Soulwax @ Warehouse Project, Manchester

9:01am Sunday 28th October 2007

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REMIXING has come a long way in the last couple of years.

Previously, hack DJs would accept a commission from a band or pop act desperate for some nightclub kudos, bang a lazy house beat in the background and watch the money roll in.

All this has changed recently, and much of this has to do with a bunch of Belgians who go by various names, including Nite Versions, 2manydjs, and most famously - Soulwax.

Starting off as a rock band who began DJing to amuse themselves on tour, this Ghent-based foursome now stand astride the world of dance/rock crossover.

From mashing-up 10CC with Destiny's Child to remixing such disparate acts as Kylie, Robbie Williams, the Gossip and the Klaxons these guys have a sense of fun that pervades all their music and bypasses the too-cool-for-school attitude that pervades a lot of dance music.

This attitude shows at this live gig - and I do mean a proper live gig, with a full band, knocking out the remixes as if they were their own.

No mean feat, when the songs include Kylie Minogue's vocals, LCD Soundsystem's outrageous funk and 808 State's filthy 'Cubique'.

As a live band they are perfect - the drummer is an absolute animal reminiscent of the Dairy Milk gorilla, the samples fit in perfectly and the mixes - performed by a five-piece band - would shame many a Saturday-night DJ into retirement.

The second set of the night by one of the band's alter egos - 2manydjs - follows suit an hour or two later.

Comprising of two members of Soulwax, brothers David & Stefan Dewaele, these two have been ripping up dance floors across the world since the release of 1999's "As Heard on Radio Soulwax Part 2".

They combine Soulwax's crazy remixes with party tunes you couldn't imagine dancing to.

Opening with the brassy chords of YMCA, I find myself begging for the chorus, just to see the hippest crowd in Manchester doing the arm movements. Sadly, it is not to be.

What follows though is a journey through dance music history, a lesson in class tunes that stops off at New Order, Aphex Twin, Hot Chip, 808 State, LCD Soundsystem, the Klaxons, Simian Mobile Disco, Devo, Mr Scruff, techno, drum and bass, breaks, hip-hop and everything in between.

The crowd laps it up, and thanks to the clocks going back, we all get an extra hour.

The party is still jumping when the time comes for the train home.