Faithless Soundsystem were amazing. I'm really disappointed by how short their set was - less than 45 minutes - but my first time on Matter's bodykinetic dance floor in a long, long time was wonderful. In fact, it's probably the first time in years that I'd hurled myself straight into the dance floor without the aid of any alcohol. It wasn't intentional, but the great organisation that is matter meant that despite arriving at the club at 12.20 am and having purchased a ticket beforehand, I ended up in the main room around 1.05 am after having waited quite some time in the queue outside, then in the queue for the cashier (to get my ticket scanned) and then in the queue for the cloakroom.

So, in my bid to ensure I got the most out FS's short, short set, I threw myself on the dance floor (no dancing on level 1 for me this time) and had the time of my life. Given that the floor turned into one gigantic mosh pit, and how much I hate crowds, that statement, coming from me, means a lot.

Thankfully, unlike the last time I saw Maxi Jazz, he seemed a little more with it (i.e. not too stoned) and he was bang on form, as was Sister Bliss and their drummer. This being their last gig of 2009, Maxi told all of us how much they'd enjoyed themselves touring, and that he wasn't bulls****ing us when he said that this was the best one of the night. Matter's got a great sound system, and the crowd are generally not too bad, so I don't doubt that in the least. I went completely mental when the oh-so-familiar hook of Insomnia dropped, learning, for the first time, just how much timing mattered when it comes to moshing (i.e. you can't jump up when the rest are coming back down). But I think the very fact that I was actually taking part in the general craziness instead of trying to escape (as I did with Simian Mobile Disco last year) can be chalked up to the fact that I was really enjoying the show, and that Faithless' hits are f***ing chooooooooons! I had a similar reaction when they performed We Come One. To the crowd's disappointment, they didn't play God is a DJ, although I didn't really mind that much as I'd had a wonderful time, although it was the first time in my history of UK clubbing that I'd been completely soaked with perspiration.

I nipped off for a quick drink in Room Two only to discover a grand total of three punters on the dance floor. The night at Matter was sold out, meaning that, of the thousands in the club, only three were in Room Two, with the rest turning up for Faithless. Impressive, though entirely logical.

Returning to the dance floor in the main room for Sister Bliss' set from 2.15 am to 3.15 am, I found myself with an almost absurd amount of space, particularly compared to how packed it was just 20 minutes before that. And that was heaven. I love dancing, that's a fact, but I'm a lot happier when I get loads of space and if fellow crazy dancers are dancing along with me. If the second part isn't there, then preferably, my friends aren't around looking at me when I dance. I always get a little more stressed when people I know are observing me, so last night - yet another solo clubbing night - offered me the opportunity to just bust out loads of moves and go nuts, as it were. Not having danced like that in quite some time, I was just so incredibly happy. It helped that I'd downed a gin-and-tonic right before returning to the dance floor, and I could definitely feel it as I danced, but I'm sure most of it was due to Sister Bliss' choice of tunes as well. In a short set (i.e. two hours or less), the DJ usually doesn't have any time at all to build up any sort of mood or atmosphere, and, for the large part, just drops choons. I don't know if that was the case last night, but my only other experience of Sister Bliss' leads me to believe that that's her general style, and while I would ordinarily object, I really didn't mind at all last night. Her set was as her name is: sheer bliss.

Truly a worthy post-birthday celebration.