BLOC Weekend's reputation as the premier electronic dance music festival remains after a fourth year of an impeccable choice of music back at Butlins Minehead. A vibrant atmosphere turned the resort into a clubber's paradise for three days by the sea.
For the first time this year BLOC invited guests through its doors on Thursday, a move that would see many BLOCers arrive early to settle into their chalets and enjoy a dash of music. It was an astute move as Minehead is a fair old drive for most of the country and meant those who did extend their stay by a night got to wake up on Friday refreshed and ready to get set for the off at 4pm or hit the pool for a swim. Butlins was buzzing with hype as the chalets filled up throughout the day and for those who had missed the first beats on Thursday, BLOC sprang into life at with Rebel Intelligence spinning the tunes to trippy visuals projected onto the ceiling in the Fenchurch Dome. An innovative idea nicely executed with sets from Radioactive Man, Billy Nasty and Luke's Anger, though locating the dome where a stage stood last year did draw some criticism as it could not hold many people leading to queues at peak times. Those lucky enough to get inside talked highly of the experience: if the dome could be made bigger, it would be ideal.
DJ Rush closed the stage in typical style: pounding bass on/bass off techno.
Back to the start of Friday's music, BLOC DJs warmed up the TEC:BLOC dancefloor with a few enthusiastic revellers throwing shapes straight away. The party vibes didn't take long to get into full swing as the central hub of Butlins space hosting the six stages including the huge CENTRE:BLOC got going. In RED:BLOC Scratcha went back-to-back with Roska to kick off the FWD and Rinse FM hosted stage with a dash of dubstep while Jerome Hill got CENTRE:BLOC up and running with a hip hop set rather than his usual wonky techno which would come later in the weekend. Poor sound blighted the start of Roots Manuva's appearance but a few tweaks and fan-favourite "Witness" later, he'd stirred up the excitement to fever pitch.
Detroit's finest contemporary Omar S dished up the funky techno after a disco set from Lindstrom ahead of Ellen Allien's minimal. Over in TEC:BLOC it was coming hard and fast. Nathan Fake's Hard Islands album last year earned him newfound respect and his live set was a lesson in delay-led laptop tricks for his carefully-crafted tunes. Neil Landstrumm's wonky techno included rave classic "The Vamp" and sprinklings of dubstep before Subhead put his foot on the accelerator to speed up proceedings. DJ Rush closed the stage in typical style: pounding bass on/bass off techno which demolished the dancefloor and caused divides of opinion: was it good but simple or simply good? I'd say the latter. Adam Beyer got on the decks in CENTRE:BLOC, however after DJ Rush's set I opted for some chalet time to recharge ahead of London promoter mulletover's slot in JAK:BLOC. Resident Geddes followed a second helping of Detroit sounds from Lee Curtiss, rounding off a relentless day one of BLOC 2010.
Detroit's finest contemporary Omar S dished up the funky techno.
By the time Saturday's party hour was met, there was the toss up between the DJ maestro Grandmaster Flash at CENTRE:BLOC or hitting the ground running with the Overkill acts in RED:BLOC. I opted for Rob Hall's no nonsense approach in RED:BLOC and stand by that decision as he fed aptly into Warp Record's hero of the moment Flying Lotus whose blend of everything from trip hop and dubstep to breakcore is an irresistibly unique talent that has to be heard. Russel Haswell then took to the decks for a challenging half hour of noise followed by a more laid back selection of tunes in preparation of electronica pioneers Autechre who killed the lights and upped the off-beats in typically experimental style a far cry from the live Detroit techno coming from Juan Atkins and "Mad" Mike Banks as Model 500 up at CENTRE:BLOC or the technical dubstep of Martyn performing back-to-back with Kode9 in TEC:BLOC. Luke Vibert followed Autechre with his acid sounds and classics from LFO and AFX, though it was all about CENTRE:BLOC from 3am. First Surgeon's live A/V show brought dancers onto the stage in an enchanting 90 minutes, then Luke Slater assumed his Planetary Assault Systems moniker to blast out a final set of the night on the main stage. The party continued into the early hours thanks to Jerome Hill's now customary 7am slot and Lusinda finishing off the Girlcore hosted night in JAK:BLOC. Leaving the arena the sun was beating down on Butlins and a trip to the beach made for a relaxing start to the morning, but soon it was time for bed to get ready for the final hurrah of BLOC 2010.
When BLOC Weekend's final acts got underway, CENTRE:BLOC started with the Channel One Soundsystem followed by Mixmaster Mike. The Mixmaster received a mixed reaction — few complaints about his skills but much resentment of his track selection, not least "Smells Like Teen Spirit" which divided a crowd more in tune with electronic dance music than classic alternative rock. Benga and Skream's back-to-back restored normality to the BLOC main room with the pair pulling out their trademark tunes and larking around on stage to an excited crowd waving their arms to the dirty dubstep bass.
BLOC retains its status as the UK's top dance festival.
BLOC 2010 had a strong techno leaning this year, and it would end with two DJs playing its sounds. First up Joris Voorn boogied his way through a set which flattered to deceive. His loops were met with a standard bass beat which grew tiresome quickly so it was with some relief when Detroit legend Derrick May stepped up to the decks for the final session on the dancefloor. By now the weekend was taking its toll and my thoughts turned towards a last stab on the arcades inhabited by fellow smiling BLOCers still basking in the good vibes from a weekend away. Elsewhere, the The McMash Clan, DJ Hype and MJ Cole helped round off 2010's festival in their own very different ways, providing something for everyone to savour as they headed back to their chalet that last time.
BLOC's been gaining an ever-increasing series of plaudits over the years — 2010 didn't have the epic performance of an act like AFX to blow people away, but what it did have was a consistent quality of music few other festivals can hope to match. The luxury of a chalet, the ease of clubbing indoors without worrying about the elements ruining that act you've been waiting for and the good time vibes felt throughout the weekend ensure BLOC retains its status as the UK's top dance festival.
Republished October 2026.