CLUBS

Still hungover from Christmas and New Year? Adam Burrows is already looking forward to the next round of serious partying.

If you’re reading this on New Year’s Day, a night of debauchery may be low on your list of immediate priorities. Even if staying in, drinking tea and keeping a low profile seems like a good idea right now, the weekday grind is coming back with a vengeance, and pretty soon you’re going to need something to look forward to. While it’s impossible to second guess the famously fast-moving world of clubbing, we’ve gazed into the Venue mirrorball and gleaned a few choice insights into the year ahead. Pull up an armchair, put on your raving slippers, and we’ll do our best to fill you in.

Waist winders will be glad to hear bashment specialists Ruffnek Diskotek are reviving their Karnival offshoot. Described as “Ruffnek’s hyped-up younger sibling”, it will be held at Cosies every two months, with a focus on soca, juke and all manner of rowdy soundsystem fare. Their first night is on 28 Jan with Murlo (Hipsters Don’t Dance/Pollinate). Meanwhile, bass worshippers can breathe easy – while Dubloaded’s monthly midweek dubplate sessions at The Croft came to an end in December, the night will live on in a different format. Details are a bit sketchy right now, but we’ve been told they will be quarterly and – rejoice, wage slaves – held on weekends. There’ll be more from big brother bass blow-out Subloaded in the new year too, while eclectic Friday bass session 51°27' – one of 2011’s most promising newcomers – will continue to run weekly at Thekla with bookings rumoured for Ikonika, Loefah, Braiden, Deadboy and Oneman.

House and techno fans will also be well catered for. Ist Das – Venue’s club night of 2011 – start the year as they mean to go on with Matthew Herbert (28 Jan) and Ben Klock (17 Feb) at TB2, while Headrush are bringing Detroit legend Anthony ‘Shake’ Shakir to the same venue on 11 Feb. Funk brothers and soul sisters should note that Fiddlers is the new venue for Heavy Soul – DJ Leon’s vintage vinyl session relocated from Eton bar in December and is booked to run monthly on Saturdays through 2012. Also making a fine start to the year are turntablist heroes Funk From The Trunk, who have booked Motion on 18 Feb for what promises to be their biggest party to date. They’ll also be making a return visit to Boomtown Fair, after a triumphant showing for their Funkington Manor showcase at the 2011 festival.

As always, established nights will mark their birthdays in style. This month Futureboogie celebrate their tenth anniversary with a label compilation and huge parties in Bristol and London (see feature on p.56). Not to be outdone, the equally influential Just Jack have bagged some serious talent for their sixth birthday session at Motion on 4 Feb. We can’t reveal the headliner yet (though the one they’re talking about is pretty impressive), but it’s hard to argue with a bill that already features Subb-An, Joy Orbison (pictured above), Jef K and Ben UFO.  Meanwhile, drum & bass aces Intrigue celebrate nine years in the game with events in Bristol (Dojo, 3 Feb) and London and a ramping up of their release schedule. Intrigue’s latest EP – ‘Many Things’ by Random Movement & Ben Soundscape – has been picked up by Fabio, Storm and Lynx among others, so expect big things from the label this year.

Looking further ahead, we’re excited to announce that Simple Things – one of our highlights of 2011 – will be back for a second helping on 6 May. We’re not allowed to tell you who they’ve booked yet, but the names we’ve heard suggest another all-day epic of hip-hop, bass and leftfield electronica across multiple venues. Later still, In:Motion will return in October for its third autumn of megaraves. They’re promising to up the ante with more acts than ever before, including a number of first-time visitors to Bristol. With old favourite Lakota expected to re-open in February, and plenty of promoters still getting their heads around the challenge of 2012, it’s safe to assume we’ve barely scratched the surface. One thing’s for certain – it’s going to be a lot of fun discovering what’s underneath.

USE WWW.VENUE.CO.UK'S EVENT SEARCH FOR UP-TO-THE-MINUTE CLUBS LISTINGS.

Copyight Adam Burrows 2012