"BEYOND THE BEST” – SUNDAY 7TH FEBRUARY
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
Of all the clubs we visit (and there are a lot!) there always seems to be one that rises to the surface, like the cream in a milk bottle, one that keeps us wanting more, like the most gorgeous of chocolate cakes, and one that we love to play in over & over again, like our most favourite movie. This club, like just a few others that we can count on one hand, has most definitely formed a major part of our life and it is only one of two that we hold closest to our heart & soul, its image being in our minds eye each & every day and the thought of its demise, again, most definitely be a feeling far too much to bear (it was bad enough the first time). To have & to hold such a significant grip on our existence shows how much it has an influence on us and just the mere mention of the name creates excitement short of stopping a heart beat or two, even 7 years after it all started. What club is it? well we thought that was obvious!!
Beyond hardly has any equals, and you will just have to guess the other four that we count on our one hand (we have two but you know what we mean!), but not one of them comes close to this mammoth afterhours weekly party, which since re-launching at Area in Vauxhall back in 2008, has literally gone from strength to strength, securing a reputation for being the leader it its field, not only just as an afterhours event but the best club in its class of any. Scooping the club award in the prestigious Seenqueen.com 2009 poll, there is no better way of confirming its status as tip top choice of the masses, but to claim not just best club, but top slot in the whole poll, is pure vindication of it also being our top club for the year and an indication of its immense popularity. So, it comes as no surprise that Beyond is probably the singular choice to follow up any Saturday clubbing event, some choosing even to rest easy and get up in time for it all starting at Area on Sunday morning.
So, in recognition of its award winning status, we really wanted to celebrate with the team the weekend of the announcement, although an unfortunate incident precluded our arrival, missing out on what everyone has kept reminding us was a brilliant Beyond Belief party. But, we were certainly going to make up for it, needing little persuasion from both Steven Sharp & Tom Fuller as we left Matinee this week, being ushered onto the final coach to take us straight to Vauxhall in comfort, a perfect way to start our morning of partying heaven. Arriving at Area’s doors later than planned, we were grateful for the guestlist inclusion as we passed the till, although the security team had indicated that the list had closed, deterring a handful of people in front of us, although nothing was going to stop our advance into the club.
With pals Jeremy & Andrew leaving as we arrived, giving the tip of the day about an extra coatcheck in the “chapel” part of the venue, we were released in a trice and grabbing refreshments headed straight for the main room, avoiding the temptations of Gonzalo Rivas whipping up a storm in the Terrace bar & David Jiminez doing his thing in the “black box” room, rather finding our spot next to the main room D.J. booth where we always feel the most comfortable. Immediately we came across familiar faces & friends including Kieran (aka Sweety Pants) who grabbed us in an all encompassing embrace, as well as Martin Zatko who had just last week celebrated his birthday but was up for more clubbing action. George Sharp was behind the D.J. decks, delivering a fantastic collection of up-beat tunes to further enhance an already electric atmosphere & with the Area laser light treatment & pyrotechnics at full tilt, it was difficult to see how much better the party could get.
But better it did, and some, as music maestro Steve Pitron took charge of proceedings, taking our experience to new heights, his arrival being signalled by Logan Schmitz’s band of go-go muscle boys & gorgeous girls taking to the podiums in front of the booth, entertaining the audience to dazzling dancing displays amidst plumes of CO2 cannon waves & ticker tape pyro explosions that short of blew the roof off and resounded with whoops of delight from the packed out main room. Steve was definitely in not just fifth but more like fifteenth gear, selecting stupendous track after track that had us merrily dancing away in our spot next to the booth, all around us doing exactly the same, hardly drawing for breath. Renditions of classic tunes intermixed with latest dance hits meant Mr Pitron had the crowd eating out of his hands, especially when he played the Freemasons remix of the Eurythmics song, “Here Comes The Rain Again” as well as his own remix work of Paul Harris’ hit “I Want You”, a superb take on yet another Eurythmics record “Love Is A Stranger”. But there was more besides, the dance hit of the night “Addicted” forming part of Steve’s prolific playlist, a track which echoed through our ears both here & at Matinee, combined with so many more octane fuelled choices that resulted in us craving his superb sounds.
It was only to catch breath that we headed away to other parts of the club, the main room definitely dominating proceedings, although the ever present & evervescent Naomi Cuiz tempted us into liquid refreshment for a while and then the draw of the Terrace bar kept us from the main room audacity for a short while, as D’Johnny was now in charge & playing it tough yet funky, drawing in a healthy crowd of hedonists who wanted it a bit more tough. There we found Pagano, winding down after his superb sets at The Fridge & Hidden and Nick Tcherniak & boyf Tom, also lapping up some afterhours action, having played out at Barcode earlier. But the faces kept coming, first club promoter Paul Beuchamp appearing out from the crowd & saying hello, Simon Patrick, whooshing around the venue, possibly in search of Mr Francesco, and even the lovely Emma Mis-White sporting a lovely cute miniature red hat & accompanying outfit, definitely in party mood. Having said our hello’s (to some, not for the first time this weekend) we headed back into the main room where all the fun was continuing as we had left it, Logan Schmitz having now arrived along with both Mauricio & Lunarde who were still sporting their Matinee t-shirts, both greeting us passionately, even pal Dorin wandering past with a party grin on his face. Mind you the list of familiar faces seemed endless and we felt so flattered by the attention, among them Matt Joshua who remarked that he loved all our work (don’t we adore comments like that!).
But in reality there only one thing, the music and one person, Steve Pitron, that was grabbing our full attention, we hardly needing to glance at our watch & not wanting to, in case of reminding ourselves of the disappointment that would signal the end of his set. But even when that fateful moment came, we were far from ravaged with sadness & deflation, as Alan K assumed the decks and not just took over in style from where Steve had left of, but grabbed hold of a main room crowd that had pure energy seeping out of their pores, his brilliant mixing of not one, not two but three & sometimes four tracks keeping our toes on tips and our minds dazzled by the perfect blend of tunes. Retreats back to the Terrace bar, where Jamie Head was now holding court only served to re-ignite our enthusiasm for this brilliant Beyond party, Nick Tcherniak still in close quarters, allowing us a little breather to catch up on news, chat about the forthcoming DTPM event and trade moves on the dancefloor with Tom. Whilst Jamie’s music machinations were hitting the spot, we just couldn’t resist the draw of the main room, as morning changed to afternoon and we spent the remainder of our visit to Area, soaking up Alan’s remarkable set, the man being right in the zone and every bit the perfect end to our stay, the lengthiest in a long time and worth every second of it.
But with four clubs now under our belt and the promise of a fifth later, it was time for our body to rest a little, so collecting our belongings and waving farewell to Alan, to remaining friends Kieran & Dorin, then making our escape before being drawn back to the action (it has happened before), we headed through to the Terrace Bar, embracing Jamie and then exiting into a bright yet chilly Vauxhall Sunday afternoon, heading the short journey home to reflect on yet another bumper Beyond that exceeded all expectations, eclipsed all previous parties and left us buzzing for the rest of the day.
Words simply cannot describe how good this Beyond party was, but there is something about the club that is truly amazing, the energy that emanates from the crowd, the performances it pulls out of the D.J.’s and the atmosphere that it creates cannot be compared. Yes the parties at Colloseum were wonderful, holding some really special memories for us, but Area has really taken Beyond to new heights and to say that the club improves with every visit could not be more true. The formula hasn’t changed that much, but the crowd has got better, the music quality just keeps improving and its popularity increases unabated. Quite what the exact formula is, we cannot pinpoint, it probably being a delightful combination & collision of every element which ends up working in pure harmony and we just don’t want it to stop.
With news that the team are considering a special “classic” party, with the series of “belief” events growing every time they are held, but with the regular weekly outings showing no sign of slowing down, quite the opposite in fact, we truly salute a club that looks destined to be the best of all time in our books. If you haven’t yet visited Beyond at Area, where have you been? We cannot begin to describe what you have been missing and what a brilliant time you are likely to have. Yes, it is true that that the phrases “each to his own” or “one man’s meat is another’s poison” have some meaning, but in the case of Beyond we challenge anybody to apply these words. Winning the 2009 club poll speaks for itself & may Beyond continue to reign supreme, as we know for sure, it will be very soon indeed when we grace its doors again. (DISCO MATT)
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
Of all the clubs we visit (and there are a lot!) there always seems to be one that rises to the surface, like the cream in a milk bottle, one that keeps us wanting more, like the most gorgeous of chocolate cakes, and one that we love to play in over & over again, like our most favourite movie. This club, like just a few others that we can count on one hand, has most definitely formed a major part of our life and it is only one of two that we hold closest to our heart & soul, its image being in our minds eye each & every day and the thought of its demise, again, most definitely be a feeling far too much to bear (it was bad enough the first time). To have & to hold such a significant grip on our existence shows how much it has an influence on us and just the mere mention of the name creates excitement short of stopping a heart beat or two, even 7 years after it all started. What club is it? well we thought that was obvious!!
Beyond hardly has any equals, and you will just have to guess the other four that we count on our one hand (we have two but you know what we mean!), but not one of them comes close to this mammoth afterhours weekly party, which since re-launching at Area in Vauxhall back in 2008, has literally gone from strength to strength, securing a reputation for being the leader it its field, not only just as an afterhours event but the best club in its class of any. Scooping the club award in the prestigious Seenqueen.com 2009 poll, there is no better way of confirming its status as tip top choice of the masses, but to claim not just best club, but top slot in the whole poll, is pure vindication of it also being our top club for the year and an indication of its immense popularity. So, it comes as no surprise that Beyond is probably the singular choice to follow up any Saturday clubbing event, some choosing even to rest easy and get up in time for it all starting at Area on Sunday morning.
So, in recognition of its award winning status, we really wanted to celebrate with the team the weekend of the announcement, although an unfortunate incident precluded our arrival, missing out on what everyone has kept reminding us was a brilliant Beyond Belief party. But, we were certainly going to make up for it, needing little persuasion from both Steven Sharp & Tom Fuller as we left Matinee this week, being ushered onto the final coach to take us straight to Vauxhall in comfort, a perfect way to start our morning of partying heaven. Arriving at Area’s doors later than planned, we were grateful for the guestlist inclusion as we passed the till, although the security team had indicated that the list had closed, deterring a handful of people in front of us, although nothing was going to stop our advance into the club.
With pals Jeremy & Andrew leaving as we arrived, giving the tip of the day about an extra coatcheck in the “chapel” part of the venue, we were released in a trice and grabbing refreshments headed straight for the main room, avoiding the temptations of Gonzalo Rivas whipping up a storm in the Terrace bar & David Jiminez doing his thing in the “black box” room, rather finding our spot next to the main room D.J. booth where we always feel the most comfortable. Immediately we came across familiar faces & friends including Kieran (aka Sweety Pants) who grabbed us in an all encompassing embrace, as well as Martin Zatko who had just last week celebrated his birthday but was up for more clubbing action. George Sharp was behind the D.J. decks, delivering a fantastic collection of up-beat tunes to further enhance an already electric atmosphere & with the Area laser light treatment & pyrotechnics at full tilt, it was difficult to see how much better the party could get.
But better it did, and some, as music maestro Steve Pitron took charge of proceedings, taking our experience to new heights, his arrival being signalled by Logan Schmitz’s band of go-go muscle boys & gorgeous girls taking to the podiums in front of the booth, entertaining the audience to dazzling dancing displays amidst plumes of CO2 cannon waves & ticker tape pyro explosions that short of blew the roof off and resounded with whoops of delight from the packed out main room. Steve was definitely in not just fifth but more like fifteenth gear, selecting stupendous track after track that had us merrily dancing away in our spot next to the booth, all around us doing exactly the same, hardly drawing for breath. Renditions of classic tunes intermixed with latest dance hits meant Mr Pitron had the crowd eating out of his hands, especially when he played the Freemasons remix of the Eurythmics song, “Here Comes The Rain Again” as well as his own remix work of Paul Harris’ hit “I Want You”, a superb take on yet another Eurythmics record “Love Is A Stranger”. But there was more besides, the dance hit of the night “Addicted” forming part of Steve’s prolific playlist, a track which echoed through our ears both here & at Matinee, combined with so many more octane fuelled choices that resulted in us craving his superb sounds.
It was only to catch breath that we headed away to other parts of the club, the main room definitely dominating proceedings, although the ever present & evervescent Naomi Cuiz tempted us into liquid refreshment for a while and then the draw of the Terrace bar kept us from the main room audacity for a short while, as D’Johnny was now in charge & playing it tough yet funky, drawing in a healthy crowd of hedonists who wanted it a bit more tough. There we found Pagano, winding down after his superb sets at The Fridge & Hidden and Nick Tcherniak & boyf Tom, also lapping up some afterhours action, having played out at Barcode earlier. But the faces kept coming, first club promoter Paul Beuchamp appearing out from the crowd & saying hello, Simon Patrick, whooshing around the venue, possibly in search of Mr Francesco, and even the lovely Emma Mis-White sporting a lovely cute miniature red hat & accompanying outfit, definitely in party mood. Having said our hello’s (to some, not for the first time this weekend) we headed back into the main room where all the fun was continuing as we had left it, Logan Schmitz having now arrived along with both Mauricio & Lunarde who were still sporting their Matinee t-shirts, both greeting us passionately, even pal Dorin wandering past with a party grin on his face. Mind you the list of familiar faces seemed endless and we felt so flattered by the attention, among them Matt Joshua who remarked that he loved all our work (don’t we adore comments like that!).
But in reality there only one thing, the music and one person, Steve Pitron, that was grabbing our full attention, we hardly needing to glance at our watch & not wanting to, in case of reminding ourselves of the disappointment that would signal the end of his set. But even when that fateful moment came, we were far from ravaged with sadness & deflation, as Alan K assumed the decks and not just took over in style from where Steve had left of, but grabbed hold of a main room crowd that had pure energy seeping out of their pores, his brilliant mixing of not one, not two but three & sometimes four tracks keeping our toes on tips and our minds dazzled by the perfect blend of tunes. Retreats back to the Terrace bar, where Jamie Head was now holding court only served to re-ignite our enthusiasm for this brilliant Beyond party, Nick Tcherniak still in close quarters, allowing us a little breather to catch up on news, chat about the forthcoming DTPM event and trade moves on the dancefloor with Tom. Whilst Jamie’s music machinations were hitting the spot, we just couldn’t resist the draw of the main room, as morning changed to afternoon and we spent the remainder of our visit to Area, soaking up Alan’s remarkable set, the man being right in the zone and every bit the perfect end to our stay, the lengthiest in a long time and worth every second of it.
But with four clubs now under our belt and the promise of a fifth later, it was time for our body to rest a little, so collecting our belongings and waving farewell to Alan, to remaining friends Kieran & Dorin, then making our escape before being drawn back to the action (it has happened before), we headed through to the Terrace Bar, embracing Jamie and then exiting into a bright yet chilly Vauxhall Sunday afternoon, heading the short journey home to reflect on yet another bumper Beyond that exceeded all expectations, eclipsed all previous parties and left us buzzing for the rest of the day.
Words simply cannot describe how good this Beyond party was, but there is something about the club that is truly amazing, the energy that emanates from the crowd, the performances it pulls out of the D.J.’s and the atmosphere that it creates cannot be compared. Yes the parties at Colloseum were wonderful, holding some really special memories for us, but Area has really taken Beyond to new heights and to say that the club improves with every visit could not be more true. The formula hasn’t changed that much, but the crowd has got better, the music quality just keeps improving and its popularity increases unabated. Quite what the exact formula is, we cannot pinpoint, it probably being a delightful combination & collision of every element which ends up working in pure harmony and we just don’t want it to stop.
With news that the team are considering a special “classic” party, with the series of “belief” events growing every time they are held, but with the regular weekly outings showing no sign of slowing down, quite the opposite in fact, we truly salute a club that looks destined to be the best of all time in our books. If you haven’t yet visited Beyond at Area, where have you been? We cannot begin to describe what you have been missing and what a brilliant time you are likely to have. Yes, it is true that that the phrases “each to his own” or “one man’s meat is another’s poison” have some meaning, but in the case of Beyond we challenge anybody to apply these words. Winning the 2009 club poll speaks for itself & may Beyond continue to reign supreme, as we know for sure, it will be very soon indeed when we grace its doors again. (DISCO MATT)
No comments:
Post a Comment