Archive for May 4, 2011

Sixties Chic Part II

With our weekend crammed full of emotions, some truly ecstatic, others the complete reverse, we wanted to end our four full days of frolicking on a high, especially after we had slept through much of the most anticipated parties of the weekend and so with those excitable emotions intact, we made plans for a liaison with our cougar loving clubbing pal Stephen for Later, which following the Orange/Trade outing, was assuming its new temporary home at Area rather than Fire. Arriving at around about 4 pm., we were greeted by over inquisitive & quite unfriendly security staff, following which the guy on the door was not only rude but carried on chatting on his mobile phone without addressing us at all, save for his enthusiasm to take our money! So, with this sorrowful start, Later had much ground to make up, but by golly did it do so or some, Jay Sharp Vokins & his team putting on a terrific turn in their temporary home, first D’Johnny & then Mikey D completely nailing it in The Chapel Room, uplifting yet tough tunes giving this “Sixties Chic Part II” its own individual style of sound, rousing renditions mixed in with towering tech triumphs that had the room rocking & us in definite “Doing The Disco Matt” mode, even our dance craze rubbing off on a number of others including pal Ross Paterson who flashed it up on his iPhone banner. Plus, it was clear that our cougar loving clubber was getting into the swing of things well, not only entertaining us with his hilarious antics, but the star hat he was wearing, attracting ample amorous advances by a quite a few men up for more than just a dance. With plenty of other familiar faces around, including friends Nick Tcherniak, Tom Marchant, Lee Yeomans, & beefy boy Nadim, we felt very comfortable with our lot, although it was clear from the crowd that the long weekend had taken its toll on quite a few. Then, despite the double dosed Dower delights from Mikey D, who, having tipped our musical scales in Beyond, did it again from start to finish of this, his 2nd superb set in as many days, the team decided to switch the party into Area’s main room, a strange choice that saw the momentum of the party mood drop & the crowd thin, our spot by the D.J. booth never feeling the same and the room hardly half full, perhaps an indication that Later should have stuck to the winning formula of before, rather than stepping into Beyond-esque shoes. That said we had a terrific time at this latest Later outing, so with so much more to say it’s “…ready steady, go for the review…” (DISCO MATT)

Postscript
Given the high volume of review duties across the two last Bank Holiday weekends, we have decided to combine both later parties we attended into one special review entitled “Double Dose Of Decadent Delight” which will be out right here at http://discomatt.com/web/reviews very soon.

 

Broadway Hits London

Having been pretty much wowed by the last two WE parties, both the opener & WE Attacks very much floating our boat, expectations were high for this our third & WE Parties fourth foray of a clubbing colossus in the capital, although with our day having started like a dream at Beyond, then continued on the same vein at “Downtown”, the rails somewhat fell off after a lacklustre “Lovelife”, combined with a few other small & upsetting factors that meant we arrived at WE’s doors, The Coronet in E&C at a late 1 a.m. in a rather unstable frame of mind. But with the beaming & beautiful Ben Kaye on the door, our mood was transformed in an instant, our treatment, it has to be said, by Ben the best, was just that. And once into the club, it was clear that WE was the choice of many, The Coronet simply packed with party goers, hardly an inch of the club empty, the place pulsating to the tough tech tunes from sole remaining star D’Johnny, the original line-up which had included Steve Pitron & Gonzalo Rivas, appeared somewhat turned on it head. But with pals Paul Heron, Stephen & Alessandro having melted into the night, we simply couldn’t find our stride, the music a tad to euro-spanish in its sound for us, although this was taking nothing away from D’Johnny, who was clearly capturing the crowd with a set full of rousing rhythms. But having waited what seemed an age for the stage show to get under way, when the curtains were eventually drawn back, we felt somewhat underwhelmed by this latest effort, the production as fabulous as before, yet the dancers not quite doing it and the whole spectacle missing that wow factor. Mind you the P.A. performance packed a punch, a rendition of “Get Busy” lifting our spirits, as did, once again the lovely Ben Kaye & then Aaron Elder, both whom we have to give special thanks for taking such good care of us, yet as the Spanish D.J. Nano took over, the music took a complete nose dive and with our thoughts drifting onto matters miles away, we too eventually melted away into a very cold night to recover our senses & tackle our emotions and reflect on a WE that was clearly a success in terms of numbers, but lacked the prolific punch of previous parties. So, with much more still to say, its “…ready, steady, go for the review…” (DISCO MATT)

Downtown

Having eventually made it down to Jodie Harsh’s aaamazing Thursday night club Room Service (twice in fact) when, on the second visit, the queen of the socialite scene gave us the lowdown on a new Sunday adventure, our eagle eyes were excited with the arrival of the official press release confirming all the details of this so called penthouse party, a gathering of brands & minds, Room Service linking up with East Bloc’s Meat, the Shoreditch shindig that has quickly established itself as a hot & horny ticket, to throw this new Sunday splendour at The Brixton Clubhouse (formerly The Dex). So, with Jodie’s reputation for rolling out resoundingly successful outings, “Downtown” went straight into our disco diary, slotting neatly between other commitments already made, the start time of 3 p.m. pitched perfectly, meaning we had chance to take some respite after a truly brilliant Beyond, allowing us to arrive at just before 4.30 p.m., suitably dressed in stylish shorts & high riser shoes, sunglasses & a smart t-shirt, just the look for the social set that were to swoop on Brixton. Having been greeted in the usual exemplary fashion by the superbly welcoming Jack on the door, we were up and into Downtown’s host venue in a trice, the whole place definitely having been given a revamp, we soon finding our way to the outside bar, spotting Wayne Shires straight away, following which we were given the guided tour of all the changes, the newly named Brixton Clubhouse already looking so much better than its for Dex self, Wayne explaining the work in progress plans which sounded extremely impressive.

But back outside it was Downtown we were now focussing on, Room Service resident Fat Tony serving up scores of scintillating sounds, very much getting the party going, the crowd spilling out onto both outside decks rapidly before our eyes. With a first friendly liaison with fierce partner Lexi & his new boyf setting the scene, more & more familiar faces appeared, not least the amazing Andrea, the poor lamb having pretty much lost her voice but definitely not her vitality as well as her ability to attract a bunch of boys, within minutes of stationing ourselves upstairs, we were surrounded by cheeky chaps, some even enacting imitations of “Doing The Disco Matt”. And the people kept coming & coming the top deck chocker despite the chilly wind, a most magically mixed set of socialites that blended beautifully, Kris Di Angelis also blending the brands Room Service & Meat (he is resident at both) with so mesmeric music choices, if but, as we called it to companion Chris, a tad “Shoreditch Alternative”. But it was clear this party had now definitely gathered its momentum, we even bumping into Jodie herself, dressed resplendently as always & as pleased to see us as we her, our congratulations on this latest social schedule splendour oozing with ease. Then, sinking back to our spot, the partying continued deep into the evening, incumbent D.J. legend Tom Stephan waiting in the wings to weave his wondrous web of music magic on this magnificent mash up between Room Service & meat that was quickly proving not only the event of our weekend, but yet another place to be seen on the scene. So, with so much more to share on this scintillating success, its “…ready, steady, go for the review…”. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript
Just a reminder that this event also got full coverage in our new live review commentaries via Twitter. So, to see what we were up to at “Downtown”, why not check our feeds & also follow us at http://twitter.com/discomatt. Plus, for a feel of the rhythms that rocked this party, check out Kris Di Angelis’ latest podcast, devoted to the party, which you can stream & download at http://soundcloud.com/clubroomservice/downtown-pt-1
This Is Disco Matt
Who Is Disco Matt?
Disco Matt is London’s original party boy and independent journalist who previews, reviews & recommends London's best gay clubs, events & businesses, links to & reviews the scene top D.J.’s and generally covers the gay scene including international gay clubs & events.
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