Posts Tagged ‘Onyx A:M’

Recommends – “No Bed If You’re A Party Head” – Weekend Best Bites & Short Shouts – Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th June

June 3, 2011 | Author

The bunch of bank holidays may have consumed the pockets of many, but as we move into June, the capitals clubbing scene shows no sign of taking a breather, this weekend already shaping up to be superb, with a new club launch, a brace of bargain bashes & a summer starter amongst many other offerings. So, naturally and having returned to our usual format, we have waded through the choices to decide on our Best Bites across Soho, Vauxhall & elsewhere, along with stacks of short shouts to make your decision on where to be & been seen all the easier.

 

So, to Soho first and it has to be Profile & Lo-Profile that grabs our Best Bite for this start of summer weekend, Profile proving the perfect retreat from the hectic happenings on Old Compton Street, Soho Square & surrounding areas, not least as the team draw on some of the best D.J. talent in town to spin the sounds each Friday & Saturday night from 8 p.m., this week being no exception, as tonight (Fri 3rd June) it’s the cute yet capable Zach Burns on the decks, a man very much in the zone right now, so

Soho's Sophisticated Spot

a set to savour for sure. Then tomorrow night, its playful tearaway Craig Daniels selecting the sounds, Saturday’s always spectacular in his hands. As for the rest of the Profile offer, having recently upgraded their menu, with lots of more substantial mains to compliment the “diner” style options, there isn’t a better place to get a bite, while their happy hour from 4 till 7 p.m. each day is a draw. Check out http://profilesoho.com for more info.

 

Now to Lo-Profile downstairs, which after the success of last Friday’s “Society” with Nathan 6 & Tony English tearing the place up with truck loads of tremendous tunes, this superb social soiree returns again tonight, Nathan back for a second bite at the sweet sounding cherry that he gobbled up with gusto seven days ago, while the terrifically talented Hugh Stevenson takes over at 1 a.m. to send you soaring into Saturday with stacks of superb sounds. Then, talking of Saturday, tomorrow (Sat 4th June) to be exact, Lo-Profile takes on a Beyond-esque feel as they welcome two of this amazing afterhours’ resident jocks, Gonzalo Rivas kicking off the night from 10 p.m. with bag loads of brilliant beats, while the jam in this Soho sound spectacle sandwich, Jamie Head, makes the magical music mix magnificently from 1 a.m., the Lo-Profile team celebrating Beyond going live on Gaydar Radio too, Gaydar being the driving force behind this Wardour St wonder. Check out http://lo-profile.com for more details on this sophisticated Soho spot.

 

Now to some short shouts & first mention goes to Ku-Bar on Lisle St, who have a full-on week as usual, which includes “O Zone” tonight (Fri 3rd)with The Very Miss Dusty O of course, while Sunday is a “Hit Factory” night with lady Lloyd, Monday sees the delectable DouGuim return for all things “Citrus”, while “Shinky Shonky” sakes tour Wednesdays. Go to http://ku-bar.co.uk for more details.

 

To Rupert St (the bar that is), who look like raking them in this weekend, our favourite foxy lady, D.J. Minx in the mix on the decks tonight, while tomorrow its, the superb Severino selecting the sounds, while on Sunday our Bello Italiano Alessandro Londra glides you into the new working week, more info available at http://rupertstreet.com.

 

Looking further into next week & both Gigolo & Room Service are back for more next week, both having reported healthy turnouts this (we were there), David & L.a. Hart’s newbie beginning to find its feet fabulously, the look of Lo-Profile last night simply superb, plus with Zach Burns headlining the event on Thurs (9th June), it should be a corker. Catch more details at http://gigolodisco,com

 

Room Service across the other side of Soho at Diu continues to pull in the party heads, a 25 minute wait in the queue last night, evident of that & it was pumping in there too. Jodie Harsh & her crew definitely know how to press those brilliant buttons & this coming Thursday looks no different with Horse meat Disco’s Jim Stanton starting while international playboy D.J. Paul heron follows, both turning up the tune-tastic volume. For more info on this most hip of happenings, go to http://clubroomservice.com.

 

Free Fire Fabulousness

Right onwards to Vauxhall and after a momentous last few days that have seen severed ties healed & fixed back together, we are delighted to return the Orange Group to its rightful Best Bites position in this club mecca of gay London. And it looks like a pretty busy one for them this weekend, tonight (Fr 3rd June), seeing Onyx in “Recovery Party” mode, this having become a bit of a post bank holiday institution, with lots of free things being thrown around, like free entry to Fire’s party tomorrow & free entry to Beyond on Sunday (more in that in a Focus post coming up), while its free to get in before midnight as long as you’re on the guest list (go to http://gayguestlists.com/onyx) D.J’s Lee Harris, Jc Christopher, Ariel, Tasty Tim, Lisa German & more masterminding the magical music. Plus with a special £5 joint ticket entry to both Onyx & A:M afterhours after, which sees Guy Williams headlining a strong line-up, available at http://clubtickets.com/gb/2011-06/03/onyx you can’t say fairer than all that. Then, to that party at Fire tomorrow (Sat 4th June), when the team open the doors free from 11 p.m. till 1 a.m., very much as a thank you for the amazing bank holiday weekend just gone, with the likes of Mikey D, Jamie Head, D’Johnny & Leandro Kloppel on D.J. duty, while the drinks are dropping (yes dropping!) in price with shots of Sambuca & Tequila at just £1 and  beers plus spirit & mixers at a mere £2.90 (now that’s what we call a thank you!), the back to basics feel of this party looking like a winner from where we are standing. Of course, other stable mates Later, Booster & Orange complete the weekend wonderment with more details on all these parties available at http://fireclub.co.uk/gayparties.

 

To some short shouts & first a new club launch at Factory, Gaydar radio’s Phil Marriot plunging into the club promotions game with his venture “Club I”, which aims to be an inspirational, independent & iconic invent, with indie/alternative music come electro disco spread across to rooms, a live Pa & plenty more. Now, we will be bringing you a full focus on Phil’s new night very soon, but with the likes of “Hard On!, “Bodyshakers” & “Desire” all moving to this Vauxhall venue, Factory is very much up & coming, more details available at http://clubfactory.co.uk.

 

Venerable institution The Royal Vauxhall Tavern (RVT) is next & has another full-on weekend into week, with “Speedwagon” tonight, “Duckie” tomorrow night, “S.LA.G.S./Chill-out on Sunday, “Bingo Pub Night” on Monday, & new night “Burger Queen” on Wednesday, the latter hosted by Scottee who say’s of the night, “…it’s time for us fatties to fight back& exercise our right to be big, bold & beautiful…” so you get the drift. With burger & chips the order onf the day (or is that night) & four sizable shows, this looks like joining the iconic ranks of The RVT’s other nights , more info out at http://thervt.org.uk.

 

Then the Vauxhall scene is complimented by The Eagle, who also have their weekly say, “Tonker” tonight welcoming special guest jock Chris Brogan, while their “Saturday’s” cruise & booze night gives way to “Carpet Burn” this week, while it’s the iconic “Horse Meat Disco” on Sunday and Ashley Ryder’s “Strip Academy” on Tuesday. Plus with probably THE best beer garden in town, The Eagle is a great place to soak up the start to the summer sun, more info out at http://theeaglelondon.com.

 

East Bloc Excellence

So to some alternatives, Shoreditch certainly spearheading what looks like being a scorching summer in the capital, not least as “Summer Rites” returns to the scene, this year honing in on Shoreditch Park as the place (watch this space for a full preview), while it is promoter Wayne Shires’ hip & happening hangout East Bloc that grabs our Best Bite slot this week, the plu popular “Disco Fag Bar” kicking off their weekend tonight (Fri 3rd June) with residents Laurent C, James Phillips & yes, Wayne Shires on the decks, doors opening at 10.30 p.m. & the club running till super Saturday late. Then, moving to Saturday and the brilliant “Men Who Fell To Earth” returns, welcoming special guest D.J’s Is Tropical to the main room madness, they in fact dominating proceedings with their so called “…bass heavy, beat driven, pop influenced & lo-fi dance music…” this unique UK appearance probably your only chance to see this sound of the summer D.J. duo in action, while the way out wording of room two “Forgive me GAYLORD For I Have Synth” pretty much sums up what will be going down here. But if you are still not sure what musical magic to expect, then it’s worth taking a peek listen at http://soundcloud.com/themenwhofell2earth, while Is Tropical’s website also tells all at http://istropical.com. Plus, with dates to look forward to including the magnificent “Meat” net Saturday (11th June), go check out more info on East Bloc at http://eastbloc.co.uk where you will find directions to this City Road smash.

 

To our final Short Shouts for this week and first one goes to The Dalston Superstore, who have a full-on threesome, starting with “Ecstasy, Passion & Pain” tonight (Fri 3rd), while tomorrow it’s “HomoElectrc”, with “Tutti Fruitti” completing the picture on Sunday.  Add to that a fabulous food offer & other entertainment during the week & this Dalston High St hangout (it’s in the name) is well worth a visit, as is their website for further details on what’s going down, a click away at http://thedalstonsuperstore.com.

 

Heading across to south London, if your bag is tech house, then The Brixton Clubhouse is THE place to be on Sunday (5th June) from 2 p.m. onwards, as “Get Diverted” kicks off a much anticipated monthly residency at this swanky refurbished two tier terrace triumph. And given their launch party a few weeks ago when “Get Diverted” attracted close on 200 party goers, the team are expecting great things from this upcoming event, no less than seven D.J’s & an extra special guest sorting the sounds through till the 1 a.m. (Monday morning) finish. More info on this & other events at this smart spot up above Brixton can be found by going to http://thebrixtonclubhouse.com.

 

Solar Soaked Sun

With our choice picks over, if you are still undecided what to do with your weekend (how can you be?!), then you can always take the advice of London’s clubbing bible, SeenQueen, who have their own hot tips on where to be & be seen on the scene, listings and much more available at http://seenqueen.com, while if you don’t get chance to lay in the sun on either Saturday or Sunday, then you can always take the easy option by diving on a Solarstation sun bed, more info out at http://solarstation.co.uk.

 

Right that’s it from us, apart from wishing you all a wonderful weekend,  our plans pretty much on hold while we wait by the phone for news from far away, if the going is good, we may make it to “Tonker” & Club I” in Vauxhall tonight, have no plans tomorrow, but, if we are not 35,000 ft up in the air flying home, Sunday morning will see us go stratospheric at the Beyond “Summer Season Opener” with Steve Pitron & co, so if we make it out & you see us, then please come & say hi, but whatever you do & wherever it finds you, make sure you “Go There! Be There! (DISCO MATT)

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Reports – “Supersize Sweets” – That Was The Week That Was – Spring Bank Holiday Special – Wednesday 1st June

June 2, 2011 | Author

That Was The Spring Bank Holiday That Was

Well here it is, our first weekly roundup report, “That Was The Week That Was”, and what a week to choose, the fourth bank holiday of the year proving a real corker for us and surely for you too, especially if you took advantage of the myriad of magical meets that we covered in our special Recommends post, not to mention the host of others on offer.

 

SMX success

So, where did it all start?, well with a bit of a clash of the titans on Thursday (26th May) as new Soho society social soiree Gigolo was back for more after a lavish launch a week ago, although what a difference a week made, as numbers were nowhere near as buoyant as the launch, perhaps to be expected. Across the other side of Soho, Room Service entertained SuperMartXe for the first of three pre-parties, Jodie Harsh’s established Thursday night foray still packing in the party goers, this week being no different & just the start to the weekend SMX’s Logan Schmitz was praying for.

 

Both will be back for more this week, Gigolo “getting harder”, while Room Service entertain French porn star import Francois Sagat, both well worth a look in to be honest. Check out http://gigolodisco.com & http://clubroomservice.com for more info.

 

Society stars

Friday dawned for us with a trip across to Rome for the magnificent Muccassassina which was the first major highlight of our spring bank holiday weekend, while here in the capital Lo-Profile’s “Society” rocked to the Spanish influenced SuperMartXe sounds, Nathan Six & Tony English bringing home the bacon (or should that be chorizo) for Logan & his Schmitzels, while round the corner in Rupert Street, the sweetest of sounds were served by Brent Nicholls on behalf of WE “Candy” who held their own pre-party, with gorge go-go’s & plenty of sugar coated splendour masterminded by promotions duo Tom Fuller & Paul Vlad. Down in Vauxhall, it was win win for the Orange group, with healthy numbers reported through both Onyx & A:M, while slightly further afield, The Brixton Clubhouse kicked off their launch weekend with a tepid response, but with much brighter things to come on both Saturday & Sunday. Aternative’s out east, the Dalston Superstore & East Bloc’s “Disco Fag Bar” reported good turnouts, while back in Rome, Mucca proved magnificent & packed to the rafters from superb start to fantastic finish, both Danny Verde & Micky Galliano nailing spectacular sets.

 

“Society” is back this week to show Soho how it’s done, more info available at http://loprofile.com, while Onyx starts a weekend trend in Orange Group circles of free parties/plenty of discounted offers, more info out at http://fireclub.co.uk/gayparties.

 

Sweet Scorcher

To Saturday and it was clear that two players were likely to dominate proceedings & leave others in their wake, although as it turned out, the sweet smell of success went to WE “Candy”, host venue The Coronet in E&C absolutely rammo, in fact never as busy. With the stunning stage shows back to where the brilliantly belonged, superb sets  by all the D.J.’s sparkling, especially Paul Heron’s as even WE resident Carlos Gallardo was caught bowing at his feet in adoration, while PA Peyton put up another prolific performance and not one person we spoke to walked away disappointed, quite the opposite. Faced with all this, SuperMartXe was always going to come off second best, but they certainly did their “Moulin Rouge” best, making the most of what they had, although with the world & his wife at WE, numbers did suffer. And that was the case for others too, Lo-Profile reporting a quiet night as did both Barcode’s, but the niche & alternative nights did well, both Gutterslut at East Bloc & Queer Nation at Area heralding highly successful happenings, the usual bearish bravado taking place at The Arches in Southwark as XXL reigned supreme.

 

Now, it seems the WE party machine is not resting on its laurels, their next incarnation “Barbie & Ken” already sweeping across Europe, while London’s Gay Pride on 2nd July will see WE “Force” take centre stage again, more details already out at http://weparty.clubtickets.com/gb/2011-07/02/we-party-london-we-force.

 

Huge Holiday Hit

So Sunday dawned & it seemed at all roads led to Beyond, those people that hadn’t yet started their spring bank holiday certainly doing so here. Having recharged our Rome batteries, we arrived to find the unison with Barcode brimming with bodies, the Beyond crew reporting probably THE busiest ever. And the extra outside space as well as additional dancefloors worked really well, although, inevitably, it was the three Area rooms that saw most of the action & chalked up huge holiday highlights for us (more on that in a bit). Later followed & was equally as successful, dampening the start of Downtown at The Brixton Clubhouse, although this Meat & Room Service combo was well & truly rocking by 8 p.m. Salvation swung open its doors & dazzled with some of the most stunning stage displays we have seen, lighting, lasers & the 22nd century theme hitting the mark, even if the numbers through Koko didn’t quite match the spectacular Salvation shows & effects which were a resounding success. Other hot spots included Fusion at the prolific Pulse & a whole host of Soho hip & happening hangouts, Rupert Street reporting on of their best Sunday’s in a long time. But the big surpirse was Booster, who teamed up with Barcode, pre As One, reports coming in that it was “one in, one out” and the most amazing atmosphere, this second unity in as many hours working like a dream.

 

Now, we have some exciting news on the Salvation front, although have been sworn to secrecy right now, but will spill the beans just as soon as we can, while this weekend Beyond continues to ride the wave crest they are on, with two parties, Paris’ Scream hosting on Saturday night, while back in London they kick off their summer season in style, more info on Beyond available at http://jonny-m.co.uk/beyond.

 

Brand Combo Back With A Bang

With Monday arriving quickly on the horizon but with so many amazing parties very much weighting the weekend differently to previous bank holiday’s, there was a feel that the scene was flagging a little, although, like Beyond the previous morning, it seemed all roads led to As One, Fire’s three main spaces packed to the rafters until well gone dawn, Orange, Cafe Ole, Lovechild, Megawoof & KuBar combining to put this collaborative colossus back on the clubbing map, although as the sun peaked through, outside rather than in was the order of the day, the main room, neverthless,  rocking right up till the midday finish. Other prolific parties included Later’s second spring bank holiday helping, this time at Area, The RVT also getting their own second bite at the cherry with the ever popular “S.LA.G.S/Chill-out”, despite the weather turning damp late afternoon & emptying the grassy knoll, while Popcorn at Heaven made hay too, with an extra busy bash as its student populous were on a short spring break from their studies, all very much letting their hair down.

 

Now, if you haven’t been to a S.L.A.G.S/Chill-out  session yet, then it’s high time you did, this Sunday soiree every bit the smash it was when it launched well over 10 years ago, more details on this & other RVT happenings available at http://thervt.org.uk

 

Now onto some news & we have to sadly report that new social society soiree “G&T” has seemingly faltered at its first hurdle, this Tuesday night gathering having been pulled from Dui just three weeks in, its future not looking that bright, although we are told the team are looking to Green carnation to try & breathe new life into this brave new brand.

 

Similarily, Industri, the social soiree splendour that had a successful running at Barcode Vauxhall for close on three years, looks like bowing out gracefully when current home, Barcode Soho changes hands sometime this month. However, with the new owners of this Archer St hangout promising to keep some of the old, but bring in much more new, we suspect Minty, Paul & Brent will be back with a new “SoHO” concept.

 

Down in Vauxhall & it’s all change at Union, Factory taking advantage as Steven Geller’s clubs “Bodyshakers” & “Desire” switch camps, joining Suzie Kruegar’s “Hard On!” that moved there for Hidden a couple of months ago. Plus, Factory have a new night this coming Friday (3rd June), as Gaydar Radio’s Phil Marriott launches “Club I”, an inspirational independant & iconic invent, so watch this space for more news in an upcoming Weekend Focus.

 

So, that was the spring bank holiday weekend that was, the two towering triumphs very much being WE “Candy” & Beyond “Supersize”, but what about our moment, our track & our tweet of the week? Well to the moment first and a difficult choice as there

Oustanding "Offshore" Our Track of The Week

were so many, from Mucca in Rome to Salvation in Camden, but weeding out a collection of classic’s, courtesy of one man, our most magical moment has to be being up in the Beyond D.J. booth with superstar Steve Pitron, not once or twice, but three times & very much a “Supersize” treat for us.

 

As for the track of the week, well it has to be the outstanding “Offshore” by Rebeka Brown which featured large throughout our weekend & many of the previous ones to be honest and while we are still struggling to find a link to this latest version of Ms Brown’s 2010 original, you can find it on Steve Pitron’s new podcast “Summer 2011 Vol 1”, available for download at http://stevepitronsessions.podomatic.com.

 

Then to our Tweet of the week and like the moments, with so many to choose from it was tough, but one rose to the top of our tree, inspired by fabulous friend Andrea, which read like this “…is in As One hysterics as having misplaced Andrea, her trademark call has affirmed she is in close vicinity. It goes “…f**k off!…”, priceless!! Plus to join the revolution that is our nibble sized review tweeting, why not follow us at http://twitter.com/discomatt and maybe even get a mention of your own.

nibble sized tweets

Right, that’s it for our first “That Was The Week That Was” report, but don’t forget, if you want us to shout out for your favourite bar, club or event that rocked & rolled, then drop us a line at matt@discomatt.com or link into us via our Facebook page at http://facebook.com/discomattlondon. Now, as we look forward to a new week that will include Room Service, Tonker & Beyond for us, we hope this coming week is a good one for you, so make sure you have a brilliant one and that you “Go There! Be There! (DISCO MATT)

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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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