When Alan McGee announced his departure from Creation Records, to set up his new, Internet-based outfit, Poptones, the record industry was left in a state of shock, writes Templeton Blake.

After all, with McGee at the helm, Creation had become one of the biggest independent labels in Britain.

On Saturday McGee steps back into the limelight at The Zodiac. He is on turntable duties at a special Poptones club night, hosted by the Transformation crew.

"This will be the first time we've done it outside London. It's sort of a 'toe in the water', to see if taking the idea of the club all over the world is viable. And Oxford is a good place to start," McGee said. "I'm quite enjoying it, playing things like Zodiac Mindwarp, S'Express and Chuck Berry one after another," he explains.

Although he is enjoying his self-confessed indulgence behind the record decks, the more serious side of his Poptones set-up will undoubtedly take precedence.

Nevertheless, it's certainly significant that Oxford is the first city outside of London to host a Poptones night. Did somebody say this could be the creation of a new concept? Surely not . . .