AND SO IT CAME TO PASS...12 YEARS SINCE THE LEGEND THAT HAS BECOME "OAKEY" LAST GRACED THE DECKS AT HIS SPIRITUAL HOME HEAVEN, THE PRODIGAL SON RETURNED TO THE SCENE OF PAST TRIUMPHS AND WHAT A RETURN IT WAS...ONCE AGAIN THE SALES OF ADVANCE TICKETS OUTSTRIPPED ANY OTHER NIGHTS SINCE CHER PLAYED THERE, ONCE AGAIN THE ARCHES IN WHICH HEAVEN IS SITUATED WERE RAMMED TO THE GILLS AND THE ANTICIPATION OF BEING A PART OF WHAT WAS TO BE ANOTHER SEMINAL NIGHT REACHED FEVER PITCH.

10.00PM AND THE QUEUE IS STRETCHING UP TO THE CHARRING CROSS ROAD, FILLED WITH EAGER CLUBBERS FROM ALL PARTS OF NOT JUST THE CAPITOL, BUT, FROM THE AMOUNT OF ACCENTS AND LANGUAGES, THE WORLD...THAT COSMOPOLITAN FEEL IS CONTINUED IN THE MAIN ROOM, AS FIRST ON IS HERNAN CATTANEO, THE GREATEST SOUTH AMERICAN EXPORT SINCE, PELE...WARMING UP A ROOM WAITING FOR SOMEBODY ELSE TO COME ON. IS SOMETIMES THE MOST DIFFICULT JOB IN THE WORLD, BUT NOT FOR OUR MAN HERNAN, WITHIN MINUTES HE HAS THEM, HIS MIXING OF CHUNKY BEATS IS DRAWING A CROWD TO THE FLOOR AS SOON AS THEY ENTER THE ROOM. THIS CONTINUES AND AT AROUND 11.00PM THERE IS NOT ONE INCH OF FLOOR SPACE LEFT AND HERNAN IS IN TOTAL CONTROL... THE WITCHING HOUR IS SOON UPON US AND THE CROWD KNOW THAT PAUL, SHOULD BE SOON ON STAGE, BUT, OUTSIDE THERE IS STILL A HUGE QUEUE, THE POWERS THAT BE, MAKE A QUICK DECISION, MOVE PAUL’S TIMESLOT BACK BY 30 MINS, THIS WILL ALLOW EVERYBODY A CHANCE TO GET IN TO LISTEN TO THE MAN HIMSELF, AFTER LETTING EVERYBODY IN THE QUEUE KNOW, A CHEER GOES UP AND THE DOOR STAFF RE-DOUBLE THERE EFFORTS TO GET EVERYBODY IN, IN TIME...

"OAKEY, OAKEY, OAKEY" THE CHANT IS UP, THE GREAT MAN IS ON STAGE AND THE SCENE IS SET...HE TAKES OVER FROM HERNAN, WHO ALSO RECEIVES THUNDEROUS APPLAUSE AND HE IS OFF AND RUNNING, WITHIN 5 MINUTES IT FEELS LIKE HE HAS NEVER BEEN AWAY...MIRACULOUSLY THE SOUND MAN FINDS ANOTHER FEW DB FROM AN ALREADY PUSHED SYSTEM, AND HE IS IN CONTROL...FOR THE NEXT THREE HOURS HE TAKES US ON A JOURNEY THROUGH BREAK BEAT, DEEP AND HARDER TRANCE AND KEEPS THE FLOOR LOCKED UNTIL IT IS TIME TO SAY - THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT, AND HE WAS GONE, HE WAS IN THE WIND LEAVING PEOPLE WANTING MORE, BUT, NO PROBLEM HELP WAS AT HAND...

THE SMILE THAT IS SCOTT BOND WAS THERE...STRAIGHT FROM HIS EXPLOITS AT THE WAKEBOARDING FESTIVAL IN ABERSOCH, DJ'ING NOT BOARDING I MIGHT ADD. BANG, HE WAS IN THERE LIKE SWIM WEAR, LAUNCHING A FULL ON ACOUSTIC ATTACK. SCOTT WAS HYPED, YOU COULD SEE THAT MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE THIS IS WERE HE WANTED TO BE, PLAYING VINYL TO A PACKED FLOOR. LONDON, GATECRASHER WAS HERE AND GRETAL, YOUR DADDY ROCKS!!!

ELSEWHERE ON THE NIGHT, THE DEFECTED ROOM UP IN THE STAR BAR, PROVED TO BE A ROADBLOCK FROM START TO FINISH, LABEL HEAD HONCHO, SIMON DUNMORE KICKED IT OFF AND ROCKED THE PARTY UNTIL IT WAS TIME FOR ATFC, ALL NIGHT SILKY GROOVES PUMPED OUT OF THE SYSTEM...PEOPLE WERE NOT JUST LISTENING TO IT, THEY WERE FEELING IT BABY AND THE FLOOR GROOVED AS ONE UNTIL THE SUN CAME UP AND THE FAT LADY STOOD ON THE BAR AND BELTED OUT ANOTHER CLASSIC...CHEERS BOYS, YOU RULE!! ENTER, BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID, DARK AND TWISTED IS WHAT WE HAD ON OFFER IN THE DAKOTA BAR WITH OUR FRIENDS FROM ENTER MUSIC...BUT NOT ONCE WAS IT TO SCARY, IN FACT IT WAS THE PERFECT ANTIDOTE TO THE TWO OTHER ROOMS, TRIBAL AS YOU LIKE, AND IT FELT LIKE YOU WERE IN ANOTHER CLUB...IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR ALTERNATIVE, THEN DO ME A FAVOUR, LOOK NO FURTHER, JUST ENTER...SEE YOU AGAIN NEXT MONTH FOR SOME MORE OF THE SAME...

AND SO IT WAS, 12 YEARS ON AND IN THE WORDS OF THE GREAT SINGER SONGWRITER JULIA FORDHAM, WHERE HAS THE TIME GONE...WE HAVE HAD BALEARIC, GABBA AND ALL POINTS IN BETWEEN, BUT SOME THINGS STAY THE SAME, OAKEY IS STILL GREAT AND GATECRASHER STILL PUT ON TOP NIGHTS...HERE'S TO THE NEXT 12 YEARS...VIVA ACID HOUSE.