The Strongbow Rooms @ Lovebox

Having torn the roof off at previous Strongbow Rooms gigs, Kris Bones this time round begins shenanigans with the opening sets on both Sat and Sun. Playing a calmer set by his standards of course its still no time at all before the tent begins to fill given his penchant for picking the right tune at the right time.

Next up The Runaways, ironically given their title, encourage more of Lovebox's punters to run in to The Strongbow Rooms' impeccably decorated paradise play-pen, so that by the time they finish and in spite of the rain outside, Breakin' Bread are on course to play to a full house of well warmed up party people.  They continue the good time vibe with plenty of crowd favourites, chopping up a diverse range of old school soul and funk. The Stone Roses' 'Fools Gold' inevitably gets hands raised and people hollering in appreciation. A small technical hitch sadly dampens the end of their set, however it's just the opportunity needed for those in need of refreshment to take five and cool down...provided they can get to the bar at this point of course, with the news that international super jock Joey Negro is up next spreading fast. The Strongbow Rooms is seriously at bursting point!! 

Never one to disappoint, everyone inside manages to squeeze themselves enough room to gyrate, becoming one big grinning mass, as Negro lays down his standard brand of soulful US house. With the deep 4 by 4's pounding in unison with sweet and warm rolling basslines, beneath goose bump inducing strings and sax's there's not an immobile body in sight.  

Following on, DIY compete with headliners Groove Armada and Milo on the main stage, but maintain an impressively large contingent of jive cats and disco mama's none the less. Hell bent on dancing around The Strongbow Rooms' exotic, flower-draped Hawaiian hut, the fantastic sound system delivers an awesomely ranged crisp sonic-scape that's music to everyone's ears. Gradually increasing the tempo, DIY leave the crowd wanting more at the end, but hey...its only Saturday ... there's still one more day to go.

Sunday begins to rock in pretty much the same vein as the day before with Kris Bones opening once more and Joey Negro playing a set earlier.  Cosmos warm up for Negro with their own style of funky house, allowing for weary legs and a slightly smaller crowd they play a less complicated but still entertaining set.  The atmosphere explodes however with the arrival of Radio 1's Gilles Peterson no less, and when accompanied by the lyrical waxings of the Dynamite MC the expectant masses are ready for anything. Intermittent clapping from the crowd accompanies Peterson's long synth intro as the anticipation becomes too much for some. But as the bass slowly drifts into earshot and subtly smooth vocals appear, people begin to dance almost without realising it!  The Strongbow Rooms now belong to Peterson and the soul/funk extravaganza that follows is testament to the man's success and precisely why he is regarded as the coolest cat in town.