Soundclash presents Krafty Kuts

Starting out his DJing career at just 12 years old with a mere competition entry, Krafty Kuts (aka Martin Reeves) has spent years working his way to the top. After running his own record shop and gathering a vast collection of tracks, he began to develop his own catalogue of tunes; mixing up genres to create a newer, fresher sound. Appearing year after year in yearly DJ polls, he has certainly earned his place as one of the greatest DJs of our generation. And yet, despite all his achievements, we still find him playing at small venues including Guildford’s own Backline.
 
A short venture down to the bottom of Guildford train station’s rear car park, and you see Backline as it squeezes itself into a small archway, shying away from the bright lights of the town centre. The large outdoor smoking area boasts more room than the main floor downstairs, whilst upstairs the bar and seating area provides a more relaxed space, and on particular nights perhaps makes the venue seem a little on the empty side. Despite this, the exposed brickwork of the arch gives the venue a rustic, industrial feel, and its curvature makes the space ideal for live acoustics, as the bass reverberates off the wall and bounces through the floors – making it impossible for you to escape.
 
As part of the Soundclash series, the bass infuelled line up includes acts such as Freshold, Gav Ravenous, KAI_1, Random Scarves with Audio Corruption and GI Josie, Jimmy Neutron, and extra percussion from Bongo Ben. But we all secretly know who everyone is here to see. Moving to the upstairs bar area, the balcony creates the perfect viewpoint over the antics down below. And soon, we see swift movements from a guy in a baseball cap. He slips his way through the crowd and sneakily begins preparing his set behind the current DJ. The 3 CDJs are all nudged along the table to make way for a vinyl setup, the unquestionable clue that Krafty Kuts is in the building.
 
A smooth transition from heavy bass beats to JamesBond theme tunes bubbles excitement in the crowd, as Sidekick MC announces his arrival. There’s no time for a breather, as Kuts slams in with some bass heavy dance floor fillers – his energy spreading throughout the crowd, leaving an uncontrollable impulse to move. Dropping old school beats from the likes of the Beastie Boys, and the expected classics from the Prodigy, Pendulum and DJ Fresh, Kuts mixes electro, hip-hop and dirty bass to create the ultimate set. Mixing older re-rubs from albums such as ‘Against the Grain’ with newer material, Kuts pleases all audience members who are vigourously surging in the tightly packed space. And when his most recent floor filler ‘Pounding’ (featuring trusted friend Dynamite MC) drops, the room bursts with energy as the classic ‘I just can’t take it anymore’ hook works its way through the crowd.
 
An energetic night, bursting with dance floor beats and dirty bass lines, Soundclash has delivered yet another bass heavy experience with help from stalwart Krafty Kuts, whose mixing of genres and tempos further illustrates why he has earned his place as one of the greatest British DJs of our time.