Fab birthday bash

Put simply, Fabric is the capital's leading laaarge club venue. Its sheer size and capacity may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you're up for a big night with an underground feel then Fabric's definitely on the list.

And its clued-up programming has, as you might expect, been made extra special for Fabric's Fourth Birthday.

Friday is FabricLive with the pick of the d'n'b den: Andy C, jump-up junglist Hype, his labelmate Zinc and Hospital Records' High Contrast.

In Room One Coldcut and James Lavelle will keep the chin-strokers happy and in the third room you can find John Peel, The Beta Band (DJ set) and Air's Ali B. Saturday's 12-hour session features tech-house regulars Craig Richards and Terry Francis, who are joined by Mu (live).

Mu's screamy, shouty and screechy sound is produced by her hubby, deep house legend Maurice Fulton, though the accompanying freaky dancing means it verges on performance art.

In Room Two, electro-fiend Andrew Weatherall is joined by Colin Dale, while LFO perform live.

From a superclub to a micro-club: boasting specially commissioned Y-fronts to celebrate its 50th event this weekend, Gettin Hectic is one of those nights that started out as a knees-up between mates, grew organically over the past nine years and now attracts a 600-strong crowd.

Sound-wise, it's a hip hop, funk and soul love-in (in no particular order; hearing Gangstarr then Stevie Wonder then the Isley Brothers isn't out of the ordinary). Such is the inclusive and welcoming feel, many of its regular punters have invested in Gettin Hectic's Brixton bar venture of the same name - scheduled to open in spring 2004.

Cargo's Champion Sound welcomes Parisian DJ Grègory and the Bitches Brew crew this weekend. DJ Grègory is responsible for this year's house crossover tune, Elle - the sound of the summer in Ibiza. He's a DJ who's more familiar to superclubs so, in a more intimate setting with more freedom, Grègory should prove to be special. He's preceded by the London debut of the Bitches Brew Super Sound with DJ Cosmo on decks, Nikki Lukas on EFX and a roster of talent including ex-d'n'b MC Chick-A-Boo, soul singer Jinadu, Billie Godfrey (Mr Bongo, Laws Of Motion), percussionist Ben Mitchell and Nakissa on sax. They'll be performing anything from house and broken beat to techno and dub - even Afro.

Just as the niche sound of dancehall and reggae has exploded into the mainstream this year, so too has the urban Asian sound triggered by Panjabi MC. Club night Shaanti,

which has played around the UK (Birmingham, Nottingham and London) for a few years, touches down in Shoreditch tonight with a juicy line-up of new talent. It's also a launch party for single Shake What Ya Mama Gave Ya (out Monday), featuring General 'Wikkid! Wikkid! Junglist Massive' Levy, producer Dr Zeus and bhangra artist Bally Jagpal. Major label signees Dum Dum Project also appear, while Glasgow dhol, beats and bass boys Tigerstyle make their first London appearance this year.

Tonight, Shaanti, 333, 333 Old Street EC1, 10pm to 3am, £5 before 11pm, £8 to £10 after. Tel: 020 7739 5949. Tube: Old Street

Tomorrow and Sat, Fabric, 77a Charterhouse Street EC1, Fri 9.30pm to
5.30am, Sat 10pm to 10am, Fri £12, £10 NUS, Sat £15, £12 NUS. Tel: 020 7336 8898. www.fabriclondon.com Tube: Farringdon Tomorrow, Champion Sound, Cargo, Kingsland Viaduct, 83 Rivington Street EC2, 8pm to 3am, £5 before 9pm, £9 after. Tel: 020 7739 3440. www.cargo-london.com Tube: Old Street

Sat, Gettin Hectic, Telegraph, 228 Brixton Hill SW9, 9pm to 5am, £8.
Tel: 07712 189 703. www.gettinhectic.co.uk Tube: Brixton