Live Review: Max Vangeli

On Friday night at the Villa Nightclub in Northbridge, revellers had the satisfaction of winding down to the ethereal rhythms of Moldovan House DJ Max Vangeli, who's had multiple records to his name, including an EP, 2008's Crazed, and a feature 15-track album made in collaboration with Swedish DJ AN21 called People Of The Night (2012). Since the album includes contributions from notable artists such as British rapper Example and Swedish House Mafia's Steve Angello, it's fair to say that the DJ is going places.

The night commenced with remixes produced by local supporting acts AceBasik, Chiari, Paul Scott, Axen and Wasteland. The combination of the opening acts resulted in the emergence of a collage of differing electronic styles and samples, creating an atmosphere of colliding sounds that combined an almost primitive tribal beat with endless burgeoning waves of electronic euphoria. One of the more notable opening acts was Scott, whose cyclic, deep house rhythms helped create an ambient atmosphere in the venue.

Following the supports, Max Vangeli then emerged onto the stage looking confidently casual. He blasted out tracks from his debut album, injecting epileptic steroids into already heavily electronic songs. One memorable remix was of electro-rock band Pendulum's single, The Island, which, although it did already have a significant techno kick, saw its sound pushed even further to include a smoother, more refined feel. The faint repetitive echoes of Pendulum's lead singer Rob Swire's words “what are you waiting for” added an overwhelming atmospheric feel, causing the crowd to fist-pump their booze-filled glasses in the air with anarchic unison. The second most memorable track played that night was a remix of Swedish House Mafia's Save The World, which caused the crowd to exclaim and shout the main lines of the chorus in what was the closest thing to a fusion between karaoke and a warehouse rave I've experienced. As the performance pushed further into the night, the crowd started to gather in momentum; a lone young man near the front of the stage started to expand on his ballroom repertoire by adopting the late MJ's dance moves, while a group of girls began to mosh wildly, blonde hair shattering the chromatic studio lighting. It was at this point that a person could have believed they were dancing at a festival amongst thousands rather than 40 in a medium-sized nightclub, truly demonstrating how transformative Max Vangeli's euphoric remixes can be.