I went in to Friday’s inaugural edition of Broken Disco expecting it to be good. The lineup was such that that was pretty much guaranteed. What I wasn’t expecting was that it would turn out to being one of the best nights out I’ve ever had in Seattle. The promoters’ hard work definitely paid off, as the talent was top-notch, the masses showed up, and the party went off without a hitch (other than an isolated incident with an overly agressive male who didn’t know when to say when). So kudos to all involved in putting the night together. It was a great night, and sets off a good precedent for future months. My personal highlights:

Abstract Soul - The duo of Nordic Soul and Jerry Abstract complemented one another incredibly well. It was heady without being boring, danceable without being dumbed down. The set was some of the best that I’ve ever heard from either of the individuals, and I’m waiting to hear good news that the set was recorded.

The Lack of Soundbleed - I was worried that there would be sound issues in Chop Suey back room with the competing sound systems. Turned out to be largely not an issue unless you were literally in the doorway, so the space sustained two sets of music much better than expected.

John Tejada - Sure, I knew he was doing a hardware set, but based on his own words I was expecting it to be merely on par with past performances. Instead, he destroyed those impressions with easily the best set I’ve ever seen from him, and one of the best I’ve ever seen. He blurred the techno/house line as expected, and switched up the overall mood quite a bit, so the crowd wasn’t left bored at any point during his performance.

If you couldn’t make it to Chop Suey, you missed something special. Luckily, next month they’re doing it all over again with Knifehandchop and Passions.