August 14, 2000 13:10

OFF THE WALL!

[a]Mark Jones[/a] is joined by [a]Mekon[/a], [b]DJ Touche[/b] and [b]Jacques Lu Cont[/b] at the swanky [b]London[/b] bash...

Wall Of Sound owner and M.D. Mark Jones celebrated his birthday in fine style on Saturday (August 12) with a one-off bash at swanky LONDON club THE AQUARIUM.

The club, which is famed for having a fully-functioning swimming pool fitted into an annexe, was a lock-out, featuring as it did the cream of the Wall Of Sound roster. The highlight of the night was an enervating live show from Dirty Beatniks, who played a 30-minute set showcasing the highlights from their recently released and critically acclaimed album Feedback to a rapturous reception. 'Disco Dancing Machines' in particular had everyone pogo-ing in a most alarming manner, vocalist Mau! swaggering around the stage like he owned it, the ghosts of Ian Brown, Liam Gallagher and Flowered Up all dancing in the background.

Unsurprisingly, the Wall Of Sound resident DJ's also rose to the occasion in their own inimitable style. Mekon, who is poised to deliver a new album, warmed things up with a breaks heavy set of old Heavenly Social-style classics, while both DJ Touche, aka The Wiseguys, and Les Rythmes Digitales man Jacques Lu Cont played surprisingly house-based sets.

Mark Jones, meanwhile, took the party spirit closely to heart, and managed to knock the decks during both Lu Cont's and Touche's sets. "It's never happened in the six years I've been running the label!", he claimed to nme.com after the second incident.

Mekon's second album, 'Relax With Mekon', is released through Wall Of Sound on October 2nd.