by Dan Mac
One of the world’s leading techno brands returned once more to the capital city of London, this time around in the newer surroundings of Greenwich’s Studio 338.
Sven Vath, or as his fans call him, ‘Papa Sven’, launched Cocoon on the white isle of Ibiza back in the 90’s, delivering raw underground sounds to an ever growing and loyal following. Gradually over the years the brand has travelled the world, from underground clubs to even its own festival, Cocoon is taking over the world.
Studio 338 offers up an experience like no other, from the sheer scale of the venue, alongside the strong Balearic influences that run through the heart of the place, it is easy to forget you’re in a south London club.
We arrived just as the sun had set, the main room glowing with deep reds and a hazy mist throughout the crowd set the the perfect mood during the closing moments of Germanys Einzelkind, who rounded off warm up duties in true Einzelkind style with real class. Up next, and maintaining the German feel, came Sascha Dive, who brought his deeper captivating blend of deep house and techno for two hours. Demonstrating his knowledge and class behind the decks, every mix brought in seemed to please the packed cocoon crowd who were getting well into their stride, rolling with the shuffling hats and down right groovy bass lines.
Christian Burkhart is renowned for his unique live shows so obviously this was set to be a highlight for myself. The trippy lighting behind the stage danced around the figure of Burkhart whilst he offered up one hour of mesmerising techno, bringing the rolling hi hats and pure analogue sounds to the table causing many a mind to be blown within the hour. At this point the tempo was up and Cocoon had really taken ahold of the vibrant 338.
Markus Fix stepped up to the decks, bringing once more a unique sound under the clear roof, delving in between many different sub genres that fall below the techno umbrella and Cocoon sound of today. As the sun began to show its face once more towards the end of the set, the Cocoon crowd reacting spectacularly, continuing their vocal presence that has been felt all night. Markus took us through until 4AM before welcoming Ilario Alicante to join the party and round off what was an exhilarating night of all things techno. Having been to many Cocoon events in the past it is apparent that Studio 338 simply clicks with the worlds best event.
Cocoon will return to Studio 338 once more towards the end of the summer with their ‘Part 2’ Terrace party.
