BARCODE VAUXHALL - 3RD BIRTHDAY PARTY
SATURDAY 27TH JUNE
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
Ever since coming out on the scene in London, the bar culture has formed a major part of our social lives, whether it be the good old traditional pub, venues like The Pennyfarthing, The Birdcage & Comptons, or the swanky up-market bar, you know, places like Rupert Street The Box & The Edge, but with so many venues to choose from & having frequented so many over the years, it would be difficult to single one particular bar out as a favourite, but there is one that comes pretty high on our list.
Yes, as you may have guessed, Barcode is one such brand that is very much up there and ever since its launch over 14 years ago, we have seen the Soho venue evolve & change, but always end up maintaining its popularity, despite stiff competition. We have made many friends there and to this day continue to grace its doors, especially on a Saturday night downstairs in the dance area, which has proven such a brilliant warm up to our clubbing exploits. So, you can imagine our delight when just 3 years ago, the team branched out, opening a new venue in Vauxhall, which immediately caught the imagination and a bar which we now like to call our local & (if you ask the bar staff) our second home!!
So, there was absolutely no way we were going to miss out on its 3rd birthday celebrations, especially as we had already been warmed up for the occasion at the Clapham Street party that afternoon, followed by a stylist garden gathering not too far away. Swiftly nipping home to change & refresh ourselves before arriving at Barcode’s doors just before 10 p.m., as always we were greeted by the friendly & welcoming Emilio, who waved us into the venue which was already filling nicely with like minded folk who were looking to celebrate the bar’s special day. Having already planned to meet Industri pals, Chris & Stephen as well as hostess extraordinaire, the effervescent Minty, the scene for quite a raucous outing had already been set before we even started.
Heading for the bar, we were pleased to see so many of the regular faces in place, who know & treat us so well, tonight being no exception. With refreshments in hand, we headed straight for the club space to see what was occurring, to find the lovely & bubbly Hi-Fi Sean Dickson behind the decks, mixing up a magical potion of popular house dancefloor fillers to really get the atmosphere going. With the laser lighting at full steam already, it was clear that space to dance would soon be at a premium, as it wasn’t long before a continuing trail of bodies, a true eclectic mix of regulars, scene faces, good lookers & simple party goers began to fill the room, dancing deliriously to the ever increasing tempo of tunes Mr Hi-Fi was spinning.
Despite the temptations of this club space so soon into proceedings, we headed back to the front bar to connect with our pals & found them all gathered around one of the hotly contested tables, Minty, boyfriend Thigio, Industri pals Chris, Stephen, Terry & Paul, all slowly warming to the party mood. Looking around, the team had decorated the venue with very fetching “No 3’s”, cut out from some sort of wood and cleverly decorated with fluorescent blue paint which sparkled in the bright lights of the sweeping spots as well as those clicking pictures with flash camera’s. With one coming off its sparsely strung hanging in our hands (well we may have given it a little gentle persuasion!!), we immediately started parading round the front bar, to the amusement of our friends, who then immediately caught us in action with their camera’s for posterity. Mind you one of the staff didn’t seem too amused and took it upon himself to confiscate the sign from us (the spoil sport), although that was not going to be the last Barcode was going to see of our “No 3” antics that night!!
The front room was now well and truly packed and with Paul Coles really heating things up with his delectable disco house delights, the party was well and truly underway and we were certainly in the mood for more action, although seemed a little wary that our previous antics had not gone un-noticed. So, we thought it better to disappear to the club space behind, “No 3” in hand of course, where Hi-Fi Sean was about to hand over to the handsome & hunky Mattias, a real Barcode favourite who was bound to brew up a storm with his musical mastery. Armed with yet more refreshments, complimentary of the management (a big thanks for that by the way!) as well as other aids, we were now in full swing and decided to throw all caution to the wind, ascending one of the podiums at the back of the venue, dancing most of the rest of the night away, with only momentary rests to catch up with friendly faces, including close pal Benoit, whom we hadn’t seen out in a while (well a week at least!) & who later re-collected how over exuberant we appeared (what caused that we wonder?!?!).
The party atmosphere kept building, not least with the help of Mark M Forms’ magnificent Fierce Intl dancers, who gave a dazzling (as well as revealing) display from the mezzanine balcony, with revellers gazing up in amazement at their altogether (if you catch our drift?) appearances & with D.J Saki (a man of many talents..he also manages BCV you know?!) performing his own terrific trail of heady house tunes it was no surprise that it was gone 4 a.m. before we came to our senses, calmed down and relaxed back in the front bar in the company of Minty & The Box owner, the lovely Frank. We also managed to catch up with Mark to congratulate him on his dancers show, & then happened to be caught on camera yet again, of course sporting the “No 3” sign (we had a 3 on the back of our t-shirt too!), this time by non other than Chris Jepson. Mind you, having danced so much, it was soon time to call it a day, so exhausted from our exploits, we slumped out of Barcode and home to sink into our bed, reflecting on yet another pulsating party & trying to recollect our on audacious activities.
So, did Barcode Vauxhall’s 3rd birthday bash live up to expectations? Well, for us it has to be a resounding yes, simply as we had an absolute ball from start to finish. Not only were we were privileged to be in the company of terrific people, soaking up the amazing atmosphere, especially in the club bar, but prancing on the podium with our “No 3” in hand was genuine fun and being treated to some tremendous tunes from Hi-Fi Sean, Paul Coles, Mattias & Saki was a true delight. Yes there were some D.J. names missing from what was a special celebration, but with the size of the crowd present, it was clear that many had the same idea as us, & with the added bonus of the dishy dancers, it was certainly a beautifully fun-filled birthday, which we won’t forget in a while.
SATURDAY 27TH JUNE
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
Ever since coming out on the scene in London, the bar culture has formed a major part of our social lives, whether it be the good old traditional pub, venues like The Pennyfarthing, The Birdcage & Comptons, or the swanky up-market bar, you know, places like Rupert Street The Box & The Edge, but with so many venues to choose from & having frequented so many over the years, it would be difficult to single one particular bar out as a favourite, but there is one that comes pretty high on our list.
Yes, as you may have guessed, Barcode is one such brand that is very much up there and ever since its launch over 14 years ago, we have seen the Soho venue evolve & change, but always end up maintaining its popularity, despite stiff competition. We have made many friends there and to this day continue to grace its doors, especially on a Saturday night downstairs in the dance area, which has proven such a brilliant warm up to our clubbing exploits. So, you can imagine our delight when just 3 years ago, the team branched out, opening a new venue in Vauxhall, which immediately caught the imagination and a bar which we now like to call our local & (if you ask the bar staff) our second home!!
So, there was absolutely no way we were going to miss out on its 3rd birthday celebrations, especially as we had already been warmed up for the occasion at the Clapham Street party that afternoon, followed by a stylist garden gathering not too far away. Swiftly nipping home to change & refresh ourselves before arriving at Barcode’s doors just before 10 p.m., as always we were greeted by the friendly & welcoming Emilio, who waved us into the venue which was already filling nicely with like minded folk who were looking to celebrate the bar’s special day. Having already planned to meet Industri pals, Chris & Stephen as well as hostess extraordinaire, the effervescent Minty, the scene for quite a raucous outing had already been set before we even started.
Heading for the bar, we were pleased to see so many of the regular faces in place, who know & treat us so well, tonight being no exception. With refreshments in hand, we headed straight for the club space to see what was occurring, to find the lovely & bubbly Hi-Fi Sean Dickson behind the decks, mixing up a magical potion of popular house dancefloor fillers to really get the atmosphere going. With the laser lighting at full steam already, it was clear that space to dance would soon be at a premium, as it wasn’t long before a continuing trail of bodies, a true eclectic mix of regulars, scene faces, good lookers & simple party goers began to fill the room, dancing deliriously to the ever increasing tempo of tunes Mr Hi-Fi was spinning.
Despite the temptations of this club space so soon into proceedings, we headed back to the front bar to connect with our pals & found them all gathered around one of the hotly contested tables, Minty, boyfriend Thigio, Industri pals Chris, Stephen, Terry & Paul, all slowly warming to the party mood. Looking around, the team had decorated the venue with very fetching “No 3’s”, cut out from some sort of wood and cleverly decorated with fluorescent blue paint which sparkled in the bright lights of the sweeping spots as well as those clicking pictures with flash camera’s. With one coming off its sparsely strung hanging in our hands (well we may have given it a little gentle persuasion!!), we immediately started parading round the front bar, to the amusement of our friends, who then immediately caught us in action with their camera’s for posterity. Mind you one of the staff didn’t seem too amused and took it upon himself to confiscate the sign from us (the spoil sport), although that was not going to be the last Barcode was going to see of our “No 3” antics that night!!
The front room was now well and truly packed and with Paul Coles really heating things up with his delectable disco house delights, the party was well and truly underway and we were certainly in the mood for more action, although seemed a little wary that our previous antics had not gone un-noticed. So, we thought it better to disappear to the club space behind, “No 3” in hand of course, where Hi-Fi Sean was about to hand over to the handsome & hunky Mattias, a real Barcode favourite who was bound to brew up a storm with his musical mastery. Armed with yet more refreshments, complimentary of the management (a big thanks for that by the way!) as well as other aids, we were now in full swing and decided to throw all caution to the wind, ascending one of the podiums at the back of the venue, dancing most of the rest of the night away, with only momentary rests to catch up with friendly faces, including close pal Benoit, whom we hadn’t seen out in a while (well a week at least!) & who later re-collected how over exuberant we appeared (what caused that we wonder?!?!).
The party atmosphere kept building, not least with the help of Mark M Forms’ magnificent Fierce Intl dancers, who gave a dazzling (as well as revealing) display from the mezzanine balcony, with revellers gazing up in amazement at their altogether (if you catch our drift?) appearances & with D.J Saki (a man of many talents..he also manages BCV you know?!) performing his own terrific trail of heady house tunes it was no surprise that it was gone 4 a.m. before we came to our senses, calmed down and relaxed back in the front bar in the company of Minty & The Box owner, the lovely Frank. We also managed to catch up with Mark to congratulate him on his dancers show, & then happened to be caught on camera yet again, of course sporting the “No 3” sign (we had a 3 on the back of our t-shirt too!), this time by non other than Chris Jepson. Mind you, having danced so much, it was soon time to call it a day, so exhausted from our exploits, we slumped out of Barcode and home to sink into our bed, reflecting on yet another pulsating party & trying to recollect our on audacious activities.
So, did Barcode Vauxhall’s 3rd birthday bash live up to expectations? Well, for us it has to be a resounding yes, simply as we had an absolute ball from start to finish. Not only were we were privileged to be in the company of terrific people, soaking up the amazing atmosphere, especially in the club bar, but prancing on the podium with our “No 3” in hand was genuine fun and being treated to some tremendous tunes from Hi-Fi Sean, Paul Coles, Mattias & Saki was a true delight. Yes there were some D.J. names missing from what was a special celebration, but with the size of the crowd present, it was clear that many had the same idea as us, & with the added bonus of the dishy dancers, it was certainly a beautifully fun-filled birthday, which we won’t forget in a while.
In these difficult times, when many of us are watching our hard earned pennies, it seems that the bar culture is keeping its head above water and there is no doubt that Barcode Vauxhall’s popularity is still there to be seen, particularly on Friday’s & Saturday’s, when it proves a worthy alternative to the clubs both near & far, that don’t offer too much more for a lot more door charge (what do we call that?, value for money?!). However, times are tough and with some of the changes being made to its D.J. line up’s, Barcode needs to tread carefully if it is to retain its custom. What people seem to like, is that you often see the big names of the scene gracing its decks, providing the kind of musical entertainment equivalent to the big clubs, making Barcode Vauxhall particularly, not only a neat place to drink & socialise, but a cool place to dance the night away. We hope that this may long continue. (DISCO MATT)
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