Clubs / recommendations
Motives: Friday May 10 & Saturday May 11 2024
My goodness, where has this glorious weather come from? One thing’s for certain, the man upstairs couldn’t have timed it any more perfectly, as day party season is officially in full effect.
We’re also in that glorious period where festival season and club season begin to overlap slightly (arguably Love Saves The Day marks the official start of the festival season for anyone in Bristol), meaning the next couple of months you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to places to have a boogie.
Let’s take it one step at a time, though. This weekend is shaping up to be a busy one, with parties of all stripes dotted around the city. Whether you’re after latin inspired, bouncy UK funky rhythms in one of the darkest (and best sounding) rooms in the city, or all out warfare with one of the biggest day parties of the year, here’s a few picks to get your mouth watering.
is needed now More than ever
Friday
Touching Shoulders w/ Dean Chew + support, The Love Inn
Hailing from Singapore, Dean Chew makes his Bristol debut at The Love Inn to kick the weekend’s festivities off in true style.
Seriously, there is nobody who embodies funk quite like this man. Whether it’s house, disco, techno or just about anything else, you can rest assured that Chew will keep the sunshine vibes alive well into the wee hours.
His recent Boiler Room at the tail end of last year, where he played a sun drenched set paired with the almost too funky Kevin Guoh laying down the law with an Akai electronic wind instrument is a must listen now that the sun is rearing its head.
Their fourth outing since October, Touching Shoulders are relatively new to Bristol, but they’ve quickly cemented themselves with their fun, friendly parties with well curated lineups.
They sit somewhere in that strange gap between the UK garage/breakbeat revival and the bubbling underground techno/house resurgence, and their lineups truly speak for themselves – London’s Frazer Ray playing a two hour set to a packed out 100 capacity Crown, alongside Longeez and Mia Lily bringing hard house and techno euphoria to Exchange – these lot know seem to already know how its done.
Livity Sound w/ Nick Leon (TraTraTrax) & sadsugar, Strange Brew
You don’t even really need to read the rest of the event name past the first two words to know that this one will be one to remember.
The tip of the spear of Colombian SA/UK fusion music label TraTraTrax, Nick Leon has made quite the name for himself for pushing that bouncy, hip shaking latin sound, blending elements of reggaeton, dembow and more with more UK focussed bass sounds.
He’ll also be backed up by local hero sadsugar, known for her genre spanning sets airing on the glorious side of the weird and wonderful. She’ll no doubt be laying in down in similar fashion in the back room of Strange Brew, where they’ve diverted all power from the lights straight to the soundsystem.
You can’t have a conversation about the late 2000s/early 2010s Bristol music scene without mentioning Livity Sound. One of the pioneers of the post dubstep/early UK techno wave that still has its claws in the scene to this day, they continue to be on the bleeding edge of wiggy, off the wall beats.
Saturday
Stokes Croft Block Party, Stokes Croft
You already know if you’re rolling to this one. The entirety of Bristol’s notorious party street collaborates for a day of Bristol’s finest, spanning 22 stages of music, showcasing everything from house to psytrance.
Attempting to start up in 2020 and having to push the launch back a year for obvious reasons, Block Party has seen a meteoric rise to becoming a must go event in the Bristol rave calendar. Think carnival vibes, but with more venues (and admittedly a heftier price tag).
Stokes Croft Block Party lineup – photo: Lakota
A few picks from the lineup that won’t be ones to miss include the inimitable Horsepower Productions bringing the swinging 2 step/dubstep vibes to the Oasis stage, unpredictable bass excursions from Saint Ludo, a proto dubstep masterclass from Madam X, and so much more I honestly couldn’t fit it all in – the lineup is so ginormous.
Bitta x SB: DJ Nobu, Doltz (live) & i-sha, Strange Brew
One of the masters of trippy, melodic, stripped back techno and house, DJ Nobu is truly a DJ that needs no introduction, having cemented himself as a one stop shop for creating a psychedelic atmosphere with his expertly crafted sets.
There will also be a live set from Doltz, an affiliate of Nobu’s Bitta label. Doltz is known for delivering obscenely textural symphonies layered with trippy techno beats – it’ll be a live set for the senses, for sure.
The night is a collaboration between the venue’s in house promotions unit and Bitta, so you can expect to hear lots of bits from/inspired by the label, notorious for dropping headsy, trippy techno numbers that can often times feel fever dream-like, in the best way possible, of course.
Main photo: Shotbytia/Tia Payne
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