05/14/2026
Gather ‘round now, while Wally shares a page from the Sorted history books…
What really stood out before even meeting him was Objekt’s tech rider. His turntable setup instructions went well beyond anything I’d ever encountered. I remember saving a copy for my own use (years later TJ would release these instructions to everyone but at the time I felt like I'd acquired a rare tome of occult lore).
After the sound check for his first Sorted appearance in 2017, I had a sense of both pride & relief when TJ tested my turntables and declared them suitable. Then came his dialog with the sound guy. After hovering for ~10 minutes listening to a - let's call it "spirited"- debate about EQing, Veronica Lamaak & I stepped away to let the two of them hash it out, which they did - after an hour lol.
I played right before TJ and I think I played a pretty good set, but felt a brief moment of embarrassment towards the end when I fumbled a loop exit. After finding the button about 8 bars too late, I glanced in TJ's direction - yep, he'd noticed it too. "Well" I thought "at least the sound system is dope”, and indeed, the sound system was slaying. It was kind of insane and way too much sound for the tiny dance studio we’d rented for the party.
TJ got about 3 tunes in when the cops showed up for the first time. Noise complaints (see above reference to the over the top sound system). We turned it way down, hoping it would be enough. It was not. When the cops came back the second time, my heart sank. I thought for sure the party was busted.
We wound up turning the main system off and TJ played the rest of his set using only the monitors. You can imagine my surprise when, despite the massive reduction in volume, the party did not fall apart.
The vibe at that first party with Objekt was absolutely incredible. With only DJ monitors for sound, people packed in as close as they could get while TJ blew our minds for the next 3 hours. A few days later on Twitter, TJ remarked at the phenomenon of playing a super vibey party on nothing but monitors. It solidified for me that Sorted was a great party. And Sorted with Objekt at the controls? Yeah, that was a solid combo.
The next time Objekt played for Sorted was in early 2020, along with Pariah. Although we didn't know it at the time, this would be our last party before lockdown. We threw the party at the once beloved Rhinoceropolis - another tiny venue - and had even more sound than the first time! The party sold out before we even opened the doors and was packed from start to finish. And fortunately, this time we had no issue with noise complaints. After the party was over, TJ said to me "Wally - that was really something special!" 🥰
Hard to believe it’s been six years since we last combined Objekt’s alchemy with a Sorted dancefloor. I've seen TJ play a number of times since, even stage managed for him at Free Rotation, and while those were all great sets, I feel there is something truly greater than the sum of its parts when Objekt plays for us.
I really hope you guys will join us on Saturday. Let’s see if we can create another page for the history books.
