TuneLab
ARDALAN in The Lab #SmirnoffHouse
at HSMF16
The text comes through: 'Ardalan just dropped a stupid edit in The Lab.' We immediately pause whatever we're doing, because an Ardalan set at HSMF16's Smirnoff House promises a specific, unfiltered brand of tech-house hedonism. This is the sound of a darkened booth, a sweating sound system, and a crowd locked into a four-four shuffle. The vibe is dense, humid, and entirely focused on the low-end rumble. Technically, Ardalan locks into a punishingly consistent 124-125 BPM groove, with almost the entire set harmonically grounded in the familiar, punchy key of 12A.
The energy is overwhelmingly concentrated in the bass frequencies (avg_low: 0.759), creating a physical, chest-rattling experience where melodies are subtle and rhythms are paramount. His mixing is efficient and tough, letting each track's raw drum programming and synth stabs speak for themselves. The tracklist is a clinic in effective tech-house: the ubiquitous but undeniable riff of Loud Luxury's 'Body' sets the tone, before he dives into deeper, dirtier cuts. The double-header of Nina Kraviz's 'Ghetto Kraviz' and its Regal 303 Remix is a brutal, minimalist masterstroke.
The swung, hypnotic groove of Traumer's 'Tambur' and the classic garage-house flip of Double Exposure's 'Ten Percent' showcase his range, while his own cheeky edit of Mary Jane Girls' 'All Night Long' is the kind of fun, sample-heavy weapon we live for. He opens with 'Body' to grab everyone's attention and closes on the deep, dubby warmth of Milton Jackson's 'Zee Dub', letting the room decompress from the relentless pressure.