Beam me up: New London venue The Beams welcomes Honey Dijon and others in the next couple of months
(Picture: Luke Dyson)If summer raving was all about making the most of al fresco parties and festivals, then the colder months are dedicated to the great indoors. As the temperatures plummet in London, things heat up on the dance floors, whether that’s in some sweaty basement, a cavernous warehouse or somewhere else entirely.
Over the next few months, there’s a stellar selection of club nights to indulge in. Blockbuster sets from internationally-renowned icons, intimate parties helmed by underground heroes; big birthday bashes and bittersweet goodbyes; it’s all on the calendar between now and the end of the year.
Or:la
Friday nights are always well spent at Phonox. The Brixton club has a knack for choosing wisely when it comes to who should take the reins of its one-month residencies and the latest incumbent stays true to form. Derry-born DJ Or:la is dipping into her eclectic record bag across four nights this month (the first one was last weekend), and welcomes guests such as Shay Malt from hit queer party Adonis, to south London favourite OK Williams.
October 14, 21, 28, from £5, Phonox, SW9, phonox.co.uk
Fabric’s 23rd Birthday
Fabric doesn’t do half measures when it comes to birthday parties. To celebrate its 23rd (that old classic), the Farringdon stalwart is putting on 30 hours of non-stop music, running from Saturday night until Monday morning. Three DJs synonymous with the club — Ricardo Villalobos, Terry Francis and Craig Richards — will lead the festivities alongside 20 other record-spinners.
October 15-17, from £15, Fabric, EC1, fabriclondon.com
Honey Dijon
We were promised some huge shows during the opening weeks of The Beams — the new venue from the people who brought us Printworks — and the pledge has come good. Big-hitters Skream, Maceo Plex, Jamie Jones and Stephan Bodzin are all lined up for the vast space in the coming months, but our pick is this night led by house titan Honey Dijon. Pxssy Palace, who run some of London’s most inclusive nights, curate the line-up in the venue’s second room.
October15, from £29.50, The Beams, E16, thebeamslondon.com
Carl Cox
A giant of electronic music gets behind the decks on a suitably massive stage: the 12,500-capacity OVO Arena. Cox will be debuting Electronic Generations, the first new album from the house and techno legend in more than 10 years, on the night. This is the show that was meant to take place last month, but got postponed due to the period of national mourning — all tickets sold for that date remain valid for the new one.
October 15, from £45.25, OVO Arena Wembley, HA9, ovoarena.co.uk
Beirut Groove Collective
Dalston’s The Jago is a gem of a venue — its vibrant programme is as diverse as its environment, and it even runs a community foodbank — and this is the kind of club night it does best. Beirut Groove Collective, known for their raucous rooftop parties in the Lebanese capital, visit for a journey through their heady selection of vintage records, running the gamut from Armenian psych-rock to Ethiopian jazz.
October 21, £10, The Jago, E8, thejagodalston.com
30 Years of RAM Records
Printworks announced it would be closing for “a number of years” in 2023 while the site is redeveloped, and though it hopes to return in some form, nothing is certain — which is all the more reason to get down and dance at the 6,000-capacity spot this autumn. This day-to-night party will mark 30 years of RAM Records, the legendary drum ’n’ bass label, with Austrian heavyweights Camo & Crooked headlining a 15-strong line-up.
October 22, from £27.50, Printworks, SE16, printworkslondon.co.uk
Ghoul Talk
Halloween weekend is always a big night out in London, but if a punnily named rave is about as spooky as you are willing to get, head down to Elephant and Castle for this one. Small Talk (or rather, Ghoul Talk… geddit?) is a relatively new night at the always excellent Corsica Studios, and this one is headlined by Fafi Abdel Nour, head honcho of HOMOOST, an LGBTQ+ night in Groningen, Netherlands.
October 28, from £6, Corsica Studios, SE17, corsicastudios.com
Oscar Mulero
Spanish techno veteran Oscar Mulero is the main attraction at this night. It’s hosted by Fold, the Canning Town club that could easily be described as no-frills (it looks like a derelict office building from the outside, and is right next to some rubbish skips). Inside, though, it’s all thrills: a muscular sound system, a loose-limbed but decidedly there-for-the-music crowd, and a 24-hour licence make it a must-visit venue.
November 4, from £17.20, Fold, E16, fold.london
Moxie Weekender
You can forget about drinks at the local pub or a nice meal out when Moxie celebrates her birthday. The London-based DJ is marking the occasion by booking out two London venues — Village Underground in Shoreditch and Corsica Studios south of the river — for a weekend-long shindig. She will power through a seven-hour set on the Friday, before inviting friends such as Ruby Savage and K-Lone for the Saturday.
November 11-12, from £15 for each night, Village Underground, EC2A, villageunderground.co.uk / Corsica Studios, SE17, corsicastudios.com
I. Jordan
Coming as part of the London edition of Pitchfork Music Festival — a multi-venue affair that counts the likes of Animal Collective, Kae Tempest and Courtney Barnett among its line-up — this night will host Doncaster-raised I. Jordan. Making a name for themself in recent years with a slew of breakneck bangers, they will be joined in east London by genre-hopper LCY.
November 12, £11.45, 60 Dock Road, E16, pitchforkmusicfestival.co.uk
The Blessed Madonna
Since Koko reopened its doors earlier this year, glitzy and gleaming after a big-money renovation, the iconic Camden spot has been putting a lot of energy into the clubbier side of its programming, welcoming Jayda G, Mike Skinner, Madlib and more. The Blessed Madonna (who popped up on a Dua Lipa remix album not too long ago) joins the party here, with Amsterdam DJ Young Marco another highlight on the night.
November 18, from £14.75, Koko, NW1, koko.co.uk
Fatima Yamaha
Even if you don’t know Fatima Yamaha by name, there’s a decent chance you have heard his most famous song, the ludicrously catchy What’s A Girl To Do, which was absolutely everywhere a few years ago. The Dutch DJ brings his live show to HERE, the new club space that sits four storeys below the streets.
November 26, £17.50, HERE, WC2, hereldn.com
Deborah De Luca
Italian DJ, label boss and producer Deborah De Luca brings her dark, dynamic breed of techno to Wapping’s E1 for this eight-hour party. It’ll all go down within the venue’s Warehouse space — perfect for the kind of body-shaking sounds De Luca blasts out — and will feature two names to watch as the support acts: Kaori and Mila Ravnbø. See them before they blow up.
December 2, from £15, E1, E1W, e1ldn.co
The Chemical Brothers
Back to Printworks for what might be one of its last big parties before the planned closure, with one of the best-known names in electronic music: the Chemical Brothers. It will be a friendly affair — the duo’s former mentor Justin Robertson is on the bill, as is friend-of-the-group Erol Alkan — with Rinse FM resident Jossy Mitsu among the rest of the line-up.
