Joey Negro works his disco magic at XOYO

Another Saturday, another groovy line-up for XOYO Loves, this time with Marcel Vogel and Joey Negro doing their thaaang behind the decks. Joey Negro is arguably Britain’s greatest disco DJ, a man able to take his audiences on a genre-bending journey that dips into the realms of techno, house, and all kinds of disco. So having a DJ like Marcel Vogel to warm the crowd up was an excellent choice, he played like a musical chameleon, mixing into all the right genres to get the crowd going for the next act. Every time we visit XOYO we are presented with a wealth of tracks we’ve never discovered before, and there are always some great gems, such as Carol Hahn’s ‘Do Your Best’.

Now that fresher’s week is over, there was a strong amount of people but the venue didn't feel cramped, they pulled in a good crowd. Size wise it was appropriately busy but you could get limby on the dancefloor; the atmosphere was awesome because people were there for a fun night of disco ecstasy. We have to give a shout out to the security and staff who, over the last year, have become so much friendlier and more welcoming. It makes such a difference to a club night experience when the security are doing their job and visibly present, without being imposing or unnecessarily intimidating, which certainly did not go unnoticed this time.

The legendary Joey Negro was, of course, an absolute delight to close the evening off, adorned in his iconic cap - he may not want to be known as the hat guy, but he has certainly embraced it (although he is far more than a DJ Delboy). One of the best things about Joey Negro’s DJ sets is his ability to read the crowd but also test them. Joey Negro is able to seamlessly pump out bangers yet consistently change up the genres, and challenge the dancefloor groovers with unknown and obscure tunes, whilst still keeping the attention of their ears and having them throw dangerous shapes. The man knows how to maintain a dancefloor, and discourage people from leaving for a drink or cigarette, because no one wants to miss what he might do next - he’s unpredictable, unmatchable, and unbelievably good.

Something we particularly enjoyed was the remixes he included, putting his own slant on classic tracks but showing how iconic songs can become a completely different beast when layers are both added and removed. Hopefully we’ll see him play many more times, because seeing him from an angle where the decks are visible is mesmerising, and he is undoubtedly a living legend at the forefront of the disco revival, so he’s a hero in our eyes. If you’re keen to checkout XOYO then they’ve got loads of upcoming events worth going to, electronica fans should head down for 15 Years of Get Physical with M.A.N.D.Y. and Roland Leesker getting in the booth on Saturday 25th November. For disco or disco house fans they’ve got Julio Bashmore, Greg Wilson, and (recently announced) Dimitri From Paris across various dates, get involved.