Preview: Bangface Bristol, Lakota

The neo-rave madness of BangFace finally arrives in Bristol on October 15. About time too.

BangFace is a subculture in its own right. Crowd surfing on rubber dinghies, hand-made banners with daft slogans – “Mum, I’m At A Rave”, “Mild Cheese Is Pointless” – it’s the antithesis of Boiler Room style studied cool. After 13 years as one of the club scene’s most venerated cults BangFace finally arrives in Bristol this month for a one-off party at Lakota. 

Having started back in 2003, BangFace combines nostalgia for the golden age of hardcore with a broad-minded music policy that ranges from jungle and breakcore to techno and IDM. The brand’s appeal lies in its combination of great music and profound silliness, as embodied in the person of James Saint Acid – the night’s founder, promoter and resident DJ.

While the programming is taken seriously, chin stroking is anathema to Bangface devotees – the inexhaustible ‘Hard Crew’. Proper dancing – from skanking and stepping to apocalyptic ‘mash-pits’ – is compulsory. Nights generally have a fancy dress theme, inflatables are everywhere, and the general vibe is that of the sugared-up climax of a kids’ birthday party, albeit one soundtracked by some of the world’s most uncompromising DJs. 

From its earliest days in London – including a lengthy stretch at Islington’s sticky-floored Electrowerkz – Bangface expanded into a weekend festival at . If Bloc was the golden boy of electronic music festivals, Bangface Weekend is the clown prince – a three-day rave saturnalia in which sets by 808 State or Venetian Snares are interspersed with unlikely and miraculous happenings. Highlights have included pool parties hosted by Normski, and a holiday camp full of ravers going nuts to a live set by Chas & Dave. 

The session at Lakota is a typically wide-ranging affair. Drum & bass is well covered, with sets from jump up don Original Sin and Bosnian neuro destroyer Billain as well as first generation jungle pioneers Krome & Time and Bizzy B. Free party warlord D.A.V.E The Drummer will bring his dark, twisted techno to the party, as will the self-explanatory (and altogether awesome) Ceephax Acid Crew.  Other highlights include Bath-based hardcore deity The DJ Producer, and Broken Note, whose towering bass constructions are a miracle of civil engineering. 

Bringing up the rear are Bristol stalwarts like Mandidextrous, Demon Cabbage and Doomham, no doubt peppering the tried and tested Bangface recipe with a generous slug of Black Swan. It’s time to prove Bristol ravers can mix it with the hardest of the hard crew. Don’t forget your banners. 

BangFace Bristol is at Lakota on Saturday, October 15. For more information visit www.bangface.com