Unpolished 2019 Review

It’s been just over a week since Unpolished 2019 and the dust has just about settled. This year we flocked once again to Warehouse Elementenstraat to witness the all out industrial destruction hosted by Reaktor events. Although we missed the Friday night we can certainly say the weekend was delivered with a punch.

The Unpolished community is welcoming and it almost feels like home to be back at this annual event which pushes the boundaries each year in terms of boldness with artists, artwork and all round atmosphere.

The Reaktor community is also one that gives back and drives the scene forward in the Netherlands. It gives local artists the opportunity to send over a mix with the chance of being on the room 3 lineup. It also opens up the selection process of who becomes the victor and wins the chance to play during the weekend, which further encourages interaction and concretes relationships, making it that ever little more personal. This little nugget most definitely strengthens Reaktors forward-thinking approach to the scene as it highlights up and coming talent who we might hope to see in R1 or R2 in years to come. Applications begin in late January so stick that in your calendars for next year!

Saturday night was opened with DJ AZF (Room 1) and Jensen Interceptor (Room 2) who both definitely brought the warehouse to life. Up next in Room 1 was our all time favourite and father of Irish techno - Sunil Sharpe. Sunil of course held his own during his hour and a half set, with records flying everywhere and a fast paced revelling energy setting the tone for the rest of the night. This is the part where we took a deep breath and said our prayers.

Up next was Blawan. The highlight of the night for a lot of people. Blawan definitely showed up to the dinner table with no manners as he went in for the kill. His set was relentless and rolling from the get go. As the sound system was turned up we got the full whack of crushing techno that we had signed up for. It was rewarding to see Blawan in his element as since 2012 he has been a main component in curating a new sound for techno in the UK, while redefining industrial techno by inspiring others to brutalize their sound. The line-up times really did justice for each artist and were thought out very carefully as it purposefully drove the way the mood shifted throughout the night.

Up next was the Advent live in Room 1 with a 1 hour long live 90’s set. This brought a bounce to the room as there was a groove and flow with breakneck drive from start to finish. A ‘had to be there’ moment as apparently The Advent does not publish his live sets!

Up next to the firing line - ROD. Definitely our highlight of the night. Rotterdam native and in huge demand in the Netherlands and also internationally at the moment and we can see why. ROD has been paving the way in shaping Rotterdams underground nightlife since the 90’s with quite an extensive and inspiring background. His attitude to music is wholly refreshing as he recently said in an interview with Resident Advisor that he’s still shocked he gets paid to play records and that he’d honestly be happy doing it for nothing. His devotion to techno and club culture really radiates through his work. We are most definitely looking forward to hearing and seeing more of ROD in the next few years. To the other djs & producers out there - take note!

The lighting and visual rigs were taken to another level this year and during this set it almost felt like we had descended to a much darker & serious space as vision was clouded by fog and the lights flickered to different shades of crimson.

This lead us into Perc, full throttle, grit and unforgiving as always. It's safe to say his sets are always flawless - it’s everything you could possibly want and more at 6:30 in the morning.

Taking us to the finishing line was The Outside Agency. The only way we know how to describe this was it was absolute top notch hardcore madness. Unpolished always hitting that high end note with the craziest sh*t they can legally put on stage!

Unfortunately we did not spend too much time in Room 2 as we were sucked in by the sound system and visuals of room 1. Although we did hear the highlights for most were Jensen Interceptor and The DJ Producer who we will definitely catch next time.

All in all, Unpolished never fails to disappoint. We will be back next year for more madness and we hope to see Reaktor grow and lead the way in underground culture. A big well done and thank you to the people involved in making this party what it is, you've created something very special that will keep us techno loving children coming back for more.