BREAKBEAT PIONEER TIM SIMENON
Radio Babylon at La Belle Angele, Edinburgh, Fri 26 Oct; Homebass at Alaska, Glasgow, Sat 27 Oct.
It’s amazing to think that it’s been thirteen or so years since Bomb the Bass’ ‘Beat Dis’ along with MARRS’ ‘Pump up the Volume’ pioneered the cut-and-paste, big- beat aesthetic. It’s a sound that’s omnipresent even now, but back in 1987, with blue-eyed pop muppets ruling the roost, what inspired Bomb the Bass (aka Tim Simenon) to pick up the sampler and not the guitar?
‘I think listening to bands that sounded like they were using machines for drummers inspired me. Cabaret Voltaire, Suicide, Kraftwerk; those were the type of bands that really inspired me to make music, but when I first started DJing, samplers were just getting affordable and that was the point when somehow it all made sense.’
It obviously made sense to the British public for a time also, with Tim’s debut album Into The Dragon containing - ' three Top 10 hits, ‘Beat Dis’, an idiosyncratic take of ‘Say A Little Prayer’ and the breakbeat classic ‘Megablast’.
Follow-up album Unknown Territory fared less well commercially, but ironically established what would become the prevalent ‘abstract beats’ sound of the mid 905, the sound that has since been lining the pockets of James
Lavelle and Mo’Wax.
Undeterred, Simenon embarked on the journey that would eventually reach fruition with 1995’s Clear LP, this time with a gaggle of collaborators in tow including Sinead O’Connor, Justin Warfield on the seminal ‘Bug Powder Dust’, and somewhat bizarrely, novelist Will Self. Bearing in mind his taste for collaboration - Simenon has also worked with J Saul Kane (aka Depth Charge) and Neneh Cherry amongst others — there must have been some alliances that proved to be less than holy. ‘I can’t remember the last time I got into a punch-up over the level of the bass in a track or the sound of the snare drum but I’m sure that shit does happen,’ jokes Simenon. ‘That’s what
collaboration is all about!’
Last year saw the birth of Simenon’s Electric Tones imprint which tantalisingly promises 3 Bomb the Bass vs Jack Dangers (Meat Beat Manifesto) EP and music from Jaki Liebezeit of Can’s new project, Club Off Chaos. It’s easy to forget just how long Tim Simenon’s been around, but with this new label, his continued hunger for collaboration and what he describes as a ‘drunken-master’ style of DJing, he has admirably stayed the course
when many of his contemporaries have fallen by the wayside. (Steven Clark)
smoking tea shop that looks. conversely. like an opium den. The tunes. courtesy of a huge number of local DJs. are drawn from every genre under the sun. as long as they‘re laid-back. Drink obscure teas. play chess. give your body a rest.
I Moda at Moda. 8pm— 3am. Free. Weekly. A saucy selection of soul. R&B and house from rotational guest DJs.
I Moloco at Moloco. 8pm midnight. Free. Weekly. Martin St. John spins stompin' Northern soul. roots. rock and reggae.
I Nico’s at .\'ico’s. ()pttt-ltltdlllglil. Free. Weekly. Billy Milligan. the Ian Mellis of dance music. supplies a wide-ranging cheeseboard.
I Paul Cawley at (iroticho St Judes. ‘)piii~midnight. Free. 38 ()ct. Fortnightly. The Fenetik fellow with some beats. breaks and hip hop.
I Phonic at Moskito. 9pm midnight. Free. Weekly. Quality deep house from Phonic residents Steven. (iordon and Mark.
I R&B at Bar l(). 7pm midnight. Free. Weekly. Relax with R&B cuts and take advantage of the generous drinks promos at this city centre style bar.
I Scratch ‘n’ Sniff at .\te(‘hu‘ill‘s. 9pm midnight. Free. New pre-club venture. featuring Danny Barbour playing house. garage and whatever else he fancies. I Soulsa Presents: Vinyl at Strata. ()pm—midnight. Free. Weekly. ()flicial pre- club to the main event at \"atilt. featuring quality house. latin vibes and choicest disco from Andy t'nger. Shae-D and special guest DJs. Passes available here for Vinyl at Vault.
Club
I Bennet’s at Beniiet’s.
l 1.30pm -3am. £3. Weekly. Tom plays tunes loved by twelve-year—old girls. pltis some bangin' handbag. to equally appreciative gay men. Funny old world. I Bite at The (‘athotise. l().3()pm -3am. Free before l 1.30pm; £3 (£l.5()) after. Weekly. A milder mix of indie and rock than you’ll find at the city's premier rock venue on Fri or Sat.
I Bump ‘N’ Grind at The Velvet Rooms. l lpm 3am. £4 (£3). Wind down the weekend with DM(i‘s mix of R&B and street soul.
I Chittlin’ Hoedown at The 13th Note ('afe. l lpm—3am. £ l. A new night devoted to pretty much whatever the DJs please. including dub. hip hop and electro with added splashes of indie sttiff.
I Club Tropicana at The (iarage (Attic). 1 lpm 3am. £3 (£3). Weekly. Indie. both classic and contemporary. with a healthy dose of Britpop.
I Dream at Strawberry Fields.
10.30pm 3am. £l5. Weekly. Fifteen nicker might seem a bit steep fora night down Strawberry Fields. btit in addition to hanging house anthems and saucy dancing girls. the bar is totally and utterly free. Mtich like a stomach pump on the NllS.
I Liquid Cool at Baba/a. 9pm 3am. £5. Weekly. A.J.. Kris Keegan and Ian Thompson playing top-notch vocal garage and house to a club packed with hyper- hedonistic tvv‘entysomething revellers. all of whom seem to have forgotten that they have work in the morning. lf quality tunes and glamorous antics are your bag. Stiiis at Baba/a are unmissable.
QOptimo at MAS (in association with the Stib (‘lub). llpm 3am. £5 (£4); £(v on guest nights. Weekly. Lady Miss Roland and Twitch (S: Wilkes play music. includ- ing gut-busting techno. country & west- ern. punk and painfully cool electro-pop. pltis anything else suited to the dancelioor from the past 4() years. Look out for the Halloween bash on 38 ()ct. which if the past two years are anything to go by. should be totally outrageous. Arrive early to avoid the mammoth queue. See ilitlist. I Pure Funk at ('ltib Budda.
l lpm 3am. £5 (£4). Weekly. (ilasgow reacqtiainted itself with its long-held love of the ftiiik this year. with a brace of nights devoted to the genre. including this one in the bijotix environs of Budda.
I Skool Disco at Shack.
‘)..3()piii 3.30am. £5. 38 ()ct. Not your average school night out...doii't think the teachers would approve of the copitis amount of foam which is going to cover the dancelloor at this fancy dress cum lbi/a stylee cltib night. then again I'm not sure I do either.
I Soulsa Presents: Vinyl at \‘ault.
l lpm 3am. £5 (£4). Weekly. Mighty popular new residency from Andy" l'iigei' and lady Shae-I). devoted to quality disco.
proper garage and house. liai‘ly arrival more than makes sense.
I Solvent at Alaska. I lpm 3am. £3. Weekly. ('olin Davie gives (is another reason to go otit and get completely trollied on a Sunday night. Playing funky house and whatever he fancies to a crowd of tip for it Sunday night revellers who just don't want the weekend to end! If the launch night is anything to go by then this night should definitely be one to head down to.
I Sunday Best at Shack.
l().3()pm 3.30am. £5. (£3). Weekly. Jim Da Best (that boy gets everywhere?!) playing pop. dance. R&B and whatever he likes to a bunch of Sunday night revellers. I Sunday Shelter at Atl-Lib.
l lpm 3am. £(v. l lpm 3am. 38 ()ct. Monthly. llarri and Martyn Jengahead playing house and whatever they fancy to bring the weekend to a close.
I Transistor at The Polo Lounge.
1 lpm 3am. £tbc. Weekly. Real pop for real people with DJs Niall McMurray and Wayne Dixon.
Chart & Party
I Atmosphere at Destiny. l()pm 3am. £3 before I lpm; £4 after. Weekly. Full-on party action accompanied by generous drinks promos.
I Disco at Fury Mtirry ‘s. l lpm 3am. £4 (£3). Weekly. (‘heese-tastic disco ftiii for students. with Dave and l’hil spinning the discs.
I Media at Media. 1 lpm 3am. £3. Weekly. A full-on flavoured mix from rotational residents pltis karaoke in room two. Drinks promos a bonus (all drinks £3 all night).
Glasgow Mondays
Pre—club
I It’s Lonely Being Cool at the Living Room. ()pm midnight. Free. Weekly. Your host Teamy and partners in crime Mot o‘ The Levels and ()ne Way l.eii play (ills garage. hip hop. electronica and electro-pop to help you recover from the weekend or start the week.
I Loose at The Variety Bar.
()pm midnight. Free. Weekly. Alt. country. classic 70s rock and blues from Paul Shields.
listings Clubs
I Playstation League at Bar Jedi. ‘)pm midnight. Free. Weekly. For kids sore of thumb and pallid of complexion. A case of lager is tip for grabs for the top gun gamer. assuming you can drag yourselves away from the ‘station at home.
Club
I Burn at MAS. l lpm 3am. Free for staff of any pub or club; £3 to everyone else. Weekly. A top party atmosphere is guaranteed at the live-year old staff night otit. thanks to thumping dance classics. from deep to disco. unleashed by Norman and Zeus.
I Speedracer at The Garage. l().3()pni 3am. £5 (£3). Weekly. Indie classics with the odd daft party tune thrown iii for the llstltil cra/y' crowd.
Chart & Party
I Pop Stars at The Shack. l().3()pm 3am. £4 (£3). Weekly". Ridiculously cheap bevy at this self— explanatory homage to manufactured chart pap.
Glasgow Tuesdays
Pre—Club
I Bar 10 at Bar It). 7pm late. Free. Weekly. A chance for aspiring DJ talent to get noticed: every week three bedroom turntablists spin their discs. the best being selected by the crowd. who then progress to the final. vv here DJs and promoters from various clubs grant the cream of the crop a chance to play at their venue or club.
I Colin Davie at Spy Bar.
()pm midnight. Free. Weekly". (‘olin Davie does his thing. delivering some quality house grooves and whatever the hell he lt‘t‘ls like.
I Dub Night at The Variety Bar.
8pm midnight. Free. Weekly. Stevie Donaldson (Bar Ill) playing. oddly enough. dub.
I A Lick of Latin at llav'ana Bar. 8pm l()pm. £4. Weekly. Mtisic from around the globe with that all-iiiipoi‘taiit lick of Latin and there‘s a salsa dance class with Maggie.
I Cul de Sac at the ('til de Sac. Martyn Jeiigahead. a ('til de Sac resident of DJ days gone by. gets back in the saddle. playing a mixed bag of house and beats. test-driving his new purchases. promos and white labels.
I Passion Pour La Vida at October. 8pm midnight. Free. Weekly. The award- vv'inniiig DJ Ja/I. drives tip the temperature in Princes Square with a Latino/Spanish exti'av‘agan/a.
Club
I Fly at Alaska. 1 lpm 3am. £5 (£3). Weekly. A brand new student night at the super hip club. Dr Paul play s student anthems downstairs while (‘oliii and ()vven rip it tip upstairs playing funky house and dropping in a few surprise tracks. Ridiculously cheap bevy and quality tunes. further proof that Tue is the new Thu.
I Tilt at The Velvet Rooms. l lpm 3am. £4 (£3 ). Weekly. Progressive house and trance with James Doc .liir.
Chart & Party
I Laid at Shack. l().3()pm 3am. £4 (£3). \Vt‘t‘kl). Sltltlt‘lil tllg‘lll \\ llll lllt‘ L‘llt‘t‘slt‘sl til. cheese.
I Shooting Stars at The (image.
I lpm 3am. £4 (£3). Weekly. (iei‘i'y and Iain keep the drunk kids happy with cliarty house and pop hits.
I The Shimmy Club at Beuuet's. ll.3()pm 3am. £3 (£l.5(l). Weekly. A straight—ish and sttideiity night at the gay venue. with Raymond Davren maintaining the party atmosphere.
I T.I.T. at Trash. l().3()pm 3am. £4 (£3 ). Weekly. (irahaiiie Ferguson and Scott Free spin garage and house in the main room Whilst l).l RUDL‘I'T kt‘t‘ps the kids ClllL‘TlLllllL‘kl with plenty of cheese in room two. (iirls. diamante boob tubes are a must. otherwise you could look slightly tiiidei‘dressed.
1;») ()(:t i No). Poet THE LIST 85