With the richness & diversity of a captivating capital clubbing scene, hardly a week goes by in London when some sort of event is deserved of our attention or that a venue owner, a club promoter or even the odd D.J. hints towards our attendance, all meaning that as we stretch our coverage beyond these boundaries, careful planning is required to make sure we fit in as many of the big events as possible while pandering to the needs & wants of individuals that crave our company. So, from time to time we are faced with some difficult choices, after all, we cannot be in two places at once, even if, as a very good friend puts it, we have split personalities, and sometimes tough decisions have to be made, in the main putting our review coverage first, the big events normally winning out, but occasionally, we put our friends wishes before anything else, this particular Saturday being no exception.
Ever since we have got to know him, Danny Verde has always remained a constant in our lives, from the early days when he was known simply for his studio work, to the dizzy heights of today when his name is known right across the globe both as a respected music producer & an internationally renowned D.J. Through this time and his rise to stardom, Danny’s persona remains just as it was those four years ago when we formed that friendship and as such, whenever the chance for a meet up presents itself, (and they are rare these days), we always jump at the opportunity, not just to connect with our man from Milan, but to support him in whatever he does or wherever he is playing. Indeed our Berlin trip was arranged on the strength of his presence and when he told us of his gig in Brighton, well, we just had to be there for him & for our friendship.
So, overlooking the return to London of Brazilian club The Week, a pretty exceptional event in itself, we were Brighton bound and a liaison with Mr Verde for his debut on the Sussex south coast, not quite the dizzy heights of some of his recent globetrotting experiences, but at least it was a chance for us to catch up and spend some time together, as well as take in some soothing sea air. Plus, rolling in a record label launch on the same evening with Nick Tcherniak, Steve Thomas & co, the chance to get away from the capital as well as taking in a change of scenery was too much to resist as we made tracks on what would be a pretty traumatic trip compared to the usual smooth train service, engineering works causing havoc. However, with all that behind us and the expectation of Danny’s arrival & our meet up imminent, our focus switching from the breathtaking record launch at The Engineerum in Hove, to revenge in Brighton and a Kinky Dangerous club night that would see an Italian incredibly impress.
Meeting Mr Verde in his hotel lobby, after a quick aperitif and catch up, it was a hop skip & jump across the windy sea front into the clutches of Brighton’s most popular Saturday night club, the reception by the door team & management the perfect start to our night, Kinky Dangerous promoter & D.J., Dulcie Danger, welcoming then lauding hospitality on Danny and us that would put many a promoter & club in the capital to shame. Nothing was too much trouble and with the drinks flowing from the minute we stepped into the place, the scene was set for a superb next few hours in this very different yet delightful club night. With Danny’s set imminent, we made our way down to the second floor room, the space set aside for Kinky Dangerous & the house music machinations, while further down this labyrinth of a club, the first floor was much more pop & disco, very much the Brighton cross between G.A.Y. & Popstarz (you get our drift), while upstairs the mood was much more on the genres we have come to love & follow with fervent.
With our spot next to the D.J. booth secured and Danny ready to roll into his set, it was time to shake out booty and watch the Brighton boys & girls gyrate to Danny’s brilliant beats, the more commercial tones of the warm up D.J. being slowly replaced with much tough tech inspired sounds, euro-beats & minimal vocals, Danny’s choices taking the crowd on a journey they had perhaps not experienced before, but nevertheless they responded well, whoops, whistles and cheers ringing out as he selected his sounds. With his two pronged spot lamps illuminating his tolls of trade, while the rows of neon lights covering the ceiling & walls of this cavernous club space, there is enough brightness for us to capture on camera the event as it unfolded, Danny carefully crafting his set to include the occasional vocal infused & uplifting track, while staying true to his more tech & progressive euro-style. And with plenty of Verde favourites included, “Pushin To the Top”, “Let Me See Your Underwear” & even “Open Your Heart” invoking rapturous reaction, this was one set we were savouring sweetly, spinning on our spot in dancing delirium and loving every minute of it.
Being the headline D.J. of the night, Danny had the lions share of the show, more vocal infusions ensuring the crowd remained captivated throughout his three hour stint, yet more Danny delights in the form of his fabulous remix work on the Madonna huge hit “Vogue” going down really well. Then the crescendo came in the form of our favourite of his by far, the uplifting & euphoric “Till We See The Sun”, a Blake Lewis track that had been given the Verde treatment some months ago but was only still just breaking onto dancefloors in London, although a tune that impressed us from the minute we heard in and clearly also impressed the Brighton boys & girls too. And it was clear from his reactions, that Danny was really enjoying the whole experience, for him, his set coming to an end far too soon, although as time tends to fly when you are enjoying yourself, it certainly did for us, our feet hardly touching the ground from start to finish, all thoughts of London & The Week far from our minds, rather Kinky Dangerous consuming our mind, body & soul.
With Dulcie now behind the decks, it was time for our mate from Milan to indulge in a little dancing of his own, intermixed with a bit of man watching, the younger crowd certainly finding favour with this very good looking & eligible bachelor boy, we taking our own moments for a look here and there, our virtual anonymity giving us a little more of a free reign than usual. However, our focus was more on Danny, this rare opportunity to socialise & dance the night away with him a rare but welcome pleasure, we making the most of the magical moments we had in his captivating company. But it was clear he wanted more action behind the decks, so disappearing from our sight for a while, he retrieved his records from the upstairs dressing room and masterminded an impromptu back-to-back final hour of house heaven with Dulcie, the duo mixing up uplifting & vivacious vocal tunes, one after the next that packed out this Kinky Dangerous space right through to the 5 a.m. finish, rounding off a night of incredible Italian impressions.
Stepping out of our usual clubbing comfort zone & heading for the relative unfamiliar territory of Revenge in Brighton certainly gave us a different perspective and experience, although in Danny Verde along with his big club sounds & smash studio hits made the whole night actually quite special and the journey south well worthwhile, as we were also able to spend time pre & post this Kinky Dangerous event with our man from Milan. Add to that the appreciation of his headline inclusion and Brighton’s clubbing crowd certainly welcomed Danny with open arms, the waves of people that poured praise on him following his main set, evidence of just what a prolific performance it was, very much living up to the incredible billing advertised across the city. Plus it a measure of this man, a now highly respected & popular international D.J., that he considered a gig in Brighton just as much as Bangkok, Barcelona Berlin & Brussels, but not just that, throwing himself into the event with enthusiasm and professionalism, very much reflecting that the man we knew four years ago, remains the man we know today, unfazed by stardom, unchanged in his humility yet strong in his stature & standing on the scene. So, all hail the D.J. that is Danny Verde, an incredible individual and one we are proud to call a true friend. (DISCO MATT)