Wardour Street Wonder

Having been launched some three years ago as an alternative to the Vauxhall scene, Lo Profile was aimed squarely at a clubbing community that wanted an option on hand to slide straight into after a stint around Soho, positioning itself in the heart of this gay village seeing it quickly establishing itself as a winner. Add to that the support it received by of one of the biggest names in the business, Gaydar, this vibrant venue on Wardour St has since gone from strength to strength, especially in a time when the likes of Astoria, Cafe De Paris & Hippadrome, the mainstay’s of clubbing in central London, either fell out of gay favour or simply were condemned to the bulldozer to make way for bigger & better projects. But never wishing to lay on its laurels, Lo-Profile has continued to evolve, stretching its offer by joining forces with clubbing promoters and laying on special events, two that are standout as well as recent additions to the venues portfolio, one tempting us back for more following spectacular launch, namele Gigolo,  the other becoming a feature of our Friday’s, that being Society.

Fabulous Fever

So to Gigolo first, the creation of David & L.a. Hart that was born as a reaction to runaway success Room Service and pitched against this prolific party on a Thursday night, Gigolo grabbing much attention when it launched back in May, when it attracted the crème of the clubbing scene. And since, not only has it earned itself a position in the niche Soho social soiree market, but can boast a resident D.J. team to rival its neighbour, thus making a second visit a must. However, with our broken bones still in recovery mode, our planned trip to their “Fever” foray last Thursday had to be shelved, but with our “Secret Squirrel” undercover reviewer in town, we sent him down to take our place and this was what he had to say….

“…Being in Soho that evening was a perfect excuse to swing by Lo-Profile, Gigolo having become quite a favourite, especially that rival Room Service’s venue, Diu, simply doesn’t appeal. Indeed on the very few occasions we have been there, the cramped feel is not to our liking, probably as we do suffer from a bit of claustrophobia from time to time, although we appreciate that it is horses for courses, as Jodie Harsh does have a winner on her hands. However, we think David Hart & partner L.a. have too and Gigolo suits our style more, the expanse of Lo-Profile much easier for us to enjoy and the crowd it attracts also very easy on the eye, quite inviting on the eye actually.

But back to the night in question and arriving at Gigolo’s fever at a fashionable time, well 11 p.m. to be precise, we found Lo-Profile with quite a buzz, plenty of cute boys & muscle hunks mixing with familiar faces, one cute boy grabbing our eye, even though we had another on our arm. And the cute boy in question?, (not the one on our arm!!), well it was D.J. Zach Burns of course, his loose sleeveless top teasing a look at muscular chest (we couldn’t resist) while his music was pretty hot too, a bunch of classics & modern tunes pleasing our ears while our eyes were diverted. Then, with the champagne flowing & Lo-Profile’s Paul Beardshaw thrusting a glass in our hand (we never say no1), we toasted this birthday boy, also consuming some shots in the process, our Brazilian boy ever attentive & enjoying Gigolo as much as we were.

With all the alcohol we continued to consume making the rest of the evening a bit hazy, we do remember Nathan Six playing some really good music, while the crowd seemed to come & go as much as our boy needed the toilet. But, whilst we can’t quite remember what time it was we staggered home, Gigolo was certainly fun and has become a favourite of ours, especially as it is rare for us to let down our hair in the week, so reckon we will be back for more very soon….”

Star Players

Now to Society and being on the strictest of orders, we forced ourselves to cast aside a false start message, rather heading down to Soho for a liaison with Lo-Profile that was to prove one of our best in a while, we warming up with a pop in to Rupert St, before our marching orders came, making Profile the final fuel stop before a meet with our maker. With friends including Micky Galliano & Sophie Pearson also raring to go, we moved downstairs in good time to catch the lion’s share of Steve Pitron’s set, our arrival at 11 p.m. met with open arms & excitement by our prolific pal, who immediately set about treating us to tons of terrific tracks, while the madcap calls of “MAAAATTTT”, along with whistles from Sophie, soon had us in hysterics & diving for cover in our corner. But as we uncovered our eyes, what had been a relatively empty Lo-Profile, was absolutely packed to the rafters, the Society faithful having come out in force, familiar faces aplenty popping across to say hi, not least adorable Andrea Drudikova, who was also seeking some of that Pitron perfection.

With the atmosphere now truly awesome, Mr Pitron was very much on a roll, mixing up the music magnificently, a bunch of classic anthems, including “Sweet Dreams” & “Here Comes The Rain”, played out against up to date favourites, “Live Your Dreams” & “Pressure” among a string of others, that invoked more of those Disco Matt tourette style shouts from Steve, while we span on our now tiny spot, our corner packed with party heads, even though many had moved forward to ogle over the gorgeous go-go’s that had ascended the podiums. But our eyes & ears were fixated on the music coming from the direction of the D.J. booth, this proving yet another peach of a Pitron performance to add to the list longer than any others, incumbent deck duty dream maker Zach Burns having an uphill battle to match the might of our music maestro. But he did a really good job, opening with a winner, “Stupiddisco 2011”, so hitting our sweet spot straight away, while a string of other scorchers kept us spinning with Sophie’s drop dead gorgeous guy, close to our 3 a.m. departure from a Society soiree that scored superbly in every department.

Gorgeous Go-Go

There is no doubt that Lo-Profile is one of Soho’s best, having stolen much of the spotlight from Shadow Lounge, Friday’s & Saturday’s particularly making their mark on a vibrant  scene that clearly loves what this venue has to offer. Yet, Thursday’s at Gaydar’s gaff are having their say too, Gigolo very much responsible for that and a club that can be congratulated for boosting the numbers that, week in week out, now choose to start their weekend early and whilst we weren’t there to witness their latest party, by all accounts it was another example of an emerged brand going great guns. Then there is Society, which has become a firm Friday favourite of ours as well as plenty of others too, this splendid soiree in Soho attracting a sexy & up for it crowd to match the magnificent music from a host of top draw D.J.’s, and those gorgeous go-go’s that certainly pop the eyes baring everything just short of their birthday suits. As for Lo-Profile as a venue, there is an argument that it is a “marmite” of a situation, as you either love or hate the garish decor and adore or loathe the bar/club combination feel , but we have to say that when you combine these brilliant nights, with the most friendly team of staff around, all under a bar that scores a tick in every department, this wonder on Wardour Street has to make it to your clubbing calendar very soon as we know it will ours. (DISCO MATT)