‘REGGAE'S ALWAYS FEEDING ON AND REINVENTING ITSELF'
Messenger Sound System
Ros mnoeuvres
David Pollock nods approvineg at the rise of REGGAE
clubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow.
incc bcing absorbcd into thc lfK‘s musical culturc in the (TOS. coinciding with a wave of ('aribbcan immigration into thc country. the rcggac sound has bccn through many owners. At lirst it was spccilically thc prcscryc of black culturc. thcn curious mods and soul boys bccamc inyolycd. initially just collecting and listening to iinportcd and L’K-rc- prcsscd Vinyl bcl'orc hatching thcir own rcmodilication of thc gcnrc with ska in thc carly 80s. Sincc thcn. cvcryonc from crustics to slick l'K garagc produccrs hayc played and found inllucncc in rcggac —- but thcsc arc not thc most appropriatc avenues for marrying critical and commcrcial success. and so rcal. authentic (‘aribbcan rcggac has oncc again found itsclf rclcgatcd to underground status. ththcr by accidcnt or dcsign. howcycr. many clubs in lidinburgh and (ilasgow hayc sprung tip oycr rcccnt ycars boasting both a rcspcctablc playlist and a dcccnt following. offering thc pcrfcct opportunity for long term aficionados and young noyiccs cagcr to Icarn about more than thcir Lcc ‘Scratch' Pcrry albums. Probably thc most wcll-cstablishcd of these is Mungo's lli-l‘i in (ilasgow (monthly at Liquid Loungc. with Jamaican dancchall \‘ctcran Ras Danicl Ray appcaring in Noycmbcri. although lidinburgh has also had an cxplosion of similar nights of Iatc. For cxamplc. thc Bongo (‘lub -« thc pcrfcct ycnuc. giycn its wclcoming attitudc to global sounds — hosts both thc mighty Mcsscngcr Sound Systcm and l()()‘é Dynamitc (thc lattcr run by thc samc pcoplc who organisc thc \cnuc‘s rcgular Solid Stccl gct-togcthcrs on bchalf of Ninja 'l‘unci. whilc lidinburgh (‘ollcgc of
Art‘s ch Rcd Bar is the placc for thc increasingly popular Big 'l‘oc's Hi—l‘i. A new addition to thc rota is Studio 24‘s ()rangc Strcct. a monthly outing with Big 'l‘oc I)Js in rcsidcncc.
‘What 1 low about rcggac is thc inccstuous naturc of
it.‘ csplains John l‘arrugia of Big 'l‘oc and ()rangc Strcct. ‘lt’s always fccding on and rcinycnting itsclf. yct grooyc and moycmcnt remain at thc basc of it. It moycs thc danccfloor. From somcthing likc old— fashioncd ska to thc latcst dancchall rccords. it's all may conncctcd. That‘s why I hayc such a blast playing all thcsc diffcrcnt types of music. Thcrc's so much to play with yct still thcrc’s a framework to it.'
litrrugia's love of rcggac comcs from the bcst part of
a dccadc living in St Lucia bcl'orc hc camc to lidinburgh. whcrc hc had to Icarn thc ropcs sharpish: "l‘hc lirst time I playcd down thcrc I got a bccr bottlc whiz/.cd at my hcad. which I supposc mcant that my forcigncr‘s idca of rcggac nccdcd sonic rcadjustmcnt. th this madc mc morc attcntiyc to what I was doing. and it also rcinformcd my first lmc for hip hop. Kids in thc (‘aribbcan arc all listcning to it on MTV. and it crcatcs a rcal mishmash of stylcs.‘
Hip hop is also on thc mcnu at Big 'I'oc. a night which draws a mixcd crowd of studcnts. \\'cst Indians and Art (‘ollcgc sccncstcrs likc thc .\‘1agnificcnts. according to l-‘arrugia. With such a cross-cultural intcrcst in thc stylc oncc again. would you bct against its ncxt crcdiblc lcap towards thc mainstrcam bcing far away'.’
See listings for full details.
Goodfoot Fourteen years of quality soul. funk and B88. Lenny Harkins and Colin Law are the birthday party guests. Riverside Club, Glasgow, Fri 4 Nov.
:2: Manga Double Feature Two nights from Scotland's finest drum & bass exponents. Metalheadz take over on the Friday and the tollowmg night there's a live set from DJ Zinc and Jenna G. The Honeycomb, Edinburgh, Fri 4 & Sat 5 Nov.
ti: Vandal Warp Records' finest and all-round musical royalty Plaid guest. Liquid Lounge. Glasgow, Fri 4 Nov.
iii Bebado Taking on LiveVEvil as drum & bass battles it out With Afro-Brazilian beats. Genius. Fave/a. Glasgow. Sat 5 Nov.
if: Bright Young Things Ball The Stephen Duffy Big Band, the Belle Stars and DJS join forces for a ceilidh bonfire club night to remember. St Andrews in the Square. Glasgow, Sat 5 Nov.
#1 Ufreak The British Murder Boys fuck with your hearts and minds. playing the most exhilarating techno on the planet. The Venue. Edinburgh. Sat 5 Nov.
:2: Ultragroove Gareth Sommerville invites some of the regulars back for this 6th birthday special. The Honeycomb. Edinburgh, Sat 5 Nov.
:2: Xplicit He practically invented intelligent drum & bass. LTJ Bukem. The Venue, Edinburgh, Thu 70 Nov.
Numbers Electro. hip hop and grime with the coolest guests. including Voltaic iPointOne Recordingsi. BaSura Blanca. Glasgow: Fri 7 7 Nov.
if: Taste Nick Warren (pictured). one half of Way Out West, joins the most debauched Sunday nighter in town. The Liquid Room, Edinburgh. Sun 73 Nov.
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