Chain Reaction: Denham Audio, Borai & More

Chain Reaction are back to add their usual brand of frenetic chaos in the SR44 Warehouse.

Headliners:

Denham Audio:

In a blizzard of breakbeats, b-lines and acid hooks, Denham Audio has brought new urgency and vitality to the modern rave scene. The sound he’s pushing is rooted in the legacy of UK hardcore, but those foundational sounds and styles are given a thorough spruce up, feeding into the buoyant areas of exploration happening between 140 and 160 BPM. Releases have been coming thick and fast, from early outings on Nineteen Ninety Four and Artifice through to a blistering run on WNCL, Frendzone! (alongside Violet), Sneaker Social Club and more. Across these 12”s you can hear every shred of influence spilling out – from the upfront hardcore and jungle through to hip hop and reggae, and beyond the confines of music into sci-fi and anime.

As well as a relentless charge of rave-ready EPs and DJ sets spanning the UK and as far as Seoul, Tokyo, Berlin, New York and elsewhere, the Denham Audio pressure also piles into the Club Glow collective. Alongside Borai, LMajor and Mani Festo, Denham is presenting a communal front which first manifested as a tape series and now spans 12” drops, a monthly session on Balamii Radio and coordinated blitzes on appropriately sized dancehalls. It’s a natural extension of Denham’s production endeavours, succinctly captured on the SNKRX05 12” as “16v hatchback breakbeat NRG kickin’ it out of your Kenwood system.” We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.

Borai:

While he’s touched upon a dizzying spectrum of sounds on his obsessive trails through electronic music, Borai has been rooted in rave culture since he was a teenager tearing around Bristol dancehalls. In the here and now, he’s busy dropping bombs on his own Higher Level label and helping steer the Club Glow collective with Denham Audio, Mani Festo and LMajor, not to mention supplanting payloads on the likes of Infiltrate, THEM, Hotline and more besides.

With a day job cutting plates for Dubstudio and a legacy of vinyl hustle in shops around Bristol, it’s abundantly clear how much Borai lives and breathes the culture. His groaning racks of outboard gear and all-round tech obsession are equally testament to that, and the proof is in the results. ‘Make Me’, a collaborative effort with Denham Audio, was a tear out success getting prime time plays from the likes of BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac. This dual purpose of underground rave exaltation and universal appeal are key to what makes Borai such a vital proposition, on the airwaves, on the stereo and in the dance.

With local support from:

Becky Woodcock b2b Macca

Cousin Dan (Vinyl Set)

Missy