Circus 13th Birthday review

Images: Gary Brown

These days, a club making it to its fifth birthday is an achievement. With fierce competition and the increase in festivals across the country, clubs can struggle to make it through past any major milestone. That is unless, the night has garnered loyal support and a reputation that's near impossible to rival. As Circus toasted to 13 years this weekend, it was clearer than ever that they fall into that revered category. 

Circus has always been branded as 'serious music and fun times', and walking through the East Village Arts Club and into the Theatre main room, the slogan never seemed more relevant. Seth Troxler was churning out funk driven house from the get-go. Far from his darker, moodier sets, he zealously offered up groovers in the form of House Of Funk's 'You Got To' (listen below).

A spectacle himself, all eyes were on Troxler as he sashayed from left to right behind the decks himself, unleashing even more hip-grinding beats as movers and shakers on the dancefloor smirked and twirled. Now, it wouldn't be a birthday party without balloons would it? Mid-set, an abundance of jumbo multi-coloured ones began to bounce from all corners of the room as revellers put their fist pumps to good use to knock the inflatables onto the next dancer.   

Yousef was up next. As the ring master, behind the decks he tackles his sets with such unwavering confidence. Anyone familiar with Circus will be familiar with Yousef's signature approach to the theatre. Big bass, big drops and a frenzied response from the crowd. He'd strip it back completely, leaving nothing but the bare beat of a track, and then bring it back with vengeance, making the whole room quiver. 

Glaswegian cheeky chap Jackmaster had been enlisted to deliver the final set. Vocals for 'Benediction' filled the main room, encouraging a sing-a-long as the room ruptured. Weighty house tracks were followed up by Late Nite Tuff Guy's 'Do I Believe In God', that driving and sexy bassline sounded better than ever through Circus' mammoth sound system. 

He kept the main room moving with one of the biggest tracks of the past few months, Bicep's edit of Dominica's 'Gotta Let You Go' (listen above) whilst up in the Loft Tom Trago was taking things deeper with pummeling bass and luscious synths, making it near impossible to choose what room to end the night in.

13 is unlucky for some, but after the recent announcement from Circus that will return to Camp & Furnace with the likes of Luciano, Jamie Jones and Loco Dice, the clubs upcoming year is already cemented to be one to remember. Here's to another year of even more serious music and fun times!

Read more: Tom Trago Interview: Digging A Little Deeper

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