Chase & Status album launch

Last Thursday I returned to a venue close to my heart, Kentish Town Forum, for the Chase & Status album launch party.

The gig was set up as part of the Q Awards, a rather bizarrely matched series of events to count down to the annual music prizegiving. (I say bizarrely matched because Q magazine is aimed at an older, mainstream market, whereas the music of Chase & Status is more commonly found on the iPods of hip young things with a Mixmag subscription.)

The launch party for 'No More Idols' was a packed, lively affair. There was much dancing, much singing along, and even a bit of crowd surfing. This is what I call The Pendulum Effect, where the habits of the rock scene have crept into drum & bass parties. Ten years ago, if you'd elbowed your neighbour while moshing on the dancefloor, or lobbed a pint of beer across the crowd, you'd have been given a slap on the wrists pretty quick. It just wasn't acceptible then. So imagine my surprise at seeing a mini wall of death form in the centre of the Forum.

Chase & Status are awesome producers and, having toured with chart toppers like Prodigy and Dizzee Rascal, aim high with their live production standards. This event featured lighting effects and visuals to rival any Chemical Brothers gig and even a rather natty drum kit on stage.

The music of Chase & Status - who have truly nailed the D&B, dubstep and breakbeat scenes - is crisp, anthemic and accessible, and I don't mean that in the patronising sense. The duo performed only a handful of tracks from their new album, but enough to show that it will feature a hefty dose of catchy vocals and infectious basslines. The rest of the shindig was devoted to bangers from their incredible first album, 'More Than Alot'.

MC Rage joined them on stage, doing his usual hype-man routine of bigging up London. More than a lot. The show also featured a number of guests including grime bod Tempah T.

DMC Scratch Championships 2010

The DMC World DJ Championships were held last week at the lofty Koko in Camden.

It's quite a serious and chin-strokey event to uncover the world's best scratch DJs, who are each allowed a six-minute mix in the final, voted on by a panel of judges including Scratch Perverts Mr Thing and Prime Cuts (team winners in 1999).

Across the competition this year there was a marked absence of the kind of showmanship and physical trickery you'd have seen from stars of yesteryear like Craze and Qbert. So with a technically speedy but uninspiring set, DJ LigOne - a very French-looking Frenchman (pictured above) - won the top prize, which included a red Vestax mixer, Technics decks and a DMC bomber. Kireek from Japan took home the team trophy the night before.

This year's competition was notable not for the quality of mixes, but for the announcement made by DMC and Mixmag founder Tony Prince.

He came on stage to report that from next year, Serato manufacturer Rane will be sponsoring DMC - and DJs will be allowed to use Serato in the competition. This moves the championship in a whole new direction, since it means DJs can use the digital mixing system and a laptop instead of getting hands-on with traditional vinyl and all those sticky labels.

Prince said: 'We will always protect true turntablism but the time is right to allow for new technology.' Proving the depth of feeling towards change in the 25-year-old competition, the crowd booed when they heard the news.

Prince's speech was accompanied by a bizarre choreographed pisstake in which another guy hopped on stage dressed just like him, with grey hair, black jeans and tucked-in white T shirt (bless). To lively up proceedings again we had a beatbox performance from some French guy whose name escapes me, followed by a set from the father of mixing GrandWizzard Theodore - who, at one point, wore a silky black eye mask and scratched blind.

Hottest tip for the night was this little beauty I discovered at the merchandise stall. It's the best thing since that four-croissant deal at Greggs.

Dub FX

This week's Wednesday boredom alleviator is a video from Melbourne beatboxer Dub FX. It's a totally awesome street performance that I'm memerised by - and the track is beautiful.

Free Toddla T party, Weds 20 October

Check this out yo - free Toddla T party in Kings Cross tomorrow!!! Free booze!!! Like, HULLO.

To celebrate its 4th birthday, the Big Chill House in Kings Cross is putting on a super megatronic party with a million DJs I've never heard of but who cares - Toddla T is headlining.

They're giving away a free drink if you sign up their mailing list first. (Too long-winded for me; I'll just smuggle in my own.)

Party starts at 7pm. Click here for more info. 

Outlook Festival 2010

Reports of Outlook Festival this year were that it was amazing - which makes me totally gutted to have missed it. The fact that I can't make it next year either makes me want to cry.

Check out the promo video here:

Trouble Vision, 22 October

Another great night coming up: Trouble Vision at Corsica Studios.

I'll let the lineup speak for itself - and see you there...

Trouble Vision 2nd birthday
Friday 22 October
@ Corsica Studios, Elephant & Castle

DJ Zinc
MJ Cole b2b Zed Bias (History of Garage Set / 2 Hour set)
Scuba
SBTRKT
& more


Click here for more info.

Bad flyers

And the award for shittest flyer of the month goes to... Fact Mag. This appalling attempt to usher us down to east London's newest club looks like it was done by the work experience kid using CorelDraw 1 and a mobile screensaver. In 1996.

Blow at Egg, Friday 8 October

Egg club has never been well known for its awesome lineups or excellent promotions. Instead, the notorious Kings Cross venue has kept going for seven years on the back of its reputation as a solid after-party spot, the place that's guaranteed to be open at 10am, full of London's messiest.

With events like Breakfast at Egg playing techno, minimal, house and electroey stuff until 2pm on a Sunday, it's the sort of gaff you end up in, as my housemate likes to say, 'When things have gone very wrong indeed'. Which sometimes can be quite funny.

So it's good to see Egg's new Friday night shindig, Blow, taking things down a more drum n bass and dubsteppy route with some top names. This week, STUN hosts room one with Nero and MC AD. Also on the bill is Chug, a London-based DJ you should definitely seek out if you like eclectic urban riddims - for some dope mixes, check out his Soundcloud page.

Friday 8 October
Blow @ Egg, Kings Cross
£10 adv, £13 otd
10pm - 6am
Lineup:  Nero, Macpherson, V Dubz, Matt Carpenter, DJ Chug

Click here for more info.

Metalheadz at Roundhouse, 14 Oct

Red Bull returns to host yet another event with a stonking lineup, this time at the Roundhouse in Camden. I'm not sure how I'd feel about paying £18 for a Thursday nighter, though.

Culture Clash @ The Roundhouse
Thursday 14 October
Lineup: Metalheadz feat Goldie, Andy C, Shy FX, Storm, MC GQ, MC Justyce; Skream and Benga presents Joker, MC Nomad and Artwork; Channel One Soundsystem feat Mikey Dread, Ras Kayleb + more.

Click here for more info and tickets.

Urban Nerds Halloween special

Hope I didn't leave you distraught with Gravity Skank's absence these last couple of weeks, chums. Been busy with the non-raving side of life (yawn yawn).

But panic over – I'm back, with lots of raving fun times to update you with: Turning Point Festival, Hospitality at Brixton Academy, plus some interesting new artist releases.

In the meantime, check out this awesome little club night. Silly season is well and truly over, promoters have returned from their summer breaks and the parties are back in full swing. (In fact, October to December is perhaps the busiest time of the clubbing year, so I do hope you've prepared your brain cells for annihilation.)

Urban Nerds is one of the capital's most hip brands and the folks behind it are churning out parties like there's no tomorrow night. Interestingly they've linked up with some major promoters across the UK (including Newcastle's Wax:On and Brighton's Supercharged) and have just announced an event at the cool-as-ice Snowbombing festival in Austria next year.

At the end of October is this Halloween bash in London, with a super freaky lineup including Joker, Cookie Monsta, Flux Pavilion and Marcus Nasty. If you like dubstep, grime and trendy things, you must be there. The 900-capacity venue, Xoyo in Shoreditch, is a newbie that opens this month. Looks like a good'un!

Urban Nerds Halloween Bash
Saturday 30 October 2010
@ XOYO,        
32-37 Cowper Street, London EC2A 4AP

Click here for details.