Photography by Anna Kerr, (edited by George Reeders).

This past Wednesday, Asha Sound System hosted eminent Glaswegian selectors, producers, artists, and pioneers of sound system culture: Mungo’s Hi Fi. For their second debut in St. Andrews, Asha called on local ravers to return to the Union: providing a thoroughly enjoyable night, surpassing some expectations and making significant improvements on their previous event held at the tail end of last academic year.

Upon entering, it might’ve appeared that little had changed, apart from the 90-degree rotation of the stage and the 150% (on the door) final price hike compared with last year. While it seems that the increased price tag may have dissuaded some from attending, I still found it unlikely that one could’ve left the event without feeling that relatively substantial cost justified.

Here’s why:

THE VENUE

In St. Andrews, it often feels difficult to get excited about going to the same, tacky venues as ticket sales skyrocket and queues grow larger. This feels especially salient when it comes to the Union.

It’s usually fair to assume that an average night at 601 will leave you disappointed, buzzed off somewhat cheap drinks and home by 2:15. This makes it quite the task to mold the venue into anything reminiscent of big city clubs - let alone to get people excited about attending.

While it’s generally bound to remain the same if not similar, the two titan sound systems (Asha Sound System & Strawberry Jam Sound System) framed the main room in an intricate way. As with last time, Asha forwent the raised stage in favour of placing the decks and speakers on the same level as the audience, transforming the usually gloomy and trodden space into a more intimate affair. On top of this, this year’s simple rotation of the stage made the entire gradient of density in the crowd more accessible and subsequently allowed people to pack closer to the decks, leaving ample space for those who were so inclined. The reduction of 601’s main room to only its simplest and most functional state made apparent that the focus of the night was on one thing:

THE ACT

Eva Lazarus performing live. (Photo: Anna Kerr)

With dim lighting and no decorations, all eyes were on the decks. As the floor began to fill up, the crowd was welcomed by a drum & bass infused jungle opening set from St. Andrews resident DJ and founder of Bassment: Nathalie Nourry. The crowd’s enthusiasm grew indefinitely until the stage was finally set for the headliner.

Mungo’s Hi Fi came through with a set of lively and melodic reggae classics mixed into warped, speaker distorting dub tracks. The exhilaration was ubiquitous throughout the crowd, as even those ravers who might normally have preferred to hang back, pint in hand, could be seen thoroughly absorbed in a humble two step.

The biggest change from last year (and in my opinion, the predominant justifying factor for the increased price tag) came in the form of the addition of MC Eva Lazarus. Approaching the mic with a disciplined elegance, the composed MC first guided the audience to a calm place of familiarity before finally erupting with an intensely enticing display of vitality. While her vocals came up a tad quiet behind the rumbling bass, her delivery was impeccable, seamlessly flipping between delicate, intricate flourishes of high notes and ceaseless, persistent flows.

Her consistent interaction with the crowd made her gun-fingers resemble a conductor’s batons, generating waves of airborne bodies in the sea of the smiling, sweaty, skanking masses. The indisputable highlight of the night left the crowd bouncing as the lights flashed and the attendees were herded home.

THE CONCLUSION

As previously mentioned, convincing students to pay 18 pounds to enter the union is wildly ambitious, yet I must say that there are few other nights in the Union that I, personally, would attempt to compel you to attend. While, compared with last year, the crowd was a bit more scattered, the energy which filled the room made up for its partial emptiness. When I arrived in St. Andrews just over three years ago, I never would have imagined that our small town would be graced with the talent and quality of sound that Asha have delivered thus far. Going forward, I hope to see the student population embrace the efforts that event organisers have made in bringing seminal acts to our tiny corner of Scotland so that these previously unforeseeably big names might continue to grace us with their presence, power, and sound.

ASHA PRESENTS: MUNGO’S HI FI x EVA LAZARUS

Here’s why:

THE VENUE

THE ACT