Freeze, Liverpool
While always bravely facing the drizzly threat of a Mersey gale, the daytime Freeze parties so far in 2015 have created a true buzz among Liverpool’s club crowd. The location, within the confines of the city’s 1800s St Luke’s church, completely gutted during the second world war, is quietly epic, especially as the sun begins to set. The lineups aren’t half bad, either. This evening, reigning Norwegian space-disco kings Todd Terje and Prins Thomas are joined for a solid house session by Gerd Janson. Hailing from across the water in New Brighton, re-edit master and tape-reel fan Greg Wilson will also be on hand to easily justify his seemingly eternal local and international popularity.
The Bombed Out Church, Sat
JT
Fused, Belfast
Tucked away down a narrow docklands side street, The Black Box is a fitting location for this evening of sinew, sweat and unadulterated sub-laden kicks. The final instalment in the venue’s three-day Fused weekend, the night will see Belfast’s own Phil Kieran taking the helm as master of the most brutal of ceremonies. The man behind arguably one of the best techno remixes of all time – a blistering take on Nitzer Ebb’s Murderous that feels like repeatedly falling face-first into a rack of dumbbells – Kieran has been ever-present in dance music circles since 2000, releasing a steady succession of 12-inches under several aliases on a smattering of labels. Joining him will be techno savant Perc, boss of the excellent longstanding label Perc Trax, which celebrated its 10th birthday last year, and whose breakneck edit of Moby’s Thousand has recently been leaving indentations in dancefloors across the country. Local Koichi will also be adding to the onslaught. Expect this to be a suitably bracing affair.
The Black Box, Sat
SC
Found Festival, London
Last year’s Found festival was fine enough if you were in the market for a fairly narrow remit of tech-house and people wondering if they can do two balloons at once. This year, though, it travels south of the river to the more spacious Brockwell Park in Herne Hill, and broadens out the music, too. Nick Curly’s stage with Davide Squillace, Matthias Tanzmann et al will keep last year’s heads happy with funky sets tailored for maximum invitations to the gun show, but the techno offering is bolstered by underground faves Zenker Brothers, Genius Of Time and Barnt alongside headliners Guy Gerber and Ellen Allien. Ron Trent, Andrés and Tevo Howard will be hoping rain doesn’t add a British summertime pathos to their warm disco and house, while George FitzGerald, whose smooth debut LP has just come out, continues to cast himself as a man of refinement with his well-curated stage, which will host Bob Moses, Palms Trax and KiNK.
Brockwell Park, SE24, Sat
BB
First Floor, Brighton
Priding themselves on intimacy, promoters First Floor are showcasing New York’s Anthony Parasole to celebrate the start of their bi-monthly residency. His 2012 tune Tyson made him a prominent figure in the resurgence of the city’s house and techno scene, and the past few years have seen him launch record label The Corner with recent EP Off The Grid selling out in a mere two weeks. With support from Ed Davenport and a live set from Acid Test’s Tin Man, it’s a solid lineup for fervent deep house fans.
Patterns, Sat
SM
Miranda Presents, London
Miranda is the bar underneath jetset-hipster magnet the Ace Hotel, and, to disassociate itself from Shoreditch’s core demographic of children dancing to electro-swing and unremembered TLC tracks, it’s been booking some curveballs. Take Kamixlo, who’s playing here: an androgynous, blue-rinsed Brixton producer making sad-boy rap productions alongside skull-crushing, bombed-out reggaeton. It’s what Diplo would be doing today if he hadn’t wanted a yacht. Also on the bill is Murlo, who uses similar 80s Argos keyboard tones but put to rather slinkier service on R&B and grime productions.
Miranda, E1, Fri
BB
