to keep it credible while he was doing so. The tunes were from possibly my favourite era of DnB, about the same time as I began to get into it as a musical style, with "Technology", "Fugees or not" and "The Helicopter tune all getting a look in, as well as numerous tunes I know by sound if not by name. It was a Highly enjoyable set all round, if for no other reason than for the fact that I could (for once) actually listen to the music. The MC free rule of the middle room was once again in full effect, and Kev intended it to stay that way. Mostly becuase of the amount of times he sent away some clueless mic blagger, hell bent on waffling over the music. Smart move. Well, that was quick. Very quick. Before I knew it it was 5am again, time for one more set before I could give my battered feet a well deserved rest. However, not before getting on it in no uncertain terms to the finale of the evening, in the main arena where Sharkey and Gammer were all set to give the remaining ravers a taste of their interpretation of Hardcore. Greatness was in store, I could tell. I was right as well, with Gammer concentrating on the music and Sharkz alternating between the same and some very welcome mic duties, it was a "Freeform" set in its most enlightening sense. Not just freeform music, but a freeform set. Gammer and Sharkz proved they are more than one trick ponies by playing tunes from EVERY genre that Hardcore has to offer. Its not often that I get to rave to a set which offers the diversity and the forward thinking that I respect and appreciate, but this was it. Like I said, Everything was on offer, but not only that, it was a virtual playlist of my favourite tunes b2b2b. You name it, it was there, with "Dropzone", "This is how we do it", "Tripod" (Which I LOVE), "Show me a sign", "Life is a construct" (which made me rush HARD), "Pullover", "Pumpin Religion", the remix of "Get fucked" and finally finishing on "you're my angel". This weren't the intended set finisher, but security had pulled the plug on the system by then, so it the intended finisher will have to remain a mystery. I was exhausted, tired beyond belief and had to wait around for an hour to get the train home, but I didn't care, it was that good. Things I liked. Hardcore in the right place - I.E. In the main arena, complete with kicking sound system. Doing it all over again - Freeformation was an absolute blinder last time and this was exactly what I was looking for in the second coming, Namely an action replay right till the finish. Attendance - If anything, this was even better attended than last time. I know they got damn near capacity last time, but it was definitely busier, like having trouble moving round the place busier. Old Skool everything arena - Probably my favourite arena of the night. Dont get me wrong the main room was rammed and bouncing all night long, but for sheer enjoyment, I was right where I needed to be in the middle room. Best old skool arena in the UK? Well its definitely up there, and thats up against some serious competiton. Free "FINRG" Tshirt - Courtesy of DJ Rx. Thanks! Things I liked less: Drink prices - Again it was 4 quid a can. It was remarkably difficult to get drunk at those prices. Sound system in the second arena - This really needs beefing up. On its own it would be fine, but when you compare it to the full on rig in the maon room, it goes away wanting. Another round of Freeformation @ Hidden and another top night out had for precisely nothing. In fact the only thing it did cost me was my deepest energy reserves. The music was just too good to not dance to it so that was what I did. I dont think I had a rest of more then 5 minutes all night and that was simply down to how good the tunes were. From Sharkey and UFO's Trancecore set to Kevin Energy's DnB darkness. From the commercial sounds of UFO's main arena upfront set, to the cutting edge experimental sound of Carbon Based and Rx. Not forgetting, of course, Luna-C's random hour. All of it had to be raved to so I did. Under normal circumstances, this would not be a problem, but on this occasion it was fair to say I had not quite recovered from the HH weekender, which had exhausted me not 5 days before. As a result I left the place utterly exhausted. It was a tricky situation to be in, knowing I was finished, but also knowing that I wouldnt get a chance to rave to this sort of music for a good while, so I got on with it and at the end of the night was barely able to stand up. When the nights music compells you to dance even though you are barely able to do so no matter how much effort you summon up, you know it has to be good. To this end I'll be going to the next one for more of the same. I'll see you there. astraboy.
