N-Type, Silkie & Quest, Iration Steppas, Gentleman’s Dub Club, Exodus @ Exodus Croatia Launch Party, Faversham Leeds. 9th June 2009

This was like a mini Sub Dub Vs. Exodus but not in the setting of the West Indian Centre and with a much smaller sound system, but at least they had a sound system as The Fav has always sounded so bad for every other gig / club night I’ve been to, the bass crew know where its at though and bring their own rigs. This was the launch party for Exodus Croatia the dubstep / dub festival that’s been going strong for a couple of years now and by the way this went off Croatia is going to be something else, quite literally as well I mean you just don’t get the sun / sand and boat parties in Leeds.

Spinning dub early on in the main room was Exodus, just playing some deep dubbed out vibes to a meandering crowd, it was sounding good. In the conservatory was another big rig playing those jungelist sounds, then right next to the main room was The Gimp aka a little freaky room playing some hardcore heavy artillery, chainsaw and laser guided gun finger dubstep; all of this combined made the windows of The Fav shake hard.

Gentleman’s Dub Club hit the stage in suits as a full on live dub band with MC, drums, horns and bass a plenty. I’ve heard about these guys before but never seen them, they really killed it and drew a big skank happy crowd. Plus they did full band live rewinds just like the DJ’s do; it really got the tension going for those meaty drops.

Into The Gimp for some face melters while Iration set up, and fuck me who ever was playing in there was reaching for the big guns: Dark’n’grimey full of wobble. The Kutz & Benga ‘I’ll Kut Ya’ was probably the only track I could ID to be honest, but what a track.

Iration Steppas in the main room were warming things up very nicely in their usually dub in the year 3000 style. The rig may be smaller than I’m use to hearing them on so there was no STUPIDLY HUGE push you over and leave you for dead bass pummelling, but it was defiantly big enough for a Tuesday night. Special after special via dubplate and special again got played, vibes built and bass dropped. I wish I knew what these tracks were they get me every time, the final track he played that got three wheels was something else. An almost four to the floor deep and loose beat built into an all mighty drop that got the crowd pogoing for the first time in the night.

Silkie & Quest hit the decks not long after and brought the boogie, skipping drums, soulful breakdowns and full on colourful funk fuelled bass really turned the night into a dance party. Playing a set of pretty much all their own productions as far as I could tell apart from one Joker & Ginz track, ‘Purple City’. This stuff sounded so effortlessly warm and danceable and in such contrast to the lil room playing hardcore ravestep it was brilliant. Pretty much everything I could have wished to hear was played and loads more I couldn’t quite place, ‘Purple Love’, ‘Headbut Da Deck’, ‘Test’, Silkie’s boogie drenched remix of Skream’s ‘Filth’ and Mr Larger’s vocal anthem ‘Tell Me’, ‘Edan’ which finished the set and jeeeeez it sounds HUGE. Silkie & Quest may well be some of my favourite producers around in dubstep at the moment and without a doubt they can do it in the dance.

After the relentless space funk of Silkie and Quest, they didn’t do a single rewind, all rollers all the way… N-Type came on and started to build things up with filthy bangers in his usual style. We had to roll not long after mind, it was getting late and it’s a long drive back. Killer night, quality music all round and easily one of the best nights I’ve had at The Faversham. I wish them all well in Croatia I bet it’s going to go off in epic style.