8 Tracks: Of Weather With Thunder

Part of the impetuous for starting Thunder was the interest my blog, Beyond the Stars, generated over the few years I was writing it. It was really just me wittering on about house music, at a time it was still pretty unfashionable, but people seemed to like it and that helped inspire me to get my finger out and start the party. I had actually wanted to call that blog Beyond the Clouds, after this track, but some git had already bagged the name on Blogger, so I had to come up with something else. That aside, it would be fair to say that Chicago house and Larry Heard were massive musical influences for Thunder and all involved in the party. Actually, I could have included ‘The Sun Can’t Compare’ but didn’t no one needs to hear that one again, right?

If there was one city music that was more of an influence on Thunder than Chicago, it was probably Detroit. the music we played, the DJs we booked, such as Marcellus Pittman, Rick Wilhite, Keith Worthy, Patrice Scott, and Andres. This one of my favourite Detroit house records, it really does have it all. Massively pumping piano, Mad Mike on production duties, and it was released on Happy Records, Underground Resistance’s house sub-label, home of Davina ‘Don’t You Want It’, which was maybe the biggest record at Thunder in the first year or so. If only she could have shoe horned a weather reference in to the title, I could have just listed that instead…

The original Thunder residents were me, Rick Hopkins and Joseph Apted. Rick was from a more techno background, having been resident at numerous clubs, including Weatherall’s Haywire and Bloodsugar. I was more New York influenced and most likely to play vocal house. Joe, having been schooled on the dance floor of the Sub Club, was probably somewhere in-between. It might sound like a mish-mash of sounds but it worked and as a trio, we were greater than the sum of our parts . Joe was also a driving force in early days of the parties, which would have never made past the first year without his hard work. Musically, Guidance is label that is Joe all over and this is a record he played a lot at Thunder, so no shoe horning needed here at all.

I have no idea how many Moodymann records we played at Thunder, bloody loads. This was one, ‘Inspirations from a Small Black Church’ was another fav, I remember playing ‘Tribute’ when we did Boiler Room, dividing the dance floor with ‘Lyk U Used 2’ at the end of one party, and maybe most memorably, Domenic Cappello whipping everyone into a wall climbing frenzy down at The Waiting Room with ‘The Third Track’. I’ll never being able to explain the energy in the room that night to anyone who wasn’t there, it was a borderline religious experience.

When we started Thunder, it definitely had a harder edge than it does now. Neville Watson was our first guest and John Heckle (with his 707) our second. I remember Joe worrying about John playing too hard and having a chat to him about tempering that slightly, before John just did what he does and spanged the fuck out of it. Everyone loved it though, lots of people still talk about it being the best set at Thunder (it’s on our soundcloud btw), and it kind of set the tone. All the residents played acid at Thunder but Rick was particularly in his element with that sound. This is the sort of thing he would have played. In the warm up.

By this point, you might well be thinking, “This is just a bunch of bloody old records”, but one of the guiding principles of the parties was new music being front and centre. When we started Thunder, most parties playing ‘real’ house music were also only playing old house music. For me that was the house equivalent of Showaddywaddy (ask your mum… actually, ask your grandmother). DJ Nature was and still is one of my favourite contemporary house music producers, one of his remixes was the first record ever played at Thunder, and we were determined to get him to play for us. It took a couple of years but when we did, I think it was our first queues down the street party. Brilliant music and lovely chap too, one of the best.

I think everyone knows this one, about as good as original acid house gets. It still sounds great too – gritty as fuck, a kick drum that punches you right in the stomach, that searing acid line, and then, just when you think it can’t get any nastier, those delicate, almost soothing strings sweep in and wash away all the pain. Thunder would make a great name for a party actually…

Achim could have actually made this for us! Deep with a Chicago edge, dreamy keys and it even has thunder claps in the background. Personally, my favourite Prosumer record. Have I mentioned he’s playing our last party? You should come.