CATHOLIC DISCIPLINE
Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar Thursdays
Catholic Discipline: two words that don’t immediately conjure up a night-time musical odyssey, but that’s precisely the point. Superheroes Of BMX are bringing juxtaposed musical styles, clashing and jarring against their own bizarre blueprint of what a club night should be. A heady mix of psychedelia, left-of-centre hip hop, noise rock and foreign sounds meshed together with little more than tongue in cheek irreverence and a desire to get Brighton dancing again, without all the posturing of bigger venues. (JK)

SIZZURP
Riki Tik Thursdays
Taking place each Thursday at the recently refurbished Riki Tik, Sizzurp is the closest you’ll get to being at an American hip hop star’s crunked up birthday party without leaving central Brighton. With the freshest and dirtiest in contemporary hip hop, big tunes will be dropping all night from the likes of Lil’ Wayne, Rick Ross, Waka Flocka, Nicki Minaj and Gucci Mane. It’s free entry with a special offer on their own ‘Purple Drank’ Sizzurp cocktail served in little red plastic cups. Gangsta. (CB)

FATBOY SLIM
Digital Thurs 1st Dec
To the old folk Digital will still always be the Zap, and the setting for Brighton’s clubbing revolution that began in the late 80s. One regular face behind the decks back then was Norman Cook, and he’s back tonight for a rare local indoor appointment before the traffic-stopping antics at the AMEX next summer. It might be years since ‘Palookaville’ but the FBS name hasn’t been rested – he’s playing massive shows like this every week around the world, so this low-key guaranteed sell-out is special indeed. (NC)

AEREO
Green Door Store Fri 2nd Dec
By mixing Prince with Chris Isaak, Blood Orange has released one of the best albums of the year. The artist formally known as Lightspeed Champion took his pop songwriting skills (for the likes of Solange Knowles) and grabbed the mic himself, covering the hum-along melodies in moody, twangy guitars. So what’s he doing playing at Aereo for free? Possibly the most exciting gig of the month comes wrapped in the synth pop and 80s electro that the Teen Creeps boys normally bring, plus free whiskey for those quick off the mark. Beyond a bargain. (JK)

MAD PROFESSOR
Concorde 2 Fri 2nd Dec
Dub versus dubstep is an interesting premise for a show and there’s no one better placed to execute the battle than Mad Professor. The godfather of dub has been producing bashment, dancehall and reggae since the 70s and as a result has worked with everyone from Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry to Massive Attack. Providing the roots support are Earl 16, Manasseh Hi-fi and MC Brother Culture as well as Stylo G and Deadly Hunta in room 2. So blaze a fatty, feel the positive vibrations and get your red-eye skank on. (ZC)

SHOGUN AUDIO
Audio Fri 2nd Dec
Earlier this year Icicle scored a d’n’b direct hit with ‘Dreadnaught’ featuring SP:MC; the immaculate beats and sparse vocals had a techno minimalism that makes all his productions clean and crisp. We’ve still got a hard-on for his deeper, dub-orientated tunes like ‘Anything’, which retain the dark moodiness that was inherent in dubstep’s early years. Audio’s always rammed for Shogun and this evening there’s support from Rockwell and Alix Perez, so early bird tickets are highly recommended. (ZC)

WILD FRUIT CIRCUS OF THE ABSURD
Hed Kandi / secret venue tbc Sun 4th Dec
Sometimes you need your partying to be charitable and your circus to be absurd. Luckily Wild Fruit will deliver both at their annual Red Party with DJs Thomas Gandey, Fat Tony, De Puta Madre, Jodie Harsh and Lil Alex – just some of the fruity wonders keeping it red all night long. Add the legendary after party Rebel ‘Dirty Disco Trix’ celebrating six years of filthiness at The Haunt from 3am, and work on Monday morning is a definite no-go. (KW)

ARAABMUZIK
Life Thurs 8th Dec
What. A. Booking. The MPC manipulator first gained attention by utilising the drum machine like an instrument, creating indulgent hip hop tracks live via rapid beat patterns and melodies woven from various samples. On record his sound’s evolved into the future house of his ‘Electronic Dream’ album released in June – from the dubstep claps of ‘Streetz Tonight’ to the sheer enormity of ‘Underground Stream’, the whole album has the lavishness of West Coast rap and the feel of an Ibiza sunrise. Girl Unit’s post-dubstep sonics with their ghetto tech and Miami bass influences should complement very well. (ZC)

PARTIE!PARTIE!
Green Door Store Thurs 8th Dec
SOURCE snapper Sam Hiscox has probably spent more time in nightclubs this year than anyone else, and he’s seen things. What sort of things? You don’t really want to know but if curiosity gets the better of you, head over to his blog partiepartie.blogspot.com for photos of infidelity, drunkenness, girls flashing their knickers and the odd fight. We can’t guarantee those things will happen tonight at this club night-cum-exhibition of his best work. But there’ll be giveaways of zines and an A1 print, plus music ranging from The Black Keys to The Wanted. Just behave yourself – you don’t want to end up on his blog. (JK)

HOSPITALITY
Digital Sat 10th Dec
Our initial reactions to ‘The First Note Is Silent’ were, “Great, now High Contrast and Underworld have been tarred with the Tiesto brush.” We cringed, biting our knuckles and sticking pens in our ears. But on repeat listening it’s not that bad. Yes, the vocal’s cheesy and it’s got that commercial trance tinge, but the synths are strong, with powerhouse beats and a bassline to make you check your trousers. Tonight there’s also label boss London Elektricity and Logistics, so be good boys and girls and get your Santa skank on. (ZC)

EVEN
Tube Sat 10th Dec
The Dutch dubstep producer 2562 launched his last album, ‘Fever’, at The Tube earlier this year to a clamorous crowd. The record was disco-inspired and certainly had the warmth of 70s vinyl along with the genre’s rhythmic structure but critics felt it lacked the fun, carefree attitude inherent in the source music. It was still an interesting record that demonstrated how dubstep didn’t have to involve the de facto womps and wobbles associated with the UK bass scene. Tonight he plays a three-hour set, which is a must for anyone serious about the scene. (ZC)

COSMIC SNOWBALL CHRISTMAS PARTY
Blind Tiger Fri 16th Dec
We’re not saying that other promoters aren’t generous – not at all, we’ve seen many acts of kindness from them – but so, so often when we get a charity event pop into our inbox it’s got Playgroup’s name attached. This time they’re donating The Blind Tiger to help Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice and the Samaritans for the night. A great line-up including Brighton hip hop legend DJ Format, a live set from The Simonsound and old Skint head Scratchy Muffin promises “a midnight mass of synthed up Christmas classics, plus Santa’s Grotto amongst other festive delights.” All they want is a charity donation on the door. (JK)

LATE NIGHT LINGERIE
Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar Friday 23rd Dec
Two problems with Christmas: 1) by the time it comes around you’re too broke to party, and 2) all bands finish early meaning there’s nothing to do but see DJs. Well, Eddie The Goatboy has fixed that by shanghai-ing the city’s best acts into playing a live music version of a nightclub. Paper Playground, Royal Blood, The Rusted Guns and The Black Fields have all signed up, and there’ll be many more. Most importantly Skirts are playing – a noisy band made for the middle of the night. And it all costs £3 – leaving you cash for your mum’s Christmas present. (JK)

SPACE DIMENSION CONTROLLER
Tube Sat 14th Jan
SDC is also known as Mr.8040, a resident of Mikrosector-50 who is currently stranded in Belfast. As such you’ll hear many intergalactic influences in his full-frequency variety of future electro funk. Out on legendary label R&S, and in the vein of many producers breaking the mould of future techno and bass music (Rustie et al), SDC’s sounds are psychedelic and expansive, and include tough, melodious synths reminiscent of intergalactic-concept-album-producing bretherin Daft Punk’s early output. Spacemen united by disco. (MB)

WILEY
Concorde 2 Mon 30th Jan
The smooth-tongued grandfather of grime, Wiley’s been spitting bars since the late 90s. A founding member of Roll Deep, Wiley’s been credited with appealing to philosophical music theorists as much as to flat-peaked, head-nodding teenagers with polyphonic ringtones, and his 2011 album ‘100% Publishing’ received some of his highest praise. Despite having a discography long enough to contend with Sir Cliff’s, he remains as fresh, original and frequently cited as an inspiration as ever. (JMM)

WORDS BY MATT BARKER, CHRIS BIGGS, ZAC COLBERT. NICK COQUET, JAKE CUNNINGHAM, JAMES KENDALL,
JESSICA MARSHALL MCHATTIE, KATE WILDBLOOD