Fans of Skull Disco and Applepips have been spoilt by the latest bookings from the Open Plan guys in Manchester. The 5th of March sees them bringing in APPLEBLIM as well as the mighty HORSEPOWER PRODUCTIONS' Manchester debut to Jabez Clegg. HORSEPOWER PRODUCTIONS have been a massive influence to the early dubstep sound and APPLEBLIM has helped pave the way for more heavy experimental sounds within the scene with tracks like Vansan and Fear. Open Plan have brought in numerous Manchester debuts from artists including Pangaea, Guido and 2000f to Bar9, Excision and Reso proving this night will not disappoint and with tickets at a mere 6 pounds there can't be any complaints. Unfortunately S • W • C will be missing out as we are undertaking the spiritual and arduous pilgrimage to Brixton Mass for the DMZ 6th Birthday, however with this as easily one of their best line ups to date, Open Plan looks to go off and should be reached if you're in the sunny Manchester region. For the full line up and details on their Facebook page, click HERE.
Oh no they didn't. In addition to bringing in Appleblim, the exclusive Secret Wars nights run by Jim Open Plan have booked SHACKLETON in his only UK date this year excluding Fabric and festivals. His live set will be in front of an intimate crowd of 100 at the Soup Kitchen on the 10th March powered by the weighty Gash rig. As the other half of the now defunct Skull Disco label, his sub shattering basslines and African percussion intertwined with ethnic samples has pushed the sounds of electronic music around the 140 bpm. This one looks to be pretty special, full details can be found HERE.
Monday, 31 January 2011
"Total Garage is Manchester based night dedicated to regularly serving up all the best 2-step and 4x4 from past present and future! Classic old skool bangers, alongside fresh funky riddims! Come join this celebration of all the best things about Garage!"
TOTAL GARAGE have been making waves in the Manchester music scene as vanguards of all things old skool. The monthly nights go off in style and the up and coming event this Friday will be no exception as the NIGHT AUDIO showcase comes to town represented by label owners KING THING and RESKETCH. To form a taste of what you can expect, check out resident DJ OLDBOY's latest mixdown:
Amanlikesam treats us once again with a large up Dancehall mix and showcases the sort of tunes you can expect to hear at Hot Milk every second Friday of the month. Watch this space for a weekly show from Amanlikesam and MC Deepo on Playedio Radio, coming soon to your airwaves.
Walking towards the church, on its own little island in the middle of Brixton, always brings on a buzz of excitement and anticipation that is only ever felt at that moment every two months. The notorious pilgrimage up the winding stairs, the bass getting louder, deeper, and more physical the closer you get. Walking into darkness with only sub bass to guide you. Its time for DMZ.
Run by Digital Mystikz (Mala & Coki), Loefah and Sgt Pokes, DMZ has become one of the most legendary nights in the Dubstep community. Those who have been understand that it’s more than just a dance, it’s a whole experience. If you’re a follower of bass music, I can promise you there is nothing quite like standing next to the speakers in the darkness of Mass during one of Mala’s sets. Since it started in 2005 the night has created its own family of loyals who, without fail, make it to Brixton on the first Saturday of every other month. You start getting excited about the next one whilst you’re still in the club. It feels like two months is longer than you can wait before your next fix, although it is nice that the nights are spread out, it makes it feel that bit more special. Then there’s the inevitable mystery surrounding each nights lineup. Mala will generally only release the list in the week running up to the dance, although more recently he hasn’t even done that and it’s been up to those most keen to trawl the internet for clues. Most regulars take the view that it doesn’t matter who is on that list because it will always be good, and we trust that Mystikz will make the right choices for us.
There’s a mellower vibe in the dance at DMZ than in most clubs, the tagline for the night “Come meditate on bassweight” sums it up perfectly. There are obviously sets where the crowd get hyped and skank out, but the general feel is that people are just appreciating the music they love. The atmosphere has changed slightly the last few times, due to a change in the layout. Unfortunately they’ve taken out the DJ booth and now have a desk put up on the stage. This means you now face what used to be the back of the room, so without actually creating more space it has made the club feel a lot bigger (and lighter due to the doors to the hallway being behind you) so it’s lost some of its intimacy. But this is no biggie, as long as they don’t take away the soundsystem.
These days, to me, DMZ feels like the only place left that represents what dubstep was originally. There are so many spin-off genres that it’s hard to even say what we’re listening to anymore, beyond simply saying bass music. Not that that’s a bad thing, the umbrella genre of dubstep is constantly changing and offering a wider range of sounds. But DMZ has thankfully dug its heels in and kept true to how it was back in the early days of dubstep. The lineups do cater for the more recent evolutions (James Blake played the summer blazedown last July), but the majority of the names on that lineup are going to be bringing bass of the Digital Mystikz type. Deep.
The next dance is celebrating DMZ’s 6th birthday on Saturday 5th March at Mass in Brixton, and if it’s anything like the previous birthdays will have a crazy lineup. If you haven’t been before come and get a lesson in bass. And in the mean time, prepare yourselves with this 2006 Essential mix filled with classics.
Making waves in the local music scene with consistently big line ups so far this year, HEAVY RAIN present another solid line up focusing on the deep and dark end of Drum n Bass. This coming Friday's event features OCTANE & DLR from across the Penines and ambient Drum n Bass officionado ANILE as the headline acts, preceeded by local artists BANE and PALE going back to back in a fight to the dub-plate death. With a flyer designed by PLAYEDIO's own BASSHOVEN (who you can catch every Tuesday on Playedio Radio 8-10pm) which has been flying out all over Manchester this event's set to go off, and for only £5.00 on the facebook guest list this is the best way to shake off the snow and get those knees nice and high to break in the weekend.
Next Friday sees Manchester's biggest and best Dancehall night throw another serious party at The Roadhouse, headlined by Irie Irie Radio's GIBBO. GIBBO has built up a firm fan base over the years with his weekly radio show ‘Fire Juggling’ which features only the best up to the time reggae and dancehall. He's also released a number of very successful mix cds and plays at dances regularly in and around the region
Only one month after HOT MILK sold out the same venue with MUNGO's HI FI all the way from Glasgow (full sound-system in full effect), they're back again and continuing to provide a deep and soulful bashment, dancehall and reggae sound. Supporting artist AMANLIKESAM recently featured on the S • W • C Sessions and, alongside MC DEEPO, selected what we're regarding as one of the best shows of the year; downloadable from HERE.
You can check out HOT MILK every second Friday at The Roadhouse, Manchester and for some weekly grooves reach MADE IN JAMAICA at The Ram & Shackle, Fallowfield with residents AMANLIKESAM and DEEPO + Guests.
After 2 years putting on some of the best dances in Manchester and just over a month since they brought us Kryptic Minds, Addison Groove and Girl Unit, FORMAT celebrate their 2nd birthday in style with this killer event this coming Thursday. In the past FORMAT have brought artists up north which you wouldn't expect to see outside London (such as DUSK & BLACKDOWN and L.D.), always at a reasonable price and always with a hella tight vibe. The 2nd December event will be no exception, 'enlisting the services of two of the founding fathers of the contemporary 140BPM soundscape' PINCH and DISTANCE to headline proceedings, preceeded by up and coming Manchester experimental hip-hop artist ILLUM SPHERE. That's not all; as well as TOURIST on the main-stage, room two sees 'Friends of Format' go back to back to back and beyond as pretty much every major name in the local music scene goes head to head in a soundclash that'll set you up for christmas.
Substantiated by the promise of 'Cake & Cava' this is certainly one not to miss. We at S • W • C will be warming up suitably on Wednesdays show with special guest JANSSON who you can catch in the flesh at Thursdays event alongside S • W • C's own POLKA.
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Room 237 x marioBONG x Coby Sey x Limn Thursday 25th November 2010
Next Thursday sees a collaboration of local promoters and DJs come together to present a massive line up including some of the biggest names in future music at A Nation of Shopkeers in Leeds. The elusive headline act HYPE WILLIAMS (with epic song titles such as "get choong and look at the sky") is best described by his review in The Guardian's music and Television column 'The Wire', and if any of the following makes sense to you you'll know that this is sure to be a big event.
What do we actually know about Hype Williams? ... an obscure, lo-fi form of dub-inflected half-pop as much akin to the post-industrial funk of 23 Skidoo and early Cabaret Voltaire as the scratchy psych of The Skaters et al ... music which fascinates largely because of its refusal to commit.
Preceeded by support from ASTRAL SOCIAL CLUB, RESPITE and others, Room 237 & Co. have provided a massive selection catering for all types of ears from 7.30pm til 11.00pm.
From 11.00pm onwards bare witness to the unadulterated visual stimulation that is popular monthly night LIMN. The image below gives a taste of some of the stuff you'll be seeing on the night. LIMN also present special guest Glasgow's FOX GUT DAATA to provide music hand-in-hand with the illustrations for an all round intense experience. The tagline from the LIMN facebook group reads:
A night for eyes and ears. Live illustration, eight-foot visuals and forward thinking electronica. On the last Thursday of every month, A Nation of Shopkeepers will be host to an audio/visual party showcasing some of the UK’s most talented and innovative doodlers. Each month will bring new guest illustrators, all their work – drawn live on the night – will be provided by on-stage analogue overhead projectors. Our resident and guest DJ’s will play the best in progressive club music, electronica, italo, hip-hop, disco, aquacrunk and techno.
TONIGHT (11/11/10) you can tune in to the first ever addition of the FILTH SESSIONS live on Playedio Radio from 8pm-10pm. MOOMIN & guests will be rolling out from Norwich this time every week, bringing a massive selection of all types of dance music, as well as weekly features and downloads via their blog.
CLICK IMAGE FOR DETAILS
S • W • C LIVE!
This Saturday (13/11/10) for the first time ever S • W • C goes live as we grace REDRUM in Fallowfield, Manchester with the S • W • C Sessions. On the night there will be music provided by our residents, as well as special guests and DJs from radio shows past and present. We'll be playing a selection of Dubstep, Garage, House, Techno and DnB, with a rare addition of Reggae, Hip Hop, Soul and RnB. To commemorate the launch of S • W • C LIVE! there will also be prize give aways, party antics and dance competitions on the night to get the party in full swing!
If you're in or around Manchester this Friday for bonfire night, make sure you head down to The Roadhouse to see S • W • C residents tear up the dance at Heavy Rain vs. Foundation. Only a month ago Heavy Rain brought TUNNIDGE and V.I.V.E.K to the same venue, and they're back again this month offering WACHS LYRICAL for only £1.00 on the door.
As well as the headline act, drum and bass heads of the Foundation collective will be going head to head with Heavy Rain residents which is sure to be an interesting mash up of styles and genres to fill one of Manchester's most popular clubs. As well as the Friday event, remember you catch the Heavy Rain gang every Tuesday at Redrum in Fallowfield, more details HERE.
See you Friday for this bargain of a line-up, remember to arrive early to avoid dissapointment.
S • W • C Sunday Sessions
After an unfortunate no-go Sunday past due to technical difficulties, this week sees The S • W • C Sunday Sessions kick in to full swing from 8pm-10pm every week. We at S • W • C Manchester are very excited about this development which will showcase all our Leeds brothers and sisters musically have to offer live on PLAYEDIO RADIO. So, what can you expect to hear?
Long-time member of the S • W • C family and future music technician KITSCH will be captain of the ship, hosting the show from his penthouse around the centre of the city. Not so long ago we wrote a feature on our man Kitsch on this here blog, which can be found HERE. Make sure you check out the soundcloud for some tasty productions and mixes.
Also drafted in to the S • W • C Sunday Sessions is another friend and now-member of the S • W • C, RHODES. As you can hear from the sound cloud (CLICK HERE), this man pioneers the latest in deep house and garage music and brings an innovative new flavour to the sessions which were looking forward to hearing mature over the coming weeks in the mix.
Alongside these bad boys, Leeds will be providing you with special guests and new features to the show to create a dynamic listening experience with something different every week. As well as every Sunday 8pm-10pm, S • W • C Sunday Sessions residents will be posting on the S • W • C blog and giving an insight into news, reviews and tunes. For updates join the facebook group HERE.
Leeds is home to SUBDUB and along with Manchester it is well and truly representing new sounds in the beautiful North. Modulate is a new night at Wire hosting Pariah, Hackman, Skips + residents Jamie Grind & Louis Saville on their opening night. The night's aim is to play a tasty and refreshing selection of House, UK Funky and Garage. Pariah is on R&S Records- home to Aphex Twin and James Blake's CMYK release. He's definitely one to look out for in the coming year and has just released his recent Safehouses E.P. so his set should definitely be an interesting one. With the next night bringing you XXXY and others, Modulate looks to be a fresh new addition to Leed's scene- well worth heading to and it's only 45 minutes away for Manchester heads.
DOOM on Wednesday was epic as expected but it's important not to forget about the other acts that preceeded the hip-hop legend. The night was set in the main room with no music in the second, meaning a lot of hombres crammed in to one place waiting for one person at the end of the line up. This, I imagine, meant a hard choice for the promoters in picking artists to entertain the masses. With the first hour taken care of by Manchester future music specialists hoya:hoya and experimental hip-hop artist Dels the floor filled up quickly with nodding heads. Next came one of the acts of the evening for me - the knob twiddling and button pushing Illum Sphere who, accompanied by next-level visuals, set the mood perfectly for the evening. The other highlight of the evening followed in the form of Lucky Me'sHudson Mohawke. Wasn't sure what to think at first when the producer graced the stage with no headphones in sight, but aided by a space-age laptop he smashed it regardless. Lastly on the list of pre-DOOM artists came remix master and vinyl vanguard Jamie XX who, although lacking the crowd moverability of Hud Mo, took it down a notch for the star of the show to bring it back up again. All round an incredible night and one of the most refreshing line-up's on WHP's roster this year.
Tuesday, 12 October 2010
HEAVY RAIN b2b SESSIONS
The Heavy Rain back to back sessions are a good opportunity to get out the house every Tuesday evening and listen to some good quality dubs with no entry fee. As well as S • W • C's Polka and Chalk playing live every week amongst other regulars, the sessions present an up and coming artist every week which brings that special something to the night. This week (12/10/10) Heavy Rain have asked along Manc local SMITHY who's definitely not one to miss, you can check out his sound cloud HERE and download SMITHY's guest mix for S • W • C Sessions from HERE. See you tonight
Friday, 8 October 2010
COW STUDENT LOCK-IN
On Tuesday of this week S • W • C residents Polka and Chalk were asked to DJ at the student lock in at Manchester's premier vintage store Cow. Despite not being our usual haunt the free beer flowed and we serenaded customers for around 3 hours with a mixture of beats from the bag, aided by honourary member of the S • W • C family Bombyx Mori. You can check out the rest of the pictures here.
DOOMSDAY 13/10/10
(MF) DOOM will be gracing the Warehouse Project with his presence next Wednesday. Tickets are sold out now, luckily not before the S • W • C and associated agents managed to acquire some. To be frank, DOOM's reputation as a live performer is hardly glowing, and rumours of impostors turning up to live shows seem just too horrible to be false, but there's always a chance that Madlib, Medaphoar and Mr. Fantastik will turn up and it'll be the best night of any of our lives.
Sunday, 3 October 2010
FORMAT 06/10/10
As much as this post serves as a heads up for the fast approaching Format event on Wednesday, it's also intended to show a general appreciation for one of the highest quality and most consistent nights promoting forward thinking music in Manchester. A glance at the facebook group reveals the extent of artists that Format has put on in the past, with many Manchester debuts and international artists, all for under £10. All of this in one of the best venues up north for music of its kind - the modestly sized Mint Lounge who's low ceilings and heavy sound system create a Plastic People like feel over 200 miles away.
If past Format events are anything to go by Wednesday is set to go off in all directions as two of label-of-the-moment Swamp 81's latest and greatest - Kryptic Minds and Addison Groove - grace the stage. If you're any way inclined toward the deeper side of dubstep music Kryptic Minds will be the first artists that come to mind, with recent releases such as One Of Us and Wasteland quickly becoming eyes down record bag essentials. Accompanied by Addison Groove, producer of dance floor filler Footcrab, Girl Unit and Braille (myspace) you're spoilt for choice. You can also catch myself Polka as part of the Heavy Rain family, tearing up room two in the usual deep dark style. In a sea of same-old same-old nights cropping up around Manchester at the moment you'd be mad to miss this gem - see you Wednesday.
Saturday, 25 September 2010
HIT&RUN 27/09/10
Hit & Run is one of Manchester's most popular weekly Dubstep, DNB and Hip Hop nights, bringing a varied selection of artists to FAC 251. Last week they showcased DJs like James Blake, Redlight, Alix Perez, Icicle, SBTRKT and more.
This monday Hit & Run are bringing one half of the legendary DMZ, MALA to headline together with CAMO + KROOKED, RIZ MC, DEADBOY, DC BREAKS and JAKES backed with local talent and friend of S • W • C, GILES. Mala's not one to disappoint and we're looking forward to hearing some fresh dubs from him again. Heard good things about Deadboy and it's Camo + Krooked's Manchester debut so don't miss out. Last week was a sell out so we've got our tickets, get them from Gaff's, Eastern Bloc or Skiddle. Wonderful.
