Although pounding kick drums, speedy hi-hats, crawling basslines, and looped vocal samples are often associated with DJ sets in late-night club spaces, Overmono are one of the growing number of dance music acts showing that the genre can thrive in a large-scale gig environment and not lose its gritty character. London’s Roundhouse provides an alternative type of big-room experience to what tech-house-loving-bros might be used to, yet the concave roof collects the sound, engulfs listeners, and facilitates a Wednesday evening dance.
The duo of brothers Tom and Ed Russell, AKA Truss and Tessela, get the energy high from the off with their heavy Joy Orbison and Kwengface collaboration Freedom 2, before heading into their more synth-heavy, ecstatic cuts. Big tracks like Gunk and BMW Track are mixed in with crowd-pleasing samples – such as Ruff Sqwad’s Functions on the Low, the Streets’ Turn the Page, and Tessela’s own Hackney Parrot – and smooth transitions are made between them all; soon even those in the seating area stand up and move in a hemmed-in two-step.
As the opening broken beats of So U Kno start playing, the crowd roars with excitement at the duo’s signature track, and dancing increases in momentum and wayward movement. It feels as though everyone in the venue is screeching the “I let you get me, want me, want me, want some” in unison; giggles of joy permeate the booming four-to-the-floor. Later, for Bby, “Baby if you want my love” is also chanted in glee while the subwoofer shoots the bass riffs through the floor.
The time constraints of an evening live set leave little room for the electronic experimentation that you feel the duo have in them – it could have been fascinating to watch them turn away from groove and towards something more freeform for a spell. The pre-midnight finish also quickly pricks the bubble. But for a little while in a dull midweek, Overmono generate a triumphant, richly textured rave.
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