-
raiqh o heJu
‘THERE'S NO MESSING WITH MICKY AND APHRODITE - YOU REALLY CANNOT GO WRONG'
' Slioli. , ' WW.
le
DJ KID talks to David Pollock about why drum & bass nighthNGLE MAGIK is celebrating its second birthday after six years.
s far as second birthday parties go. they don't A come much more overdue than this. Over six
years and a variety of venues in Edinburgh. Jungle Magik has been around for a while. although the promoters' reasoning goes that a total of 26 nights so far is worth roughly two years' worth of a regular monthly club.
Any excuse for a party. eh‘.’ Not that we need one. other than the fact that the Urban Takeover duo of Micky Finn and Aphrodite will be making a very special appearance together. Now a well-established face on the scene Micky Finn (real name Michael Hearn) is one of the pioneers of UK drum & bass. Leaving behind a promising youthful career as a tearaway and law-brusher when he saw Eric B & Rakim play in the 80s. Finn survived initial flirtations with low-tech home taping and Oakie-style house to cement his position as one of the genre‘s brand- leaders. Aphrodite (real name Gavin King). meanwhile. came to the party a little later — midway through the 90s — but soon established himself with his ragga stylings and. among other highs. production work with Finn.
‘We‘ve been wanting to put them on together for quite some time.‘ explains Jungle Magik resident and promoter DJ Kid. 'Because obviously they run Urban Takeover together. But we‘ve had to hide our time. because Aphrodite in particular is one of the busiest DJs on the worldwide drum 8; bass scene. He‘s a party DJ. a party producer and he's got the kids locked right in. I once saw him in Houston. Texas
34 THE LIST 7—21 Oct 2004
playing to what must have been l5.()()() people and there were queues of people waiting for autographs afterwards.
‘There's no messing with people like Micky and Aphrodite.‘ he concludes. rather ominously. ‘You really cannot go wrong. They don't just play the moody stuff all night — both of them are party DJs and they know how to play to the crowd.‘
As for Jungle Magik itself. Kid is using the experience of being a regular at Scotland‘s other biggest drum & bass night. Manga. ‘After a few years of being involved with Manga I just realised that Edinburgh merited another D&B night.’ he explains. ‘I never would have envisaged us getting to this point. though. I started a club in 93 called Street Knowledge. and we were really struggling to get people in the door. This was back in the day when rave culture was still strong in Scotland and people were still going to things like Rezerection. It felt like we were fighting a losing battle.
‘But now things couldn’t be in better health.‘ he concludes. ‘There are successful nights in Glasgow. Aberdeen and Dumfries. From our point of view [Jungle Magik and Manga]. I think that‘s because we've brought a steady stream of the most credible artists up to Scotland. A mixture of the biggest names and the best young talent. and people know they're getting value rather than something ramshackle.’
Jungle Magic 2nd Birthday at the Honeycomb, Edinburgh, Fri 15 Oct.
Burly Birthday Party This big gay night at the Arches goes all industrial (sartorially) for its birthday. For gay and bisexual men 25 and over. The Arches, Glasgow, Fri 8 Oct.
North South Link Up! Messenger brings those dub vibes to a Friday for this team up with Jah Lion Movement (from down south) to show you what heavy bass is all about. The Bongo C/ub, Edinburgh, Fri 8 Oct.
Return to Mono Remember Silicone Soul? These guys have been out of earshot for some time now, but they're back to rock the Sub on this date. Sub Club, Glasgow. Fri 8 Oct.
Ultragroove Another great night from Gareth Sommerville's exemplary house night. welcoming Frank Tope from the legendary Rooty so you can bet he knows a thing or two about partying. Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, Sat 9 Oct.
Dogma Hard techno at its best and most expansive as International DJ Gigolo Terrance Fixmer (live) is joined by Adam X for a night of take no prisoners industrial intensity. Studio 24, Edinburgh, Fri 75 Oct.
The Funk Room It was his label-founding mate Norman Jay last month, and now it’s the turn of Gilles Peterson to show the Funk Room crowd how he works it. The Arches, G/angW. Fri 75 Oct.
Death Disco More mash up madness as great international DJ duo the Glimmer Twins visit the Arches to rip it up. If there were any carpets in the bloody place. The Arches, Glasgow, Sat 76 Oct.
Impotent Fury Nothing can quite describe the lmpotent Fury experience. Just imagine bad game shows meeting DJ excellence and you're almost there. Lemon Jelly's Fred Deakin takes control of this any which way you can night. The Venue, Edinburgh, Sat 76 Oct.