Scottish Clubbing Highlights – May 2015

We kick off this month’s selection with a nod in the direction of Aberdeen, where Binary School have a cracker lined up as they invite wonky techno whizz, Neil Landstrumm to 42 Below. Born and bred in Scotland, Landstrumm has been one of the country’s most respected and enduring talents over the years, with a host of records released on the likes of Tresor, Peacefrog and Planet Mu. Though most associated with techno and electro, the producer’s range is certainly not limited – he has also produced work featuring elements of hip hop, bass music and ragga. His live set runs on a bill which also includes Autumn Hang and Rollright Knights, with DJ support coming from Neil Birnie (9 May, £8 adv, £10 door).

Over in Edinburgh, the Jackhammer crew play host to a Chicago veteran, as Mike Dearborn brings his jacking brand of techno to The Liquid Room on Victoria Street. DJing since the mid 80s, when house music was exploding out of his hometown and shaping the way electronic music would evolve to this day, Dearborn has always followed his own path. From early on – through a string of releases on the mighty Djax-Up-Beats in the early 90s – he took a markedly more techno-focused direction than many of his contemporaries, often lacing his frenetic tracks with warped acid lines and rapid snare rolls. Having released on a number of classic labels and remixed for the likes of Gary Numan, Joey Beltram and Robert Armani, Dearborn’s return to music in recent years has been a most welcome one. Support comes from UK stalwart Billy Nasty (2 May, £10 adv). 

Next up, we recommend a trip The Mash House on 22 May as Lezure present an all-night session from secretive Berlin trio ItaloJohnson. Releasing records through their own imprint since 2010, the Germans take a no-frills approach to what they do – records are released with simple packaging and are frustratingly untitled, which adds some confusion when trying to identify and recommend particular tracks. To be clear though, the music contained within each hand-stamped offering has so far been uniformly brilliant. Whether offering raw jacking house, straight techno or other dancefloor variations, ItaloJohnson seem to have made a simple commitment to quality and consistency, and their records have developed buy-on-sight status for many. Their mammoth DJ sets are increasingly lauded too so this one looks like a safe bet as far as we’re concerned (£7/9).

Also in the capital that night is the city’s first ever X Music Festival, held at the Gypsy Brae Recreation Ground. The event takes place across two days and, though full line-up details are yet to be revealed at time of writing, we sense this one will be worth keeping an eye out for. What we do know is that the event’s bill includes UK garage maestro DJ EZ, whose energetic sets whizz through mainstream and underground classics alike – check out his Boiler Room sets for a sneak preview of the kind of party he brings when he’s on form. Since the initial lineup details were revealed, it has been announced US rap star Ja Rule cannot now play due to Visa issues, but grime king Skepta and drum n bass head Andy C are among the other acts featured (22-23 May, £29.90-£49.90).

In Glasgow, the opening weekend is all about The Art School, with the first highlight coming from Huntley and Palmers and their May Day event, which features a wide range of live performances and DJ sets. In the former category is Border Community head honcho James Holden, whose reputation as a gifted producer and remixer has been built over a number of years. Also playing live is local artist, Alex Smoke, whose first two albums via Soma presented a more interesting approach to minimal techno than many of his contemporaries could muster. His classical background and propensity for experimentation have led him down various different paths over the years so his set should be well worth catching. DJ sets come from increasingly impressive German Helena Hauff, Bristol’s Hodge and the heads behind Glasgow’s most interesting new band in recent years, Golden Teacher (1 May, £15).

The next night, the venue has blistering techno on the menu courtesy of Head Front Panel, the initially secretive project now confirmed to be the work of Liverpudlian producer John Heckle. As with most things released from the Tabernacle stable, the HFP releases have been of a remarkable quality and have showcased considerable range, though all are uniformly relentless in the way they evoke the best of the 90s techno scene, with clear reference points in the likes of Jeff Mills and Surgeon. We suspect Substance have lined up one of the highlights of the month with this, so you’d be silly not to head down and get your bounce on (2 May, £8).

The following weekend we reckon The Berkeley Suite warrants a visit, as Cryptiq and Boogaloo team up to bring German producer Borrowed Identity to town. Increasingly well-renowned for producing quality deep house music, Borrowed Identity is a producer who seems able to adapt his style with each record, sometimes replacing his introspective, moody house music with tracks of an altogether different hue – see his bubbling acid release on Glasgow’s Ander-Traxx label for evidence of the latter. With more recent work coming for the likes of Ostgut Ton and DVS1’s Misstress Recordings, it would appear the German’s stock is on the rise. Support comes from Boogaloo residents (8 May, £6-10).

Moving on to Friday 15 May, we’re happy to see a spot reserved for a showcase from one of Glasgow’s most promising looking new outlets, Cold City Cuts. Emerging last year, the project is helmed by Monsieur DeLarge, co-founder of the city’s sadly missed Inner City Acid events. Showing promise from the off, Cold City’s debut release featured a characteristically inventive offering from local artist Alex McVey, better known as Alex-Ander – two steely deep house tracks, rich in atmosphere and the kind of rhythmic variation too often lacking in the genre. McVey is on DJ duties in Broadcast, while new signing Sirrahtam performs a live set ahead of the release of his first EP for the label. Support comes from ever-impressive Glasgow mainstay Jamie Thomson and DeLarge under his DJ Cold City Cuts guise (free entry).     

Our final Glasgow pick comes on the same night and takes us round to La Cheetah, where the club’s label series continues in impressive form with the showcasing of Shed’s Power House outlet. Rene Pawlowitz, when he’s not belting out stark techno as Shed, also takes on the monikers WK7 and Head High, who will feature here. This alias presents a slightly more house-heavy approach to production, though the kick drums often have the force and pace of straight-up techno, and there are also elements of rave and jungle which seep into the sound. Basically, this is proper party music, plain and simple. Joining Pawlowitz will be Finn Johannsen, avid record collector and buyer for Berlin’s famous Hard Wax store – a sure sign of a trusted selector. Expect a boisterous evening in the basement of Max’s (15 May, £10 adv).

Other tips for this month include Daniel Avery and Barnt’s turn for i AM at the Sub Club (1 May, £15), Dark Behaviour’s Queer Futures party (9 May, The Arches, £10/14) and the Nightvision closing party with Kerri Chandler and Dusky in Edinburgh (24 May, Liquid Room, £15-20).