Posts Tagged ‘Phil Hewson’
October 12, 2011 | 
Author 
Finding A Pulse
Over the years we have grown particularly fond of certain brands that have braved the capitals clubbing scene, the reasons for our attractions as varied as the clubs themselves, although certain common denominators kind of tie them together, the music & the music makers two perfect examples, although with certain clubs, it can also be said that the promoters are just as important. Indeed, looking at those brands that have achieved a special place in our hearts and those individuals at the helm, the prolific part that promoters play pretty much go without saying, Crash & Wayne Shires, FIST & Suzie Krueger, Trade & Laurence Malice, they all go hand in hand. And whist these three examples made have faded from the scene, they still fill us with misty eyed memories and ones that we miss dearly. And there is another brand that we have missed dearly, one that, like our three other examples, has gained a special place in our hearts, a club that has sported magnificent music players & music of the highest quality, its promoter synonymous with its existence, so seeing it disappear off our radar, having played such an important part in our lives, was a bitter pill to swallow.
We Love Lovechild
Lovechild has, without doubt, been a brand we have followed right from day one, when it launched itself as a Sunday t-dance style soiree, something in the order of Salvation, this being no real surprise as the promoter who had always been the big driving force behind this mega club brand, Alex Erfan, was keen to offer fervent followers of all things Salvation, something similar but different. However, it was clear from the first set of Sunday parties at Pacha, that the bottom had fallen out of t-dance style clubbing, on a Sunday at least, a short break seeing Lovechild reappear as a Saturday offering and at new home Fire, a venue which proved a worthy home for Alex & the club for close on 18 months. Plus, the switch from Sunday’s to Saturday’s allowed the Lovechild team to expand & experiment with the brand, a whole succession of successful parties, including alliances with other clubs such as Delice & Wild Fruit, cemented it as one of the capitals clubbing scene’s big hitters. Notable parties included “Wet”, “Makin Hay” & “Tropicana” (among many more), Alex also drawing on international D.J. talent to boost the appeal, while the creation of the infamous “Contact Room”, the introduction of saucy shows & the distinctly different arena’s of music, all added to the clubs appeal.
Turning Up The Pulse
However, times they do change and it was becoming all the more clearer that the onetime harmonious working relationship between Lovechild & Fire, Alex Erfan & the Orange group, was beginning to sour, the “1st Anniversary” back in November last year being the first catalyst, Lovechild pretty much shunted into the sidelines while Fire’s main room was given away to a breeder bash. And, from then, it was pretty much a slippery slope for our loveable brand, the final full-on Fire fling being when Lovechild joined forces with Israeli splendour FFF in May, relationships between The Orange Group top brass & Alex straining to breaking point, all meaning something had to give and the withdraw of Lovechild from the Saturday clubbing schedule was the saddening consequence. But, as the saying goes, “you can’t keep a good dog down” and, after a summer break which has seen the brand pick itself up & dust itself off, Lovechild is now ready to start all over again, a new venue, a new look & a new direction the inspiration for its return.
Beefy Blake In Blue
So, what’s the big change?, and what can we expect from the new look Lovechild? Well, first & foremost Alex has forged a new association with Pulse, the state of the art venue that plays host to SuperMartXe, the break away from Vauxhall definitely a new & daring direction which, we hope, will pay dividends, the flexibility with Pulse’s space allowing Alex to manage & manipulate his events to match the crowd & the entertainment. And there is definitely lots of promise for this first event “The Big Blue”, Alex kicking off by saying that “…This incredibly exciting space will allow Lovechild to grow and present the biggest shows and parties to date. New features are being added to the Pulse in the run-up to the party and Lovechild will by then feature the biggest dance floor on the London scene as well as some of the most ‘state of the art’ lights and lasers going in especially for the night…”, while the joining of forces with porn star legend Blue Blake is the inspiration behind the title of the event, the accent very much sex & seduction, a whole host of stars beefing up this branded bash, Alex going on to explain that , “…Lovechild goes blue this Saturday when it celebrates the launch of porn legend Blue Blake?s filthy new film “A Policeman Fucked My Son” andhis new website blueblake.com. There?s not just 1 or 2 super hot pornstars (as seems to be the norm these days) but a veritable “pornucopia” of sensational Blue Blake stars from past and present. Leading the pack is the UK?s most popular porn star Paddy O?Brian, along with French superstar Issac Jones, British internationals Ben Brown, Bruno Knight and Jake Reed. There?s also some American beef jetting in from the USA, the buff and beautiful Cody Miller. And that?s not all, Pulse will be packed with porn stars and purveyors of filth. So the hot studs dancing next to you could be the guys you?d been watching fuck the night before…”
International Israeli
Well, that certainly sets the scene for this “Big Blue” event, the porn element plain for all to see, but what about the music?, Well, with a pretty impressive list of resident D.J.’s both from here in the capital & internationally, Alex has a lot to choose from, Tony English the first major inclusion in an all London line-up, this main man having been with Lovechild from its beginnings and very much the lynch pin in Alex’s armoury, having toured with the brand internationally to destinations that have included Amsterdam, Antwerp, Istanbul & Israel, while he was with Lovechild for their two excursions to Edinburgh over the summer. Moreover , he is the man behind the “Lovechild” single, which gets full release early next year, although Tony has posted the radio edit to his Soundcloud page, check it out at http://soundcloud.com/djtonyenglish/tony-english-feat-kaysee-1, the vivacious vocals of Kaysee looking like this should be a 2012 smash and will no doubt be within Tony’s set on Saturday. Then, there is Alessandro Londra, another dynamic D.J. that has been flying the flag for Lovechild both here in London & across Europe, he never failing to ignite the dancefloor with his full blown tech & progressive house, our Italian bello having laid down a podcast to mark Lovechild’s first party at Pulse, a 62 minute marvel which is as good an indication of what to expect from him on Saturday as anything and a compilation well worth adding to your collection by going to http://soundcloud.com/djalessandrolondra/lovechild-pulse-club-london. But Alessandro is not the only one to mark this “Big Blue” event with a podcast release, impressive Israeli Guy Scheiman (one of Alex’s international residents) also jumping on the compilation bandwagon with his own devotion, perhaps off all the mixes, our favourite & one which you can grab at http://djguyscheiman.podomatic.com/entry/2011-10-05T15_47_54-07_00 although unlike the text on his podcast page, sadly we won’t be seeing Guy at Pulse this time round, although we know Alex has him lined up for a gig real soon. Then London based Aussie Brent Nicholls has also released a compilation dedicated to the party and we can confirm he will be there, although scheduled to play a late set, although surely worth hanging around for, especially given the quality of this podcast, which is worthy of at least a listen by going to http://djbrentnicholls.com/web/2011/09/21/podcast-lovepulse/.
Get It On Mr Gee
But all that is only part of the music picture, as Alex will also be drawing on the talents of two more Italian’s, Tony Bruno & Gabriele Cutrano, while a second Aussie in the form of Terry Vietheer will also feature, as will both Mattias & Phil Hewson, an impressive notch up of eight stars who will all get a bite at the “Big Blue” main room cherry, while Marco Gee is the final entrant onto the list of prolific players, Marco the latest addition to the residency team, having hugely impressed us at Lovechild’s “Muscle” event back in March and is very much a staple part of this latest outing. Why?, well Marco is responsible for the production of what looks like being a char topping smash, the truly tremendous “Get It On” by Shockalady, a brilliant re-take of the rock classic by T-Rex, this new version very much more disco than rock, camp than vamp, this promotional video giving you a good idea of exactly what we mean, http://youtube.com/watch?v=4VJFzzIMH6M. And, the hot off the press news is that Shockalady will be performing the track live on Saturday, this shaping up to be one of the most entertaining shows we have seen at Lovechild yet and one you definitely won’t want to miss. Plus, with Marco taking charge of the opening set, you can certainly expect a rousing start to this “Big Blue” event, a taste of whats to come available from Mr Gee’s latest podcast, which was lifted direct from another opening set, this time for Lovechild’s “Superlovers”, an gathering held for Soho’s Pink Sunday, Marco playing out to a considerable audience at Lo-Profile, so one worth catching at http://marcogee.podomatic.com/.
Blue Is The Word
So to the all important detail and this Lovechild “The Big Blue” spectacular takes place this coming Saturday (15th October) at Pulse (full address, 1 Invicta Plaza, Off Southwark St, Blackfriars, London, SE1) from 11 p.m. and running through until an advertised 6 a.m. finish, although a little birdie tells us that, subject to numbers, it could run a fair bit later (whoopee!!). Advance tickets have been on sale for a while, the £10 early bird ones having been gobbled up quite quickly, while standard £15 tickets are still available by going online to http://clubtickets.com/gb/2011-10/15/lovechild-pulse, while a drop into Prowler, Clone Zone &/or 50 is also an option, tickets also available on the door at the same price. With sponsorship support from Gaydar and live video recor4dings coming from Mirrorballs.tv, the launch of Blueblake.com will also be a feature, more information on the event out at http://alexerfan.com, while new website http://blueblake.com is also worth a sneak preview.
Now, despite a run of SuperMartXe’s at Pulse, due a a range of circumstances, we have yet to see the new venue, so we are just crossing fingers that come Saturday nothing will be in our way, meaning we hope to be there to report on it all, so if you see us, please come say hi, but make sure you don’t miss out on this Lovechild return by ensuring you “Go There! Be There! (DISCO MATT)
Posted in Recommends | 
Tags: Alessandro Londra, Alex Erfan, Blue Blake, Brent Nicholls, Gabriele Cutrano, Guy Scheiman, Lovechild, Marco Gee, Mattias, Phil Hewson, Pulse, Shockalady, Tony Bruno, Tony English | 
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Colossal Combo
If there is one event that we look forward to more than any other (well with the exception of our favourite afterhours of course!), it is As One, the colossal combo created by Lovechild’s Alex Erfan in association with iLondon events that took the capital by storm two NYD’s ago and has since attained critical acclaim on the five occasions it has since swung open its doors. Bringing together eight brands for this latest venture, the anticipation for an awesome outing carried considerable clout, the likes of Lovechild, Lo-Profile, Megawoof, A:M, Orange RAW, Casa Latina, Queer Nation & Trannyshack joining forces within Fire and dishing up a dream team of D.J.’s including Pier Morrocco, Paul Heron, Gonzalo Rivas, Fat Tony, Phil Hewson, Eduardo De La Torre, Mattias, Alessandro Londra, Leandro Kloppel, Brent Nicholls, Daz Saund & more. And our night with a dozen or so D.J.’s started well as Patrick Lilley who was representing Queer Nation in the As One lounge asked us to choose a track to play (how camp), although over in the Lovechild room, proceedings were far from proper as a blown fuse put paid to their partying, this absence of sound somewhat spoiling the spectacle. However, ground was being made up in the main room & Lightbox, Pier Morrocco in the former flying the A:M flag fabulously with a flawless set, while Daz Saund was doing Megawoof proud in the latter. But with the Mirrorarch continuing to falter, apart from a brief spurt of energy from Edu, the PA particularly completed off the Lovechild mark, this latest As One instalment lacked the flow of former frolics, although we were happy with our lot once Brent Nicholls fired up in the lounge, track after track seeing us spin on our spot superbly, “dong the Disco Matt” magnificently, Brent’s brilliance coming blissfully to bear for the last two hours of our hedonistic horseplay. So, with much still to lament on as well as praise, it’s “…ready, steady, go for the review…” (DISCO MATT)
Posted in Previews, Reports | Tags: A:M, Alessandro, Alex Erfan, As One, Brent Nicholls, Casa Latina, Eduardo de La Torre, Fat Tony, Gonzalo Rivas, Leandro Kloppel, Lo-Profile, Lovechild, Mattias, Megawoof, Orange RAW, Patrick Lilley, Paul Heron, Phil Hewson, Pier Morrocco, Queer Nation | No Comments »
With March drawing to a close (actual of going to press its 7th April, oops) and with so much music still to catch up on after our European & South African adventures, it’s time to cut to the chase with this, out third music newsletter of the month, simply entitled “Three’s Company”, but one that will bring well over three times that in music links a-plenty. So, let’s crack on with this whistle stop tour around the D.J.’s of the world, their music & their mixes, a tour that comes in no particular order so don’t be offended if your mot first!
Now talking of first, we did promise to bring you news of more tracks from German born & based Chris Bekker, this Berlin boy having gotten a big mention in our first (that word again) newsletter this month. So, here we give Chris’s track “TrIBIZA” a big shout, not least as it is making big across Europe and particularly in his home city, Berlin, where it is getting tremendous airplay. This incredibly rousing yet progressive tune, compiled alongside another Chris, Chris Montana to be exact, has the makings of a major smash & we love it, while we still await an official release, you can catch a snippet now at http://youtube.com/watch?v=NVwwRSeoH2Y.
Next up is our own “Super Swede” Per Q.X. who, like Chris, was an entry into our first newsletter this month, although having recently celebrated his birthday at Gutterslut (last Saturday 26th March to be precise) we simply had to include him again, along with his special birthday mix devoted to this way out & whacky wonderment, Gutterslut having also recently celebrated their 3rd birthday. Having been banging out brilliant beats for as long as we can remember, Per remains at the cutting edge of electronic, tech & funky house and this latest compilation is proof of that, one which you should grab now by going to http://soundcloud.com/perqx/per-qx-dj-mix-for-guttersluts.
Before we move on from birthday’s we had to give a special mention to another D.J. that has been treading the boards, or should we say spinning the sounds, for a few years now, although looking at hi you would hardly think he has long stepped out of school (jealously will get us nowhere!). However, one Fidel Trotman carries his age extremely well, yet keeps bang up to date with the beats of the moment, forging an alternative way with his music direction, very much like the clubbing circles his mixes within. So, serving up some sounds with a difference is his latest compilation release, “Vinyl Only Mix Vol 2”, harping back to the days of 45’s and one we definitely dig so think you will too by going to http://soundcloud.com/fidel-77
Onward and changing direction a far bit is our next mention, which goes to D.J. producer Max Sanna, the other part of the dynamic recording duo with the one & only Steve Pitron, the twosome have created some real gems in the studio together, many which have made the dancefloors of the world. However, Max is also creative with his regular compilations where he gets the chance to stamp his own style of sound, while carefully choosing tracks from renowned artists, such as Freddie Le Grand, Mark Night & Chris Lake, three whom happen to be in his latest & much awaited “Sessions” release which is out now at http://maxsanna.podbean.com/ and well worth grabbing.
Known lately more for his club promoting & Orange Group associations rather than his grass roots D.J. talent, in the last few weeks we have seen Jonny M return to the booth, more often than not at Friday nighter “Onyx”, although we were pleased to witness a wonderful set of his at Beyond “Erotica” before we headed off to South Africa. So, we are equally pleased that, in between his very hectic schedule, he has also dived into the recording studio to produce a new compilation, like Max, one that has been a long time coming, although well worth the wait. Indeed, it comes a no surprise that it is devoted to the club which he now promotes & play’s in “Beyond Wonderland” well worth a whizz by going to http://jonny_m.podomatic.com/
Now to a chap that is no stranger to our newsletters, indeed we gave Mike Kelly a big shout just a couple before, although such is the extent of his studio work activity that we simply had to include him again. Indeed hardly a month seems to go by without a new track coming out of the Kelly music making machine and while we turned our back on proceedings while in South Africa, Mike has produced not one, but two new remix offerings, “Welcome To The Fiesta” & “Sweet Tribal”, both which have been released on his Sorry Shoes recording label. But our full attention here goes to his two compilation mixes devoted to his appearances at Rome’s Gorgeous I Am club, the first recording from his a back-to-back set with Nino Scarico, while the 2nd is pure Mike magic, both available for download by going to http://soundcloud.com/djmikekelly.
Moving on and it’s been a while since we included this young man in our newsletters, although mentions for Tony English run through many of our other posts & reviews, not least as he is an extremely busy chap, holding down gigs a-plenty for Lovechild both here in London and across Europe. Tony also works with Logan Schmitz on SuperMartXe, masterminding his monthly podcast releases, which act as much like music newsletters on SMX issues, as well as showcasing new sounds. However, sometimes overlooked are Tony’s own compilation creations and in this “catch” up of ours, we give mention to his February edition, like previous ones, very much having a Spanish influence by welcoming Valencian born Coqui Selection into the fray. So to get your slice of Mr English in anglo Spanish mood, go now to http://tonyenglish.podomatic.com/
Next up is a guy who absolutely thrilled us with his tech style yet funky beats when we were in both Paris & Brussels back in February, Ben Manson impressing us at Spyce in the French capital, then making us feel right at home with his heavenly house at La Demence in the Belgian capital. Ben’s charming style and relaxed attitude comes through in his magnificent music choices with gusto and the same goes for his compilation productions and to match his hectic gig schedule around Europe, residencies & guest slots including with Scream, Up at Makkasar, Spyce, La Demence, Greenkohm & Salvation, Mr Manson has mixed not one but five podcasts, lifted from live performances in London, Paris, Brussels & Moscow, all of them tipping our scales, so choosing a favourite is so very difficult. So, if like us you can’t then, like us, simply add all five to your collection by going to http://benmanson.podomatic.com/ although that said, his “From Makassar With Love” is something quite special.
Neatly moving on to another La Demence resident who is also a friend of Ben’s, we give space for the superb Steven Redant, who absolutely bowled us over on that same trip to the Belgian capital in February, not just with a scintillating set, but with his amazing hospitality, so we had to repay the compliment somehow. That said, having devoted plenty a handful of focuses to the man & his music, as well as slotting him into previous newsletters, shouting for Steven & his work comes very easy to us, as well as giving pleasure and sharing the musical love, which all this is about. And Mr Redant definitely shares the musical love with us & the world by releasing regular podcast recordings from his live sets, his “Get It On” series definitely worth following, although it is his “Sydney To Miami” mix, which collects his appearances at both Sydney’s Mardi Gras Festival & Miami’s Winter Music Conference and is brimming with terrific tribal & tech tunes in euphoric Steven style, so well worth grabbing at http://stevenredant.com/. Plus, keep your eyes peeled for our next newsletter, when Mr Redant’s two latest track production works get our attention.
Continuing the long list of entrants for this, our catch up post is D.J. Michel Mizrahi, who first came to our attention in the summer of last year when he appeared for Logan Schmitz’s Matinee “Open Air Summer” parties, very much setting the standard across the inside space and impressing us with his music selections & mixing. Yet, whilst Michel’s recent appearances behind the decks on London’s scene have been a little sparse, he has very much kept his hand in by dipping into the studio to produce a new(ish) podcast titled “Mission 2011”, which kicks off with a roll call of drum beats then blending into bucket loads of rousing raptures, vivacious vocals & uplifting tones that have give you heaps of the feel good factor that we think music is all about. So, all this makes for a must addition to your collection which you can grab by going to http://michelmizrahi.podomatic.com/.
Next up is a first to our music newsletters and comes following his appearance for Lovechild back in Febraury, heading up the new concept room that was the “Tantra Lounge” is Tony Bruno, a guy that has connections with Alex Erfan’s brand stretching back to when it moved to Fire in Nov 2009, yet for some reason has not been given the chance to flex his D.J. skills there until two months ago. So, in doing so, Tony also caught our eye, despite our devotions to Brent Nicholls & Edu De La Torre in the Mirrorarch that night, although we were determined to include him here, shouting for his Lovechild devoted mix which reflects his set on the night which neatly moved from light to progressive, well worth a listen at direct link http://soundcloud.com/tonybruno/progressive-house-by-tony while, like Mr Manson, he has been a busy boy since, laying down no less than seven compilations (including another devoted to Lovechild) and each one available to download or stream by going to his Soundcloud front page at http://soundcloud.com/tonybruno/.
Now, talking of Lovechild, it’s a long while since we shouted for the cute & cuddly Phil Hewson, one of Alex Erfan’s stablemate residents who never fails to impress us with his uplifting & energetic sets, generally kicking Lovechild parties off as they mean to go on. Indeed, we always make a point of catching up with him at each Lovechild event he attends and did just that at “Muscle” when he took charge on Area’s main room and thrilled the audience with a superb set. But it is his compilations that we are pointing towards here, the first recorded following his terrific tour down under back in January, aptly titled “Afterhours Down Under” combining the sounds he played at parties like Rising, Daywash & Rogue, all squeezed in on NYD, while he also represented Lovechild in Sydney, the 13 track mix very much reflection his prolific performances there. Then there is his “Contact” mix from February, one Phil produced with Valentine’s Day in mind but for some reason was overlooked in our special music post devoted to the day (oops). So, making amends, both podcasts are worthy additions to your collection at http://funkylondon.podomatic.com/.
Before we leave Lovechild, we wanted to include a new entrant to our newsletters, Marco Gee having impressed us so much at the brands “Muscle” event three weeks ago. Indeed we went as far as saying our full review “…the task being some serious dancing and the cause being of a show stopping set from the new to Lovechild, Marco Gee, who had The Chapel Room (yes we know that’s a Beyond phrase!) packed & pumping with a glorious collection of new tunes & older tracks rehashed (very vogue!), he looking right at home with his lot and as though he had been playing for Alex’s club for ages. Indeed his neat selections between new, old, re-modelled & re-made hit complete resonance with the cavorting crowd, some atop of the podiums in partying delight, while others like us were happy to spin in serenade to his superb sounds…”. So, need we say more apart from go get his Lovechild devoted podcast now at http://marcogee.podomatic.com/ and watch this space for a full focus coming soon.
Right, we’re on the home straight now as we turn to a final trio of talents that have rocked our musical bots between them for more years than we would like to mention, the first exponent being Elliot J Brown who, back in the glory days of Barcode Soho, was a regular Monday night feature, as well as a weekend wonder on the decks. Moving out east saw Mr Brown immerse himself into the alternative scene that was spurning and along with Per Q.X. was very much a founder force for the way out & whacky Gutterslut. And it was here where Elliot could experiment & enthral with what he aptly calls “Skinny Techno” (does what is say’s on the packet!) which is very much the theme of his latest compilation offering which, if you ask him nicely, you can get hold of via http://myspace.com/djelliottjbrown.
The second of our trio is Berlin based Swede D’Johnny, another young man that was a major feature of those halcyon days at Barcode, not least on a Saturday night, when he and fellow Swede (our super Swede) Per Q.X. often the two going back-to-back and entertaining us from early doors to closing. And our adoration for Johnny’s music has continued through the scene changes, sets at places like Later, Lo-Profile &, naturally, Beyond, very much tipping our enjoyment scales. Indeed we can recall countless performances at Area in particular where he has truly set the place alight, one particular example being last May when he stole the show at Orange’s Bank Holiday bash. So talking of Orange, it came as no surprise that he was added to the select team responsible for the infamous RAW room, inspired by his back-to-back sets with original David Jimenez in Beyond’s Chapel Room, although the duo also went back-to-back at RAW in February, which Johnny recorded for posterity in a podcast, which is a sure-fire (no pun intended) addition to your collection by going to http://djohnny.podomatic.com/.
So we come to our last, but by no means in the stretch of any imagination, the least, as this man is without doubt our original maestro D.J. who, like the two before, hit notoriety for us at Barcode Soho, with resident slots on both Friday’s & Saturday’s in the club downstairs. But Alan X has featured in a whole pile of other prolific scene parties such as Action, Crash, & Ultra, but it is Beyond and the last set in the main room at Colosseum that holds magical memories for us and saw Alan at his brilliant best. All that apart Alan has recently been part of the Gay City Rollers team, a party which returns for its 2nd birthday this Sunday (10th Apr), played for the Beyond B2B concept, for the huge London Global Dance Festival, For Lovechild & for Bear Necessity routed from his regular slots for Tonker. Plus his skill for graphic designing sees him as one of the scene’s leading video viral & production producers, while he is still very much active in the recording studio too. So, Alan is definitely no slouch & continues to produce the odd podcast here & there, he also getting in on the Valentine’s game, another that missed our special report radar, but gets a shout now and deservedly so, as it is crammed with vocal, progressive & much house in-between and entered our collection the second we spotted it and should yours too by going to http://djalanx.podomatic.com//
Phew, we made it, well almost, as no music newsletter of ours should go by without mentioning tip top clubbing website SeenQueen, labelled as “London’s Clubbing Bible”, but a site that also serves up selections of sounds from time to time, their music section including podcast, D.J. web page links and their very own top ten tunes, all a touch of a button away at http://seenqueen.com/web/music. And there you will find a link to D.J. Brent Nicholls’ website (a familiar entry to our music posts) where you can catch Brent’s latest article where he list our very own “Dance-tastic Top 20 Tunes of 2010” compilation as his third most downloaded of the year, no mean feat when you consider he produced a staggering 24 in 2010. So, if you happened to miss out on this mix when Brent compiled it for us back in January, go grab it now at http://djbrentnicholls.com/web/2011/01/14/disco-matts-dancetastic-top-20-of-2010/ as, if we say so ourselves, it is a damn fine collection of tracks that will surely send you into dance-tastic delight.
Right, that’s definitely it now, but with the never-ending music production line in motion, we have already gathered most of our entries for our next newsletter “April Showers Of Sensational Sounds”, but if you fancy your mix, compilation or track getting a shout then drop us a line at matt@discomatt.com or plaster our Facebook walls either via our Disco Matt group & page or via our profile at http://facebook.com/discomattlondon.
So, we hope you liked our “catch up choices” here, leaving us to say “sit back, select those sounds, turn up and the volume & let them play as music IS the answer” (DISCO MATT)
Posted in Music | Tags: Alan X, Ben Manson, Brent Nicholls, Chris Bekker, D'Johnny, Elliot J Brown, Fidel trotman, Johnny M, Marco Gee, Max Sanna, Michel Mizrahi, Mike Kelly, Per Q.X., Phil Hewson, SeenQueen, Steven Redant, Tony Bruno, Tony English | No Comments »
If there was one brand that got our attention & devotion the most in 2010, it was promoter Alex Erfan’s lovable club, a whole string of events throughout the year really capturing the imagination, from its inclusion in the years biggie, As One, to its own outings, highlights surely being “Wet”, “Makin Hay” & Hot Tropicana”, while a count of nine individual reviews of this monthly club was only topped by one other, and that was a weekly affair (you can probably guess which). And with it continuing to play out in the capital unrepentantly, was testament to just how it bucked the trend against Saturday night clubbing, it also finding itself expanding where others were contracting, forages into Europe & further afield, seeing it have a superbly successful twelve months, rounding it all off with a convivial Christmas in awe-inspiring Antwerp, which proved something extra special for us.
So, if you follow our reviews, it should be blatantly obvious by now that we could only be talking about Lovechild, a club brand that has slowly but surely found its way where others have lost theirs and has, in our world, established itself as a firm favourite, not quite toppling the big one, but coming close in lots of respects. Alex & his team always manage to keep its offer as fresh as possible, the injection of international guest D.J.’s, just one element that ensure that not one Lovechild feels the same as the last and having not just witnessed it in action in London, but having tripped down to Brighton when it starred in the Dance Nation weekend, not to mention that trip to Diamond city, our associations and, yes, love for Lovechild have blossomed like a rose in spring. So all this meant come this latest affair, even a nasty ear infection wasn’t going to keep us away, although given our plight & predicament, how did our shindig “Snowball” style turn out and what made it so alluringly Aussie?
Finding it difficult to balance due to our infected ear, lots of calls for us to stay indoors & away from any aggravating sound fell on you know what, yes deaf ears, as we made our way to Fire and this latest Lovechild outing, which had a distinctly wintery theme, Alex & co having teamed up with the European Gay Ski week to promote this annual event on the slopes, thus the “Snowball” influence. However, arriving the Vauxhall venue’s doors & to an impressive fire eating display (how appropriate), snow was the last thing on our minds, not least as the D.J. line up had a more than a nod to all things Aussie, very much hinting more to surf than snow, the likes of Johan Khoury & Troy Cox having flown in from Sydney to join fellow antipodeans’ Brent Nicholls & Terry Vietheer, a captivating corked hat combination that, on paper at least, would delight like a dream. With the fire-eating flames avoided, we were greeted by main man Mr Erfan, welcoming us in his usual understated yet sincere fashion, while Simon Patrick, also in attendance, set us straight on our trip into the club and this snowy shindig spectacular.
Dropping off our coat in the check, it was pretty much immediately apparent that the whole feel of the club wasn’t going to be quite the same, nothing to do with Fire or Lovechild so much, but due more to our blocked ear, meaning that not only was our hearing more mono than stereo, but our balance & ability to stand was in considerable question. However, undeterred by our predicament, we took some distinctly gingerly steps into Fire’s main room, grabbing hold of the thankfully positioned rail on the walkway that led us down towards the stage, the place already pumping with action, not least from the direction of the D.J. booth, resident cutie Phil Hewson in charge of the uplifting & rousing sounds, he having literally just landed from a trip to Oz, the first indication that the feel of the night was heading for the surf rather than the snow. But, as good as his music sounded, from our good ear of course, with our balance a little jittery, we headed into the relative comfort of the love lounge space next door, the first real Australian influence being the vivacious & terrifically talented Terry Vietheer, serving up a smart selection of soulful sounds, funky & chunky in their makeup & dream worthy in their delivery, we grabbing a quick hello with this friendly fellow, before heading to the bar for refreshments. And there we bumped into the familiar face of friend & fellow Hard On! follower, Toby, who’s attendance at Lovechild was a little surprising, yet pleasantly so, we forewarning him of our ailments, before he kindly led us back into the main arena, clutching our arm for support.
Finding a spot close to the stage with the wall behind for supportive comfort, we were just in time to see the first of a whole wave of shows from Thiago Drewery’s gorgeous go-go dancers, we also being greeted by an arriving Brent Nicholls, the second of our Aussie influencers for the night, he relatively shocked yet pleased to see us, given his knowledge of our hearing impediment. Mind you, he made the most of our unfortunate situation with his light hearted wit & way, leaving us not only in hysterics but reeling on our feet, causing us to lose balance on more than one occasion, the safety of the stairs next to the stage coming to our fortunate aid. But all this was detracting from the saucy & seductive shows, the dancers attracting plenty of attention, not least from our third audacious Aussie, the handsome & hunky Johan Khoruy, who, unsurprisingly, had himself in pole viewing position of the dancer with the biggest assets, although a quick glance in our direction saw him bound up & wrap his ample arms around us in a welcoming hug that made our tricky trip to this Lovechild love come snow-in all worth the while.
With the first dancing display done along with repeated snow plumes from the specially installed machine covering the heads & shoulders of a whole host of folk, admittedly the only real evidence of this “Snowball” theme, yet effective nevertheless, it was time for us to find safety & solstice in the lounge space, where Mr Nicholls was firing up what would turn out to be our performance of the night, we grabbing a spot by the D.J. booth to dance as deliriously as we could, given our balance & hearing issues, this favoured place allowing us to survey the very special crowd that kept wafting through, far from your a-typical “gAylist” lot, rather an eclectic mix of guys & girls we had rarely seen in Lovechild before, probably a reflection of the month or maybe the broad appeal of the brand. However, balance & hearing apart, Brent was definitely hitting our musical sweet spot, with one favourite track after the next, “Release me”, Now Or Never”, “Trapped” & even “Stereo Love” all getting airplay, the latter sending us into an emotional state & floating our thoughts across the miles to a Lovechild inspired experience far away.
Whilst we were pretty comfortable with our lot in the love lounge, the odd trip across the club saw a main room still alive with action for a while, at least when the stage shows with a stream of sexy strippers attracted an audience, although the mirrorarch space, the home for the infamous Lovechild contact room & play area was more the place to be, Johan Khoury masterminding the magnificent music, uplifting in its intent dynamic in its delivery & rapturous as a result, very much evocative of the euphoric energy of this Aussie & his music, Johan giving this second space a soaking of his superb Sydney inspired sounds and the feeling that you were living it at Live, or delving into Day Wash, such was the feeling we were down under with our man from Oz, rather in London with Lovechild. And with Phil Hewson & new found friend adding their own entertaining elements, we found our second wind it this second room & in our second spot of the evening.
Zooming (well more like weaving, such was our failing co-ordination) back to the love lounge & to Brent, it was evident that what people had been dancing on the main floor had moved in on Mr Nicholls, the space well & truly packed, Alessandro Londra, who had taken over from Johan in the contact room, getting a similar response to his truly scintillating set, meaning the choice of where to lay our final hat was a difficult one. However, with an unexpectedly early closure of the lounge, our Aussie pal sealed the fate on our surfing snowboard of a shindig, we taking the wise choice of saving our deteriorating balance & shielding our vulnerable ear from further excessive sound, rather heading out to the relative calm of a chilly Vauxhall morning, to wobble our way home and reflect on this latest Lovechild instalment in the peace & quiet of our own four walls.
Well, to say that was one of our more interesting Lovechild’s is a tad of an understatement, especially given our ear infection predicament that should have confined us to our home. However, balance & hearing issues aside, we are glad we made the trip, not least as hooking up with our best Aussie mate was just the tonic we needed to raise our spirits & cleanse our souls. As for Lovechild itself, well it had the usual ingredients of magnificent music, super saucy stage shows & plenty of audacious action to chase down. However, as for the “snowball” effect, yes the snow plumes in the main room added an element, but the supposedly virginal look of Fire was distinctly absent, rather with the alluring Aussie action, courtesy of Brent, Terry Vietheer, Troy Cox & the gorgeous Johan Khoury, combined to give it more of a down under rather than an up in the alpine feel, but there was nothing wrong in that. As for the crowd?, well a smattering of scene faces helped break the eclectic (some called it special) feel of the people present, but that said, there is some quite, well lovable about Lovechild, hence why it rose to the top of our 2010 poll (and maybe another’s!) and with the second birthday looming as well as a tour of South Africa, our love affair continues & we will definitely be back for more. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript
Given the Aussie feel to this latest event, it would be a crime not to share two truly terrific podcasts with you from the guest D.J.’s for the night, Johan Khoury & Troy Cox. Both were commissioned for Lovechild’s, Johan’s very evocative of the sets he plays at Sydney’s club, “Live”, but also reflected his superb set on Saturday, while Tory’s is pure him & pure Lovechild too. So, go grab your slice of Johan & Troy, head for Lovechild’s podcast page at http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com/ where both magnificent mixes feature.
Posted in Reviews | Tags: Alessandro Londra, Alex Erfan, Brent Nicholls, Fire, Johan Khoury, Lovechild, Phil Hewson, Tony English, Troy Cox | 1 Comment »
Having had probably one of their best years yet, cementing their monthly parties at Fire in London’s Vauxhall, plus having racked up an impressive amount of tours both domestically & internationally, including Paris, Brussels, Antwerp, Amsterdam, Rome, Istanbul & Sydney, Lovechild concentrates firmly on home this Saturday (15th Jan) with their latest monthly party and following on from the huge success that saw their involvement in the New year smash, As One. But, whilst this latest Lovechild love-in is grounded in London, it has a truly international feel to it, as not only are they marking their involvement in the upcoming European Gay Ski week in March, but are contrasting that with a truly Australian feel, flying in two Aussie stars from Sydney to compliment the already antipodean slant to the roving residency team. So, in the style that only Lovechild can do, sand is definitely meeting snow in this latest offering, so will it be the sand dunes or the snowy slopes that will out? or maybe both!
Themed as a snowy event, we have been reliably informed that Fire will be transformed to a sea of white with opulent production, decor & visuals to wow and in the words of Alex Erfan & his team, “…it will be a magical & virginal Fire come Saturday, with a whiter than white look & feel, extravagant costumes, super sexy dancers & performances, all meaning après ski has never been more fun…”. So while the accent will definitely be on snow, ski slopes & everything alpine, the usual hot & horny elements of Lovechild will be there too, as Thiago Drewery will be masterminding the mind-blowing stage shows, including glamorous Ice Queens and saucy snow covered go-go’s in the main room, while the heat will very much be turned up in the contact room, where the real saucy & sexy side of Lovechild will come out to play. As usual, the infamous play area will be open for business again and in the stage shows in the contact room, expect the unexpected and be prepared to be shocked & stunned by the stripped down sex pots of muscle men to match the magnificent music.
And naturally, while it may be après ski in its design, this Lovechild will be sporting a red hot line up of D.J.’s more akin to the sand rather than the snow, as Mr Erfan welcomes a veritable feast of Aussie talent from both home & abroad, to put the surf into the snow and crest both the waves & the slopes with a stack load of scintillating sounds. First up and no stranger the Lovechild in London, is Johan Khoury, who not very much got us wet under the collar with his smouldering sounds & equally hot looks, playing out to a packed contact room at Lovechild’s “Wet” event last April, so is extremely excited about returning to the capital to captivate the crowd once more. So much so, Johan has laid down a specially commissioned compilation to mark his appearance at this après ski splendour, a 41 minute marvel showcasing his broad musical genre styles, from uplifting & funky, to tribal & tech, but with sexy & seductive vocals never far away from his selections, a reason why he is so popular back home & in so much demand, including the massive “Day Wash” which will host this year’s Sydney Mardi Gras harbour party, as well club “Live”, which inspired this mix & played host to Lovechild twice in the last twelve months. So, to get a taste of what to expect from this amorous Aussie on Saturday, go to http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com/ and select episode 17, as it is amazing!
The second Aussie import is D.J. Troy Cox, who, like Mr Khoury, is extremely popular back home in Sydney, in fact right across Australia, including Melbourne, Perth & Brisbane, although his home city is his real playground, playing out at a whole host of venues on the infamous gay strip, as well as at clubs like “Rising Day”, “Love Muscle” (yes it’s still going strong down under), “Day Wash” and “Live”, so often rubs shoulders with his counterpart Johan and will be in the thick of proceedings at this year’s Mardi Gras festival. Like his partner in crime on their tour of London, Mr Cox has laid down a special compilation which is very evocative of his upfront & vocal house style, intermixed with funky, soulful & sexy tech to progressive beats that will fit the Lovechild glove like a dream, so is well worth a preview listen at http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com/entry/2011-01-11T04_56_54-08_00 while he also has his own podcast page, with a collection of mixes that further display is dexterity in dipping between musical styles superbly, so is worth more than just a look at http://djtroycox.podomatic.com/.
So, that’s the Aussie imports, what about the London lads? Well the Lovechild lounge looks like being much more surf than snow, as down under dudes Terry Vietheer & Brent Nicholls rub shoulders on the decks to delight, Terry never failing to disappoint with his deep & delicious offerings, filled with funk & chunk which always goes down a treat in this intimate & enticing space, plus he is charm personified, just one of many reasons to pop in & shake your booty to his beats, greats samples of which you can find at http://soundcloud.com/terryvietheer. As for our other Aussie boy, well this man is always full of beans, very much matching is euphoric uplifting & funky filled sets that often leave us breathless in our “Doing The Disco Matt” dancing style, NYD being a perfect example when we soaked up every morsel of his stupendous three hour showing, so if there is one place we will guarantee to be, is just left of the D.J. booth when Mr Nicholls is in charge. Now, it’s the second week of the New Year and we are expecting a new compilation from him any day, but there are loads to choose from at http://djbrentnicholls.com/web/music, we loving Vol 2 of his MX mixes and come Saturday expect some similar sounds, but with a truck load of new tunes to boot. Aussie’s aside, Lovechild favourites Tony English & Alessandro Londra are back, as is the lovable cute & cuddly Phil Hewson, who has just completed a tour down under, so will be lamenting loads on his terrific trip, but getting this snow covered splendour started in superb style.
Right that’s the music, the men & the movements pretty much sown up, so what about the all important detail? Well, Lovechild “Snowball” kicks off this coming Saturday, 15th Jan (ooh that’s tomorrow) from 11 p.m. at the very virginal looking Fire, the club running through until a planned 7 a.m. finish. Limited advance tickets are still available at the usual Soho outlets, as well as online at http://clubtickets.com/gb/2011-01/15/lovechild-snowball for an inflation busting £10, while more will be available on the door but for more. However, the Lovechild lot will be circulating your favourite bars both on Friday & Saturday with special concession passes, so keep your eyes peeled for those. But if that wasn’t enough, the first 100 through the door will receive free entry wristbands to beyond and the first 500 will get free Lovechild membership for one year, entitling the holder to discounted entry to all Lovechild events, so a real incentive to get their before the witching hour. Further details of this & other Lovechild relating happenings, go to http://alexerfan.com, by contacting the team at alex@alexerfan.com or by simply joining the Lovechild & iLondon events groups on Facebook.
So, Saturday will definitely be a case of surfing snowboard fun, an après ski inspired event with a genuine Aussie twist and well worth a visit. (DISCO MATT)
Posted in Recommends | Tags: Alessandro Londra, Alex Erfan, Brent Nicholls, Johan Khoury, Lovechild, Phil Hewson, Terry Vietheer, Thiago Drewery, Tony English, Troy Cox | 1 Comment »
It certainly feels a little bit strange (but good strange you understand) to be sitting here & transmitting our Weekend Recommendations again, plus, just ahead of our new website launch on Monday as well as lots of other exciting developments to come. And it is good to be back, not just filling our evenings with something slightly more productive than watching Grand Designs (we do love that prog though) & the like, but moreover re-connecting with the scene that we love so much and promoting events & venues that we feel deserve a big shout in our re-focussed Best & Rest Bites. So, whilst we may still feel a little rusty around the gills, with a good dollop of cod liver oil & an injection of energy, we are now chomping at the bit and ready to get to it, selecting where to be & be seen this weekend in Soho, Vauxhall & elsewhere.
So, let’s crack on and to Soho first, top of the pile going to Profile & Lo-Profile, who have so entertained us while we have been away, so much so, we broke our review silence a couple of weeks ago, to join the team in celebrating their third birthday bash. And, in some ways, tomorrow (Fri 3rd) will feel like a bit of a homecoming, as not only will Phil Marriot be in situ once again upstairs in Profile, entertaining an ever increasing Friday following to a storming selection of sounds, made up of killer new tunes & uplifting anthems that never fail to hit the Marriot magical mark, his amazing four & a half hour frolic (yes he starts at 7 p.m.) of a superb set going out live to Gaydar Radio’s clubnation listeners. But, if Phil wasn’t enough for us, downstairs in Lo-Profile, not only does Brent Nicholls make a welcome return to the decks, but the night will have a distinct WE feel to it, as the team entertain a pre-party extra-ordinarre, with D’Johnny taking centre music stage and serving up a truck load of terrific tunes to pump the place, the WE Party team deploying their drop dead gorgeous go-go dancers to delight, plus, with plenty of advance discounted ticket offers flying around, as well as the prospect of plenty of hot Latino’s flying around too, while it may be cold outside, it will be hot, hot hot, in Lo-Profile. Mind you, Saturday looks just as entertaining, with Jamie Head & Tony English on the deck downstairs, while Craig Daniels looks after the soothing sounds upstairs in Profile, the team even serving up mulled wine to warm you up from the freezing temperatures outside, plus their amazing food offering adding to make the combo of Profile & Lo-Profile the place to be in Soho this weekend. Further details of both venues on Wardour Street can be found at http://profilesoho.com & http://loprofile.com.
The Shadow Lounge gest out our Best Bite look in this weekend, with the main focus being on Sunday (5th), when they do their bit for World AIDS day, as well as kicking off the Christmas season in style with an old school disco hosted by Les Johnson & his Distinctive Events crew. D.J.’s in detention will be scruffy little school boys Brent Nicholls, Lee Harris & Phil Hewson, blending plenty of brilliant beats to make sure your are not taking a sneaky smoke behind the bicycle sheds, this chrimbo charity event kicking off a 5 p.m., with a whacking big chunk of door proceedings going to the worthy cause that is The Terrence Higgins Trust. Besides that, the team are excited to announce that they have extended their opening hours on Saturdays until 5 a.m. and with their “Therapy” & “Inferno” sessions still pulling the punters on Friday & Saturday respectively, Shadow Lounge weekend is well worth a look in, not least as they have frozen door prices throughout December at a mere £5 after 11 p.m. (you need to be a member of their Facebook group). Plus, with Paul Heron back on rotation with our foxy ladies Minx & Mis-White at “Therapy”, but with a full seven day calendar of events going on, Shadow Lounge is really coming back into its own, more details of all their happenings available by going to http://theshadowlounge.co.uk/ while for free guest list & membership details, drop a line to info@theshadowlounge.co.uk.
As for ourRest Bites, well Barcode are celebrating their 15th birthday on Saturday (4th Dec) with their fave D.J.’s Pagano & Steven Artis (we love em both) selecting the sounds downstairs, while new boy Dilmar Brito (yes he D.J’s too) mastering the music upstairs, although we are somewhat scratching our heads as to the absence of an actual Barcode Soho Saturday resident from the venues 15 year history, but who are we to question?!?! Then there is always Rupert Street, who will be doing their WE bit on both Friday & Saturday with D.J’s Alessandro & Fat Tony respectively, will have tickets on sale for both WE’s main event & Beyond WE and continues to prove a popular hangout.
Onto Vauxhall and The Orange Group once again hits the high notes with a veritable feast of parties, thank heavens some of them actually marking World AIDS day (WAD) with some special events (certain Soho venues, hang your heads in shame!), with Gravity tonight (Thurs 2nd) starting it all, then Friday being highlighted by Onyx, who hold their “Red” event in aid of National AIDS trust, with sizeable slice of takings going in support of this worthy cause, plus the team will have collection buckets out to encourage clubbers to show their generosity (and we know you will), along with a sparkling line up of resident D.J.’s that include Phil Marriot, Lee Harris, Lisa German, Arial, Jason Prince, Tasty Tim & more, all joining special guest jock Lee Dagger of Bimbo Jones fame who will be performing a special 2 hour set featuring many of the bands biggest productions. Then keeping WAD in focus, the back of the group’s weekend gives way to Orange, promoter Steven Sharp & his crew selecting The Elton John AIDS Foundation as their benefactor, with £1 from every guest & £2 from each full paying customer going to direct to this amazing charity and laying on a sparkling line-up of nine performers across two rooms, including The Oli & Paul Martin, who go back back-to-back in the main room, Fat Tony & Tonnic (no Orange would be the same without them), and RAW room residents David Jimenez, Hifi Sean & Gonzalo Rivas all on duty. But, the inexhaustible Orange group weekend is jam packed with other events, highlights including promoter Patrick Lilley’s Queer nation on Saturday night, Later on Sunday afternoon, Booster Sunday night and, how could we leave it out (no not THAT afterhours, this!) Beyond, which has a distinct WE flavour to it. Now, rather than run down the details of ours & your favourite afterhours here, we will be issuing an Extra Bites post (due out on Sat), although in the meantime, any enquiries regarding Beyond, or any of the Orange Group events this weekend can be directed to michelle@allthingsorange.com. And, don’t forget that the team are heavily involved in WE Party London, so check out all our special reports on that.
Our other Best Bite in Vauxhall goes to Megawoof, promoters Daz, Diddy & co still dizzy from their packed to the rafters “Bearcity” special at host venue Hidden, they sure to pack in the most macho of crowds for what looks like being a marriage of magnificent muscle-bound & hairy minds, with Amsterdam’s Furball landing in London for one weekend only to go head to head with the capital’s favourite muscle & leather hirsute happening. And squaring up for this battle of the grizzly giants in Megawoof’s main room & in the Furball corner are D.J.’ Bramsterdam & Big General, two colossal talents in more ways than one, while in the Megawoof corner it’s just Tim McLoone, although to avoid it being a squash job, Daz Saund will be weighing in briefly for the home side meaning that, as the team have predicted “…sparks will fly as the dance divas duel it out…”. As for the dutch duo, both Braamserdam & Big General have gained quite a following back in Holland, their usual back-to-back format being repeated for this Megawoof bash, and riding high on successful tours of their club brand Furball across the globe, not least in Sydney, where they featured in parties Bear Essentials, Indulgence & SonarWave, they also being big players at this year’s gay games in Cologne, so will no doubt go down a treat at Megawoof. This main room meeting of minds aside, residents Rob & Massimo take grip of the blue (middle) room, while the new cruisy “Sensory” third space is now really finding it feet & gaining in popularity, especially for those that like a bit of extracurricular action (if you know what we mean!). Kicking off at Hidden this Sat (4th Dec) from 11 p.m., further details of this “full on, no holds barred” beefed up event can be found by going to http://megawoof.com.
As for our Rest Bites, well, it looks as busy as ever in Vauxhall, both The Eagle & The RVT having a full weekend of action, the former playing host to Tonker on Friday, who are doing their WAD bit & raising funds for The Food Chain, Saturday seeing Carpet Burn return, while the gymkhana that is Horse Meat Disco is back on Sunday. Meanwhile The RVT have the way out & whacky Speedwagon on Friday, while no weekend would ever be the same with a S.LA.G.S/Chill-out session on Sunday’s (need we say more), this institution still packing them in.
Moving on and indeed across the capital and top of our alternative heap is The Dalston Superstore (DSS), Matt Tucker & co packing them in with a non-stop party weekend of pure diverse delight. And, having done their bit of WAD on Wednesday, raising a tidy sum for their nominated charity, Positive East, the team press on tomorrow (Fri 3rd Dec), as they host Guy Williams’ profilc Paradise 45 which goes all chrimbo on us with their “Christmas Cracker” gathering, Guy sharing the decks with Serge Santiago & Sophie Lloyd. Then on Saturday, it’s the turn of Hot Mess to titillate, with special guest Tasty Tim & Princess Julia on the decks, joined by resident D.J. & Hot Mess host, Holestar. Plus, as it is their Christmas party too, we have been asked to announce a mistletoe alert, as well as inform you that the “traffic light shag tags” are back by popular demand (the mind boggles), while on Sunday its D.J. Squeaky’s sounds shout as Tutti Fruitti seals the fate on the end of your weekend in wonderful style. Now, we thought we would give an early mention to a very special Christmas party, as next Friday (10th Dec) Trailer Trash & Gutterslut combine forces for what looks to be the smash hit of DSS’s year, meaning that you simply have to get there early, early, early to avoid the disappointment of not getting in, as it will be (in the inimitable words of the team) RAMMO. Now, we do keep pressing the DSS boys for news on their website, but they are constantly tweeting, so you can follow the latest action & news via http://twitter.com/dsuperstore, or failing that mail the men at hello@dalstonsuperstore.com.
As for our alternative Rest Bites, well The Supper Club definitely seems to be getting in on the act, this chic & sophisticated Notting Hill hangout having played host to Lovechild’s WAD event. And this Sunday (4th Dec), they are back with the special party, Toy, with a veritable feast of entertainment from artists & D.J’s that include Johanna, Mister J, Mzz Kimberly, Kris Di Angelis, Terry Vietheer, Le Gateau Chocolat, Jeyjon & Jonny Woo (who’s who?, we are sure you know), while if you are brave enough to hit the snowy roads or rails, then a trip to Brighton is worth consideration, as Paul Kemp & his crew also do their bit for WAD, with their own “Red” party at the massive Oceania, with all (and we mean ALL) profits going to The Rainbow Fund & Sussex Community Foundation (good on you Mr Kemp) with mega headliner Norman Cook, yes Fat Boy Slim, joining the likes of Paul Heron & Tasty Tim, while entertainment includes PA performances from Katherine Ellis & Krysten Cummings (sounds like our Mr Marsh is involved we think).
Right, with links to websites &/or e-mail options for our Best Bites, as for our Rest Bites, you can either pick up a copy of the weekly rags (no offence) or hit the relevant event page buttons on Facebook for further & full details of our picks. But, having said that, the hottest events in town are always listed on tip top clubbing website SeenQueen, who filled our shoes superbly while we were away and their new look site is absolutely crammed with content that will keep you happy for hours. So don’t dilly dally and go check out London’s clubbing bible at http://seenqueen.com.
Well, we have gone on enough, but just time to say that our weekend, or should we say WEekend stars with WE’s pre-party at Lo-Profile tomorrow night (Fri 3rd), with the main WE party grabbing our full attention on Sat. Plus with our arm completely twisted by Messrs Pitron & Fuller (in a lovely way of course) it’s the Beyond WE on Sunday morning, following which we will more than likely collapse in a heap (well we are out of practice). So, if you see us out, come say hi and as we always say….”Go There! Be There!”. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript
With plans to separate our Best & Rest Bites into two posts from next week, now is your chance to get your event, venue or gig mentioned by e-mailing us your details at matt@discomatt.com and we will do our best to include you.
Posted in Recommends | Tags: Andrew Elmore, Beyond, Booster, Brent Nicholls, Carpet Burn, D'Johnny, Gravity, Guy Williams, Horse Meat Disco, Hott Mess, Inferon, Jason Prince, Later, Lee Harris, Lisa German, Lo-Profile, Megawoof, Minx, Mis-White, Onyx, Orange, Paradise 45, Paul Heron, Phil Hewson, Phil Marriot, Princess Julia, Profile Bar, S.L.A.G.S./Chill-out, Tasty Tim, The Dalston Superstore, The Eagle, The RVT, The Shadow Lounge, Therapy, Tonker, Tutti Fruitti | No Comments »
Looking back over the last few months, indeed years, there is no doubt that when it comes to Saturday night clubbing, the scene in London has seen some quite dramatic changes in trend, this usually most popular weekend slot having pitched & yawed in popularity, only a handful of brands surviving to tell the tale. Indeed save for some of the major brands, finding somewhere to party like (as the song goes) 1999, is increasingly more difficult, much of the central London locations either having been bulldozed to make way for other uses or filled with club brands that don’t necessarily appeal. So, as a consequence, Saturday’s have become rich pickings for the likes of SuperMartXe and, until recently, Matinee, one other brand showing itself on a monthly basis to make its own mark on a struggling slot when venues such as Barcode & Lo-Profile end up making the most of.
Lovechild very much has established itself as a prime contender for Saturday nights in the capital, making the bold move to change its original Sunday slot in favour of what, at the time, proved a wise choice & & popular decision. Indeed, it hardly seems a year since promoter Alex Erfan decided to move his lovable clubbing brand from its first home, Pacha in Victoria, to Fire in Vauxhall, the move giving him the flexibility he need to broaden both the appeal & dynamic of the monthly parties, a whole host of events having made a considerable splash on the capitals scene, firmly establishing it as one of the venues more popular events, well on a Saturday at least. This move to Vauxhall has also allowed Mr Erfan & his close team to expand into other brands, both home grown & international imports, although it would be fair to say that Lovechild is Alex’s first born in his recent relationship with Craig Elder’s group, so remains close to his heart and one which we have both supported & attended on a regular basis. So, despite certain issues with another scene club promoter, forcing us to take a sabbatical from our review duties, we made an exception for this special Lovechild “Anniversary”.
Another major reason for breaking our embargo on reviewing, was the arrival in London of Barcelona based boy, Javier Medina, whose work we have been promoting since the spring & indeed someone that has become a good friend, we spending time together as recent as September in Paris, as well as having connecting when he played on behalf of Lovechild at the August Bank Holiday As One event. So, whilst up until the actual day, it seemed doubtful we would make it to Fire, as Saturday dawned, we decided to brush aside, or at least dispel for a few hours, the issues that had forced us to suspend our writing & clubbing, the night actually becoming quite busy early on, with a boat party trip on the Thames, followed by a dip into Soho to celebrate both friends Michelle Thornber’s & Tom Marchant’s birthdays. But, a 1 a.m. liaison with Brent Nicholls, who was due on Lovechild duty, saw us arrive at Fire at a little shy of 2 a.m., we eventually finding ourselves at the venues “Lightbox” entrance, the revised arrangements for this anniversary occasion.
Making our way through & around towards the rear entrance (not tradesman’s before you ask) we were greeted by the man himself, Alex Erfan, who was beaming from ear to ear although very much concealing his concerns over the revised set up for this special one year celebration of his lovable brand, he guiding both us & Brent through into the replacement for the usual lounge space, the small “raw” room, which, if we are honest, has never really worked from the day it was opened, the space being very much divorced from the rest of the club. Dropping off our bits & boobs behind the D.J. booth & catching a hello with Terry Vietheer behind the decks, Alex then escorted us through into the Lightbox area and then on into the mirrorarch room, we very keen to catch up with our Catalonian companion, although as we arrived at the D.J. booth, Mr Medina was nowhere to be found, instead, Tony English was in charge of the sounds, Alex advising that a revision to the D.J.’s timings had been necessary due to the change in the club configuration. So, after a brief stop off in the upstairs VIP area, when Alex discussed some issues of the day with us & Brent, we found ourselves back in the raw space where Mr Nicholls acclimatised himself with the change in surroundings & scenery and prepared to commence his set.
Still wanting to catch up with Javier, we soon headed back into the mirrorarch to find him in situ by the D.J. booth, our Barca boy giving us a hearty hug & delving into catch up conversation, we also being introduced to his travelling companion, who was already stripped to the waist & well into the action. Fitting in a sneaking smoke break, we soon found ourselves back in the mirrorarch & getting into the swing of Mr English’s sounds, very much more uplifting & accessible than we normally expect from this talented D.J., his usual style more euro-beat in its make-up, Ibiza & Spanish influences much more his flavour, although with the room packed & Thiagio Drewery’s dancers making the first of many showings, this anniversary event was certainly hitting the spot, the macho & testosterone fuelled feel that Lovechild has come to be known for, back with a bang & even the dancers much more butch & muscular than we had seen of late.
But the best was to come as Mr Medina rose to the decks, immediately upping the pace of the music & taking the crowd on a magical mystery tour through Spanish sounds, tribal tunes & much more hard edged house, the kind that always seems to go down well in this, our favourite space at Fire, Javier really capturing the imagination of the crowd, who soon filled the podiums in front of the D.J. booth & further down the room, whoops & cheers coming with every record selection & a stream of people coming up to our spot to find out who the maestro in charge of the music was. Indeed with scores of people intent on soaking up his superb sounds, the mirrorarch, which had been packed before, saw no signs of receding, rather filling out even further as the waves of go-go dancers delighted & then the superb PA performance by Lizzie France well & truly erupted this exceptional event.
However, in contrast to Mr Medina, who was definitely making his mark, as good as both Mattias in the Lightbox & Brent in the raw room were, they were struggling to capture the crowd & the imagination, even though their music was very much in tune with Lovechild & the moment, Javier rather having the lion’s share of the party people. And the already busy main space filled further when two hunky half naked dancers ascended the stage and began a teasing display, slowly revealing their prone assets for all to see, not least Mr scene photographer himself, Chris Jepson, in perfect position to catch these well endowed muscle men’s posing, even D.J. & pal Phil Hewson looking on in amazement. Now, we were going absolutely nowhere, Mr Medina’s music captivating us with every track selection, we spinning on our spot in a-typical Disco Matt dervishness and loving every minute of it.
But, with an unfortunate encounter with one of our clubbing critics, a protagonist that had become intensely personal following an issue at Beyond a few weeks before, our elevated mood was dented considerably and with Javier’s stint nearly over, although looking like it would continue as Gonzalo Rivas had not yet arrived, we headed for the comfort & security of the raw room & Brent Nicholls, who was still spinning his latin infused & funky sounds, his friendly reassuring smile filling us with the confidence we had lost, even Paul Heron’s impromptu arrival helping tremendously, Brent joining in the joviality which made for an altogether pleasant end to our stay at this special Anniversary Lovechild celebration. However, with the call of Beyond, yet the need to drop our excess baggage off at home, Brent dispatched us to say our farewells to Javier, before we made our way out of Fire and into the Vauxhall early morning to reflect on a party with a difference, some for good reasons, others not so.
There is no doubt that, in the room format that we found it, Lovechild this time round had a distinctly different feel and without both the main room & the lounge spaces, was definitely lacking in overall appeal & satisfaction. However, the mirrorarch space very much made up for the missing elements, not least Javier Medina’s performance, which truly captured the essence of Lovechild for us, euro style sounds & macho mesmeric music that was much more akin to the brand rather than the usual uplifting & energetic genres that seem to feature across the London scene so much. That said, Tony English’s performance went down extremely well, we also hearing that Phil Hewson’s set was superb, plus with the calibre of D.J.’s like Brent Nicholls, Mattias Alessandro Londra, & Terry Vietheer, not to mention the prolific PA Lizzie France, there was no short of terrific talent on this special occasion.
However, as good as all these individuals were, not forgetting the drop dead gorgeous dancers on display f course, we cannot escape the fact that the topsy turvy room set up at compared to previous Lovechild’s in Fire, was not just disruptive to the flow of the party, but made it feel completely different, a shame when this was supposed to be a celebration of Fire being this brilliant brands best home so far. Plus, when we heard the main room had been given away to another event, so as to keep the refurbishments fresh for Revolver the following weekend, we were short of dismayed at this move on many counts, mostly, as being one year on, you would have thought the venues management would have allowed its strongest Saturday night brand the free run of the venue it deserved, rather than reserving some final changes to the main room for a crowd that might not (and indeed failed to) materialise. As for Lovechild itself, with expansions into Europe & beyond, life couldn’t be better for Mr Erfan’s lovable club & with London firmly established, we look forward to celebrating many more anniversaries as well as birthday’s to come. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript – Lovechild Music
There is little doubt that Lovechild has & continues to sport one of the strongest resident line-up’s on the capitals clubbing scene, not to mention a host of guest D.J.’s that make the music it plays not just diverse & interesting, but some of the best you will find anywhere. International talents that have graced the clubs decks in the year it has partied hard at Fire have included Albert Neve, Leomeo Carandang, Justin Ryan, Johan Khoury and, of course, Javier Medina, while London based guests extend to Terry Bryan, The Oli, Alan K & Nick Tcherniak. Yet, as this list wasn’t sparkling enough, you then include the list of residents & it truly becomes awesome, Italian’s Pagano, Gabriele Cutrano & Alessandro Londra, Australian’s, Brent Nicholls & Terry Vietheer, Englishmen, Phil Hewson, Tony English, Lee Harris & Jc Christopher, Scot, Paul Heron and Swede, Mattias, even South African Leroy Tayler, a roll call indeed.
But it gets better, as not only is there a special site dedicated to the music of Lovechild, mixes available from the likes of Nick T, Paul H, Mattias, Alessandro, Gabriele & many more, all 13 episodes which can be downloaded from http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com. But, yet more are available via the D.J.’s direct web pages, all worth a look, http://events.leroytayler.podomatic.com, http://justinryan.podomatic.com, http://soundcloud.com/djalessandrolondra, http://funkylondon.podomatic.com (Phi Hewson’s site) & http://soundcloud.com/gabrielecutrano.
However, marking this 1st Anniversary party as only he can do best, is Brent Nicholls, with his compilation entitled “LoveChildOne – Feels Like Fire Mix”, which he describes as “…a collection of funky flavoured nufunk, tech dipped & disco inspired tunes…” and he is not wrong there, our fave tracks being “C’mon Get Funky”, “Let’s All Chant”, “Sweep The Floor” & “Disco Disco Disco” (there’s a surprise), but with 13 more terrific tunes besides, making for what we would describe as a retro meets modern gem of a compilation with the Nicholls magical twist to it. So, this is truly a gorgeous gift to Lovechild on their 1st Anniversary and can be one to you too, by going to http://djbrentnicholls.com and then either scrolling down the home page, or selecting his “music” section.
Finally, the “official” Lovechild Anniversary mix was pressed onto CD for the party & handed out across the evening, this 44 minute marvel mixed by resident D.J. Tony English, which is a glorious collection of both uplifting vocal tunes & euro-style beats, very much evocate of his superb set on the night and is a MUST for your collection. Now, for those of you that weren’t around & didn’t get a copy, the good news is that it will be released on http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com in the next week or so, although in the meantime, if you fancy a copy, then just drop your details to Disco Matt headquarters via disocmatt@hotmail.com & we will arrange to forward a copy to you. Plus, for Tony’s regular podcasts, go to http://tonyenglish.podomatic.com.
So, with well over twenty Lovechild inspired mixes available right here, as we love to say, “…sit back, select those sounds, turn up the volume & let them play, as Music Is The Answer…”
Posted in Reviews | Tags: Alessandro Londra, Alex Erfan, Brent Nicholls, Javier Medina, Lovechild, Mattias, Phil Hewson, Roni Inan, Terry Vietheer, Tony English | No Comments »
In advance of our latest DM Does The Music News post, entitled “Big Guns & Baby Boomers”, due out later this week, we thought we would whet your music appeties with a special devotion to all things Lovechild, the club brand that marked one year at its current home Fire, back on Saturday 13th of this month
In capturing a few clips of recent focus posts & previews, where we looked at the works of D.J.’s and then by honing in on specific Lovechild inspired compilations, this is a special “Music Is The Answer” post, that also marks the end to our sabbatical in advance of a full resumption of services on 6th December. So, we hope you like our indulgence to all things Lovechild and prepare to get busy downloading & listening to some magnificent music.
So let’s crack on with our look back which begins in June, it marking our first real focus on D.J.’s in depth within our Lovechild recommendations posts and whilst the event itself was pretty low key, the music was far from, this being the many reasons why.
“…..Looking at these D.J.’s on offer, the range of house music genres on offer is simply dynamic and the combination will definitely deliver to suit all tastes. Brent Nicholls is in a really pioneering sector of sound at the moment, playing out fresh track, one after the next in the style that he coins “Nu-funk”, the type of music that gets the feet moving, the hips swaying & the bodies gyrating to the funky & disco/electro drenched beats, endless examples available through his LGDF dedicated compilations as well as those pressed for both Hustlaball & Pervert, which you can check out at http://djbrentnicholls.com/music.
Both Terry’s are accomplished deliverers of uplifting yet funky filled house with tech tinges, the antipodean Mr Vietheer making an impact at Heaven’s Popcorn as well as appearing at hip hangouts Barcode, Rupert St, and has literally just released his latest compilation entitled “funky for love” (very appropriate) which is out now at http://soundcloud.com/terryvietheer/funky4love-june-2010-promo, while Mr Bryan continues to make musical waves at clubs that include A.M., Booster, Beyond & Later as well as featuring in Bank Holiday Orange specials, just last week treating us to some storming sets at Beyond & Orange in Area’s fabulous Terrace Bar space, but really tickling our disco & funky fancies in the Vinyl room at A.M., showing the depth in his musical talent, his latest compilation out at http://terrybryan.podomatic.com giving a real flavour of his style.
Then there is the magnificent Mattias, who never fails to impress with his octane fuelled tech & progressive house, making him a favourite attraction wherever he goes, holding down a exhaustive international roster, but popping up in the capital every now & then, Barcode & A.M. included in recent appearances, his irresistible musical flair reflected beautifully in his latest “tech house in your face” mix out at http://djmattias.podomatic.com, while Rupert St favourite Alessandro Londra will be back to Lovechild too, stirring the emotions with his fiery Sicilian passion which shows through in the explosive & exciting music he plays, that has seen him star at Matinee’s both old & new, hangouts including Lo-Profile & Barcode, sexy lads outfits Rudeboiz & Fitladz, not to mention massive clubs As One & Beyond and his latest release “Get Wet”, out at http://soundcloud.com/djalessandrolondra/get-wet will certainly whet your appetite for his music…..”
In July, when London enjoyed the first of two Lovechild parties, the first being “Making Hay” which featured a South African talent that had made waves at the London Global Dance Festival just a few weeks before & we featured him in our focus post, also then mopping up on other’s D.J.’s works in a review postscript.
“…..Making a welcome return to the U.K. is South African Leroy Tayler, who starred at the recent LGDF series of events, landing plenty of new fans at Later’s party that Sunday, so should prove a popular draw again, his distinctly African inspired funky & electro sounds having secured a residency at Cape Town’s premier Crew Club, not to mention being part of Salvation’s touring team. And in celebration of his appearance, Leroy has laid down a specially dedicated compilation which is available at http://events.leroytayler.podomatic.com, the 117 minute mix very reflective of his afro percussive/electro style & sound and is an absolute gem…..”
“……As our review has highlighted, the music at this “Makin Hay” event pretty much stole the show, and the good news is that if you witnessed The Oli’s superb set, you can re-kindle some of that magic via his latest compilation “Long Summer” which is available at http://theoli.podomatic.com. Plus Phil Hewson has laid down a special mix for this “Making Hay” event, which you can download from http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com……”
August saw Lovechild going very summery on us with a beach party in association with Brighton’s Wild Fruit & the strong D.J. resident team certainly delivered on the promise within our “Hot Dates” post.
“…..But raunch aside, the music will be doing it own kind of talking across all three spaces and Lovechild will be bringing back some of its favourite residents who have been missing from recent parties. Alessandro Londra makes a welcome return, having completed a successful tour of Rome since his last Lovechild appearance and he continues to pack a punch at Lo-Profile, Barcode Vauxhall, Rudeboiz (he will know plenty about the contact room!) and, of course, his longstanding residency for Rupert Street. Over & above all of that, Alessandro can count recent gigs for both Beyond & Matinee as highlights, he performing brilliantly at the latter’s “Open Air Summer Party”, which was the Sunday success of the year so far. Young talent and recent Lovechild resident inclusion, Jc Christopher, also makes his return and this will be his third gig for Alex Erfan’s Saturday night outfit, Jc having really got the party going with a brilliant opening set at his last showing in June and will surely be doing the same again.
Then we come to the trio of Aussie’s that we hinted on earlier and first is Terry Vietheer, who like Jc is a recent addition to the Lovechild team, yet deservedly so as the man has been making waves over at Heaven’s Monday nighter, Popcorn, while he also resides for the monthly Shadow Lounge Thursday party, Hola, not to mention popping up at Barcode Vauxhall every now & then, Terry treating us to a terrific tank load of tunes at their 4th birthday bash. But one return we are really looking forward to is Brent Nicholls, who has be a noticeable absentee from the last two Lovechild’s thus making his return all the more enticing. And what can we say about this hugely popular & capable master of his game that we haven’t said before except of his unique genre of house, which he calls “nu-funk” & which is definitely doing it for us at the moment, should feature large in his se, so with the prospect of his performance soaked with these sensational sounds, we cannot wait…..”
September saw us miss out on Alex Erfan’s lovable brand, as we were on a tour of duty in Paris, although Lovechild had their own slice of France, a the Delice boys landed on London and we focussed on the event & an Italian & Englishman that made it the team of resident D.J.’s that time.
“…But, the music is likely to be just as attractive for this special party, not least as the guest slot is filled by the 
handsome & talented Fabio White, who last entertained us here in gAylist world in the capital at the massive London Global Dance Festival and we know just how excited he is to play at this latest Lovechild event and in Fire’s new look main room to boot. His combination of uplifting, funky & fulsome house will very much find favour with the Lovechild & Fire crowd, Mr White being backed up by a host of resident D.J.’s from promoter Alex Erfan’s extensive stable, the likes of Tony English & Leroy Tayler, both who are familiar with these hot & horny parties and who have just laid down new podcasts that give you more than a hint of the kind of music to expect from their sets. Tony’s latest is crammed with some of the most recent euro style beats to be hitting both the dancefloors & the airwaves, it also adding a touch of Spanish sound as Cafe Ole & Space Ibiza resident Pablo Kopanos features within the 70 minute mix which is well worth a listen by going to http://tonyenglish.podomatic.com…”
Then in October it was the turn of “Hot Muscle” to take centre stage, a musclbound event, with music to match, the team welcoming a special guest from the states, this giving us a chance to conduct a mini bio on this pint sized powerhouse.
“…Alex is proud to welcome Justin Ryan to London, an internationally renowned D.J. that made his debut behind the decks in New York, but soon spread his wings across America, playing an intrinsic part in Miami’s “Winter Party” & the city’s “Out In The Parks” summer tour, also playing out to packed audiences in Washington DC, Philadelphia, Dallas, Atlanta & Fire Island, as well as up in Montreal, Canada. However, spreading wings comes naturally to Justin and he has formed serious foundation in Australia, establishing a residency with one of the top events teams there, which has seen him play at the huge Sydney Mardi Gras, as well as for club brands Love Muscle, MarXe, Big Q Rising, and latterly, Live, the club that co-hosted the Lovechild party we mentioned earlier, Justin playing alongside Sydney based Johan Khoury (also a Lovechild guest D.J.) and London resident Alessandra Londra.
Mr Ryan’s characteristic uplifting vocals & melodic house hits, intermixed with progressive, latin & euro style beats are sure to go down a treat on the Lovechild London main floor and his energy & enthusiasm for his art will definitely come through, he remarking that “…I always try to deliver the highest energy through my performances, I like to feel part of the crowd and lead them through the party…” And, in celebration of his recent Sydney appearance & that for London this Saturday, Alex has laid down a special compilation, simply entitled “Lovechild” which is well worth a listen at http://justinryan.podomatic.com/ & judging by some of the tracks on here, gosh are we in for a treat at Fire (also check out his photo…he & Johan Khoury have to be related, what do you think?!)…”
And that bring us pretty much up to date, we going the extra mile with a full on postscript inclusion to our Lovechild 1st Anniversary review, which kind of speaks for itself & rounds up this special look at Lovechild, save for a final conclusion to come
“……There is little doubt that Lovechild has & continues to sport one of the strongest resident line-up’s on the capitals clubbing scene, not to mention a host of guest D.J.’s that make the music it plays not just diverse & interesting, but some of the best you will find anywhere. International talents that have graced the clubs decks in the year it has partied hard at Fire have included Albert Neve, Leomeo Carandang, Justin Ryan, Johan Khoury and, of course, Javier Medina, while London based guests extend to Terry Bryan, The Oli, Alan K & Nick Tcherniak. Yet, as this list wasn’t sparkling enough, you then include the list of residents & it truly becomes awesome, Italian’s Pagano, Gabriele Cutrano & Alessandro Londra, Australian’s, Brent Nicholls & Terry Vietheer, Englishmen, Phil Hewson, Tony English, Lee Harris & Jc Christopher, Scot, Paul Heron and Swede, Mattias, even South African Leroy Tayler, a roll call indeed.
But it gets better, as not only is there a special site dedicated to the music of Lovechild, mixes available from the likes of Nick T, Paul H, Mattias, Alessandro, Gabriele & many more, all 13 episodes which can be downloaded from http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com. But, yet more are available via the D.J.’s direct web pages, all worth a look, http://events.leroytayler.podomatic.com, http://justinryan.podomatic.com, http://soundcloud.com/djalessandrolondra, http://funkylondon.podomatic.com (Phi Hewson’s site) & http://soundcloud.com/gabrielecutrano.
However, marking this 1st Anniversary party as only he can do best, is Brent Nicholls, with his compilation entitled “LoveChildOne – Feels Like Fire Mix”, which he describes as “…a collection of funky flavoured nufunk, tech dipped & disco inspired tunes…” and he is not wrong there, our fave tracks being “C’mon Get Funky”, “Let’s All Chant”, “Sweep The Floor” & “Disco Disco Disco” (there’s a surprise), but with 13 more terrific tunes besides, making for what we would describe as a retro meets modern gem of a compilation with the Nicholls magical twist to it. So, this is truly a gorgeous gift to Lovechild on their 1st Anniversary and can be one to you too, by going to http://djbrentnicholls.com and then either scrolling down the home page, or selecting his “music” section.
Finally, the “official” Lovechild Anniversary mix was pressed onto CD for the party & handed out across the evening, this 44 minute marvel mixed by resident D.J. Tony English, which is a glorious collection of both uplifting vocal tunes & euro-style beats, very much evocate of his superb set on the night and is a MUST for your collection. Now, for those of you that weren’t around & didn’t get a copy, the good news is that it will be released on http://lovechildclub.podomatic.com in the next week or so, although in the meantime, if you fancy a copy, then just drop your details to Disco Matt headquarters via discomatt@hotmail.com & we will arrange to forward a copy to you. Plus, for Tony’s regular podcasts, go to http://tonyenglish.podomatic.com…..”
Well, that is it, our look back over the last five/six months of mesmeric music from this loveable clubbing brand and apart from saying, happy anniversary Lovechild, we love you, we have to thank ALL the D.J.’s that have graced Lovechild’s decks over these months, as well as thanking Alex Erfan, Roni Inan, Danny Shubert, Thiagio Drewery and the rest of the Lovechild team, without whom, this post would not have been possible.
So, with countless amounts of compilation mixes to download (if you don’t have them already, our parting words on this special musical look at Lovechild simply are, “…sit back, select those sounds, turn up the volume & let them play, as Music Is The Answer…”. (DISCO MATT)
Posted in Music | Tags: Albert Neve, Alessandro Londra, Alex Erfan, Brent Nicholls, Danny Shubert, Fabio White, Gabriele Cutrano, Javier Medina, Jc Christopher, Johan Khoury, Justin Ryan, Lee Harris, Leomeo, Leroy Tayler, Lovechild, Mattias, Nick Tcherniak, Pagano, Paul Heron, Phil Hewson, Roni Inan, Terry Bryan, Terry Vietheer, The Oli, Tony English | No Comments »
Having literally recovered from one hectic weekend, a very special one as it turned out, we absorbing everything that the breathtaking Berlin had to throw up on us, we find ourselves hurtling straight into another, this time back in blighty & London to be precise. And being Halloween, it seems that the world & his wife in the capital are getting in on the act, with a myriad of parties on offer in all corners of the city. So, to try & do some justice to the choices out there, we pick out our Best Bites giving some extra detail of what you can expect in Soho, Vauxhall & elsewhere this weekend, these being our picks of where to be & be seen.
So, without further ado let’s get on & look what Soho is serving up, Profile & Lo-Profile heading our list with their “Final Destination” weekend, Friday (tonight) seeing Jamie Head & Tony English serve up the sounds downstairs, while Phil Marriot belts out the club nation beats upstairs in profile, kicking off your evening from 7 p.m. & broadcasting his set live on Gaydar Radio. Then Saturday (30th Oct) see’s Lo-Profile entertain Latino’s Gonzalo Rivas & Alessandro Londra on the decks, adding their own spooky sounds to speed you into the day itself, while Craig Daniel’s hints to Halloween with plenty of house hits to get you in the mood. More info on both venues can be found at http://profilesoho.com & http://loprofile.com.
Turning to The Shadow Lounge, and without doubt it’s feature party is on Halloween itself, when they present the fabulous “Nightmare On Brewer Street” party, with a line-up on the decks that includes Pier Morrocco, Mis-White, Lee Harris & Phil Hewson, very much repeating the dream team that made promoter Les Johnson’s Cowboy private party so special last month. Whilst we are told there is no real dresscode, you are welcome to come dressed to impress, although the team have “…sexy & well as scary is the order of the day…”, Shadow Lounge suitably decked out for the occasion, support coming from sponsors Rio beach & Aware. Tickets are on sale at http://clubtickets.com as well as at outlets Prowler, Clone Zone, DV8 & (of Course) Rio Beach in Covent Garden, with special £10 entry discounts to Shadow Lounge members. Further info on other events at Shadow Lounge across the weekend, plus details of VIP table bookings can be found at http://theshadowlounge.co.uk.
Now, just before we head to Vauxhall, a quick mention to Ku Bar, who have a full-on Halloween weekend of fun at both the Frith St & Lisle St, with the talents of Lady Lloyd, Tasty Tim & Dusty O on display, with plenty of wicked yet wonderful offers across all three days, further details available at http://ku-bar.com, while Rupert Street throw everything into 31st October with their Halloween special “The Haunted Night”, the place suitably decked out to dazzle & resident D.J. Alessandro Londra serving up the spine chilling tunes. More info on the venue can be found at http://rupertstreet.com.
O.K., to Vauxhall we go and what a weekend The Orange Group have lined up, it having stared already with Gravity’s “Ghostbusters’s” party, with tonight (Fri 29th) seeing the turn of Onyx, who hold their “Apocalypse” party, with special PA guest Abigail Bailey & D.J. residents including Phil Marriot, JC Christopher, lee Harris, Tasty Tim, Lisa German, Ariel & more, then giving way to A:M “Asylum” with a three mausoleums of music including D.J.’s Pier Morrocco, D’Johnny, Fat Tony, Gonzalo Rivas, Alessandro Londra & special guest Andrei Stan. On Saturday, it’s their headline event “Vauxhall Chainsaw Massacre” which has already got our full focus at http://discomattweekend.blogspot.com/2010/10/penn-pumpkin-party-vauxhall-chainsaw, which is followed by Beyond “Hell” with the dream team of main room residents, Steve Pitron, Mikey D & Alan K, joined by the likes of Hifi Sean, D’Johnny & David Jimenez, plus special guest Lisa German & the return of resident Gonzalo Rivas, Plus with a P.A. from Eliotte Williams (of “Touch me” & “Get Busy” fame) the brilliant Beyond party will easily glide into then Later’s “Horrorfair” which will feature a giant haunted house & a murder motel (we love it), the spooky sounds coming from residents The Oli, Paul Martin & terry Bryan, joined by guests Gonzalo Rivas & D’Johnny. But the Halloween happenings are far from over, as Booster will be back with a special “Demon’s Ball”, D.J’s included being Miss Crazy D, La Gosse & Dan K, this followed at Area with a special Orange “Omen” party, featuring three rooms of red hot action, D.J.’; s including special guest Paul Heron who will join the 6-6-6 strong resident team of jocks. Now, each party has a specific event page on social networking site Facebook, plus further info can be found via the following sites, http://evolvedevents.co.uk & http://gayguestlists.com, plus via the respective pages at http://clubtickets.com where you can get tickets for all Orange group events.
Orange Group aside, The Eagle are pulling out the Halloween stops, with three absolute hooters, tonight (Fri 29th) seeing Tonker hold their “OKtoBear Fest”, welcoming special guest D.J. and ex Erasure member, Andy Bell, to the decks, while centre stage goes to Carpet Burn on Saturday, with their “Halloween Scream” event welcoming Dave Kendrick & Paul Burston to the decks, plus the team have their “Carpet Madness Sale” with entry at just £2.99 until midnight & a whole load of drinks offers too. Then, on Sunday Jim Stanton, James Hillard & co roll out another gymkana-tastic Horse Meat Disco, seeing you right into Monday morning in style, with full details of all the Halloween happenings at the Eagle, plus plenty more, available at their website http://eaglelodon.com.
Two quick Vauxhall mentions also go to Suzi Krueger’s (what a perfect name for Halloween) Hard On! which is back for its monthly fetish frolic at Hidden this Sat (30th Oct), with a special guest appearance by hunky American porn star, Samuel Colt, plus drinks offers to boot (no pun intended) and also 100 free Beyond tickets up for grabs. More details on this members meet can be found at http://hardonclub.co.uk. Then, on Sunday, all pumpkins point to The RVT who are holding their own homage to Halloween, with plenty of witches & warlocks promised (and that’s just Simon le Vans & The D.E. Experience!) more details of this & other RVT events, including the fabulous “Queer Question Time”, which takes place tonight & his hosted by Stewart Whoo, can be found at http://rvt.org.uk.
Right, moving o
n swiftly and our alternative antics are down to two main protagonists, first & foremost the great Gutterslut, which is back with a bang for a special Halloween party on Saturday (30th Oct), choosing the fabulous East Bloc (host to Disco Fag Bar) as the venue and this looks like being a hum dinger of a happening, as the team are flying in super sexy guest D.J. Miss Dilemma straight from Sweden, who will join residents Per QX, Elliot J Brown & Nic Fischer, while the “Discoslut” second room will have the usual reprobates in charge of the tunes. Plus with Miss MC Crystal doing her stuff & all the Halloween hosting coming from Ingenue St John & A Man To Pet, this whacky & wonderful event is likely to be yet another sell-out, especially after the huge success of last month’s “Gutterball” event, more details available by mailing gutterslutuk@yahoo.co.uk. But it doesn’t stop there, as the team are hosting room 2 at Trade’s 20th Birthday, special guest Mikki Most (of Trailer Trash) joining Per, Nic & Elliot who will be keeping the Gutterslutery going deep into Sunday daytime, yippee.
But if all that is a bit too much, then you can always head for The Dalston Superstore, who have a whole weekend of wonderment, kicking off tonight (Fri 29th) with “Techno In My Fridge – Fright Night!”, featuring the talents of Hannah Holland, Mikki Most, Alexander parade & inbound Gutterslut guest, Sweden’s Miss Dilemma, with upstairs action from Eka & Scott Webster. Then, on Saturday, “Hot Boy Dancing Spot” returns for their own Halloween Ball, starring The Lovely Jonjo, Matthew Stone, Hello Mozart & Dean Mayo’s gang, while on Halloween itself, “Tootie Frutti” is back after the venue hosts Jonny Woo’s Gay Bingo, Jeffrey Hinton joining resident D.J. Squeaky for a fun filled yet freaky end to your weekend. Now, the boys, Matt Tucker, Dan Beaumont & Rook Deejay do most of their promotions through Facebook, so it’s worth joining the Dalston Superstore group there, although you can always follow the boys on twitter at http://twitter.com/dsuperstore, or get further information by mailing hello@dalstonsuperstore.com.
Right, we are nearly there, save for three shouts to Black Rabbit Circus & New, two that have the Guy Williams stamp all over them & the third looking like an extra special event not to be missed. First up is Black Rabbit, who celebrate their 4th birthday with their “Halloween Thang” bash out at The Masons Arms, featuring special guest D.J. Matthew Bushwacka, joining Guy, Bones, Severino & Sophie Lloyd on the decks, more details available via the ticket link https://ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=412004, while on Sunday new club, New, have their own hint to Halloween, featuring live band the Little Nigh Terrors & a special D.J. set from guest Rachael Starr. But Sunday is looking special back in central London, as Jodie Harsh’s Circus rolls back into town on the 31st floor of Paramount, with special guest D.J. Tom Stephan & other special attendees to this “Nightmare In New York” themed event, being Amanda Lepore & Ruby Goe.
So, that’s our picks for this special Halloween weekend but if there is nothing that quite tickles your fancy here, you could always wade through the pages of the popular press or the events listings on social networking site Facebook. Then, there is clubbing website SeenQueen, which has their own homage to Halloween, which you can find (dare we quote the link) at http://seenqueen.com.
As for our weekend, well having fought off a 24 hour bug, we are heading into town for a Profile rendezvous with Phil Marriot, then will take a short respite before A;M’s “Asylum”. On Saturday, we start the birthday celebrations with Guy Williams’ Black Rabbit, then it’s the big two zero, as we head to Arcadia for Trade. Sunday sees us continue the partying at Lee Freeman’s DTPM “Eastbenders” event & energy permitting we hope to 666 it at Orange’s “Omen” outing. So, if you see you out come say hi, but whatever you do, have a fantastic Halloween weekend that is full of treats not treats, don’t forget that the clocks go back an hour on Sunday morning & finally, as we always say….Go There! Be There! (DISCO MATT)
Posted in Recommends | Tags: Alan K, Alessandro Londra, Beyond, Black Rabbit, Booster, Carpet urn, Circus, Craig Daniels, D'Johnny, Dalston Superstore, Dave Kendrick, Elliot J Brown, Gonzalo Rivas, Gravity, Gutterslut, Guy Williams, Hifi Sean, Horse Meat Disco, Jamie Head, Jim Stanton, Jodie Harsh, Later, Lee Harris, Lo-Profile, Mikey D, Mis-White, New, Nic Fisher, Onyx, Orange, Paul Burston, Per QX, Phil Hewson, Phil Marriot, Pier Morrocco, Profile Bar, Rupert Street, Shadow Lounge, Steve Pitron, The Sharp Boys, Tom Stephan, Tonker, Tony English | No Comments »
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12 Oct 2011 | 0 Comments
Recommends – “Finding A Pulse” – Lovechild “The Big Blue” – Saturday 15th October – Weekend Focus Special
Over the years we have grown particularly fond of certain brands that have braved the capitals clubbing scene, the reasons for our attractions as varied as the clubs themselves, although certain common denominators kind of tie them together, the music & the music makers two perfect examples, although with certain ...
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24 Apr 2011 | 0 Comments
Reports – “Sound Spoils The Spectacle” – As One Easter Spectacular – Saturday 23rd April – Preview The Review
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Does… “Three’s Company” – Music Newsletter – Thursday 31st March
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24 Jan 2011 | 1 Comment
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If there was one brand that got our attention & devotion the most in 2010, it was promoter Alex Erfan’s lovable club, a whole string of events throughout the year really capturing the imagination, from its inclusion in the years biggie, As One, to its own outings, highlights surely being ...
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14 Jan 2011 | 1 Comment
Weekend Focus – “Surfing Snowboard” – Lovechild “Snowball” – Saturday 15th January
Having had probably one of their best years yet, cementing their monthly parties at Fire in London’s Vauxhall, plus having racked up an impressive amount of tours both domestically & internationally, including Paris, Brussels, Antwerp, Amsterdam, Rome, Istanbul & Sydney, Lovechild concentrates firmly on home this Saturday (15th Jan) with ...
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3 Dec 2010 | 0 Comments
DM Recommends – “Back Best & Rest Bite-ing” – Weekend Best & Rest Bites – 3rd to 5th Dec
It certainly feels a little bit strange (but good strange you understand) to be sitting here & transmitting our Weekend Recommendations again, plus, just ahead of our new website launch on Monday as well as lots of other exciting developments to come. And it is good to be back, not ...
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Club Review – “Mr Medina Makes His Mark” – Lovechild 1st Anniversary – Saturday 13th November
Looking back over the last few months, indeed years, there is no doubt that when it comes to Saturday night clubbing, the scene in London has seen some quite dramatic changes in trend, this usually most popular weekend slot having pitched & yawed in popularity, only a handful of brands ...
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Music Is The Answer – “Anniversary Accolade” – Lovechild Special – Thursday 25th November
In advance of our latest DM Does The Music News post, entitled “Big Guns & Baby Boomers”, due out later this week, we thought we would whet your music appeties with a special devotion to all things Lovechild, the club brand that marked one year at its current home Fire, ...
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29 Oct 2010 | 0 Comments
Weekend Best Bites Special – “Hectic Halloween”
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