One year deeper, one new venue, still the same community ethos: a free midweek gathering of souls that taps into the spirit of Movement, Blue Note and Swerve. No pretention. No assumption. Just love for the music.
Last year we celebrated their anniversary with an exclusive mix from Soul In Motion co-founder Bailey. This year we’re celebrating with a mix from Soul In Motion’s other co-founder Need For Mirrors.
The real celebration takes place next Wednesday March 2 at Miranda, Shoreditch, a venue they switched to last July when their original HQ decided not to host any more club nights.
“It’s a whole new vibe, different soundsystem, different space, everything,” lists Joe Moses, AKA Need For Mirrors. “It’s more in-tune with the original Blue Note Hoxton vibe. We’re the only drum & bass night there but it’s also used for hip-hop, grime, jazz, all sorts. There’s this exciting cross mix of people – locals and music lovers. No one feels out of place or intimidated. It’s a black box, the lights are all turned off and the focus is on the projected visuals which cover the DJ box. People can listen to the music for what it is, the DJs can play the music they truly love.”
Name a respected D&B DJ from the last 25 years and there’s a strong chance they’ve played Soul In Motion. Famously not announcing any DJs until the final days before their fortnightly Wednesday sessions, for their second birthday they’re not announcing any full stop.
“No one will know the line-up until they see the artists behind the decks,” says Joe. “We normally tease people with acts in the run up but not this time. It’s the type of line-up where no DJ can be announced. It’s that heavy. Not even the DJs know who else is playing! Only me and Bailey know.”
“It works out better this way, though,” says Bailey. “Not knowing who else is playing means you’re only packing your very best and most favourite tunes. You’re not making any assumptions on the type of sound or style. You really have to pull out your very very best.”
Over the last two years every DJ who’s played Soul In Motion has pulled out their best. This is what the likes of Goldie MBE, Bryan Gee, El Hornet and Bcee have to say…
Goldie MBE
We lost a lot of ‘cycle’ clubs in London… Clubs that held the groove over a period of time. That’s what makes culture and change; it’s what brought all of us together and created waypoints in the direction of music as we know it. Soul In Motion pays homage to that very aspect. It made me smile when these guys put this together and it’s working. I felt vibes in there for the first time in a long time. It made me smile thinking some new kid is in a corner with his head down vining for the first time or on the regs but still finding themselves in the music and taking that away with them. You can’t beat this culture…. Ever. It’s the true fabric of all of us.
Bryan Gee
It’s what we’ve all been missing and waiting for. Cool midweek catch up, hang out while checking out new beats and meeting that person you’ve been talking to online for the first time.
El Hornet
Soul In Motion is what was missing in the London drum & bass scene. It is a fantastic night where the primary focus is on the music with very little fanfare or hype. This is the kind of club night I truly love. A great room, great people and real DJs.
Bcee
Soul In Motion is without doubt the best midweek party in London, if not the country. The highlight of my 2015 was my set at Soul In Motion. Where else do you get Dynamite MC and Fabio both just turning up and getting involved purely for the love of it?
References don’t come any higher. Here are Need For Mirrors and Bailey’s favourite Soul In Motion memories over the last two years. Then scroll down for the exclusive mix…
Goldie (7.10.15)
Bailey: “Goldie wears his heart on his sleeve; whether he’s angry, happy or upset. This set was the day after he’d visited Diane Charlemagne at a hospice. He was quiet and clearly feeling down. He used his set to really vent his emotions and it was no holds barred. If anyone else would’ve tried to play what he played, it would never have worked. You could feel the raw emotion. He played across the board, mad tracks like this tune with just one big long string and no beats and records I’d never heard before. I’d never heard anything like it. A full-on set of emotion which went on for three hours.”
Soul In Motion First Birthday (4.3.15)
Need For Mirrors: “The first birthday; Shy FX was our special guest alongside Krust and Optical. It was a huge achievement for us. We’ve always worked from one event to the next and never knew if it was going to stop. It was always unstable at Basement so to reach our first birthday was incredible. Shy rocked down to the club and that was a major coup in itself… Then Just Blaze comes along and sits next to him in the DJ box! He’s busting it out and really loving it. It’s Fucking Just Blaze! That night was Historical.”
Basement Closing Party (17.6.15)
Need For Mirrors: “Goldie, Fabio and Frost all behind the decks. Goldie was playing a long set. People were rewinding the tunes and pushing each other. It was just incredible to see these pinnacles of the scene altogether in the booth in total harmony on a wednesday at Sim, it was a celebration. I just remember watching it and going ‘hang on, this is so special!’ It was super special. The perfect way to say goodbye to the venue. The whole community there with the amazing staff, it was a real family vibe. We were sad to go and didn’t know about what was ahead of us. We had a new venue lined up but didn’t know how that was going to go. Goldie went in deep and was playing some great hip-hop at the end of his set, he went on for ages, digging deeper and deeper. Just a real moment.”
Miranda Opening Party: (8.7.15)
Need For Mirrors: “Miranda took us in a new and really positive direction. It was amazing on the first night to see people visit the new venue and acknowledge the new soundsystem and explore the space. A new flow and feeling, a new location, new staff; all adding a new lease of life. The last venue couldn’t accommodate visuals so to be able to project over the DJ box gave us a new visual identity. This was a polar opposite to the last venue in terms of space; we had no idea whether people would be into it and how they would engage with it so it was a nerve racking night. Doc Scott, Klute, Mark System and Source Direct helped calm those nerves! It was a great start to a new setting, a new page of the book. We’ve been there nine months now and want to stay for the foreseeable. It just works.”
Break – Simpler Times album launch (16.9.15)
Bailey: “Break is one of my favourite producers full stop. He’s so consistent with it; a lot of producers will have incredible moments but not all the time, Break just does it every single time. He really puts the soul into the music, whether it’s deeper stuff or the harder music he makes. The album is a very strong album so to have the launch at Soul In Motion was a very special moment. Mako, DLR and Ulterior Motive were also playing so it was just a very special night.”
<MIX>
Need For Mirrors and Bailey would like to thank…
“Seb & Dom and all the team at edition basement for supporting us and helping to create such and amazing night from the start and Stryker & Michelle at Miranda / ace hotel for taking us on and making us welcome at our new home and supporting our vision for what is Soul In Motion now. We also want to shout out to all the djs, artists producers who have played at sim and all the dedicated ravers, clubbers, junglists and fans of the music who travel from all over the world to be part of our little night. Big Love Bailey & Nfm.”
