A totally sold-out event at Printworks for Afterlife means nothing less than an oath to delivering ethereal techno odyssey and perfection from all participating acts and organising team. Saturday 30th November saw the return of the Tale of Us label party series for the third time of the iconic Harmsworth Quays printing plant, which gathered all dedicated fans from all corners of London with a larger than average international cohort and a somewhat older crowd. The kind of attendees you would expect to see at an event with a longstanding fanclub, those who have a good understanding of quality electronic music and a certain element of clique to the output’s identity.
As always, the Printworks security process and guidance from Canada Water station by support staff was seamless, with more than plenty of people making their way in earlier than the usual 5 pm influx you would expect at most of the venue shows. The ‘Dark Room’ was already full to the brim, filled by Innellea’s super progressive and immersive live set. The Munich-based duo presented their new spin on their Afterlife voyage, an updated more focused version of their music since joining the Italian imprint – a lot of unreleased tracks with powerful basslines and dreamy “out of this world” melodies warming into an evening of more unexpected musical experiences.
Joined forces at the main stage: Colyn, Denis Horvat, SRVD (Live), Mathame, Patrice Baumel, Recondite (Live) and finally Tale of Us – all under the suspended holographic diving man logo, the ‘Main Room’ had it all. We heard classical music overlap with heavy techno basslines that left audience caught by surprise. An intensely reverbed remix of house music classic ‘Gypsy Woman’ also made it’s way into the mix, with a half exposed male dancer dominating the front of the stage, transfixing the audience as the day took on a headier vibe. We heard Antonio Vivaldi’s cover of Chef’s Table cover song tied into beats never heard before. SRVD dropped some unreal hard energy onto the crowd including their ‘Another Club’ remix that sent the bass nearly shattering, getting the tightly knit pack into the groove for Mathame who took revellers into a transcending mix of soulravishing melodies of Rufus Du Sol intertwined with trance notes and mixing in four string quartet classics mesmerising holographic light shows.
Later on Dutch DJ and Afterlife OG Patrice Baumel, opened his set with a french monologue “Parlevous Francais” taking revellers onto the next level as be worked his magic behind the decks and making way for yet another flawless performance by Tale of Us. The light show curated by Berlin-based Pfandfunderei had escalated to lightning bolts and psychedelic liquid sensory production. Incredible remixes of Kate Bush’s ‘Running up that Hill’, some emotive mixing of Rufus Du Sol and unreleased music the likes of Alfra Romero – Claim Your Love. A closing of unreleased ‘Hold Me to the Light’ sent every singly person arms up in the air with tears in their eyes – as always with Tale of Us, it’s an emotional and wholehearted journey.
We look forward to welcoming Afterlife for the new chapter in a year’s time at this iconic venue, until then the journey continues at Zamna Tulum on Wednesday, January 8th in the Mexican jungle alongside Adriatique, Keinemusik, and other members of the music collective.
