AlgoRhythms is a monthly event run by Algorave? London? Live? Coding? that serves as the heartbeat for the whole scene. It’s the canonical centre that other events get compared to. People say “it’s like AlgoRhythms but more relaxing” (AlgoRest) or “it’s like AlgoRhythms but run by pastagang” (AlgoRavioli) or “it’s like AlgoRhythms but in the V&A” (DJ Algorave) and so on.
AlgoRhythms has a bit of everything so it serves as a good tutorial for the rest of the scene. It has a meetup section, a jam section, a performance section, then a secret performance section at the end of the night which is where the magic happens, and then the real event starts at McDonalds afterwards which is where the real magic happens, and then the real magic happens in the conversations that happen on the train on the way home. There’s also two rooms at the event itself: One loud one and one loud-but-muffled one. So there’s space to chat and hang out and work and prepare your set and stuff. People often do that in the muffled one. There are also a few sofas and benches in the unmuffled room which means yes there is space to dance but also to sit down and [just] watch and take it all in.
The benches end up in slightly different places each time. They start by being arranged around a table in the middle of the dancefloor for the meetup and jam section of the night. Then, at around 7:20pm someone announces on the microphone that it’s time to put away the tables and move the benches.
“Moving the benches” has become a special ritual. It feels sacred! It’s a symbolic activity that reaffirms the values of the scene. It’s a mini tutorial that shows you how it works. It’s always fun seeing it blow people’s minds the first time they experience it. I mean, everyone has a different reaction to it. Some people “get it” immediately and don’t give it a second thought and probably don’t notice how special it is. Some people “don’t get it” at all and maybe never will, so also don’t give it any attention whatsoever. But for some people, you can see it start to sink in behind their eyes as it happens. For some it’s exciting. For others it’s incredibly anxiety inducing. For many it’s both.
It goes something like this: Someone (anyone) announces that “We’re about to start the performances so we need to put away the tables and move the benches”.
Then most people stand up and take a step back and stand there doing nothing while a handful of regulars start dismantling what they can. But there’s clearly way too many tables and benches for that small group to do themselves and you can see the confusion start to sink in for a few people.
“Are they really going to move all of those benches themselves?”
And when the room is configured like this, it gets a bit cramped and awkward, so all the people who are [just] standing there waiting keep getting in the way. Some hop around a bit to avoid benches.
Then someone (anyone) uses the microphone again to say: “We really do need to put away all the tables and move all the benches” and the people who are [just] standing around look up and the penny drops for some of them that they are being asked to move the benches. It’s “part of the show”.
Often this leads to questions. The most common one being: “Where do we put the benches?”
and that moment, right then!! right there!!!!! where /when you haven’t answered the question yet, is beautiful, i think, so it’s worth savouring it a little bit, before carrying on and telling the truth, which is, of course, “Wherever you want”.
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