Destructo, Anna Lunoe, and Motez take Toronto on the Ship2Ship Tour

by Jackie Willson

Friday nights in a big city can be rough: places get overcrowded, sound systems fail, people spill your drinks, DJ’s don’t show up on time, but on occasion that Friday turns into a series of eventful happenings filled with great music, fun company, and exotic fruits.

Last Friday night The Hoxton opened its doors for the Ship2Ship Tour, expertly organized by Destructo, (real name Gary Richards) who has a natural gift for pulling together a line up of people with a shared chemistry. In a recent interview, Richards told us he was looking to create a night where people can “Come to the show from start to finish, hear four different styles, all quality, all fit together” which, without a doubt, he achieved with Ship2Ship.

After a slight schedule change, London born T.Williams opened up the party with a pumped up vibe. Playing his original sounds and cool remixes with smooth transitions, Williams set the bar high – packing in the crowd closer and closer to the stage. His set was upbeat, personal, and most of all memorable. The fusion of funk and old retro house samples was enticing and refreshing. With a decade of experience under his belt, Williams has truly found his groove. He could have easily played the whole night, keeping everyone’s attention intact, a desirable, but not easy skill to attain.

Motez took the tables immediately after Williams and needless to say with the clock reaching 1 a.m., things were starting to get rowdy in the building. Out of the entire lineup Motez was the least impressive, his set was choppy and felt uncoordinated, but that didn’t seem to faze the room in any way. Sprinkled with joyful inebriation, the ship took a swift turn into Destructo’s harbor.

Known for being business savvy, musically gifted, and successful, Destructo once again proved that he can carry his own weight. The set was innovative and cohesive, featuring well-known hits like “Higher” and “Dare You 2 Move” in addition to new mixes. The stage briefly turned into a mosh pit with an obnoxious cut out of Richards’ smiling face fronting the stage surrounded by girls raising the roof with pineapples. Leftover decorations from the pre-Hard Summer Weekend party, cutely nicknamed Pineapple vs. Pizza, turned out to be a big hit with the Toronto crowd.

As the fruits went forward, surfing the crowd, Anna Lunoe took the torch. Classically trained Lunoe sings, writes, DJ’s, and produces. She had won over the hearts of Australia a little while back and shortly after took the world one major festival at a time. The confidence shows on stage, but most importantly it illuminates the dancing crowd who ate up Lunoe’s original tracks and remixes like peanut butter.

Well done Mr Richards, you’ve recreated a festival heatwave night in the midst of a frozen over Toronto, we thank your Ship2Ship family for the good times.