MOVEMENT FIFTH ANNIVERSARY at Roxy Blu (12 Brant), Friday (May 31). $10-$15.
Rating: NNNNN
It’s hard to believe that it’s been five years since Toronto DJs Aki, Nav, A Man Called Warwick, John Kong and Jason Palma got together and began throwing monthly parties in the cramped back room of the Rivoli.
The quintet’s Movement throwdowns came from a selfish place, with the DJs simply playing the deliriously funky African and Brazilian jazz dance records they couldn’t hear at any other club in the city. The concept quickly caught on, and the parties soon outgrew their tiny home.
When Movement relocated to Roxy Blu, what the heaving sessions lost in intimacy they gained in intensity. Watching a thousand people stomp along to George Benson’s The Ghetto one blindingly cold winter night was a revelation, one that predated the now global organic and earthy club music scene and helped put the Movement parties on the international map as one of the few places where you could get that many people dancing to an apparently underground form of dance music.
The night has evolved over the years, with guest DJs like Keb Darge and Phil Asher featured regularly and all the residents, with the exception of Warwick, now spinning largely house-flavoured beats. Here’s hoping that at Friday’s anniversary party the Movement massive will dig deep for a classic selection.
