Jake Slack on clubs
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Your support makes all the difference.Even if the sun don't shine this weekend, Luton Hoo Estate is sure to be warmed by the hyperbole. "UK Tribal Gathering 1995," says the press release, "was the best dance party anywhere in the world." And who knows? Perhaps it was. It certainly had an illustrious history to recommend it. The First Tribal Gathering, in 1993, won best one-off event in that year's Mixmag/DMC awards; the second was held in the Old International Airport in Munich and filled the terminal buildings with 25,000 people. TG 1995 itself was the first large-scale outdoor dance party to be granted a licence since the Criminal Justice Bill became law.
Another 25,000 are expected to turn up at Luton this weekend. The event was originally to be held in Otmoor Park in Oxfordshire back in May, but was cancelled thanks to the local council refusing to grant the event a licence at the eleventh hour - by which time thousands of tickets had been sold. With Glastonbury put out to pasture for a year, the Gathering is set to be the biggest dance event of the summer (unless you want to count the Notting Hill Carnival), and since the organisers, Universe, have managed to retain most of the original line-up from May, it promises to be a good one.
In pole position are Orbital, with Black Grape, the Chemical Brothers, Leftfield, Carl Cox and Paul Oakenfield close on their heels. If that isn't totally to your taste, you won't feel left out. The junglists are there in force (Goldie, Bukem, Peshay and DJ Rap) as are the Jazzers (Gilles Peterson, James Lavelle, Coldcut) and there will be live sets from Bandula, Earth Nation and CJ Bolland among others. And that's to name but a few. All in all, seven tents of non-stop music from 2pm Saturday to 7am Sunday. And if that's not enough for you, stumble down to the Complex in Islington for the post-Gathering chill (2pm Sunday onwards), which will include coverage of the Euro 96 final on a giant screen.
Tribal Gathering credit card hotline: 0171-344 0044, pounds 29. Info: 0181- 963 0940
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