Like any 18-year-old's party the Ram event at fabric on Friday 6th August was wild, hedonistic and packed full of exuberant youthful faces. A gregarious queue snaked along the streets of Farringdon and a buzz of excitement and anticipation was in the air.

A surprisingly eclectic line-up was on the cards with room one being the main Ram room hosting headlining acts Andy C, Chase & Status, DC Breaks, Calyx & Teebee, Xample & Lomax and Marcus Intalex.  Room two featured a few more of the Ram fam, including hotly tipped new member Hamilton alongside Culture Shock, Kryptic Minds, Moving Fusion plus Bristol's Al Tourettes and Appleblim.  Room three, the Autonomic Room, were taking things on a more experimental tip, with Hemlock head honcho Untold, Mosca, dBridge and Instra:mental providing some seriously deep beats.
 
A thrill of reckless abandon rebounded off the brick walls of the infamous nocturnal labyrinth as we descended the wooden stairs to enter the building... DC Breaks were tearing up the main room, with a tremendous rewind of Xample & Lomax's Link To The Past. Red luminescent spheres emblazoned with the Ram logo shrouded the decks on either side of the stage. A blue strobe and billows of smoke engulfed the baying crowd.

Sub Focus' 'Follow The Light' got a big reaction, as did the Brookes Brothers' Last Night, followed by a quick, deft flick to some cheeky dubstep flavours, before Sigma's Front To Back was slammed on, in all its rowdy, synth-soaring glory. Then it was mass hands in the air for the uplifting anthemic Climax from Camo & Krooked, followed by a gorgeous re-work of Rox's My Baby from the men themselves, DC Breaks. Thumping the vinyl to re-load, the pace was set and it was all game on for Marcus Intalex up next.
 
But first, onwards, ever onwards, down the twisting corridors, past the bars and plush leather sofas and further into the dark velvety black maze, to room two where the Scratch Perverts were doing some serious damage with a high octane, pedal to the metal set, full of womping bass and rasping kicks.

Smashing out a mash-up of flavours, it was all about Fresh's Fight and Nero's Innocence when we entered the room. As we clambered upon the stage at the side, alongside the merry medley to get a great view of the stage, the Scratch P's sterling set drew to a close, and the Bristol contingent took over at around 1am.

The room perceptibly cleared, filtering out so the lush beats and breeze of the Apple Pips crew took over the small room. A mass exodus for Andy C over in room one you see, but a sorely missed opportunity over in room two for those who missed it... massive shout outs to Appleblim & Al Tourettes, who did a superb back-to-back set and really impressed us.
 
Eventually dragging ourselves away to go and see Ram's head honcho we were greeted by an ecstatic chant "Andy Andy Andy, oi oi oi!" which bellowed across the two walls, floating up on to the balcony above. A flush of coloured strobes poured out across the sea of people as the famous peaked cap nodded back and forth, with the energy of a nodding dog on speed, from behind the decks.

The notorious "executioner" proceeded to go in with the usual ferocity, chopping things up, double dropping, rewinding, keeping the crowd hyped to the max and on constant tenterhooks, never erring even for a second. Mixing it up with Ram classics and modern day massive anthems as well as some lovely melodic moments, with tracks like Commix's Be True, the passion and energy was at its peak during these two hours.

Towards the end an incredible crescendoing moment saw Ed Rush & Optical's Chubrub double dropped with Hazard & D*Minds' Mr Happy to huge applause and enormous team brock out, from the entire room. Of course, Chase & Status were on next, taking things on 'til the early hours slot, but first, a venture over to the leftfield...
 
Over in room three, dBridge was on the decks. Having done his early influences set with his Autonomic cohorts and long term collaborators, Instra:mental (followed up by sets from Mosca and Untold), it was now Darren's turn to flex his skills solo. And what a set it was.

Having intended to just pop our heads round the door, we ended up staying for the duration, missing most of Chase & Status' hour of glory, and concluding that it was one of the stand-out sets of the entire evening. Blissful, dark beats bounced off the cavernous, cave-like room, with its archways and alcoves.

Alix Perez perched behind the DJ booth with a few other D&B 'slebs and music biz bods. The bass hit in deep, with some exceptional selection from the Exit Records boss. A VIP of Jubei & dBridge's Patience was a particular moment to be treasured, alongside some of his recent work with songstress Riya. Utterly hypnotic, we were absolutely mesmerized for the whole time.
 
Then it was back to room one, via a brief foray into room two, where Hamilton had just dropped Spor's Kingdom, to see Calyx & Teebee doing their thing. Green lasers punctured the air as the infamous clashing of swords, frantic breathing, bullet punches and grating of metal on metal heralded the intro of Anatomy LP highlight, Warrior.

As vocal whispered out those iconic words, "When a warrior kills another, he absorbs that foreign warrior's spirit..." menacingly over the hushed and darkened room, a cry leapt out from the crowd. People started storming the stage to dance alongside the DJs in front of the decks, until they were ushered off by security. As the main tune dropped, the dancefloor almost exploded, with flailing limbs, military salutes and an unashamed furore bursting skywards.

After an incredible performance, it was down to recently joined duo, Xample & Lomax to finish up the party in true Ram style. Bashing out the tunes at a rate of knots, it was pure dancefloor destruction for the final hour.

Fresh's iconic opener Talkbox and later, the growling '09 anthem, Heavyweight, led in to Sub Focus' enormous Timewarp, Nero's Energy, a filthy interlude from the Dirtyphonics, plus further play outs of current slammer, Link To The Past with its hoover bass and driving synths.

Whipping out the aptly chosen, even more aptly titled, Xample remix of TC & Jakes' Drink with its lyrics "Gin, cider, whiskey..." it was a fabulous finishing set for one of the best nights we have seen at fabric for many moons. And so, the mighty Ram Records came of age and entered official adulthood.

Words: Belinda Rowse

Photography: Ollie Martin at underground-music.co.uk

 

Related Links:

• Review: Ram @ Fabric 11/2/11
• Chase & Status Live Review
• Chase & Status Live Review
• Andy C Announces Nightlife 5
• Ram Move To Fabric

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