CLARK & BIBIO
Concorde 2 Fri 3rd
As the more eagle-eyed of you will have noticed, this is the after party for the Battles gig, and John Stanier from Battles will be spinning some tunes himself this evening. More exciting than that though is a rare appearance from Bibio, whose new album ‘Mind Bokeh’ is wooing all and sundry with its summery Beck-isms and sing-song melodies. Topping the bill, and the excitement levels, is one-time Brighton resident Clark, who has been signed to Warp since his teens and knows more about dance floor ecstasy than almost anyone else on the planet. (MB)
13 MONSTERS •
The Loft Sat 4th
We’d heard rumours that 13 Monsters was running close to its Logan’s Run-style self-inflicted time limit, then they told us that they were having too much fun to quit. But now, bang, the news comes that Brighton’s best genre-crossing leftfield indie/dance/hip hop night has just one more outing. Damn, way to rip that plaster off. Expect queues around the block for this one so get there early – not least cos there’s a free tape and we can’t imagine the boys sitting by their tape2tape ghetto blasters all month. Even with high-speed dubbing they’ll surely run out of time for everyone coming. (JK)
PUSSYCAT CLUB
Digital Sat 4th
Happy 16th birthday Pussycats – an incredible feat, not least in coming up with new themes (we make it almost 200 so far). This time out it’s Sonic Circus, with a trapeze artist, circus showgirls and what they describe as cute clowns. Not the evil ones, thank god. But much of the spectacle comes from the crowd itself. The dress code this month is ring mistresses, lion tamers, strong men, big cats and whatever else you can think of. Nippa will be providing the uplifting progressive house and funky tech. (JK)
HORSE MEAT DISCO
Audio Fri 3rd
If you believe Resident Advisor (and hey, who are we to argue?), HMD is the most important disco club night in the world. Although their sets regularly include deep house, Italo and acid, the vast majority of what you will hear is truly great underground disco, both old and nu-. If you’ve ever stumbled into what appeared to be a very dark, derelict New York nightclub staffed by Alig-esque trannies at the collective’s festival-touring NYC Downlow venue, you’ll know that it’s worth a trip… in more ways than one. (MB)
BAILEY, STORM & RANDALL
Volks Thurs 9th
Now that we live firmly in the future, it’s all too common to see DJs playing either with CD-burned MP3s or on time-coded, laptop-based technology, but this night is dedicated to a glorious vinyl-only commitment. It only seems right that the three acts playing tonight are kingpins (and a queenpin, we suppose) of the drum’n’bass scene, and we expect to see them all bowed beneath the weight of gigantic record bags bursting with old school jungle records. (JMM)
UNDERGROUND REBEL BINGO CLUB
Secret Venue Fri 10th
Fuck two fat ladies and legs eleven, this is bingo to make your nan weep. Think Fight Club in a banging subterranean rave with booze and numbered balls instead of fists and Meatloaf. With events from LA to Ibiza, Rebel Bingo is spreading through the underground faster than Banksy’s spraycan, and is back in Brighton for a night of number-based hedonism. There are rules, a dress code and a secret venue. Check Facebook or rebelbingo.com for info. (DC)
SCRATCH PERVERTS, P MONEY & HATCHA
Concorde 2 Sat 11th
Musical longstays Scratch Perverts have included many members in their time, won piles of awards, and crossed into untold styles and genres. What remains the same is a commitment to music to make you move your feet and throw your hands in the air and wave them like you probably do care, a bit too much. Support comes from P Money, a grime MC with an ability to present intelligent, witty lyrics and quick-fire raps about fruit, plus dubstep pioneer Hatcha. (JMM)
NIGHT SLUGS
Digital Sat 11th
To celebrate their fourth Birthday, the Blah Blah Blah DJs are showing they’ve still got their fingers firmly on the electronic pulse. Although in its infant stages as a label, Night Slugs is quickly growing into a confident young adult with upfront club music and developing team of artists. Last year saw a succession of 12″ releases, each one sonic circles of gold establishing them as pioneers of UK and US bass music. In attendance tonight are the heads of the empire, Bok Bok and L-Vis 1990, with Girl Unit and Jam City backing them up. (ZC)
POP NOT POP
Green Door Store Sat 11th
So many pop nights these days, but which to choose? Well, the equation is simple – good tunes are good tunes, but cheesy toss is bad. So although the Cheeky Girls are pop, they will never darken the Store’s Green Door. On the other hand, 2Pac, SBTRKT and The Romantics sit comfortably shoulder to shoulder at PNP because, yes, they have some proper tunes. So to recap, (good) Pop, Not (shit) Pop. See? (JK)
BEATS BARBECUE •
Gladstone Sat 18th
Everyone’s favourite sunshine-yellow pub on Lewes Road is playing host to some of Brighton’s electronic producers in the heavenly combination of bass, beats and barbecue. Acts include the experimental Spaced Out Family, unpredictably eclectic attak.media and down-tempo dubmeister Mute Speaker, amongst a host of other local beat-makers. So listen out for your next-door neighbour or new favourite producer behind the decks. And lets face it, barbecues always taste better with a professional behind the spatula, so lay down that lighter and reward yourself with a pint. (JMM)
NOWHERE TO RUN •
Haunt Fri 24th
The last Friday of the month sees The Haunt rammed to the gunnels for this celebration of all things 60s. Pop classics sit next to northern soul and garage classics, in fact all genres with a release date of 60-69 get a look in. They play requests off their Facebook wall too, which is cool. With cult movies shown on the big screen and a retro dress-up crowd, this is a proper 60s night out. Lambretta parking round the back. (NC)
STRICTLY DRUMZ
Audio Fri 24th
In 1992, at the tender age of 16 and under his early moniker of DJ Dextrous, J Majik released ‘6 Million Ways To Die’ which became an instant inclusion on all the headline sets for One Nation, Dreamscape and Bojangles. This dark jungle roller announced his entry onto the scene and got the attention of Goldie who soon signed him to the Metalheadz label. Now nearly 20 years later, J Majik’s playing with regular collaborator Wickaman so expect a diverse and enduring night of quality drum’n’bass. (ZC)
AKAAKAROAR! VS DEADLY RHYTHM
Life Fri 24th
House-y dance-floor filler Claude VonStroke is bringing his all-round American enthusiasm to town, and with booming hits such as ‘Who’s Afraid Of Detroit’ in his back catalogue, we can expect a wild fusion of driven basslines, whooping vocals and a club full of energised techno fans throwing shapes, limbs and, probably, drinks in all directions. He’s joined by Pearson Sound, formerly known as Ramadanman, who’s responsible for some of Hessel Audio’s most well received releases in the last 12 months. After listening to his knockout Boiler Room sets we can’t wait to catch him at Life. (JMM/ZC)
ROUND TABLE KNIGHTS
Audio Sat 25th
Warehouse gets bigger and better month on month and to close June they’ve got a very special show – Round Table Knights are launching their album ‘Say What!’ In this Swiss duo’s unique brand of house you can hear a plethora of diverse influences, from Caribbean calypso to gypsy swing. If their album is anything like the snippets of tracks up on their MySpace then it’s going to be a spectacular collection of sunshine grooves and summer beats. (ZC)
PHOTEK
Tube Sat 25th
Now it’s all the rage for electronic producers to score movies; Daft Punk did Tron, The Chemical Brothers did Hanna. As if drum’n’bass legend Photek needed more proof that he’s a forward-thinking veteran, but we just discovered he worked on the soundtrack to The Animatrix back in 2003. His desolate paranoid productions lent themselves particularly well to the Matrix spin-off, and with new EP ‘Avalanche’ in his record bag we expect he’ll transform The Tube into an otherworldly club full of ethereal fear and dark rollers for a set that crosses dubstep and house. We can’t blinkin’ wait. (ZC)
WORDS BY MATT BARKER, ZAC COLBERT, NICK COQUET, DANI COLYER, JAMES KENDALL, JESSICA MARSHALL MCHATTIE