Wednesday 19/10/05 Mr Scruff @ The Old Firestation, Bournemouth

Following last year’s stonking gig, the well-oiled Mr Scruff machine makes a return to the south coast to roll out five hours worth of soul, funk, dub, hip-hop, drum n bass and all manner of feel-good party music. In the back room the elaborate merch stall is dishing out tea by the gallon, as well as a whole Whittard’s’ worth of tea drinking accessories covered in the kindergarten scribbles of Scruff’s designs. The screens on either side of the stage in the main room show the same designs hopping along to the music, and the crowd is dotted with t-shirts doing the same thing. The fact that Scruff stays on all night means the dancefloor is never rammed.

 

Ever the music geek, Scruff doesn’t go for obvious tunes that people will recognize, instead ploughing deep into his record box for songs that five people have heard before him, but that everyone will love. All you have to do is check his Solid Steel mixes to know that. Indeed the guy’s skill is in playing records that appeal to anyone from the r’n’b crowd to the indie kids to the odd few ravers you see gurning away in the corners of the venue. Tracks like ‘Roady’ by Fat Freddy’s Drop spread a relaxed, summery vibe across the whole room despite the rain lashing down outside, and it’s grins all round.

 

There are points where the pace lags, a distinct lounge style creeps in and everyone slowly stops moving, but then just as quickly a quality slice of old-skool hip-hop will get the place dancing again. Towards the end of his set the Fire Station is practically empty, with the remaining party people cramming themselves into the front half of the room in front of Scruff, probably unaware that everyone else has left, but oddly Scruff is going for some very trippy dub rather than all out bangers or some of his classic tunes.

 

As the last record stops playing out it feels like the set has just drifted away rather than reaching a crescendo, until the screens shout “one more tune” out at the crowd, who shout it just as quickly back. The unassuming truck driver-looking guy behind the decks drops the classic ‘Get A Move On’ from the Keep It Unreal album, and the lucky few who have held on until 2am go mental, burning off the last bit of lager in their system. A bit like Marmite, Mr Scruff is one of those guys you either love or hate. He’s not a pioneer or hugely inventive musician, but nights like this one show you just how good he is at putting on a party, and sometimes that’s all you need.