MATINEE – SUNDAY 3RD MAY 2009
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
With another Bank Holiday comes lots of choices and there is no surprises in seeing all the big guns serving up offerings of some kind, whether it be choosing one particular brand as the focal point of activity, flexing or replicating a brand to attract similar attention, launching a new brand to truly entice, or relying on an existing brand to deliver on the back of tried & tested successes. Yes, May Day Bank Holiday was full of all of these variants, making for rich pickings & choices alike.
Deciding to stick with the winning formula, Matinee didn’t choose a special theme name, didn’t look to vary the format, didn’t embark on a new venture, but stuck with just Matinee, gelling all the successful elements that have proven this to be a popular choice of many. Mind you, some would say that choosing the same venue, the same D.J’s the same performances & the same timings was not a wise choice, but then it always delivered before, so why not now. So did Matinee deliver and was it a success?
Despite having a hectic schedule of events to attend, our weekend wouldn’t have been complete without a homage to Matinee, even though we were destined to split our experience this time round, into the earlier & later parts of the 12 hour extravaganza, due to commitments to another event which beckoned our call. So, with this in mind, we made an earlier than usual trip to & arrival at super club Colosseum’s doors at just turned 11 p.m., being greeted, as usual, by the hostess with the mostest, Minty, braving the windy conditions, clutching her clipboard of guest lists and online ticket bookings, with a smattering of people waiting to be ticked off and released into the club. We said our usual hello’s, quickly catching up on matters since we had last seen each other just three days before at Industri, but with us promising to return with warming shots of Sambuca and with our tight schedule pressures coming down to bear, we sped into the club to fit in as much as we could on our first of two visits.
Once inside, we dropped off most of our excessive belongings, holding onto our jacket for our impending sprint across Vauxhall and ascended the stairs, passed through the Riverview bar and into the main room, which was virtually devoid of bodies, but then it was still very early. It was immediately clear that the team had decided to change around the format in this space, with the D.J. booth re-assuming its original spot at the back of the room, the vacated space given back to the clubbers to dance on & the stage area set aside for the P.A. & go-go dancing performances. With the return of the podiums in the middle of the room and the added inclusion of the now famed neon lighting, we glanced across to see the familiar figure & silhouette of Oliver Mohns, who was gracing the D.J. decks for the first time in many a Matinee event. Bouding up, he spotted us and beckoned us round the side and up onto the D.J. booth which had yet more magnificent neon lighting, in the form of a brightly lite floor, adding to the incredible look of the whole area. Oliver grabbed us in a huge embrace, lifting us high into the air in a, by now, typical welcome (we love it!) and was great to see him, not only just to see him, but to see him back where he belonged, behind the decks, pumping out chunky tech infused & euro style house tunes, the epitomy of the Matinee style, as the crowd began to build.
Leaving Oliver to his devices and venturing backstage to catch up on the Fierce International crew, it was clear we were too early as they were no-where to be found, so, instead, ventured round to our favoured space, the V.I.P. room, where Brent Nicholls was in situ, in an uncharacteristically early slot for him, but like us, he had other commitments to fulfil. Finding the doors between the main room and this “second” space locked, we went in search of one of the event organisers to get them opened and returning back to Brent, catching up on lots of news (never gossip…us) before venturing off back through the main room, which was filling nicely, out past the Riverview bar, on the way arming us with the promised shots of Sambuca for Minty and with our re-entrance to the club arranged, as well as our hostess warmed from her shots, we departed on our other duties.
Now, it is far to say that we missed out on most of the main activities at this Matinee excursion, the superb P.A. performance from Clarence, which were told was a triumph, the fabulous Fierce International dancers who never fail to dissapoint, but also Matinee superstar D.J. Lydia Sanz, not our favourite we have to say, but an accomplished talent nevertheless. Despite having been absent for the time we were, upon our return, it was clear that a good time was being had by all, as we caught the tail end of Lydia’s set, with the main room pulsating with action, although it seemed that the chillout areas were just as popular as we struggled round to the VIP room, as the doors between the two dance spaces were still annoyingly locked (how many times do you have to tell someone!!!). There we found Alessandro behind the decks pushing out his characteristic mix of big floor anthems & progressive tech infused house tracks, all craftily blended. By all accounts the room had been quite busy, with the usual buzzy atmosphere, although, when we arrived there was just a smattering of folk enjoying Alessandro’s tunes.
So, it was back into the main room for us, where Lydia Sanz had given up to scene favourite Paul Heron, who set about delivering a delirious concoction of amazing funky, chunky, electro & tech house headliners, which had the room pounding & pumping. There were still plenty of revellers out to enjoy this Bank Holiday extravaganza, as we spotted Fierce Intl supremo, the lovely Mark M Forms, who gave us a hearty hug and then enquired as to our whereabouts earlier. We felt a little guilty for being absent for the shows & the P.A., on top of missing him at the last Matinee party, but it was good to see him relaxing & having a good time with his Spanish friend and also with a few of the dancers still in tow, not to mention the fab Romano, who seemed bursting with energy just like us.
With Paul having finished a superb set and popping across to say hello (it had seemed like ages since we had seen him – well at least a week anyway!), with Minty flashing by and Oliver also watching over an emptying main room, Saki took over the decks, going back to back with Alessandro in an attempt to hold the crowd. We did our best to stay the distance, but with just a handful of hedonists and already five (now 6) clubs under our belt, decided to call it a day, waving farewell to Colosseum & Matinee for another weekend, slipping into a somewhat chilly Vauxhall Bank Holiday Monday morning at just turned 7 a.m.
So, what did we think of the latest Matinee instalment. Well, we have to be fair in saying that as we missed the lion’s share of the evening, it is difficult to comment, apart from the bits we savoured. The team had certainly gone to a lot of effort to change around the look of the main room and the new D.J. booth and stage area set up did look wonderful. By all accounts it was busy at its peak, but arriving early as we did, Colosseum did feel strangely empty, even if the crowd was building when we left for our excursion. Upon our return, it was fair to say that it was far from full, but you could sense the usual Matinee party atmosphere everything that goes with it. However, you could also sense that with other events going on, maintaining a crowd through to 11 a.m. was always going to be a struggle and it was.
Nevertheless in the split times we were there, we had a terrific time, especially in the hands of Paul Heron, who played out a scintillating set to rival any we enjoyed over the weekend. It seems that for us music was definitely the answer this Bank Holiday and yet again and this brilliant talent did us proud. Add to that the ever welcoming Evolved Events team of people, Oliver, Robb, Malcolm (Bubbles) Minty & co, not to mention the fab Mark M Forms & his Fierce crew, how can you not walk away with a smile on your face and we certainly did. (DISCO MATT)
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
With another Bank Holiday comes lots of choices and there is no surprises in seeing all the big guns serving up offerings of some kind, whether it be choosing one particular brand as the focal point of activity, flexing or replicating a brand to attract similar attention, launching a new brand to truly entice, or relying on an existing brand to deliver on the back of tried & tested successes. Yes, May Day Bank Holiday was full of all of these variants, making for rich pickings & choices alike.
Deciding to stick with the winning formula, Matinee didn’t choose a special theme name, didn’t look to vary the format, didn’t embark on a new venture, but stuck with just Matinee, gelling all the successful elements that have proven this to be a popular choice of many. Mind you, some would say that choosing the same venue, the same D.J’s the same performances & the same timings was not a wise choice, but then it always delivered before, so why not now. So did Matinee deliver and was it a success?
Despite having a hectic schedule of events to attend, our weekend wouldn’t have been complete without a homage to Matinee, even though we were destined to split our experience this time round, into the earlier & later parts of the 12 hour extravaganza, due to commitments to another event which beckoned our call. So, with this in mind, we made an earlier than usual trip to & arrival at super club Colosseum’s doors at just turned 11 p.m., being greeted, as usual, by the hostess with the mostest, Minty, braving the windy conditions, clutching her clipboard of guest lists and online ticket bookings, with a smattering of people waiting to be ticked off and released into the club. We said our usual hello’s, quickly catching up on matters since we had last seen each other just three days before at Industri, but with us promising to return with warming shots of Sambuca and with our tight schedule pressures coming down to bear, we sped into the club to fit in as much as we could on our first of two visits.
Once inside, we dropped off most of our excessive belongings, holding onto our jacket for our impending sprint across Vauxhall and ascended the stairs, passed through the Riverview bar and into the main room, which was virtually devoid of bodies, but then it was still very early. It was immediately clear that the team had decided to change around the format in this space, with the D.J. booth re-assuming its original spot at the back of the room, the vacated space given back to the clubbers to dance on & the stage area set aside for the P.A. & go-go dancing performances. With the return of the podiums in the middle of the room and the added inclusion of the now famed neon lighting, we glanced across to see the familiar figure & silhouette of Oliver Mohns, who was gracing the D.J. decks for the first time in many a Matinee event. Bouding up, he spotted us and beckoned us round the side and up onto the D.J. booth which had yet more magnificent neon lighting, in the form of a brightly lite floor, adding to the incredible look of the whole area. Oliver grabbed us in a huge embrace, lifting us high into the air in a, by now, typical welcome (we love it!) and was great to see him, not only just to see him, but to see him back where he belonged, behind the decks, pumping out chunky tech infused & euro style house tunes, the epitomy of the Matinee style, as the crowd began to build.
Leaving Oliver to his devices and venturing backstage to catch up on the Fierce International crew, it was clear we were too early as they were no-where to be found, so, instead, ventured round to our favoured space, the V.I.P. room, where Brent Nicholls was in situ, in an uncharacteristically early slot for him, but like us, he had other commitments to fulfil. Finding the doors between the main room and this “second” space locked, we went in search of one of the event organisers to get them opened and returning back to Brent, catching up on lots of news (never gossip…us) before venturing off back through the main room, which was filling nicely, out past the Riverview bar, on the way arming us with the promised shots of Sambuca for Minty and with our re-entrance to the club arranged, as well as our hostess warmed from her shots, we departed on our other duties.
Now, it is far to say that we missed out on most of the main activities at this Matinee excursion, the superb P.A. performance from Clarence, which were told was a triumph, the fabulous Fierce International dancers who never fail to dissapoint, but also Matinee superstar D.J. Lydia Sanz, not our favourite we have to say, but an accomplished talent nevertheless. Despite having been absent for the time we were, upon our return, it was clear that a good time was being had by all, as we caught the tail end of Lydia’s set, with the main room pulsating with action, although it seemed that the chillout areas were just as popular as we struggled round to the VIP room, as the doors between the two dance spaces were still annoyingly locked (how many times do you have to tell someone!!!). There we found Alessandro behind the decks pushing out his characteristic mix of big floor anthems & progressive tech infused house tracks, all craftily blended. By all accounts the room had been quite busy, with the usual buzzy atmosphere, although, when we arrived there was just a smattering of folk enjoying Alessandro’s tunes.
So, it was back into the main room for us, where Lydia Sanz had given up to scene favourite Paul Heron, who set about delivering a delirious concoction of amazing funky, chunky, electro & tech house headliners, which had the room pounding & pumping. There were still plenty of revellers out to enjoy this Bank Holiday extravaganza, as we spotted Fierce Intl supremo, the lovely Mark M Forms, who gave us a hearty hug and then enquired as to our whereabouts earlier. We felt a little guilty for being absent for the shows & the P.A., on top of missing him at the last Matinee party, but it was good to see him relaxing & having a good time with his Spanish friend and also with a few of the dancers still in tow, not to mention the fab Romano, who seemed bursting with energy just like us.
With Paul having finished a superb set and popping across to say hello (it had seemed like ages since we had seen him – well at least a week anyway!), with Minty flashing by and Oliver also watching over an emptying main room, Saki took over the decks, going back to back with Alessandro in an attempt to hold the crowd. We did our best to stay the distance, but with just a handful of hedonists and already five (now 6) clubs under our belt, decided to call it a day, waving farewell to Colosseum & Matinee for another weekend, slipping into a somewhat chilly Vauxhall Bank Holiday Monday morning at just turned 7 a.m.
So, what did we think of the latest Matinee instalment. Well, we have to be fair in saying that as we missed the lion’s share of the evening, it is difficult to comment, apart from the bits we savoured. The team had certainly gone to a lot of effort to change around the look of the main room and the new D.J. booth and stage area set up did look wonderful. By all accounts it was busy at its peak, but arriving early as we did, Colosseum did feel strangely empty, even if the crowd was building when we left for our excursion. Upon our return, it was fair to say that it was far from full, but you could sense the usual Matinee party atmosphere everything that goes with it. However, you could also sense that with other events going on, maintaining a crowd through to 11 a.m. was always going to be a struggle and it was.
Nevertheless in the split times we were there, we had a terrific time, especially in the hands of Paul Heron, who played out a scintillating set to rival any we enjoyed over the weekend. It seems that for us music was definitely the answer this Bank Holiday and yet again and this brilliant talent did us proud. Add to that the ever welcoming Evolved Events team of people, Oliver, Robb, Malcolm (Bubbles) Minty & co, not to mention the fab Mark M Forms & his Fierce crew, how can you not walk away with a smile on your face and we certainly did. (DISCO MATT)
No comments:
Post a Comment