WORDS BY JAMES HAWKRIDGE // PHOTOS BY DAISY DENHAM 

Born in 1994 to Derrick Carter and Luke Solomon, Classic Music Company pre-dates the legendary conception of Defected; and yet today the label is as influential, bold, and perhaps tips the scales to become even more of a risk-taker… where musical elocution is concerned, at least.

I went through the magic door at Classic's showcase at Lab 11 in Birmingham to the sounds of the award-winning Leftfoot DJs, the local promoters who along with the Hooker Club collective were welcoming Classic for this anything-but-demure affair. Into the dark and seemingly through a time-capsule I stepped, as funky bass and gliding riffs seductively beckoned me into the crowd of writhing, effortlessly elegant bodies, all getting stuck into phase one of Classic's impressive 2019 plan of wonky house re-domination.

Honey Dijon Classic Music Company

Despite the doors opening merely an hour or so before my arrival, the gathering was already in full-swing, from brick wall to brick wall. Lab 11’s famous LED twig-like overhead lighting in its intimate chamber poured over us like the most delightful wildfire of blues and reds, spitting and licking the cheeks of nearby ravers as our souls grooved and our united heart rates gradually increased. 

Led by the hands of Luke Solomon himself we were soon rocked back and forth throughout the years of his legacy, stumbling from the deep, funky depths of 80’s Downtown Chicago to strobe-lit experimental days yet to come. Inhale too sharply, and you’ll have wanted to sit down for a minute; not that you had that choice. Solomon has made his name as a pioneer of underground house music from London, to Berlin and Mantua (his next stop will be at Shoreditch Platform on the 20th April, where he’ll be presenting Business As Usual alongside Mark Farina).

Honey Dijon Classic Music Company

Classic's crowd is a spectrum of party people, from mature, effervescent men and women dressed in t-shirts that feature poster designs from club nights gone by; to smooth-skinned teenagers and twenty-somethings, the boys adorned with oversized jumpers and sharp skin-fades, the girls in latex and neon. A man head-to-toe in leather and mesh fist-pumps towards the flashing ceiling, a gesture of gratitude rather than a wanting reach. There are no layers to society, simply one tidal wave of sweat and residue glitter, simultaneously clinging to each other and yet free; of responsibility, of hierarchy. They’re proud, and you can see why Solomon’s billed alongside Horse Meat Disco at London Pride on the 6th July; the crowd are united, and free. Your past identity is irrelevant; you’re part of a collective now.

Luke Solomon Classic Music Company 

Armed by a rising BPM of amped-up, electric undertones and repetitive vocal chants, Classic’s dancers stand beside the decks utilising every limb they possess. Clad in little other than the skin they came into this world in, save for a tear or two of fabric, a sweep of paint and a dash of sparkle they grind and gyrate. The crowd close to the decks begin to roar, while those further away crane their necks, a resounding cheer and applause soon following. Honey Dijon places headphones around her neck like an angel being crowned her halo, and as she turns the dials the dance floor becomes a vibrating cloud. The walls shrink away, we ascend into the stars, and we are truly lost travellers, in the best possible way.

The room is on fire, and all the bodies are burning. Honey Dijon lights up the room, a staple of the most euphoric house music events. Alongside her recently announced Radio 1 Residency, she’ll be at Classic’s event in Dublin at Pygmalion on the 30th March, as well as taking part in Defected's first ever London Festival on the 14th September, which will place across 5 stages and host 10’000 fans showcasing the very best in worldwide house music. The beat flows within her, lilac lighting illuminating her hourglass silhouette. The best, and groggiest remix of 'Déjà Vu' you’ll ever hear plays over a snappy, sure-of-itself beat that would be taking you to bed right now if it were to materialise into human form. In circles you bounce, your body no longer yours, until that heat kicks in again and the voice of the NYC-born avant-garde Leikeli 47 pumps through the airwaves. The repetitive chorus of ‘Hair, conditioner, leave-in-leave-in’ pulsates alongside a crunchy beat; filters and sweeps are utilised in full-effect to tear away the bass and elevate before descending back into the darkness once more.
 
Classic Music Company Lab 11

Sampling elements of house tracks through the ages and tossing them into one, concentrated drip-fed sound, Hooker Club DJ’s close the set; fusing bass synthesisers and drum machines of the 80’s with eclectic, energetic techno and eurobeats that are fast-spreading again today, the pair force the beat, encourage it, motivate it. As one mixes the other hops back-and-forth, amping up the energy and cheering on both their partner and the room. They weave in between each others’ fingers and bring a timely-descend to the blowout, with one or two tricks up their sleeves too, of course. 

It’s over before you know it as it always is, sadly. Your descent was so peaceful and yet all-at-once at the same time, and before long the lights are on and the bodies are gone; it’s almost as if, with the flick of a switch, you were transported back to the other realm. You count yourself lucky you witnessed what you did, rub your eyes half in disbelief. ‘Was it real?’, you ask. ‘Do I really have to wait until the next time Classic throw a party?’. 

You know in your heart it was truly ethereal as you melt into the pavement on the walk home, a weary puddle of the aftermath, almost defeated by the groove. You want more, you have a taste for it now, but the one thought that strikes you as you take each step, the sole reason for your continued energy and drive, for opening up your web browser with your mates a few days later and planning the next night…

Maybe we weren’t lost. Maybe, for a brief moment of time, we were home.

UPCOMING DATES:

CLASSIC MUSIC COMPANY & PYG PRESENT HONEY & LUKE takes place on Saturday 30th March at Dublin's Pygmalion, this is sold out but there will be limited tickets available on the door.

CLASSIC MUSIC COMPANY x SHOREDITCH PLATFORM PRESENT BUSINESS AS USUAL takes place on Saturday 20th April at Shoreditch Platform, tickets here.

Classic will be hosting stages and boat parties at Defected Croatia, 8th-13th August in Tisno, tickets here.

Classic will be hosting a stage at Defected's first ever London festival. Defected London FSTVL takes place on Saturday 14th September, tickets here.