Casting the power of the eternal hypnotic groove far and wide – and navigating everywhere from the psychedelic excesses of kosmiche to gnarled house, cabinet shaking dub and rain soaked post punk in the process- A Love from Outer Space has, since 2010, been a steadying anchor on the underground, sustaining one of the most dedicated communities around with regular dancefloor epiphanies.

Founded by the late Andrew Weatherall and Sean Johnston – friends, acid house veterans and fearless sonic adventurers - ALFOS was, initially, the result of a shared love of slower paced sounds. Dub - in particular, the skewed glory of the On U Sound Records back catalogue – and seedy slow motion disco were particular obsessions, and the seeds for ALFOS were cultivated on a series of late night car journeys. Travelling the length and breadth of our scissored isle driving to and from gigs, the pair sound-tracked these nocturnal B-road sessions with a plethora of slower sonic wonders. Deciding on taking their idiosyncratic journeyman vibe outside the rain lashed highways and into the backrooms and discos, ALFOS was thus hatched with a broad - but firm – remit: never knowingly exceed 122 bpm. Other than that, it was all gates open; all points west.

By making a conscious pact to lower the pace, Weatherall and Johnston offered respite from the more garish excesses of late 00’s clubland: namely, the culture of instant gratification, the narcissistic posturing, all that was superfluous to the glory of the ritual dance.

Rather, slow building atmospherics and a sense of graceful, determined sleaze was the order of the night. An undulating throb that could move seamlessly from Neu! to Timothy J Fairplay by way of New Age Steppers, ALFOS established itself as a place to get beautifully lost in gnostic sonic befuddlement.

From the earliest parties in 2010 (in the intimate environs of Stoke Newington basement The Waiting Room) the ALFOS dancefloor placed primacy on patience: a nocturnal world where sonic treasures were given the space to breath, and where the promise of the night was still very much alive.

From atmospheric backrooms to the wonkier corners of bigger clubs like De School and Phonox, and onto boutique festivals like Port Elliot and Love International, ALFOS has thus always been most at home slightly off the beaten track, a sideways journey into the unknown.

Andrew Weatherall’s death in 2020 left, of course, an irreplaceable gap - not just in electronic music but also in the wider counter cultural fabric. However, in the eternal spirit of ‘…Sail We Must’, Johnston has determined to continue the vibe that the pair spent so many beautiful years patiently cultivating and - throughout the surreal bleakness of 2020 – ALFOS dropped anchor on much anticipated monthly internet transmissions and will, as things open up, soon be back in the discos.

A Love from Outer Space (Sean Johnston)

Tickets & tour dates

August