System. & Set One Twenty with Ricardo Villalobos b2b Zip review

Image credit: Elliot Young

For many in Leeds the bank holiday means only one thing - time for another Mint Warehouse Terrace party. The last few years have seen System and Set One Twenty make the most of our summer bank holidays, marking both the start and the end of our favourite season. The string of lineups across May and August are always special for the club and so far, this year has been no different. Some might even say the bar has been raised. 

Earlier in the month we saw the likes of Shonky, Archie Hamilton, Varhat and Janeret at the helm of the ever awesome Function One rigs both on the Terrace and in the main room. Last weekend saw the biggest buzz however, with the return of System favourites Ricardo Villalobos and Zip for a five hour back to back. 

The two friends made the most of their extended time on the Terrace, weaving through their combined back catalogue of tracks. No strangers to playing together for long periods of time, as ever they relished the opportunity to dig deep within their record collections, offering a mixture of some of the classic house and techno they have acquired over the years.

We spent the most part of the five hours wishing we knew what delights we were being treated to. Shazam had little place on the dancefloor and despite several attempts we were still left in the dark. The majority of tracks were laden with long, groovy basslines demonstrating old school vibes and as the set developed the two dipped between more chilled, melodic flavours and pumping, hands in the air house.

When Ricardo dropped Mousse T.’s Club Mix of Michael Jackson’s ‘Ghosts’ the atmosphere on the Terrace was absolutely electric, even more so when Zip followed up with Wildchild’s ‘Renegade Master’. Impeccable mixing and selections from two veterans of the game. 

As the Terrace closed, System resident Bobby O’Donnell took control of the main room, which quickly filled with people and heat. Deep grooves, moody synths and acid baselines kept us entertained and on a level as we battled with the increasing temperature, a somewhat difficult adjustment after a day spent outside. Mass residents took over the upstairs room which was even more tropical. Mint, if you’re reading this please consider installing some form of air-con, a big fan at the front will do! 

The soundtrack for the rest of the night could not be faulted. JJ Mowbray had the Boiler Room full to the brim as he served up deep, rolling basslines laced with interesting, melodic samples, representing that exquisite sound that has become popular in the underground circuit thanks to the likes of iO Mulen’s Moi series. Over in the main room, Barac oozed through minimal, Romanian techno full of leisurely melodies and funky, squelchy bass. 

Also on the lineup had been Mandar who sadly never turned up, with no explanation. However, for the 12 hours we were at the club, the music had been on point for the duration and yet again we’d had another successful bank holiday in Mint Warehouse.  

The next Terrace Party is a MiNT Festival Warm Up on Sunday 27th August.