MATINEE XMAS SPECIAL – SATURDAY 13TH DECEMBER
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
December always holds great excitement for us, being a special celebratory month for a number of reasons and this year is no exception, the excitement heightened by the prospect of a special Christmas party by the London wing of the Spanish clubbing brand extraordinaire, Matinee. Riding on the success of the change both in venue, from Fabric and day, from Sunday to Saturday, we were expecting yet another fantastic party at super club Colosseum in Vauxhall and an ideal warm up to the festive season ahead.
Since moving back south of the river, Matinee has enjoyed tremendous success with each and every party packed to the rafters, although with the backdrop of issues at the last event, problematical bar staff, a long wait at the coatcheck and the official second room being downstairs, we were hopeful that both the venue owners & the promoters had stood up and listened to some of our pleas to change things round. Indeed, shunning our usual warm up at Barcode Vauxhall (last time proving a disastrous choice), we also “changed” things round, by opting for a pre club visit to sister venue, Barcode Soho, a perfect move and an ideal start to our night.
Arriving at the doors of Matinee slightly later than usual at half past midnight, heading for the ticket queue, clutching ours, the characteristic tones of Marky B beckoned us to a swift entry into the club, also being greeted by the effervescent Minty, giving us her usual rapturous welcome which always puts us in a good mood. Negotiating the entrance with consummate efficiency, we also didn’t have to wait that long to deposit our belongings into the coatcheck, despite the large queue we joined, the first sign that the venue had reacted to previous issues.
Moving up the stairs we were taken aback by the stunning inclusion of a traditional brass band ensemble, playing out festive tunes as a fabulous welcome to clubbers and giving the entry to the bar and the main room a real Christmassy feel, a lovely touch at that and a surprise not only to us but many around. Arming ourselves with refreshments, we dived headlong into the main room, an already packed dancefloor and immediately noticed a change to the layout, the usual spot of the D.J. booth moved, making way for a superb stage area where a troupe of go-go dancers, provided by the Fierce International crew (a now regular inclusion in any event hosted by Evolved Events) were strutting their stuff!. With the D.J. booth moved the elevated dancefloor spot on the far side of the main room, with the now characteristic neon light backdrop, we spotted Paul Heron in charge of the decks, pumping out a mix of chunky electro infused house tunes to an adorning mix of stunning looking latino’s, familiar scene faces, off duty D.J’s and a wonderful balance of guys & gals.
Finding our way through and out of the main room, we were keen to see if the V.I.P. room was in operation and were so excited when we swung into the space, with Nathan 6 holding court to a building crowd of enthusiasts. However, our initial tour of the venue was not yet over, as we quickly slipped back through the main room and down the entrance stairs, into the space, which, for the last two parties, had been the official “second” room, but was now styled the “test lounge”, sporting Matinee D.J. virgins, including Joel Antunes and our pal Lee Yeomans. Lee was behind the decks, tempting a bunch of hopefuls with minimal vocal techhouse sounds, giving the room a slightly different feel to the main floor above. After a momentary chat with Lee, we returned back upstairs, bumping into a collection of people, many of whom wandered whether we were on review duty, although we really wanted to savour the great music on offer. So, back in the main room we found our dancing spot right by the side of the D.J. booth as Paul Heron was handing over to Spanish Matinee D.J. resident Lydia Sanz and were delighted when we were sported with a Matinee T-shirt , which we immediately customised to wear with pride. Evolved Events supremo Oliver Mohns, was close at hand and we exchanged greetings and then thoughts about the new main room layout, which was clearly going down well with the faithful crowd, being further enhanced by the more melodic house sounds being delivered by Lydia.
But it was the V.I.P. room where we kept being tempted, so a further quick dash downstairs before settling in our favourite spot, found us bumping into friend Denival, at the entrance to the “test lounge”, where he grabbed us in a longing embrace and a chain of kisses, which sent our mood into the stratosphere. Now, our party was well and truly underway so we could not resist what was to come in the V.I.P. room and with photography maestro Chris Jepson snapping us as we moved back through the club, also coming across handfuls of pals including best mate Benoit (in Matinee!!) we swung into the now official second room where D.J. Alessandro was in control.
What then happened was short of magnificent as he entertained us to an enthralling set of new and unheard house mixes which had the V.I.P. room well and truly rocking. Ascending the elevated stage area next to the D.J. booth we quickly found our spot and danced away merrily, hardly pausing for breath as tune after tune had us captivated and Alessandro continually being congratulated by person after person. His set developed into the best we have enjoyed from this new talent yet reflecting that truly deserves his slot in this very special club and space.
As if Alessandro wasn’t enough, with the reigns being handed over to scene favourite Brent Nicholls, it was only going to get better for us, and this was the set that we had been waiting for. And he failed to disappoint, taking us on a superb journey of electro funked, hardhouse edged tracks, intermixed with Disco tipped and floor filling tunes which had us well and truly hooked. By now the main room was a distant memory and we were going absolutely nowhere else but the V.I.P. room, even if Pagano was by now in charge next door. With familiar faces dropping in, including Steven Artis, Joel Antunes, & Matt Bird, we continued to dance away on our raised spot, our energy levels being regularly refreshed by the brilliant music choices Brent was making and we hardly realised the time as we completely succumbed to the superb atmosphere and ambience of Matinee at its best.
But, the inevitable call of work drew close and with time well a truly up for us, we meandered out of the V.I.P. room, back round through a still packed main floor, now in the hands of Guy Williams, down the stairs and out of the club into the cold of a Vauxhall December morning to the comfort of our bed to rest our worn out limbs.
So, was it the Xmas party we were expecting? That is answered with a resounding yes! With previous coatcheck problems ironed out, with a surprising brass band welcome, with superb music across all the rooms, a fantastic collection of gorgeous looking people in our midst, not to mention friends a plenty, but moreover the return of the V.I.P. room, made this a night to remember. Was it the best yet? Well in settling at Club Colosseum, Matinee has found its true home in London and all the parties here have been superb. For us Viva was an exceptional party and was always going to be a hard act to follow, but it is fair to say that this Xmas outing was a close second, so we now simply cannot wait for the NYD Afterhours event, which we are sure is set to eclipse even Viva and therefore to reaffirm Matinee as simply magic. (DISCO MATT)
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
December always holds great excitement for us, being a special celebratory month for a number of reasons and this year is no exception, the excitement heightened by the prospect of a special Christmas party by the London wing of the Spanish clubbing brand extraordinaire, Matinee. Riding on the success of the change both in venue, from Fabric and day, from Sunday to Saturday, we were expecting yet another fantastic party at super club Colosseum in Vauxhall and an ideal warm up to the festive season ahead.
Since moving back south of the river, Matinee has enjoyed tremendous success with each and every party packed to the rafters, although with the backdrop of issues at the last event, problematical bar staff, a long wait at the coatcheck and the official second room being downstairs, we were hopeful that both the venue owners & the promoters had stood up and listened to some of our pleas to change things round. Indeed, shunning our usual warm up at Barcode Vauxhall (last time proving a disastrous choice), we also “changed” things round, by opting for a pre club visit to sister venue, Barcode Soho, a perfect move and an ideal start to our night.
Arriving at the doors of Matinee slightly later than usual at half past midnight, heading for the ticket queue, clutching ours, the characteristic tones of Marky B beckoned us to a swift entry into the club, also being greeted by the effervescent Minty, giving us her usual rapturous welcome which always puts us in a good mood. Negotiating the entrance with consummate efficiency, we also didn’t have to wait that long to deposit our belongings into the coatcheck, despite the large queue we joined, the first sign that the venue had reacted to previous issues.
Moving up the stairs we were taken aback by the stunning inclusion of a traditional brass band ensemble, playing out festive tunes as a fabulous welcome to clubbers and giving the entry to the bar and the main room a real Christmassy feel, a lovely touch at that and a surprise not only to us but many around. Arming ourselves with refreshments, we dived headlong into the main room, an already packed dancefloor and immediately noticed a change to the layout, the usual spot of the D.J. booth moved, making way for a superb stage area where a troupe of go-go dancers, provided by the Fierce International crew (a now regular inclusion in any event hosted by Evolved Events) were strutting their stuff!. With the D.J. booth moved the elevated dancefloor spot on the far side of the main room, with the now characteristic neon light backdrop, we spotted Paul Heron in charge of the decks, pumping out a mix of chunky electro infused house tunes to an adorning mix of stunning looking latino’s, familiar scene faces, off duty D.J’s and a wonderful balance of guys & gals.
Finding our way through and out of the main room, we were keen to see if the V.I.P. room was in operation and were so excited when we swung into the space, with Nathan 6 holding court to a building crowd of enthusiasts. However, our initial tour of the venue was not yet over, as we quickly slipped back through the main room and down the entrance stairs, into the space, which, for the last two parties, had been the official “second” room, but was now styled the “test lounge”, sporting Matinee D.J. virgins, including Joel Antunes and our pal Lee Yeomans. Lee was behind the decks, tempting a bunch of hopefuls with minimal vocal techhouse sounds, giving the room a slightly different feel to the main floor above. After a momentary chat with Lee, we returned back upstairs, bumping into a collection of people, many of whom wandered whether we were on review duty, although we really wanted to savour the great music on offer. So, back in the main room we found our dancing spot right by the side of the D.J. booth as Paul Heron was handing over to Spanish Matinee D.J. resident Lydia Sanz and were delighted when we were sported with a Matinee T-shirt , which we immediately customised to wear with pride. Evolved Events supremo Oliver Mohns, was close at hand and we exchanged greetings and then thoughts about the new main room layout, which was clearly going down well with the faithful crowd, being further enhanced by the more melodic house sounds being delivered by Lydia.
But it was the V.I.P. room where we kept being tempted, so a further quick dash downstairs before settling in our favourite spot, found us bumping into friend Denival, at the entrance to the “test lounge”, where he grabbed us in a longing embrace and a chain of kisses, which sent our mood into the stratosphere. Now, our party was well and truly underway so we could not resist what was to come in the V.I.P. room and with photography maestro Chris Jepson snapping us as we moved back through the club, also coming across handfuls of pals including best mate Benoit (in Matinee!!) we swung into the now official second room where D.J. Alessandro was in control.
What then happened was short of magnificent as he entertained us to an enthralling set of new and unheard house mixes which had the V.I.P. room well and truly rocking. Ascending the elevated stage area next to the D.J. booth we quickly found our spot and danced away merrily, hardly pausing for breath as tune after tune had us captivated and Alessandro continually being congratulated by person after person. His set developed into the best we have enjoyed from this new talent yet reflecting that truly deserves his slot in this very special club and space.
As if Alessandro wasn’t enough, with the reigns being handed over to scene favourite Brent Nicholls, it was only going to get better for us, and this was the set that we had been waiting for. And he failed to disappoint, taking us on a superb journey of electro funked, hardhouse edged tracks, intermixed with Disco tipped and floor filling tunes which had us well and truly hooked. By now the main room was a distant memory and we were going absolutely nowhere else but the V.I.P. room, even if Pagano was by now in charge next door. With familiar faces dropping in, including Steven Artis, Joel Antunes, & Matt Bird, we continued to dance away on our raised spot, our energy levels being regularly refreshed by the brilliant music choices Brent was making and we hardly realised the time as we completely succumbed to the superb atmosphere and ambience of Matinee at its best.
But, the inevitable call of work drew close and with time well a truly up for us, we meandered out of the V.I.P. room, back round through a still packed main floor, now in the hands of Guy Williams, down the stairs and out of the club into the cold of a Vauxhall December morning to the comfort of our bed to rest our worn out limbs.
So, was it the Xmas party we were expecting? That is answered with a resounding yes! With previous coatcheck problems ironed out, with a surprising brass band welcome, with superb music across all the rooms, a fantastic collection of gorgeous looking people in our midst, not to mention friends a plenty, but moreover the return of the V.I.P. room, made this a night to remember. Was it the best yet? Well in settling at Club Colosseum, Matinee has found its true home in London and all the parties here have been superb. For us Viva was an exceptional party and was always going to be a hard act to follow, but it is fair to say that this Xmas outing was a close second, so we now simply cannot wait for the NYD Afterhours event, which we are sure is set to eclipse even Viva and therefore to reaffirm Matinee as simply magic. (DISCO MATT)
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