EVENT REVIEW – Global Underground – Deep Dish @ Index, Dublin, Ireland.

I’ve been listening to Deep Dish for nearly 30 years. I fell in love with those long, rolling house mixes first; Sandy B World Go Round, De’Lacy Hideaway and Brother Brown Under the Water. Records that felt like journeys rather than tracks. I used to finish terrace sets in Pygmalion with World Go Round on nights when everything just clicked; that feeling where nobody wanted to leave and you didn’t either.

Words & Photos By Mel Donnellan

Then came the Global Underground era. Moscow (2001) and Toronto (2003) were massive moments for me; the kind of mixes you didn’t just listen to, you lived with. They defined what progressive house could be when it was patient, musical and confident.

The first time I saw Deep Dish live was in the Red Box in Dublin in 2003. They played Flashdance twice that night. It was still unreleased and I remember the confusion first- people looked around like “are they really playing this again?” – before the place erupted even harder the second time. That track felt enormous before anyone even knew what it was.

I caught them a few more times in the early-2000s before the split, when Ali “Dubfire” Shirazinia and Sharam Tayebi went in different directions. I probably followed Dubfire’s solo career more closely; especially the minimal techno period where he became such a precise, technical DJ. Sharam always leaned more toward the bigger song-driven productions. Two very different instincts from the same foundation.

They reformed in the 2010s and I saw them in Space Ibiza during that period. It felt transitional, somewhere between house and techno, like they were still figuring out where Deep Dish sat in a changing scene.

So there was real curiosity going into this Dublin show in 2026, especially knowing the night would form the basis for Global Underground 049: Dublin, due for release in May. More importantly, their sound now feels firmly re-anchored in progressive house; which, selfishly, is exactly where I want Deep Dish to live.

Support came from local legend and long-time manager Donal “LRB” McCarthy, fresh from touring South America with the duo. He played from 10pm to 11:30pm and did exactly what the room needed; confident, driving progressive selections that got people locked in early.
Highlights included Subandrio’s Heritage ’82, Khen’s Doda, and Guy J’s Silver Lake. The kind of tracks that make you stop talking mid-conversation and turn back toward the booth.

By the time Donal wrapped up and Deep Dish stepped on stage, Index was packed. It’s easy to forget how important that room has become, a proper club built for sound and scale. Nights like this remind you how rare it is in Ireland to have a space where this music can breathe properly.

They opened with Davi’s Forbidden City- deep, chuggy, patient- and within minutes you could feel the room settle. The next three hours disappeared in that way only progressive sets can, where time stops mattering and you just follow the arc.

New progressive material sat comfortably beside subtle callbacks to their catalogue. Rerubs of Hideaway, Flashdance, Drop the Pressure, Not Exactly and Party All The Time landed without feeling nostalgic or forced. Hearing those records again in a modern context felt less like looking backwards and more like continuity. A bootleg of Sander Kleinenberg’s My Lexicon by Jaap Ligthart and Greg Ochman got one of the biggest reactions of the night; that unmistakable riff still cuts through a room instantly, even two decades later.

Ali and Sharam alternated on the decks throughout, swapping every few tracks. The pacing was deliberate and calm, no theatrics or ego, just two DJs who’ve been doing this long enough to trust the room.

The crowd said a lot too. Younger clubbers experiencing Deep Dish for the first time stood beside people who’d clearly been following them since the early-2000s Dublin shows. That overlap doesn’t happen by accident.

Coming into the final stretch, they played CVTKVC’s Jeanette before closing with their new remix of Moderat’s Eating Hooks, which will appear on the upcoming Global Underground release. Both of them raised pints of Guinness to the crowd as the lights came up; one of those small Dublin moments that feels bigger than it is.

Afterwards, they stayed to sign autographs and take photos with fans. No rushing people. Just appreciation on both sides.

Walking out of Index, I had the same feeling I remember leaving Red Box with years ago; tired, happy and already replaying moments from the night in my head.

A full-circle Deep Dish night in Dublin.