MATINEE N.Y.D. AFTERHOURS – THURSDAY 1ST JANUARY
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
Ever since legendary afterhours club Beyond graced our shores, New Years day was simply not the same without a visit to Club Colosseum in Vauxhall and even when Beyond was no more, this special slot was filled by “ULTRADE” (a combined effort combo between clubs Trade & Ultra) to ensure that New Years day party hedonists could continue the tradition.
So, when news came through that Matinee (who had taken Colosseum by storm in September) were to hold their New Years day party here, we were very excited indeed. Moreover the hype surrounding this superb clubbing brand in London was sufficient to raise expectations to dizzy heights, meaning we, amongst many, had shunned the New Years Eve parties on offer, rather to throw our whole energies into what was billed to be THE party to be at.
Arriving in Vauxhall on a chilly morning at 6 p.m. at what we thought would be a time when we would simply sail through its doors, we approached club Colosseum to what can only be described complete pandemonium. Having realised that the venue owners had hired out the space to Megawoof on N.Y.E. which was planned to finish at 6 p.m., with Matinee’s organisers been given the space from 5 a.m., dovetailing the clubs was an accident waiting to happen. Not only were the resultant queues massive, the communication of where to stand non existent, which queue was which confusing, but with Matinee forced to use just one small entrance & room while the others were emptied, superb door hostess Minty simply struggled to keep the masses in order. With the “world & his wife” now queuing to get into the talk of the town (so much better a proposition that any N.Y.E. party and having been hyped up so much, guilty as charged guv!!), we were surely in for a long wait.
And wait we did, needing like many, to have our pre-arranged tickets checked off a list, a ½ hour wait turning into 1 hour and with no sign of us getting anywhere near the club entrance. Moreover, many were less patient than us and we saw scores of people simply give up on the complete chaos. With tempers flaring and with us at our wits end, we were just a hairs breadth from throwing in the towel ourselves, when Evolved Events supreme Oliver Mohns came to our rescue and got us through the mess & into the club. It was clear he had a lot on his hands as the advertised “ultra efficient indoor coatcheck” was anything but, the queue winding right up the stairs, through the balcony bar and into the main room, surely the last straw for those waiting so long to get in, the venue clearly letting Matinee down dreadfully.
Shunning the massive coatcheck queue, we wedged ourselves passed bodies in a crowded main room, through the congested passage and back bar area, into a lively V.I.P. room and into the welcoming arms of D.J. Alessandro, who kindly took our belongings to store behind the D.J. booth. So, now our party could now start as we immediately bought ourselves and our saviour Alessandro liquid refreshments, soaking up the music and atmosphere exuding from this most favourite of rooms, not only in Colosseum, but any club in London. Alessandro set about laying down some superb beats to an ever building crowd which included the arrival of cute & lovely Eduardo De La Torre, who was set to go back-to-back in Ibiza style music delight in this most special space.
We wanted to explore the rest of the club however, and wandered back through the pulsating main room, through towards the long room, which for us had the best D.J. billing in the form of Brent Nicholls, Nick Tcherniak & Paul Heron. We were keen to catch up with Brent following his Christmas excursion abroad, but were bemused to find the room still closed, so weaved past the still massive coatcheck queue, down the stairs and into a sparse “café resse” room, where Nathan 6 attempting to draw in a crowd. Before long, it was back up the stairs, past a still closed long room, through a bursting to the seams main room, on the way bumping into super friends, Jamie Head, Jeremy Precelton, Mark Thyme, Enrico & John from Rupert St as well as Matt Bird (who were clearly lapping up the atmosphere) and back into the V.I.P. space, to find Alessandro pumping out a collection of funky, chunky electro infused tunes to a packed room of party boys & girls that he had well and truly eating out of his hands.
Eventually, our prayers were answered when we found the entrance doors to the long room swung open and we could savour this space in the hands of Brent Nicholls. However, it was fair to say that the room was freezing and we approached the D.J. booth to find a short of shivering Brent behind the decks. Pleased to see eachother, we quickly caught up on news, remarking on the debarkle of our entry, then the delay in opening this space and the resultant cold. This delay meant that Brent played out for little more that 30 minutes before the arrival of Nick Tcherniak and whilst many soon got the drift that the room was open, most refused to stick around for long simply because of the uninviting temperature. Nick bounded over to say hello and immediately vowed to get the venue to turn up the heat in the room, but despite his efforts, on assuming his position behind the D.J. Booth, no real change to the chilly conditions occurred.
It was now time to warm up, so swinging back through the main room, we were in time to catch the first of many outings by the fabulous Fierce International go-go dancers in the capable and masterful hands of Mark M Forms, an engaging and handsome character who had invited us through to the dressing room to meet up. However, our nerves got the better of us (to be amongst that mass of muscle & testosterone was too much), although we were pleased when he caught us in the crowd in the middle of the main room, spotting us immediately (good on him). It is fair to say that the dancers were one of just a few highlights of the evening and with the now regular stage expanse across the back of the room being their “spot”, the mixture of male muscle and female beauty, combined with stunning costumes, certainly made an impact.
By now, we were intent on having a good time, so shunning the earlier problems from our minds, we went in search of pleasure. And it was fair to say that pleasure came in bucket loads, in the form of magnificent music & atmosphere in the V.I.P. room in the hands of Alessandro & Eduardo, who went back-to-back as if they had been D.J.’ing together for years, sending a rocking room wild with pure Ibiza infused musical magic. This was matched by Nick Tcherniak in the long room, yes it was still cold, but the music was hot, Nick treating us to progressive techhouse heaven, meaning that the long room was where it was at for us for most of the rest of the evening. And when Paul Heron took over, dressed resplendently in a tartan kilt (was he a true Scotsman underneath?) we hardly moved from our spot, acting, in his own words, as Paul’s “private dancer”, as he like Nick and Brent before him played some fantastic music but struggled to fill the room. Paul’s mix of electro house hedonism infused with disco tipped tracks was worthy of main room airing, rather than this cold corridor style space! But we didn’t care as we danced away merrily.
Over in the main room Luca G performed to the still packed crowd, then giving over to Italian stallion D.J. Pagano, who rounded things off with a brilliant set. However, we were glad to see our party out (a whole 6 hours worth and hardly a moment not dancing!) in the hands of Mr Heron, before sliding out of Matinee into the early afternoon of the first day of 2009, to continue a marathon of clubbing escapades.
So what was the verdict of Matinee afterhours NYD? Well, with so much expectation we would be lying if it fell short in some respects. The queues at the beginning were definitely not the start we wanted; although we would have been foolish to expect anything else from a venue that is renowned for messing things up on New Years Day (we have lost count the hours lost in waiting for NYD Beyond parties). As for the coatcheck, well again, the venue simply cannot be allowed to boast, quote “the best system in Europe” when it failed to deliver again!! Furthermore, the lack of sufficient heating in the long room, coupled with excessive temperatures in the other rooms, really didn’t help. However, the Matinee magic in the form of a top notch D.J. line up, the usual great performances from the Fierce International crew and the characteristically sexy and up for it crowd, made up for all the shortcomings.
On speaking with the promoter after the event, it was clear that the venue failed to deliver what had been asked for. This combined with other difficulties faced (we won’t bore you with the detail, shocking as it is), left him more than disappointed. Were we? Well with the venue yes, with Matinee definitely not. It was a party well worth being at and we did actually enjoy ourselves immensely. In saying that “music is the answer to your problems” sums Matinee NYD up for us. The music was short of amazing from D.J’s, Alessandro, Eduardo de La Torre, Nick Tcherniak, but best of all from Paul Heron (the man is sheer brilliance). The company was fantastic too and the Matinee magic still alive & kicking. We will definitely be there for the next party and you can be rest assured that the promoters will make damn sure the venue delivers to expectations. (DISCO MATT)
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
Ever since legendary afterhours club Beyond graced our shores, New Years day was simply not the same without a visit to Club Colosseum in Vauxhall and even when Beyond was no more, this special slot was filled by “ULTRADE” (a combined effort combo between clubs Trade & Ultra) to ensure that New Years day party hedonists could continue the tradition.
So, when news came through that Matinee (who had taken Colosseum by storm in September) were to hold their New Years day party here, we were very excited indeed. Moreover the hype surrounding this superb clubbing brand in London was sufficient to raise expectations to dizzy heights, meaning we, amongst many, had shunned the New Years Eve parties on offer, rather to throw our whole energies into what was billed to be THE party to be at.
Arriving in Vauxhall on a chilly morning at 6 p.m. at what we thought would be a time when we would simply sail through its doors, we approached club Colosseum to what can only be described complete pandemonium. Having realised that the venue owners had hired out the space to Megawoof on N.Y.E. which was planned to finish at 6 p.m., with Matinee’s organisers been given the space from 5 a.m., dovetailing the clubs was an accident waiting to happen. Not only were the resultant queues massive, the communication of where to stand non existent, which queue was which confusing, but with Matinee forced to use just one small entrance & room while the others were emptied, superb door hostess Minty simply struggled to keep the masses in order. With the “world & his wife” now queuing to get into the talk of the town (so much better a proposition that any N.Y.E. party and having been hyped up so much, guilty as charged guv!!), we were surely in for a long wait.
And wait we did, needing like many, to have our pre-arranged tickets checked off a list, a ½ hour wait turning into 1 hour and with no sign of us getting anywhere near the club entrance. Moreover, many were less patient than us and we saw scores of people simply give up on the complete chaos. With tempers flaring and with us at our wits end, we were just a hairs breadth from throwing in the towel ourselves, when Evolved Events supreme Oliver Mohns came to our rescue and got us through the mess & into the club. It was clear he had a lot on his hands as the advertised “ultra efficient indoor coatcheck” was anything but, the queue winding right up the stairs, through the balcony bar and into the main room, surely the last straw for those waiting so long to get in, the venue clearly letting Matinee down dreadfully.
Shunning the massive coatcheck queue, we wedged ourselves passed bodies in a crowded main room, through the congested passage and back bar area, into a lively V.I.P. room and into the welcoming arms of D.J. Alessandro, who kindly took our belongings to store behind the D.J. booth. So, now our party could now start as we immediately bought ourselves and our saviour Alessandro liquid refreshments, soaking up the music and atmosphere exuding from this most favourite of rooms, not only in Colosseum, but any club in London. Alessandro set about laying down some superb beats to an ever building crowd which included the arrival of cute & lovely Eduardo De La Torre, who was set to go back-to-back in Ibiza style music delight in this most special space.
We wanted to explore the rest of the club however, and wandered back through the pulsating main room, through towards the long room, which for us had the best D.J. billing in the form of Brent Nicholls, Nick Tcherniak & Paul Heron. We were keen to catch up with Brent following his Christmas excursion abroad, but were bemused to find the room still closed, so weaved past the still massive coatcheck queue, down the stairs and into a sparse “café resse” room, where Nathan 6 attempting to draw in a crowd. Before long, it was back up the stairs, past a still closed long room, through a bursting to the seams main room, on the way bumping into super friends, Jamie Head, Jeremy Precelton, Mark Thyme, Enrico & John from Rupert St as well as Matt Bird (who were clearly lapping up the atmosphere) and back into the V.I.P. space, to find Alessandro pumping out a collection of funky, chunky electro infused tunes to a packed room of party boys & girls that he had well and truly eating out of his hands.
Eventually, our prayers were answered when we found the entrance doors to the long room swung open and we could savour this space in the hands of Brent Nicholls. However, it was fair to say that the room was freezing and we approached the D.J. booth to find a short of shivering Brent behind the decks. Pleased to see eachother, we quickly caught up on news, remarking on the debarkle of our entry, then the delay in opening this space and the resultant cold. This delay meant that Brent played out for little more that 30 minutes before the arrival of Nick Tcherniak and whilst many soon got the drift that the room was open, most refused to stick around for long simply because of the uninviting temperature. Nick bounded over to say hello and immediately vowed to get the venue to turn up the heat in the room, but despite his efforts, on assuming his position behind the D.J. Booth, no real change to the chilly conditions occurred.
It was now time to warm up, so swinging back through the main room, we were in time to catch the first of many outings by the fabulous Fierce International go-go dancers in the capable and masterful hands of Mark M Forms, an engaging and handsome character who had invited us through to the dressing room to meet up. However, our nerves got the better of us (to be amongst that mass of muscle & testosterone was too much), although we were pleased when he caught us in the crowd in the middle of the main room, spotting us immediately (good on him). It is fair to say that the dancers were one of just a few highlights of the evening and with the now regular stage expanse across the back of the room being their “spot”, the mixture of male muscle and female beauty, combined with stunning costumes, certainly made an impact.
By now, we were intent on having a good time, so shunning the earlier problems from our minds, we went in search of pleasure. And it was fair to say that pleasure came in bucket loads, in the form of magnificent music & atmosphere in the V.I.P. room in the hands of Alessandro & Eduardo, who went back-to-back as if they had been D.J.’ing together for years, sending a rocking room wild with pure Ibiza infused musical magic. This was matched by Nick Tcherniak in the long room, yes it was still cold, but the music was hot, Nick treating us to progressive techhouse heaven, meaning that the long room was where it was at for us for most of the rest of the evening. And when Paul Heron took over, dressed resplendently in a tartan kilt (was he a true Scotsman underneath?) we hardly moved from our spot, acting, in his own words, as Paul’s “private dancer”, as he like Nick and Brent before him played some fantastic music but struggled to fill the room. Paul’s mix of electro house hedonism infused with disco tipped tracks was worthy of main room airing, rather than this cold corridor style space! But we didn’t care as we danced away merrily.
Over in the main room Luca G performed to the still packed crowd, then giving over to Italian stallion D.J. Pagano, who rounded things off with a brilliant set. However, we were glad to see our party out (a whole 6 hours worth and hardly a moment not dancing!) in the hands of Mr Heron, before sliding out of Matinee into the early afternoon of the first day of 2009, to continue a marathon of clubbing escapades.
So what was the verdict of Matinee afterhours NYD? Well, with so much expectation we would be lying if it fell short in some respects. The queues at the beginning were definitely not the start we wanted; although we would have been foolish to expect anything else from a venue that is renowned for messing things up on New Years Day (we have lost count the hours lost in waiting for NYD Beyond parties). As for the coatcheck, well again, the venue simply cannot be allowed to boast, quote “the best system in Europe” when it failed to deliver again!! Furthermore, the lack of sufficient heating in the long room, coupled with excessive temperatures in the other rooms, really didn’t help. However, the Matinee magic in the form of a top notch D.J. line up, the usual great performances from the Fierce International crew and the characteristically sexy and up for it crowd, made up for all the shortcomings.
On speaking with the promoter after the event, it was clear that the venue failed to deliver what had been asked for. This combined with other difficulties faced (we won’t bore you with the detail, shocking as it is), left him more than disappointed. Were we? Well with the venue yes, with Matinee definitely not. It was a party well worth being at and we did actually enjoy ourselves immensely. In saying that “music is the answer to your problems” sums Matinee NYD up for us. The music was short of amazing from D.J’s, Alessandro, Eduardo de La Torre, Nick Tcherniak, but best of all from Paul Heron (the man is sheer brilliance). The company was fantastic too and the Matinee magic still alive & kicking. We will definitely be there for the next party and you can be rest assured that the promoters will make damn sure the venue delivers to expectations. (DISCO MATT)
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