Festival Clubs
Telephone Booking Fringe 0131 226 0000 International Festival 0131 473 2000 Book Festival 0845 373 5888 Art Festival 07500 461 332
Edinburgh Thursdays FREE Audacious at the Bongo Club. midnight–5am. Weekly. Breakcore, hardcore and jungle. Teaming up with www.terrorstate.co.uk to launch their new t-shirt range with a live set from Frog Pocket and the Cyclowns (cycling clowns if you hadn’t guessed) on 20 Aug. ■ The Bang Bang Club at Gilded Balloon Teviot. 12.30–5am. £7.50–£10. Weekly. The subversive underground club night goes large for the Fest. Guests include Steven Severin (playing four treatments of German expressionist classic The Cabinet of Dr Caligari every Fri) alongside Paul Vickers & The Leg (20 Aug), Sexual Objects (22 Aug), Dollskabeat (23 Aug) and ‘very special guests’ (27 Aug). ■ The BIG Freak! at Medina. 10pm–3am. £5 (£3 if ‘dressed creatively’). Weekly. Mongrel arts night of art, crafts and music, including house band Ruby & The Emeralds. ✽✽ Boys Noize at City Nightclub. 11pm–5am. £18. 27 Aug. Massive club night as part of The Edge Festival, headed by German electro/techno master Boys Noize. Support comes from Hostage (Rocca Disco), Nick AKA (Sick Note) and the Art of Parties DJs. See preview, page 75. ■ Diamond Dollar at Faith. 11pm–3am. £2. Weekly. On-Point’s new weekly dose of the best in bassline, house, dubstep and drum & bass across two rooms. FREE Dubversion at Forest Café. 11pm–3am. 27 Aug. A gathering of electronic artists, performers and DJs for a fusion of heavy beats, deep bass, and a MIDI-hacked church organ, with live performers, interactive visuals and electrical oddities for a warped synergy of music, dance and strangeness. ■ Four Four at the GRV. 11pm–5am. £3. 27 Aug. A progressive journey though electronic music with a 4/4 kick. ■ Jagerbomb at Shanghai. 10pm–3am. £5 (£3). Weekly. Indie, electro and urban mash-ups. ■ Kitsch! at the Hive. 11pm–3am. Free before 11.30pm; £2 after. Weekly. Chart,
cheese and student anthems from the Big Cheese DJs. ■ Lovefoxxx DJ Set at Electric Circus. 10pm–3am. £6. 20 Aug. The ever-so-lovely lead singer of Brazilian electro-pop sensations CSS lays down her own delectable selection of tunes for dancing. ■ Periferal at the GRV. 8pm. £12–£15. 20 Aug. Harder-edged global sounds as Dr Das (Asian Dub Foundation) and Kerieva bring you the real face of contemporary world music. Arun Ghosh and Blackfist DJs are joined by Ajah. ■ Rude at Po Na Na. 10.30pm–3am. £5 (£3). Weekly. New night for Po’s with a mix of funky house, electro, urban licks and dirty mash-ups form John Hutchison. FREE Sick Note at Cabaret Voltaire. 11pm–5am. Weekly. Indie/electro night from the Cab, with residents from Clash and Spies in the Wires. ■ Silent Disco at Udderbelly’s Pasture. 10.30pm–3am. £10. Weekly. This is both genius and hilarious in equal measure. Basically, you are given headphones to hear the music that you usually experience coming out of speakers at clubs. Every major festival this summer has succumbed. Part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. ■ Smoke at Electric Circus. 6pm–3am. £tbc. 27 Aug. Part play, part club night and part exhibition in this mix of music, theatre and nicotine (performance at 9.30pm) with ‘death karaoke’, dominatrixes and giant dancing cigarettes examining ‘freedom vs responsibility’ featuring Rab Choudhry, Rachel MacLean, Rosamund West and more. FREE Sneaky Beats at Sneaky Pete’s. 11pm–3am. Weekly. Hip hop, funk, soul and a dash of electro. ■ Spank! at Underbelly. midnight–3am. £8–£14.50 (£9–£13.50). Weekly. Blurring the line between club, comedy and cabaret. Expect live music, stand-up, DJs, surrealism and plenty of other unclassifiable extras. Part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. ■ Stiletto at Lulu. 10pm–3am. £5 (£4). Weekly. Electro-pop, glam house classics and disco. ■ Vanity at Opal Lounge. 10pm–3am. £5. Weekly. Cutting edge soul, R&B, electro and funky house. ■ Vintage Violence at Wee Red Bar. 11pm–3am. £5. 20 Aug. Garage, girl groups, dirty soul, junk shop glam and rockabilly from DJs Christopher and Anastaziya Violence.
Edinburgh Fridays
■ The Bang Bang Club at Gilded Balloon Teviot. 12.30–5am. £10. Weekly. See Thu.
✽✽ Benbecula Records: The Final Vinyl at Wee Red Bar. 7pm–late. £8. 21 Aug. Mighty fine Scottish purveyors of leftfield electronica Benbecula Records will close its doors indefinitely exactly 10 years to the day from releasing its first CDR. Final closing party with Christ., Araya, Plum and more. ■ Big Toe’s Hi-Fi at Wee Red Bar. 10.30pm–3am. £5. 28 Aug. Reggae, dancehall, hip hop and other dubby grooves from Barba Poppa Choppa, C- Biscuit, Papa Luca and B-Dawg. ■ Broke at City Nightclub. 10.30pm–3am. £2. Weekly. Huge student night of chart indie, hip hop, dance anthems and drinks promos. ✽✽ Devil Disco Club at the Bongo Club. 11pm–5am. £5–£7. 21 Aug. Trouble is back with a new darker incarnation. Decadent nu disco overlords Horse Meat Disco guest, alongside new wave pop outfit Molly Wagger (live). ■ Dialektiks at Cabaret Voltaire. 10pm–3am. £3. 21 Aug. Hip hop fused with soul, big beats, live MCs, DJs and dancing feet. ■ Four Corners at the Bongo Club. midnight–5am. £5. 28 Aug. Your local one-stop hop for funk/soul/jazz/Latin/Afro/reggae dancefloor action and sizzling live percussion. ■ Funk Shui at Shanghai. 10pm–3am. £8 (£6). Weekly. DJ Fiona mixes up chart, dance classics and dirty house. ■ KandiFlip at Po Na Na. 10.30pm–3am. £3 before midnight; £6 after. Weekly. R&B, house and dance classics from Jay and Mark B.
✽✽ FREE Lucky 7 at Forest Café. 11pm–3am. 21 Aug. Ska, reggae,
bluebeat and 2-Tone with DJs Tall Paul, Laurent and Robigan. ■ Misfits at the Hive. 11pm–3am. Free before 11.30pm; £4 after. Weekly. DIY indie, electro, punk, rock and retro with bargain drinks. ■ Opal Lounge at Opal Lounge. 9pm–3am. Free before 10pm; £4 before 11pm; £8 after. Weekly. Funked up vocal house and dance classics from Jez Hill. FREE Overtime at Electric Circus. 10.30pm–3am. Weekly. Big tunes past and present to start your weekend with a bang.
■ Planet Earth at Citrus Club. 10.30pm–3am. Free before 11pm; £5 after. Weekly. Music from 1976 through to 1989. In other words, a healthy dose of punk, new wave, new romantic and electro-pop (now with added 90s). ■ Riddim Tuffa Sound at the GRV. 11pm–5am. £10. 21 Aug. The reggae, dubstep, jungle and dub night hosts a guest set from Benny Page and Mungo’s Hi-Fi. ■ RSVP at Lulu. 10pm–3am. £5 before midnight; £8 after. Weekly. Glamorous club hits. ■ Silent Disco at Udderbelly’s Pasture. 10.30pm–3am. £10. Weekly. See Thu. ■ Spank! at Underbelly. midnight–3am. £8–£14.50 (£9–£13.50). Weekly. See Thu. ■ StepBack at Sneaky Pete’s. 11pm–5am. £3. 21 Aug. Hyper bass from L-VIS1990 (Mad Decent) making his Scottish debut, Nick AKA, WolfJazz and Keyte. ■ Telefunken at Cabaret Voltaire. 11pm–5am. £4 before midnight; £5 after. 21 Aug. The residents step to the fore with a night of underground house. Edinburgh Saturdays
10.30pm–5am. £14–£15. 22 Aug. ✽✽ Axis at Cabaret Voltaire. Breakbeat as Axis launches with a guest set from Adam Freeland, who has been collaborating with the likes of Tommy Lee (Motley Crue), Twiggy Ramirez (Marilyn Manson) and Brody Dalle (Distillers) on his latest album for a harder sound. ■ The Bang Bang Club at Gilded Balloon Teviot. 12.30–5am. £10. Weekly. See Thu.
✽✽ Bass Syndicate at Faith. 11pm–5am. £10 in advance (more
on door). 22 Aug. Third birthday festival special for the breaks and bass night with a special house set from drum & bass DJ Zinc plus a drum & bass set from Hospital Records’ Cyantific. See 5 Questions, page 75. ■ Bubblegum at the Hive. 11pm–3am. Free before 11.30pm; £4 after. Weekly. A student friendly chewed up, spat out mix of electro, pop, dance, disco, soul and indie. ■ DiskoKitten at Berlin Bierhaus. 10.30pm–4am. £5 before midnight; £7 (£5) after. 22 Aug. Party house, cheeky bootlegs and funky anthems from local crew Jason Cortez and Andy Opel.
EDINBURGH Club venues ■ Berlin 3 Queensferry Street Lane, 467 7215. Selection of cool house nights. See listings for details. ■ The Bongo Club Moray House, 37 Holyrood Road, 558 7604. One of the coolest and most eclectic clubs in town. See listings for details. ■ Cabaret Voltaire 36-38 Blair Street, 220 6176. Mixed bag from house and techno to drum & bass and indie. See listings for details. ■ The Caves Niddry Street South, 557 8989. Great subterranean venue (as the name suggests) getting more and more popular due to its unique atmosphere. See listings for details. ■ CC Blooms 23-24 Greenside Place, 556 9331. One of the city’s most enduring gay
clubs, with hi-NRG tracks every night of the week. ■ The Citrus Club Grindlay Street, 622 7086. Mainly studenty venue that goes for an indie vibe as well as a dash of punk, new wave and 80s classics. See listings for selected highlights. ■ City: Edinburgh 1a Market Street, 226 9560. From student nights to big house and guest DJs. See listings for selected highlights. ■ Club Pivo 2-6 Calton Road, 557 2925. A selection of the best Edinburgh DJs play every night for free. ■ Electric Circus 36-39 Market Street, 226 4224. Eclectic dance beats and indie plus private rooms for a unique clubbling experience. ■ Espionage 4 India Buildings, Victoria Street, 477 7007. Five floors of
varied chart and dancey action. ■ GHQ 4 Picardy Place, 550 1780. New swish gay club. See listings for details. ■ The GRV 7 Guthrie Street, 220 2987. Intimate club venue mixing art and beats. See listings for details. ■ Henry’s Cellar Bar 8-16a Morrison Street, 228 9393. Eclectic and experimental night from surf rock to electro. See listings for details. ■ Hive 15–17 Niddry Street, 556 0444. New home for most of the Subway Cowgate’s nights of rock, indie and electronica. See listings for details. ■ The Hudson Club Hope Street Lane, 247 7000. Quality eclectic nights from big house to student nights from some of Scotland’s best DJs. ■ Jam House 5 Queen Street, 226 4380. Primarily a live music and jazz venue open until 3am, but home to the odd club special, including Club Noir. See listings for details. ■ The Jazz Bar 1 Chambers Street, 467 2539. Cool beats from global sounds to straight ahead jazz. See listings for details. ■ The Liquid Room 9c Victoria Street, 225 2564. Currently closed due to fire damage. More news when we get it. ■ Lulu (under Tiger Lily) 125b George Street, 561 2245. Cool funk, house and other grooves from the people who brought you the Opal Lounge. ■ Medina 45-47 Lothian Street, 225 6313. Laid back vibes with cool hip hop and other sounds. See listings for details. ■ Le Monde 16 George Street, 270
3900. Slick and stylish venue in the heart of Edinburgh. ■ Mood Omni, Greenside Place, 550 1640. Chart and party tunes. ■ Opal Lounge 51 George Street, 226 2275. House and funky beats for a dressed up crowd. ■ Opium 71 Cowgate, 225 8382. Rock, punk and metal, no messing. ■ Po Na Na 43b Frederick Street, 226 2224. Student nights, funky beats, house and more. See listings for selected highlights. ■ Potterrow Teviot, Bristo Square, 650 9195. Student heaven. ■ Sneaky Pete’s 73 Cowgate, 225 1757. From techno and dubstep to indie. See listings for details. ■ Siglo 184 Cowgate, 240 2850. Charty, party, indie nights until 3am. ■ Stereo King Stables Road, 229 7986. More big party tunes and drunken dancing. ■ Studio 24 Calton Road, 558 3758. Down and dirty club nights, specialising in techno and rock. See listings for details. ■ The Subway West End Lothian Road, 229 9197. Another one for the after office crowd. ■ The Voodoo Rooms 19a West Register Street, 556 7060. Sophisticated clubbing and entertainment. See listings for details. ■ The Wee Red Bar Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place, 229 1442. Student nights for the arty set. See listings for details. ■ Why Not? 14 George Street, 624 8311. Hits from the 80s to last week.
76 THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 20–27 Aug 2009