Rodney Parade, Newport
Sat 16 July
In stark opposition to the rave era alluded to by one of this month’s other featured nights, Colour Clash is an entirely modern experience. It seems to be a riff on Colour Run, the phenomenon you might have seen on Facebook recently where loads of students run a marathon or something and throw powder paint at each other, I think. Anyway, you can guess what the deal is, but the lineup’s pretty nice if gritty UK street beats are your ting.
In headline spot are London rap duo Krept & Konan. Their sound is certainly influenced by the ballsy braggadocio of mainstream American rappers, as you can see from the artists who guest on their tunes, like Wiz Khalifa, French Montana and Rick Ross. They rep the UK hip-hop and grime, collaborating with Giggs, JME and Wretch 32 alike. The mixture of toughness and pop-friendly style has been working, with their debut album almost topping the charts last summer.
A pirate radio hero fills the event’s quota of bumpy, bubbling old skool beats, in the form of DJ Cameo. The man’s 15-year DJ career kept him at the vanguard of the UK garage style of British music spawned by Tuff Jam and co, pushing into uncharted territory with the new sounds of grime and sublow. Artful Dodger put in an appearance too. Now comprised of MC Alistair and DJ Dave Low, it’s a different beast to the production outfit established by Cwmbran’s Mark Hill – master bootlegger and, famously, Craig David’s original partner-in-crime on the decks and the beats. But I’d bet you’re still likely to hear the likes of Re-Rewind, Please Don’t Turn Me On and the brilliant Movin’ Too Fast played out loud, even if the original singers and producers won’t be there.
Also on the bill are some outlying deviations from the theme: you’ve got Liverpudlian hard dance stars of the millennium, Ultrabeat, and also a member of Busted doing a DJ set – the less said about that the better really. Back to grime, the irrepressible personalities of both Lethal Bizzle AND Big Narstie [pictured] will be filling the place fit to bursting with banter and bangers too – can we handle both at once? Let’s find out at Newport’s biggest rave for ages.
Tickets: £20/£27.50 VIP. Info: 01633 670690
words GWYN THOMAS DE CHROUSTCHOFF