The Month Ahead: Boorman's Picks

Image: High Tide Boat Parties

There's all sorts of quality in September for the more discerning house head. The entire Festival Number 6 is basically a feast of intelligent music. It is summed up no better than on Friday night where we see the wizened Andrew Weatherall going back to back with the Cambridge-educated and general DJ culture-academic, Ewan Pearson, but pretty much everywhere you look there is assured quality.

Neneh Cherry fronting up Rocketnumbernine is bound to be amazing if the reviews of their recent collaboration are anything to go by, and on the same mid nineties tip, Beck headlines the main stage on Saturday just for good measure (hear one of his finest contributions, 'The New Pollution', below).

As if that wasn't enough, there's the likes of Laurent Garnier, Greg Wilson, Ashley Beedle, Michael Mayer, Julio Bashmore and Danny Krivit; and if a weekend of pounding beats becomes a bit too much, don't forget the brilliant comedy line up they've got going down.

Charlie Higson of The Fast Show fame, Stuart Maconie and Matt Berry are some of the bigger names - particular doff of the hat to Matt Berry for his recent madcap work as the lead character in Channel 4's cult dose of insanity, Toast Of London.

Satoshi Tomiie's long-awaited return to the UK at Williamson Tunnels on Saturday September 6th is yet more competition that weekend, if you haven't checked it already you can read me and him discussing the high life here.

A little further up the coast be prepared to put your highbrow thinking caps on and listen in to Mike Pickering and Dave Haslam's "Conversation In Creativity" at The Hothouse in Morecambe on the same night. The two Hacienda legends and highly respected industry luminaries will also be DJing afterwards at Morecambe Winter Gardens, as part of the the Vintage by the Sea Festival.

Continuing the nautical theme, let us pay homage to Seth Troxler, on a boat, in Southampton, looking ridiculous. It is a privilege to have him adorning the cover photo of this article - you've just gotta love his consistent ability to take the piss. We can imagine that there is no better place for him to ham it up than on a boat on the Solent on September 20th.

And if late eighties Hacienda wasn't old skool enough for you in Morecambe, check out an even more classic DJ line up the next day at Morecambe Winter Gardens, with Colin Curtis and Richard Sealing. Before anyone had even thought of the Hac or house music, Blackpool Mecca and Wigan Casino were arguably the two most important venues in UK DJ culture, with Northern Soul as the soundtrack and those guys trailblazing from the DJ booth.

Curtis features in this excellent documentary that was recently shown on the BBC, about the counter culture that paved the way for the scene we know and love today; watch it below if you've got a spare hour.

A man who is probably old enough to remember all that is DJ Harvey, who continues to mystify with his unique combination of oldies and outright disco silliness. He has two consecutive dates at Kehakuma/Elrow at Space, on Saturday September 13th and a week later on the 20th.

Honourable mention also to those boys for having Fritz Kalkbrenner as the headliner the following week (27th) - another seriously talented individual with his own unique angle, less about eclectic irony and more about outright musical prodigiousness.

Expect to see him sing live over the top of his own tracks, and we daresay he will be having his wicked way with a few other instruments as well - not your standard Space Terrace fodder.

Golden Ticket

Next up it's golden ticket time. Just have a look at the range on offer at SSW4 - The Preston Weekender. Danny Krivit, Jimpster, Graeme Park, Horse Meat Disco, Inland Knights, Cottam, and all in the Park Hall Hotel in Chorley. This really will be a weekend for the purists.

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