Damian Harris - Secret Brighton

The Skint head honcho talks us through Britain's coolest seaside city

Skint records has been home over the years to key electronic artists including Fatboy Slim, X-Press 2, Dave Clark, FC Kahuna and FreQ Nasty to name a few. It's all down to Damian Harris, the Skint label founder who also plays and records for Skint himself as Midfield General.. Ahead of Skint's 10th year celebrations at The End in Sept '05, we asked Damian for some tips on the best places to seek out in his and Skint's hometown of Brighton...

Rottingdean Pitch and Putt - Off the A259, just west of Rottingdean Village
A brilliant way to spend the afternoon... The er, course, is up above the cliffs of Rottingdean and gives the casual golfer beautiful views over Brighton and the sea. The first 9 holes take you gently up the hill and the 9th is a perfect place for a quick smoke, and then you just float down the last 9 with a more relaxed swing. Then it's a short walk into Rottingdean for a proper old school cream tea from the charming and quaint tea rooms.

The Dorset - North Road
For a long time this was the place you would meet up with friends, after an exhausting Saturday afternoon shopping in the North Lanes, for chips and cheese and a Kronenbourg or two. When I actually moved close to it, its role changed and now it has become a perfect weekend breakfast haunt. The Dorset Full House is close to breakfast perfection and reading the papers then strolling home makes me feel all... easy... like Sunday morning.

The Jazz Rooms - Ship Street
There are many clubs in Brighton that have been very important and special to me (The Zap, the old Concorde, The Escape) but for sentimental reasons the Jazz Rooms just edges it. A very small cellar with a great sound system tucked away on Ship St and next door to our old office and studio, which I would often pop into for a late pint of inspiration. Home to such midweek classics as Roots Garden, Shake Yer Wig and the legendary MuffleWuffle. It was also the place I spent a long time convincing my girlfriend she should go out with me.

Red Deli - Ship Street
Having worked in the centre of town for over 15 years, there are numerous places that could have taken my favourite lunch spot. Over the years there have been many that have provided me with not just with a sandwich but have become more than that.. part of my routine, a place to find solace and calm, somewhere you can rely on to provide you with some mid afternoon comfort.. a bit like Cheers. Anyway, my current favourite is Red Deli on Ship St. They remember my favourite sandwich, they know my name, they have the papers and it's always full of hairdressers from the salon over the road who will come in and bitch about each other. A mini soap opera acted out right in front of you, and most importantly they pretty much always have the sandwich you have spent most of the morning thinking about... essential.

Norman's house
Be it the old place, The House of Love or the more recent HMS House, Norman's has always been a perfect environment for a party, be it a small intimate gathering or a post club melee. Many, many great nights and mornings spent there playing records, putting the world to rights, meeting, talking nonsense and doing stupid stuff.

Published: 3/09/2005

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