Jeff Mills - Live at the Liquid Room - Tokyo

In the beginning, you hear the sounds of ominous drones amidst the crackling of vinyl, sweeping extraterrestrial sounds flying overhead, warning you for what’s to come. Close encounters of a fourth kind. The Jeff kind.

This is one of the finest examples of DJing you may ever hear. The atmosphere Jeff conjures is second to none; pure, kinetic energy flowing between the DJ and the people of the Liquid Room that’s impossible not to feel when you drop the needle 30 years after that night. Like a thousand pre-Y2K computers all marching to the same end, this set’s relentless kick drums and scattered hihats are infectious, looping into oblivion while you fall deeper and deeper into hypnotism. Jeff never lets a single record hang for too long, four steps ahead when you realise he’s already mixed in the next track, bouncing between one of his three vinyl turntables. Ever see a single video of Jeff playing live and you’ll see what I mean; hands jittery like each mixer knob is scolding hot, stripping the records off the platter just as quick as he popped them on, stone-faced and focused while he plots away his plan as he goes along. ‘Liquid Room’ is able to transport you back to that night, where unlike another landmark mix like Daft Punk’s Alive 2007, I’m pretty sure all we’ve got is that inversed image of Jeff mid-mix, one headphone cup in tune with the machine and the other with a thousand sweaty dancers. It’s an exhilarating experience to say the least, blood-pumping from its first eerie moments to its final breath. A masterpiece in a modern world full of mixes; a high watermark of 90s Detroit techno and a showcase of the genius of Jeff.