Techno is a big deal in Bristol, book the right names or build a strong enough reputation and you’re gonna need a seriously big club to keep everyone happy. And so Bristol has Motion, masterfully converted into a 1200+ capacity nightclub from derelict warehouse via a skatepark. If Motion is Bristol’s techno castle then there’s no denying Just Jack is king. Reigning for over a decade, Just Jack have enough programming muscle to pull names like Ricardo Villalobos and Omar S. If there’s a secret to the ultimate big-room techno experience, then Motion knows it.
On the other hand, if there’s a secret to healthy techno scene, then Bristol has totally nailed it. While tickets for Just Jack, Apex and Tribe of Frog may sell in their thousands, some of Bristol’s most forward thinking techno nights have capacities for just one or two hundred. The Prison Cells at The Island have become an unlikely home to some of the most adventurous dance music in Bristol. Promoters like Room 237 and Timedance are putting out challenging and thought-provoking line-ups with past guests including the likes of Surgeon, Untold, Asusu and Helena Hauff.
If techno had a spiritual home in Bristol, it would be Lakota. With 4 rooms, a back-to-basics yard and a pair of coroners courtrooms for larger events, Lakota is Bristol’s ultimate techno playground. The venue has found favour with pervasive promoters including the electro-techno focused Get Born and bass techno masters Wide Eyes.
Amongst the city’s resident house music djs, many of Bristol’s best techno djs regularly play Bristol’s smaller clubs and bars. Dojos, The Love Inn, The Doghouse and the Small Horse Inn to name a few.
Buy tickets for techno events in Bristol
Our recent techno recommendations
Timedance darlings Bruce and Ploy are back for their third all-night b2b, bringing feel-good house and techno straight to the dancefloor. Ploy delivers dense, chest-rattling grooves while Bruce spins his signature oddball magic. Get ready for pure vibes from two pals just playing what they love, house-party stylee!
Fly Life w Bruce + Ploy at Strange Brew.
Teetotal day party going out to all the dedicated (sober) ravers! Local p-funk journeymen Stone Cold Hustle ease you into this Sunday knees-up before Anything But Becky floors you with dubstep and percussive bass swag + Aries brings you up again with his 30-year matured ragga jungle rinse-outs. Dry = / = juiceless baby!
Bristol Sober Spaces X Trinity Day Party Featuring Aries at The Trinity Centre.
Sell out warning! Club Blanco and Talabot enter their third wormhole together, hands-locked in a ritual act of freefall club psychedelia. The Barca GOAT’s an instacop for most, but Chez’s turning up the heat, hell he’s breaking the oven, with Reptant’s live set of cerebral electro mysticism + a new and necessary room 2 excursion into the deepest chill-out zones. The most Blanco thing since Blanco began?
Club Blanco w/ John Talabot, Reptant + more at Strange Brew.
“Buckle up, Bristol. Headlining our next party is none other than Mollie Rush, the ultimate purveyor of euphoric, high-energy rave chaos. As the powerhouse founder of the iconic queer hardcore collective Soz Lad and the former frontwoman of digital-hardcore outfit Tokky Horror, Mollie has torn up stages from Glastonbury to Boomtown. Seamlessly blending a punk-rock ethos with heavy-hitting electronic production, her sets are a relentless, high-octane journey through rave, jungle, acid, and hard techno. [A-Z] ANOMALY KAISER B2B NEPTUNE MOLLIE RUSH RIGPIG B2B PROMISCUOUS PIGGY Last entry 00:30”
From: Notizz: Mollie Rush + Support
“Depth Perception returns for their annual summer throwdown... Taking over the terrace at La Panza for a Sunday session of deep electronic exploration, we’ll be setting off into the realms of deep acid, house, electro, techno – moving through all the frequencies in between. Music on the day will be supplied by: Decentra Ordos Owain K Sprinkled DJs (Perenn & Bennie) As ever, entry will be FREE. Grab yourself an e-ticket (via Headfirst) to give us an idea of how many guests will be coming through.”
From: Depth Perception Summer Day Party
“Music collector, DJ, producer, and Klasse Wrecks co-founder Mr. Ho makes his Public Affair debut. A cult figure in electronic music whose sets are as unpredictable as they are authoritative, moving freely through house, techno, breakbeat and electro with the instincts of a lifelong digger. Alongside Luca Lozano, his Klasse Wrecks imprint has quietly become one of the most coveted names in the game, and that same obsessive curation carries into every set he plays. Public Affair founder and resident Monika Taneska opens the night, setting the tone with her signature tripped-out techno. Deep, disorienting and exactly where the night needs to begin.”
From: Public Affair: Mr. Ho & Monika Taneska
“Known globally as the ‘Baron of Techno’, Dave Clarke brings his uncompromising sound and legendary intensity to Bristol. Expect a masterclass in his signature style; a fusion of dark techno and gritty electro perfectly suited to the intimate, smoke-filled confines of Moon Club. Support from TECHMEOUT.”
From: Dave Clarke
“Where deep rumbling dub basslines fuses with hypnotic techno grooves. A night of meditative dubtechno, experimental bass music and steppa selections right from the heart of stokes crofts. Strictly underground business. Powered by Grounded Soundsystem, a system felt just as much as it is heard. So come expecting rolling low end bass pressure forming the foundation to spacious echoes stretching deep into your ears. This session will be full immersion from start to finish. For Fans Of: Rhythm & Sound, Hiss Is Bliss, Federsen, Bluetrain, Another Channel, Frenk Dublin etc....”
From: Dubspace Echos 001