MATINEE PAPARAZZI
SUNDAY 4TH MAY
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
After the huge sell-out Easter party, so, came yet another instalment of Matinee, this time Paparazzi, styled as a tribute to all things glamorous, catwalk style, with camera’s flashing and a mass of true clubbing fanatics.
The build up to this now unmissible outing was like no other, with, yet again, tickets sold out days before the event and Matinee being on the lips of everyone we bumped into leading up to Sunday night. So despite a gruelling work schedule sandwiched by a trip to Beyond, we made our way over to Farringdon and the delights of Fabric.
We were expecting it to be busy, so arriving earlier than usual at 11 p.m., it was no surprise that there was a queue to get in, not to mention at the coatcheck, although the staff were very efficient in managing the many clubbers anxious to get a piece of the action and it wasn’t long before we descended down into the club, to the now familiar pulsating sounds emanating from room one.
It was clear that most had decided to get there early as everywhere was swarming with avid party goers and glancing across to the DJ booth, we saw Eduardo De La Torre holding fort and pumping out hard edged sounds to a rammed dancefloor. Having spotted friends at the bar, so busy was room one, we soon lost them in the crowd, so assumed our usual spot pinned against the side wall of the booth, where finding a space to dance was a real battle, but one that we eventually won.
Having been talked up by so many we knew, not surprisingly, face after face wondered past, saying hello, being a mix of scene faces, off duty DJ’s and even the odd work colleague, all sucking up the unique atmosphere that Matinee has brought to Fabric. As always, the team had adorned the club with fantastic production, the stage being the real focal point for the Paparazzi theme, with a fabulous catwalk and huge glittering Matinee signage.
With Eduardo handing the reigns over to Spanish Matinee resident G Martin, the music took on an altogether harder twist, momentarily lifted with the lighting up of the stage. This greeted the arrival of the now infamous resident go-go boys and dancers, suitably dressed in outrageous outfits as they strutted their stuff up and down the catwalk. With camera’s flashing and the crowd focussed on the show, room one was well and truly alive, with more and more revellers squeezing themselves into what space was left.
With no room left to dance, we decided to venture into room two and couldn’t have timed our arrival better as Micky Tiger was handing over to scene favourite DJ Brent Nicholls. It was down to Brent to step up the pace of the floor and he certainly didn’t disappoint, as record after record got the crowd well and truly hooked to his unique funky and latin twisted house. So good was it, that the dancefloor soon filled to capacity and had us mesmerised right through his set, burning up our spot and hardly pausing for breath. Soaking up the electric atmosphere we went into seventh heaven with not one bad record or foot put out of place by Mr Nicholls. By now room one was a distant memory and we could have savoured his music talents all night, but like so many things we enjoy, it had to come to an end, all too short in our view. So with the swap over to Ariel, which was immediately noticeable, this signalled our return to the main room.
So good had been Brent’s performance that everything after that failed to deliver anywhere near as strongly or hit to spot like he had done. So enthralling was room two under his control that we had missed out on Rebeka Brown, although this was a small price to pay for mind blowing music and a fantastic atmosphere, truly brilliant. In actual fact, we only realised on leaving that Rebeka had gone down with a virus of some sort.
By this time, Taito Tikaro was holding court in room one, delivering equally hard edged music to that of G Martin and as much as we tried to get into the music, only flecks of tracks got us gyrating to his sounds. The imminent arrival of Oliver M & Pier Morocco gave us renewed energy although it seemed like an age before they actually took over proceedings. But like Taito Tikaro before them, they didn’t really enthral us, although it would be fair to say that by now most of our energy had been sapped out of us following our magnificent escapades in room two. Nevertheless the main room was still full of Matinee fans and bumping into yet more friends renewed our energy levels for one final push.
With the 10 a.m. finish fast approaching, we finally said our goodbye’s and slipped out of Fabric into the morning sunshine of Farringdon, meandering our way home to reflect on another massive Matinee outing.
So, was the party a success, judging by the huge crowd it drew and all the familiar faces we spotted, certainly yes. There was huge expectation following the Easter event and the more recent t-dance, so maybe we looking for more from Paparazzi and because of this it may have not always delivered what we wanted.
As much that Taito Tikaro and G-Martin are household names in Matinee circles, for us, they could not compare with the talents of Brad and Jordi Light who had entertained us at the previous party, Rewind. Brent Nicholls’ performance, for us, stood head and shoulders above the rest of the DJ’s sets at Paparazzi and his inclusion in the next Matinee outing, perhaps in the main room, cannot be overlooked.
Did we enjoy ourselves, ofcourse we did. Matinee has a unique vibe and a real sense of theatre, which many London clubs would be very enviable of. With a true “A-List” gathering backed up by the now solid production and promotion, we will continue to support what has to be our favourite clubbing event of the moment. With the team branching out to an associated night Revolver, before the return of Matinee in June, there seems to be a lot more to come from Oliver M & Logan, so be rest assured we will be booking our place at the next one. (DISCO MATT)
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