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By Nic Pegg Photos by Sprout /

Ever since listening to Smile Around the Face from Everything Ecstatic back in 2005 I’ve been waiting impatiently to see Four Tet live, I finally got my chance at the Biltmore Cabaret.

I arrived about 9.30PM to be greeted by Vancouver’s friendliest bouncer who kept the rain at bay with his funny banter.

Slipping inside there was already a sizeable crowd due to the event having sold out and everyone was buzzing from the Olympic Ice Hockey quarterfinals results.

The special guest, Nathan Fake, appeared on stage and proved he really was special with a fantastic warm up set, lost in his own music, bobbing his head along to the eclectic beat. We all cheered and clapped him on, it felt cosy and intimate with such a positive crowd to tune into. The distorted sound effects and pealing dysfunctional drums reminded me of an early 90s rave at an abandoned warehouse in the UK. After an hour long hypnotic set, with some unusual pauses (no one seemed sure if they were intentional or not) and a lot of fun, Nathan Fake with an arm raised in thanks and salute made a quick exit.

A short bar moment later, Kieran Hebden also known as Four Tet began his musical ascent into bliss. The set, which featured many tracks from his latest album There Is Love In You, wove about us with a dreamlike quality. The vocals from Love Cry stroked through the mesmerizing music and brought most of the club to the dance floor. General enjoyable swaying, grinning, arm waving and foot shuffling ensued on the dance floor. The music reached everyone; I overheard one hoarse cry of “I’ve not heard anything this good before”.

After delightfully commandeering our senses for a full set and a decent encore, Four Tet was cheered and clapped off the stage and brought to a close an excellent evening of experimental music at the Biltmore.

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