In a year that has seen a pitiful amount of review publications, we attempt to end 2012 on a high, looking back at the capital’s circuit clubs & clubbing events that made a big impression not just on us, but packs of party people who pushed aside austerity in favour of fun, while we also chronicle the changes that have swept the scene, this the second in our special “What A Year” review series.
In a year of huge highs & horrendous, mainly health lows, 2012 saw a significant shift in both our personal & vocational lives, the personal part already covered in our first annual address review, while we also touched on some of the clubbing highs that made it an unforgettable year. Yet, the cornerstone and the one constant in our activity over the last few years, our reviews, not only dipped in 2012, but suffered a veritable nose dive, plummeting out of the scene sky & spotlight like a stone, just nineteen completed & published, clearly equating to less than two a month, this far from a truthful reflective record of the events we attended throughout the year. However, with more than a handful started but not finished, along with a plethora of picks posts published, will we attempt to patch together a picturing of the parties that made it big in 2012, like our annual address, splitting the seasons into four separate paragraphs, while eventually selecting our star sets from a select list of scene spinners, also landing on our top five club events of the year from a seasonal section rating, a chart that required alteration as late in the day as yesterday. So, sit back and hold on tight as we speed you through our January to December jamboree of jaunts, hot footing it through a veritable feast of frolics while sifting some select slices from those rare reviews of ours, finishing off with a mention for a myriad of movers, shakers, winners, losers, lost & found in a year that saw a catalogue of changes to the capitals clubbing circuit.
To our first season and to the first day of the year, one which served up a trio of treats the now traditional NYD Beyond taking centre stage, although waiting in the wonderful wings was WE “Safari” which not only surprised but stunned us with the best spectacle this Madrid made meet had showed off in London yet, edging out the former foray in terms of enthralling excellence, the third in the trio a packed out party that inevitably, in comparison with the other two, was always going to have a mountain to climb to reach their divine dizzy heights. So with a start like that, you would have thought we were armed with a spring in our winter step, but it would be February before we put our review boots on, a Saturday/Sunday session of CasaLatina’s “A Space Odyssey” event followed by a Beyond which we labelled as a “Shell Shocking Steve Stunner”, Mr Pitron playing his socks off to a packed out place, all three rooms full, this no special event but had all the tremendous trappings of the terrific “Tokyo” & the exceptional “Erotica” , so was a serious contender for our club event of the year, while it has piped WE to seasonal top spot, Beyond’s NYD event a close behind third. In terms of big come headline hitting happenings, Trade came out to play for Valentine’s on 11th February, while Later was in 9th birthday mode in March, those with a penchant for wig wearing had the “Masked Ball” to parade through, also in March, while Shoreditch splendour East Bloc continued on its rise & rise, although the magnificent MEAT found itself on the chopping block, effectively cut into two, Tom Stephan heading one way with DISH, while previous promotions partner, Kris Di Angelis, headed in another, waging WAR that was to prove a huge 2012 hit.
So, with Beyond’s February foray taking seasonal top spot, here is a conclusive slice from our review that shows you just why. “…Having played witness to some truly brilliant & breathtaking Beyond’s in our time, “Tokyo” &” Erotica” two standouts among a seas of scintillating others, what we experienced this morning was a shell shocking & stunning something else, Steve Pitron exceeding our expectations even more than we could have imagined or hoped for. And having completely absorbed ourselves in the rapturous rollercoaster ride we found ourselves on, those emotional eruptions bigger than ever before, it will be a morning that will remain in our memories for a long time to come…” we adding that “…while in the very capable promotional hands of Steven Sharp, there is no doubt that Beyond continues to ride that wave crest it has found itself on for so long. Plus, while it may have only reached a lowly fifth in a certain scene website’s annual club poll, in the hands of its all-star resident D.J.’s & other invincible ingredients, this brilliant brand showed us why is remains the best club in town, one deserved of a top slot in ANY scene award ceremony and certainly one that gets our vote every single time…” it clearly having risen to the top of our January to March tree the rest of the review at http://discomatt.com/web/?p=4403 showing you why..
To our next seasonal sector now and one that sported clubbing celebration with a real royal connection, this period encompassing the pomp & circumstance around the marriage of Will & Kate, as well as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. But all that was to come, as it was Easter that stood in the season spotlight first, Beyond going into “XLsior” mode, while London sported another WE party premiere, this time “Fluro” colourfully captivating the capital. Then, just like the colossal combo that it was, As One saw of clubbing & clubbers convergence that was nothing short of a roadblock, although it was to prove the last popular party for this once brilliant brand blend, while another Easter bunny bash that emerged and then disappeared was Discotec. So, while this second biggest weekend of the year lacked a little lustre, there was much anticipation for a diamond jubilee one full of dancing delights, the dynamic developer of the year, Deelooded, grabbing plenty of its own headlines, while we completely sat out the weekend due to ill health. But there was one place that we weren’t going to sit out, the pulsating PLAY>TIME party a prominent part of our prancing in this period, the magnificent meet on 11th May seeing our premier player & our premier protégé player sort the sounds, Steve’s stellar set for once, eclipsed by a Zach Burns performance that has seen him storm into our Y.E. top 5, this Friday frolic also making it to top spot this season, even if it was devoid of an real competition, save for Beyond, which tuned the seasonal tables on WE, beating the June “Fast Food” foray into third, hanging our second place hat this awesome afterhours achiever’s 13th May party, a fabulous frenzy that, purely from a fun-filled perspective, had to be right up there.
The real shocker of this 2012 reflection is that we recorded not one review between March & May, a period that was, without doubt, our toughest, so we thought we would step back to New Year’s Day and share a small slice from our super sized study of “Safari” our summary saying “…So, it pretty much goes without saying that we were immensely impressed with this latest WE event, “Safari” exceeding our expectations by a country mile, the visuals some of the best we have seen anytime & anywhere, while the stage dancers , effects & lighting added to the awesome atmosphere that was evident from start to finish…” along with “…what made it truly spectacular was being on that select stage spot, a privileged position where we could savour every single second of a simply scintillating Steve Pitron set & performance, our prolific pal playing to the extent of our emotions so effectively that we were continually left breathless in admiration…”, we concluding that “…“Safari” in our estimation shot higher into the sky than the largest African Savannah plain tree branches that soar above the reach of the tallest of giraffe’s, a prolific & pulsating party that has set the standard for future WE’s to come, raising the bar brilliantly…” the whole review a worthy read by going to http://discomatt.com/web/?p=4708/
Onwards to the summer season and one that started with our scene sabbatical announcement, although it would be relatively short lived given the immensity of incarnations that were to play their part in this period and drag us, sometimes kicking & screaming, to successive soiree’s in a purple patch August three weeks. However, that was after the Olympics in July, along with what ended up a debacle of a London Pride celebration, clubbing corporation, Orange Nation, rescuing what was an utterly unacceptable maze of mismanagement by the committee responsible for, not just the capital’s celebration, but of the whole “World Pride” proceedings that delivered nothing, rather leaving us and many more disgusted & disappointed. But out of the ashes of a piss poor Pride came another brilliant Beyond on that weekend Sunday and our first review in three months, creating a catalyst for more to follow, that purple patch August period scooping all three seasonal spots in our club event chart, Beyond on 12th sandwiched by two Lo-Profile parties, ClubNation sporting a six hour back-to-back set from Steve Pitron & Max Sanna on 19th, while it was PLAY>TIME that would savour the spoils of seasonal victory, this marvellous meet that fell on first Friday of the month, delivering another Y.E. set chart entrant, this time from Nathan Six who added, in phenomenal fashion, to an already pulsating Pitron performance. This terrific trio apart, there was much more to melt into, boutique clubbing brands WAR, Gigolo, Room Service & new turn Tramp, showing the bigger boys a clean pair of heels, while Lovebox was an a huge highlight for us, there inevitably being low points for some, SuperMartXe’s “Olympiade” event failing to sufficiently ignite its own torch, while former Friday leader of the party pack, Onyx, found itself on the ropes after a battered bruising at the hands of its Soho rival, something it would never recover from. But perhaps the most saddening slump was that of Salvation, its prolific promoter Steve Elliot having suddenly passed away in March, leaving a void that not even his best friend & fellow promoter, Oliver Mohns, could fill, the promise of renewed London fortunes for what had become an global giant in the hands of Mr Elliot, falling at the first hurdle.
To our seasonal select and a piece from our PLAY>TIME review “Pitron & Six Pack A Punch”, our concluding comments leaving us in no doubt that our decision was the right one, the compelling evidence as follows “...In PLAY>TIME the team behind Lo-Profile have certainly found a winner on a number of fronts, it having established itself as a Friday night market leader, even knocking the might of Onyx off its pedestal, promoter Jay Roberts having developed a brand that neatly balances socialising, dancing, music & men in the most marvellous way and like lots of long running clubs on the capitals circuit, it seems this magnificent weekly meet has lengthy legs in it for sure…” our case continuing “…such has been the success of PLAY>TIME here in London, that the club has extended its welcoming arms across Europe, Paris’s Spyce having entertained Jay & his team on a couple of occasions this year already, while with the might of worldwide organisation Gaydar behind it, a little birdie tells us that there are bigger & better plans ahead to achieve the clubs aspirations abroad…”, we couldn’t conclude with championing Steve Pitron & Nathan Six, both propelling us into “…musical seventh heaven, Mr Pitron’s picks particularly pulsating & mesmerising although, to be fair to Nathan, despite having a hard act to follow, more than held his own, in fact, served up a simply spectacular set to savour & show his senior…” the full review out at http://discomatt.com/web/?p=5758.
To the final four months of the year now, we having squeezed September into this 2012 swansong season, a period that from a personal point of view proved to be packed with phenomenal positives, as our annual address illustrates, while a whole host of enthralling events have fallen outside the remit of this review, Brighton Pride, Steve’s 40th birthday party & two colossal concerts, Florence & The Machine & Robbie Williams, four exceptional examples. Yet, from a capital circuit point of view, there was as much to celebrate, a brace of birthday’s in September, one for Onyx which turned three on the 14th, while scene starlet Munroe Bergdorf was just a tad older at Room Service the previous night, November seeing another birthday, this time for Orange who marked their fourteenth on 11th, we unashamedly making mention of ours on 20th December (not a club event but it had to be done). Birthday’s aside, it was all change in November, as Later headed in a “Nu Direction” prolific promoter Steven Sharp now in charge, while A:M went all “Ultra” on us, shifting from a Saturday to a Friday start & gobbling up the already ill fated Onyx. Beyond has its fair share of change during the season too, a new promoter in the form of Ben Kaye shaking up the residency team of D.J.’s, ruffling some feathers along the way, while early October was a patch we would rather forget, WE “Bitches On The Beach” our worst experience ever, although it was to be brilliantly counter-balanced by WE’s own birthday bash, “Formula 2”, which was nothing short of phenomenal, leaving us in no doubt that it rightfully deserves our season top spot, although a decision we did deliberate upon, given in enormity of two breathtaking Beyond events in December, the 9th & the 30th (that’s yesterday!) to be exact. So, you can see what’s coming, these two towering turns taking second & third slots, pushing a captivating ClubNation from 24th November out into the chart cold, while Steve Pitron’s clean sweep of sets was inevitable, although has left us with a delicate dilemma to deal with.
So, before we hit on the movers & shakers, winners & losers of the year, here select slices from the final two paragraphs from our WE “Formula 2” review, starting with “… having experienced virtually every single outing here in London since the launch back in 2010, we can say with confident qualification that this best by a long shot…” then “…we acknowledge that “Formula 2” had some way to go to top “Safari” as our favourite & most fabulous WE party in London, it did in leaps & bounds and in virtually every department…” followed with “…it is the D.J.’s who get the lion’s share of our plaudits, some sets we missed, while others we savoured…” adding “…a superb set from Carlos Gallardo, in any other company would have made it to that premier podium position, he once again proving to us why we hold him in such high regard compared to his Spanish compatriots…” eventually concluding that “…it was Steve Pitron who crossed the chequered flag first, a simply stunning set that left us emotionally enthralled throughout, his choice picks hitting every heavenly house music mark we could mention, highlight ones without doubt “Not Alone” & Beautiful Lie”, while we would go as far to say that, just like this wonderful latest WE event & like his specially devoted podcast, this was the most phenomenal Pitron performance we have witnessed, no more to say…” our super sized showcase a click away at http://discomatt.com/web/?p=6178.
Well that covers of four seasoned 2012 scene step outs & highlight happenings, but what of the ones we may have missed and what of the movers, the shakers, the winners, the losers, the lost & the found? Well, Matinee made a magnificent return with a plethora of parties, a couple of twelve hours spectacles & a Beyond combo that found it return to its first London home, Area, while the scene’s Spanish superstar was undoubtedly WE, both “Pharoah” & “Hi Japan” overlooked above, yet in combination with the rest of their party pack, made it one of the most prominent performers. We briefly mentioned Deeleoded, which was another season on season scene success and sure to be a Y.E. award winner, while As One joined the ranks of losers that included Toybox, Shine, Bearzone, SuperMartXe, Discotec, Detox, Onyx & Circus, the latter sliding off the clubbing calendar quite surprisingly, while many of the others also fall into the lost & found categories, outdoor eventing a real loser in 2012, Pride already covered but a sad Summer Rites not. However on the bright side, there was always Beyond, this awesome afterhours continuing to ride a 2012 wave crest as tall as the previous four seasons, although it did have its fair share of challenges to cope with, a temporary shift to Fire in March one dark patch in a twelve month period that has surely secured another set of awards & accolades. That said, the big winners were the boutique clubbing brands, Room Service, Gigolo, WAR, Gutterslut, Carpet Burn & SOS heading up a long list of others, as like the austerity measures committed by the collation, the capitals clubbing circuit clubbing numbers did see a decline in 2012, paving the way for these more compact & bijou bashes to boost. Yet when we look at our own clubbing chart toppers, it is the big come bigger guns that have dominated the year, while in set terms, the delicate dilemma we faced was answered with an simple & straight forward epiphany, let our heart rule over our head and go with our gut, our podium position places, clubbing wise seeing Beyond secure both third & second spots with WE “Formula 2” standing top tall, while in terms of sets, it’s a podium packed out by Steve Pitron, a better way to finish this second 2012 review we couldn’t think of, as it is this incredible individual that has influenced our clubbing cavorting more than any other. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript
It was pretty tight with a variety of others to choose from, but here are the final five in both the club event & set chart categories
Club Events Chart Top 5
- WE “Formula 2” – 1st December
- Beyond “Music Is All You Need” – 30th December
- Beyond “Early Disco Doors” – 19th February
- WE “Safari” – 1st January
- PLAY>TIME – 3rd August
Club Sets Chart Top 5
- Steve Pitron – Beyond “Music Is All You Need” – 30th December
- Steve Pitron – Beyond “Early Disco Doors” – 19th February
- Steve Pitron – WE “Formula 2” – 1st December
- Nathan Six – PLAY>TIME – 3rd August
- Zach Burns – PLAY>TIME – 11th May