Step Into Andy Blake's World Unknown with His Egyptian Kings Mix

Ah, Camberwell. Nice, leafy, green, lovely Camberwell. It's nice, Camberwell. The gallery's nice and there are some nice coffee shops, it's got the best falafel in South London and a McDonalds with 24hr opening times. You honestly couldn't ask for more. SE5 is great. Every so often though, SE5 slips into being something else. The nice terraced houses dissipate, Bolu Kebab ceases to exist, and the Hermit's Cave crumbles: World Unknown's in town.

To those who haven't had the pleasure of spending a long, hot, dark night down in the basement of the SE5 Love Pub in the company of Andy Blake, Joe Hart and a motley crew of sweatsoaked clubbers up for anything from jack tracks to balmy Balearic bliss-outs, have missed out on one of London nightlife's most unsullied experiences. World Unknown, and their associated parties, which include Hart's Body Hammer nights, are throwbacks to a time when partying was about escapism rather than six quid beers and toilet cubicle tweets.

Blake, founder of the labels Dissident, Cave Paintings, and In Plain Sight, is inarguably one of the most talented DJs around, and one of the jammy bastards who seems to have the ability to play absolutely anything. Given his 25 plus years spent behind the decks, that might not seem massively impressive, but then you think of all the blokes out there still filling slots at festivals playing the same tunes they've been joylessly banging out for the last quarter of a decade and you come to realise just how vital a selector like Blake is. Never afraid to take risks, he's able to join the dots between zones that looked impossible to traverse.

Which meant that when he got in touch with us about a mix he'd put together with visual accompaniment courtesy of fellow SE resident Z Lovecraft ahead of a weekend of gigs in London, we absolutely jumped at the chance. What we received, the Egyptian Kings mix, is 45 minutes of dingy, clanking, gritty, acid-flecked house that absolutely reeks of a very, very good night. Check out the mix and an interview with Blake below. This one's a complete classic.

THUMP: Hey Andy — thanks for the mix, it's wild! Can you tell us a little bit about Z Lovecraft. We're very, very intrigued by him…
Andy Blake: Lovecraft's a pal, and another one of those very talented types who currently congregate around the SE5/14/15 postcodes. As well as being a bit of a genius on the visual front, he also makes a mean tune.

Who was your favourite Egyptian ruler? Who do you read about and think, "Fuck, how great would it be if he turned up at World Unknown?"
I'm not much of a fan of rulers but the Egyptian gods I can make some time for. It's hard to pick a favourite but Isis, Anubis, Horus and Thoth are all fairly exciting characters.

Talking of that, how would you sum up the ethos of World Unknown to anyone who's not been lucky enough to spend a sweaty night down in Camberwell?
It's just a party really, in a great venue run by a very cool gang. We're lucky to have a really nice crowd and that's what really makes WU and the other parties we do such fun for us and hopefully everyone else.

I know you're a SE London resident and proud of it. How do you feel about the way things are popping off in Peckham at the moment with the likes of YAM and Balamii and Rye Wax and the more established spots like Canavans and Bussey? Also, what's best pub in SE?
Rye Wax, YAM, Balamii and Wavey Garms are all very cool things run by very cool people. SE15 is really hitting it's stride now, and it's a fun thing to be part of. My favourite pub would be the Nun's Head, which is run by a great crew, has nice punters, and Burger Bear burgers. Rye Wax is also great for daytime lurking with great coffee and Taco Queen on food duties. It makes a great base to work from and there's always interestng people coming through.

You've got three parties coming up this weekend, can you tell us a little about them and also how you mentally and physically prepare for three nights out on the trot?
On Friday night I'm playing at the Sign of the Times book launch party. The SoTT parties and shops were some of the best in London in the early 90s and really made a mark on me and so many others. It's great to have the party back and I'd love it if the shop happened again too.

On Saturday it's Magick FM's Midnight Valentine party. I run MFM things with my wife and chief co-conspirator Amy. This is the third one we've done and it looks like it's going to be a really good night. We're picking up a nice crowd for them too, with lots of WU folks and a bunch of new people joining.

Then on Sunday it's Sonntags which Amy and I run with Andres and Rhiannon from Wavey Garms. It's a new take on Sunday clubbing with people selling vintage designer clothes in the early part and then it turns into more of a rave later on.

Not drinking booze really helps with stamina for a long weekend, and avoiding crappy food too. If the parties are good any energy put in comes back tenfold so it's not especially hard to do as long as it's not every single weekend.

Andy Blake's DJing all over London this weekend coming. You'd be an absolute fool to not see him play out at least once.

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