20.8.07

Wiley Rinses FWD>> @ The End 17.08



Ok so I've cheated and used the video to Wiley's 50/50 as the image to accompany this brief overview of Rinse/FWD>> at The End last Friday. I hope you can forgive me. Basically this will spur me to get my arse in gear and get my phone to talk to my ye olde world Mac and then I can upload video footage myself, rather than waiting for someone to post the relevant grainy cameraphone shizzle on Youtube.

I digress. So FWD>>/Rinse took over The End on Friday for its second date at the esteemed London nightclub. As I was on my way to the club, just a round the corner from the former car park, I bumped into a mate I play football with - Hutch. He's a bit older than me, and most ravers, and when I told him I was going to the The End. He said, 'What you're going to a gay club? I've never seen so many blokes in a queue in my life.'

I did have to laugh, because the End was bloke-tastic. Why is it that hard underground music (dubstep, techno, d&b) nights are such sausage factories? Of course there's a whole raft of reasons why, which will no doubt covered at some point, but for now dis post is all about FWD>>/Rinse.

So we can start with, it was well blokey. But brilliant nevertheless. The highlight was when we were lurking near the back of the room and could hear a Wiley track being played by Carnage, except the lyrics sounded alive and animated. Duh. We looked up - my sharp eyes and ears I might add - to see Wiley in the DJ booth, on the mic and giving it loads. I've seen Wiley live on stage - as in at gigs - a couple of times and both were ok but nothing special. At all.

This however, with Carnage caning dub after dub, and a baying audience closing in on the DJ booth and slapping the air conditioning shaft to within an inch of its sorry life in approval, was Wiley in his element. And he killed it. Big time.

First up he shouted out to both Dizzee and Kano (respect), before spitting fire for about 40minutes. I've been going to The End for over a decade, and I've never seen the club so hype as Wiley tore through Gangsterz, 50/50, Bow E3 and jumping on an Igloo and Ice Rink riddims too. Everyone knew the words to all his tunes, and it was the first time it dawned on me, how much of a hero he is to so many people.

Wiley rounded it off with a ferocious vocal outpouring over Benga's stone cold techno-dubstep-house anthem, Nite. It was an absolute pleasure to witness, though with a cracked rib from playing football the dubstep mosh pit perhaps wasn't the most sensible place to be at this point. Ruckus just about sums it up.

And what else of the night? Grime and dubstep worked very well together, the mix of DJs actually broke up some of dubstep's sleepy monotony, and gave it a much more hype, rave feel. The only other thing to report is how much weed was being caned. Loads and loads, and cigarettes too. Smoking ban my arse?!

Are you going to volunteer to walk across a dancefloor of 700 people going mad to collar someone for smoking? Not even gorilla bouncers are that foolish. How long before we get CCTV IN CLUBS so smokers can be spotted remotely and ejected? I reckon about 12months.

Big up to the most committed dubstep soldier I know, Markle. Respect for Friday and good luck with the 2nd Drop night down in 'Ding on Friday.