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Bristol's Drum & Bass Events

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Bristol's Drum And Bass Scene

Is Stokes Croft a drum and bass Mecca?

Drum and bass in Bristol needs no bigger homes than Lakota and Blue Mountain. Both on the same street in Stokes Croft - they’ve continued Bristol’s drum n bass lineage from DJ Krust and Roni Size through to Intrigue Music and the more experimental UVB76 crew. Bristol’s place in the history of drum n bass is assured. Figureheads like DJ Die draw the line between the jungle and drum n bass scenes, jungle is key in Bristol - a city with so much Caribbean heritage, roots reggae’s influence on drum n bass comes through the language of jungle. But with both Lakota and Blue Mountain closing their doors soon to developers, is Bristol in a drum n bass crisis?

Drum and bass in Bristol encapsulates the genre in the wider world. Big venues play host to big acts with nights such as Bedlam, One Nation and Shit the Bed offering International stars including Pendulum, Chase and Status, Andy C and Noisia on a regular basis. In addition to this, alternative venues like the Dojo Lounge, Basement 45 and the Black Swan foster the rarefied sounds of dnb's many sub genres offering the city a unique depth to its plethora of drum and bass music. New years eve in Bristol clubs sees the city's venues rammed to the brim with all of the drum and bass's big players djing somewhere in Bristol.

Agro, Dissident and Mongrel offer dnb of a techy, dark variety while the bastion of the deeper sound, Intrigue, continues to push artists such as Marcus Intalex, Calibre and Fabio. Torque, straddling the line between dark and deep is a drum and bass monthly of significant recognition, hosting label nights and affiliated artists from Club Autonomic to Critical and Shogun Audio.

With drum and bass such a popular genre in Bristol, most clubs present dnb of some description at least once per month. Basement 45 has emerged as a consistent venue, with Torque, Abstraction and Nine Tree all on regular rotation at the club. Dojos plays host to the aforementioned Intrigue while Lab is home to Signal which runs as a bi-monthly event.

Of the larger venues Motion has a throng of events that are less frequent but larger in scale. Although many of these nights are multi-genre affairs, Run and Shit The Bed routinely promote dnb artists as their headline acts.

Lakota is another important dnb venue, housing Concrete Beat, Agro and since September 2010, Bedlam. Hospitality's residency at the Thekla ensures dnb is consistent fixture on the ship, while the rave-ready Black Swan is the spearhead for the harder jungle-tek sounds of the dnb genre.

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Our recent drum and bass recommendations

Nothing says I love you like a ragga jungle burnout... the Morefire stacks will be running red hot with one of the true outsider treasures of 90s sound system culture. Zion Train blaze their own steppas trail straight to Trinity with Ray Keith delivering breakbeat terrorism, alongside LA junglism boss 6 BLOCC and Joe Peng nicing up the mic. Dreader than dread! Outernational Jungle Love - Morefiresoundsystem at The Trinity Centre.

Elysium’s euphoric revisioning of classic rave utopia ruptures your Thursday night plans in a Fantazia smiley stylee. Inside: Distant Planet’s hardcore historians Louise +1 and Hughesee go b2b with in-house trio Interlude for a joyous romp through bleeps and breaks + immersive visuals to help you touch cloud9. Elysium : Louise Plus One B2B Hughesee B2B Interlude - All Night Long at The Croft.

Essential one for the dnb heads! The liquid revivalists at Slippin’ keep things birthday smooth with Good Looking / Metalheadz / Reinforced legends Total Science supplying an extended set of classic rollers + MC Bluejay and Rhi’n’b keeping the mic warm all night long. Big night incoming as Slippin’ hits two and brings their first event of 2026!

Sell out warning! Intaception follow up their deadly Croft Dwarde date with a double dose of local nu-skool/old-skool rave-futurism. Brazen’s breakbeat badman Janaway delivers baile funk-bolstered junglism with Fez the Kid’s impeccable amen break arsenal – two of the best around at the moment, no doubt! Up Ya Archives' Janway + Fez The Kid come to The Croft

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Crowd at a drum and bass night in Bristol 2026

What our editors say

“The latest edition of 2 Bad Mice & Friends lands in Bristol and this time they invite some of the the scenes finest beat technicians for the ride!!! A multi genre night exploring Everything Rave - from acid house to old skool to jungle, DnB, and more!!!!!”
From: 2 Bad Mice & Friends

“We return for our 2026 residency at the best pub In Bristol. We welcome Firefox & 4-Tree back to represent for the true jungle soldiers out there along with Dezzi Rankin on mic duties. Total Recall has been called from the Full Cycle ranks to do what he does best and provide the more technical side of things. Support comes from Siva Gold representing the BCFM crew as well as The Jungle Connoisseur who will be spinning a Bristol Classics Vinyl Set!”
From: Full Cycle Records

“Expect a mix of festival vibes and sounds, full of hoofin’ bass, global grooves, vintage remix, tropical mashups, dirty breaks, latin house, funky & soulful drum’n’bass & jungle, and even classic throwback Swing & Bass!”
From: 10 Years of Fizzy Gillespie

“MATT SCRATCH: A a key figure in the Jungletek music scene from Bristol, UK, has built a reputation for his unique fusion of jungle and techno. His musical journey began in Guildford and evolved through the vibrant Bristol scene, shaping his style. Joining the Amen4Tekno collective, Matt's More minimal, kick-driven tracks marked by intricate breakbeats and techno influences, have captivated audiences globally. Known for his precise DJ sets, he blends with energy and seamless mixing, curating a solid vibe for the dance. With nearly two decades of experience, Matt continues to innovate in jungletek, hardtek and DnB, pushing boundaries and solidifying his place in the electronic music world.”
From: Pimientos A Sound:Rave Till The Grave

“Bristol is bursting with femme and non-binary talent and we're on a mission to platform as much of it as possible. Hot off the back of our previous event at Loco Klub, we’re heading to the Exchange for another multi-genre event packed with femme and NB DJs, featuring DnB, jungle, funky, techno, garage and more! Once again we've invited some of our favourite femme/NB collectives to come along, with takeovers from Loopy, Big Sis DJs and Music from the Mothership. We'll also have stalls and workshops run by independent non-male run businesses. You won't want to miss this one!”
From: No More All Male Lineups