- The Melbourne Techno Collective is, to state the bleeding obvious, yet another passionate bunch of highly talented techno freaks to band together in Australia’s self-styled Techno City. With an emphasis on music and mayhem, not big-ticket commercialism, a free event at a novel location was perfect for the vibe the boys were trying to muster.
A test-run in Richmond in June had proved successful enough for the passionate MTC boys to aim high for their first ‘real’ event. The Portland Hotel is one of my personal favourite CBD watering holes, and it seemed an inspired if not original choice for this party.
My Saturday night had already been a techno lover’s dream with Craig McWhinney, Ben Monk, and Matt playing a birthday party to remember at Suede. From one group of incredibly talented upandcomers I was all set to rock on to a second. But nothing prepared me for what was to come.
Rushing up the stairs, I walked into a packed out Portland Hotel. The place was seething with people, an impressive sight that brought a smile to my face: with little advertising and a real ‘word of mouth’ approach, the MTC had drawn a large crowd. I think the Ural 13 Diktators are wrong: techno, ain’t dead, baby!
But I hadn’t even waded through the crowd when I was captivated by an unbelievable set. Peter, one of the MTC founders, was presiding over proceedings and to say he was ripping it up would be an understatement. This was tough eurotechno at its absolute best. A lot of relatively unknown, largely percussive records had the crowd going crazy, with brief melodic interludes courtesy of storming tunes like Redhead’s ‘Sad Home Coming’.
What a superb slamming set. Peter worked the in-house dodgy Denon for all it was worth and completely blew me away. Techno ain’t dead, it is in its prime.
Matt had impressed at Suede and now it was his turn behind the decks. Discarding the techno in favour of booty, the crowd now cheered on a different beat. However, anyone who knows me will know what I think about booty spoiling the flow of a storming techno set, and I was somewhat validated when a few fans echoed my sentiments as Matt played out about half an hour of booty tunes.
It was a shame that we’d lost Peter’s brand of the ultimate techno, but by that stage some of us were in need of a breather! My attention now released from Peter’s stranglehold, I ambled through the venue. Much to my chagrin, I noticed a rather undesirable element within the punters. Riff-raff that were most certainly not there for the music glared over pool tables or pushed past you on the way to the bar. Bottles were smashed in toilets inhabited by wannabe gangsters calling their ‘crew’.
Matt eventually swung in and out of techno, playing some favourites like ‘Space Crusing’ before going back to the booty. These intermissions made for conversations with friends, all remarking on the unquestionable success of the MTC.
My Saturday night was one to remember, with great company and amazing talent. Names like Craig, Ben, Peter - they surely have a place on the flyers of large-scale events.
I sincerely hope that distasteful incidents I witnessed - for example certain patrons racially slurring a security guard - do not threaten the ongoing success of MTC. These guys have the right idea. They are fuelled by passion and they are delivering the best music in Melbourne. Keep up the fantastic work! I’m all set for the next MTC event.