Famous feat. Roger Sanchez @ Home, Sydney (01/03/08)
What can be said about Roger Sanchez that hasn’t been said before? He is one of the finest DJs in the world, playing a brand of house music that has been enjoyed by dance music fans in every corner of the globe. He is one of the doyens of the pure house genre. He gets behind the decks, does his job and lets that oh-so-scintillating music do the rest. And Saturday night was a big night in Sydney. Mardi Gras was in full swing, there were some huge after parties taking place but for my money, the only night worth going to was Famous at Home Nightclub. I hadn’t seen Mr Sanchez for many years so was ecstatic when he decided to play in Sydney after a stint at the Future Music Festival in Brisbane.
And so it was that we made our way through the pink boas and top hats of Old Sydney Town towards Darling Harbour. The traffic congestion and road closures meant that we got to Home with only about 15 minutes to go before the S-Man came on. The atmosphere was palpable as the muscled beat conductor took up his position behind the decks. Would he be jaded after his Brisbane gig? Would the crowd pick his baton up and run with it? All concerns were brushed aside when he dropped two of the biggest house tracks of all time to start off his set. As he swept the crowd with his trademark torch, the vocals of Mr Fingers Can You Feel It? drowned the huddled masses with its sermon like delivery. From the first line of, “In the beginning there was Jack…”, the hands went up and the dancefloor moved as one.
Unbridled joy was the order of the day as he followed it up with Clivilles & Coles A Deeper Love. There is no voice that can compare to Aretha Franklin’s and combined with some sumptuous beats, Roger Sanchez began to give us a lesson in house. He followed on with one barnstorming track after another. Pig Bag’s Papas Got A Brand New Bag, Mousse T’s Horny and a remix of Walking On The Moon all regaled us. The king was back on his throne and we were spellbound. You could give 10 DJs the same set of tunes, but Roger Sanchez always manages to combine them in a completely unique way. Add the great lights and production that Home Nightclub can boast, and the experience just got better and better.
I could go on and on about the plethora of remixes he dropped. There were so many fine moments during his three-hour set. The biggest roar of the night strangely enough was not for one of his newer tunes but was reserved for The Eurhythmic’s Sweet Dreams. He also followed it up with some supreme divas; Yomanda, Michelle Weekes and a remix of Sade’s Diamond Life. He created a vibe that only Roger Sanchez can create. A cascading mix of infectious beats coupled with some dynamic vocals and pianos and strings aplenty
He beefed it up towards the end of his set, dropping in Underworld’s Born Slippy and then Ingrosso’s remix of Suburban Knights. He is a master of his art and keeps pace with the dance floor. He reads the crowd like no other and for me, and I know I am biased, he epitomises all that is good in the dance music scene. I had been happy clapping all night long so that when it came time to farewell the master my hands ached. I could applaud no more!
Roger Sanchez has been around for a long time. A veteran of the global scene and man who should rightly be acclaimed as one of the best in the world. For those who are going to the Future Music Festival this weekend, be sure not to miss him as there are very few who can hold a crowd like he can. There are still fewer who can leave a crowd begging for more after a three-hour set. Roger Sanchez is that man. Enough said!
