'AEROSOUL'S LATEST EVENT PROVED THAT THEY ARE AN EXCITING PROJECT; BRINGING A BREATH OF FRESH AIR TO THE DISCO MOVEMENT'

Aaron L by Harry Franklin

Disco is really flourishing at the moment. The sound and movement that was pushed underground due to the over commercialisation of what is ‘disco music’, has always been recognised as something very special by music lovers and professionals. Since disco was somewhat pronounced 'dead' around 40 years ago; it has evolved into mainstream music, where it is found in stripped down versions. It's influence is apparent in a large amount of new music, across a variety of genres. Meanwhile, true disco music never actually 'died'. Instead it quietly retreated to its underground roots, where it has thrived. Now, at clubs all around the country, we are seeing a refound, growing love for it. There are disco events popping up everywhere, and this is thanks to the organisations co-ordinating their events in the right way. ‘Aerosoul’ is one example of the many events companies who seem to really know what they’re doing when hosting a good disco night. On Friday the 29th of December, it was time to check out what they are all about, at the Rolling Stock, in Shoreditch.

There was a retro feel to the environment inside the Rolling Stock; with a back-to-basics set up of vinyl decks, a rotary mixer, good sound system and a gleaming mirror ball, spinning around beside the decks. Now all that needed to be provided was great selectors to get the crowd excited, and Aaron L and Mafalda certainly fit into this category. The Rolling Stock was warmed up with some great old school tunes by Billy Westwood, before Aaron L took over at around 10:30. The co-founder of ‘Stamp The Wax’ online magazine, host on Worldwide FM and all round musical enthusiast is known for having a mixed bag of diverse, rare collections, enabling him to play music of all kinds of flavours. His selections on the night ranged from horn-led soulful to funky baseline-led rare Disco bangers. In between his cautious and well calculated mixing, he was dancing around, having a great time, reflecting his high energy into the crowd to create great vibes. He really got the crowd going. Energy levels in the club reached their peak as the clock drew close to midnight, and Mafalda began to cue up her first selection.

The phenomenal selector, who works with Floating Points, co-running the Melodies International Label also has a mixed bag of gems. With a unique taste in soul, jazz and many other uplifting sounds, her label specialises in unveiling previously hidden disco/soul gems which highlights her great amount of devotion to music. Her set incorporated some slower, sweet soul with soft melodic vocals, fast saxophone-driven jazzy anthems and a bunch of uplifting soulful disco records, including my favourite record of the night: ‘There's Never Been No One Like You' – Kenix (2001). The great records playing, whilst the disco ball was spinning, coupled with a back-to-basics set up in an intimate venue; with high energy bouncing around the room, created an amazing environment. Aerosoul did a great job in recreating that special disco atmosphere that was so popular during the 70s. This was great to be a part of. Mafalda is known for being incredibly energetic behind the decks and was dancing just as much as anyone else in the room on the night, singing along to every record she played. Like Aaron L, this energy was mirrored into the crowd, there was a proper party going on.

As Mafalda spun her last few records, Aerosoul’s own Tom Mortimer was due to close the night. With the atmosphere booming, it was a huge shame that the venue was forced to close early, and he only got to unleash a few of his records. This was due to incidents out of the organisers’ hands, much to the disappointment of the many that had been waiting for the closing set. However, there will be many other opportunities to catch Tom at other Aerosoul events around the country. With events coming up in Liverpool and Leeds, Aerosoul seem to be slowly expanding their influence, bringing a breath of fresh air to the disco movement with their old school, intimate feel. This was a great night and they will only get bigger and better.