An amazing light show and staggering acts courtesy of Beatdown at the Regal leave RICHARD BELL begging for more.

Onward we travel dear readers through the twists and turns of clubbing in Oxford, pausing only slightly to take in the brilliant spectacle of Beatdown at the Regal.

Presented by Scratch Perverts, Beatdown is a night these world class veterans of electro-fuelled drum and bass have been touring around the country for the last year-and-a-half, introducing it at Fabric as a part of their residency.

And now, luckily for us, they’ve found themselves touting their considerable talent in Oxford ahead of the album release of their Beatdown mix.

Supported by a staggering line up of exceptional acts, this is a night that is set to rob you of every last bit of energy, and is guaranteed to leave you reeling in bed for the remainder of the weekend (and not regretting a second of it either).

A £15 entry fee may seem quite high, but even when queuing to get in, a quick glance at the flyer reminds you that you really couldn’t care less about door charges.

The names jump off the page; obviously the Scratch Perverts top the bill, but the brilliant Andy C takes almost as much precedence, and the promise of the brilliant Skream for a 90-minute set is enough to convince the meanest Scrooge that their night out will be well worth it.

I was prepared to be floored by the quality of the music, and indeed I was, but what truly took my breath away was the astonishing light show.

It was like watching a battle in Star Wars; every flash of light accentuating every beat, dip and screaming cacophony emanating from the decks in the best possible way.

A good light show can transform an event, and on this particular night, it raised the acts from mere world class into the stuff of gods.

The dance floor is, of course, hugely receptive.

The crowd bounce as one, the DJs conductors of this orchestra of movement, with individuals occasionally breaking away to temporarily rehydrate before throwing themselves wholeheartedly back into the dancing mass.

Lately the Regal seems to have been a little hit and miss.

The size of the venue demands the high entrance prices, and I think this has been working against them, but the quality of a booking like this is precisely the sort of thing the Regal needs to be doing every night, not just once a month.

If the they’re able to provide nights this brilliant on a regular basis I really can’t see myself doing anything else with my weekend ever again...