This weekend sees the Sharp Boys kick-off the celebrations to mark their 18th year as a music production/DJ duo as they team-up with harder house legends the Tidy Boys alongside some of the biggest DJ names in town, from Fat Tony to Steve Thomas via Andy Farley and Per QX.
It’s a club event that will shake your body to the ground! We speak to the Sharp Boys, Anne Savage and the Tidy Boys to get the low-down of the tough and tasty hoe-down that is ‘Sharp Tidy’…
THE SHARP BOYS
What’s the deal with Sharp Tidy?
It’s plan is to offer a harder option to London’s gay club scene – the party will be mixed and we have an amazing line-up playing a mixture of turbo disco, tech house, techno and hard house from scene stars, hard dance legends, the new breed and the undisputed kings and queens of hard music!
You guys celebrate 18 years of Sharp this year! You’re still officially underage club kids! How does that feel?
Scary in one respect, but we are proud to be able to put this event on and to be able to ask our dear friends to join us for this party! We can’t wait.
What should we look out for on Saturday 28th?
In the Sharp Room – the surprise special Sharp guest will be Per QX – he is playing a rare techno set – so exciting! Plus, we will be playing all those Sharp club hits from the past 18 years including East Anglia, Cool Jack, Sara Parker and many more! Come and remind your ears!
TIDY BOYS
How would you sell the energy of your sets to the uninitiated?
We have always had fun on stage and behind the decks. The Tidy Boys are two blokes having a laugh playing music they love, not taking life too seriously, but keeping to our policy of 80% entertainment and 20% education.
How has the hard house scene changed over the years?
Like most genres it has evolved and fragmented into sub genres, from simple hard house grooves of he mid 90s we now have hard trance, hard style, etc. but we still love the hard funk side of what we play. New technology has forced production skills to change, which gives more people the chance to experiment with new sounds, some for the good, some for the worst. Hard house has always been underground, never commercialised for radio, and that’s what’s kept the passionate community happy for over 15 years.
What track should we look out for on Saturday 28th?
BK & Max Mozart ‘Generation’ – a new track from new talent that captures the spirit if why we love hard house.
ANNE SAVAGE
What was your first experience of the hard house scene?
I used to go to Trade nearly every week when I lived in London in the mid-late 90s. I lived walking distance from the club, my next door neighbour used to work the door and I was friends with Steve Thomas and Malcom Duffy [residents] and, of course, Tony De Vit. Wild days indeed!
What was hard house’s greatest moment for you?
So many! But in it’s ‘heyday’ I played to huge crowds and festivals all over the world every week. Myself and Lisa Lashes did a back-to-back set in South Africa to 33,000 people, and I played the now O2 centre when it was just the Dome NYE 2001 – there were 46,000 people in one space! It was mind-blowing. You can see the footage on YouTube.
What track should we look out for on Saturday 28th?
Well, I’m finishing a brand new track to play especially on the night. It’s real Trade-inspired hard house, called ‘Shout It Out’ on Siren Trax, available on www.subhz.com soon.
• Sharp Tidy is at Lightbox/Protocol (6a South Lambeth Place, Vauxhall, SW8 1SP) on Saturday 28th January, 10pm-7am.
