MATINEE “UNDER CONSTRUCTION” – SATURDAY 6TH FEBRUARY
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
If there has been one club that has dramatically changed the gAylist clubbing landscape, creating immeasurable interest and then spurning a whole wave of other clubs to follow its lead in delivering dynamic production, spectacular shows & groundbreaking music, there can be little doubt which club we are talking about. Ever since its arrival in London back in 2006, the brand which is known the world over, and one that has laid siege to its dominance of the gAylist scene in the capital until recent times, is a genuine measure of its success & popularity. But the scene can be a cruel & ruthless place sometimes, with promoters fighting tooth & nail for the lion’s share of the market, some employing devious tactics in pursuit of the dominance goal, often overlooking the desires of the clubber in just wanting to have a great time and with some huge parties going head to head in 2009, some would say, promoters ganging up to see their rivals downfall, as 2010 dawned, we were faced with dramatic news, as the club responsible for the so called “Spanish Armada” in London was changing hands.
Matinee, for virtually all of its history in the capital had been in the hands of promotions team Evolved Events, headed up by Oliver Mohns, who had steered the brand in the capital through a series of homes & incarnations, although the splitting of company with his then fellow business partner was set to be the catalyst to the change that this New Year revealed just hours into 1st January. But with heads in a spin over the news of the Logan Presents outfit claiming the Matinee prize, this team already responsible for hosting competitor brand SuperMartXe’s London parties, it would be fair to say that feelings were divided as to what lay ahead for Matinee and who the potential conflict of interests would be handled by Mr Schmitz & his team. But in typical Logan style, the calm & collected professional approach was quickly adopted and the theme of “Under Construction” was broadcast to an expectant public, in an instant creating the kind of curiosity that, as the going says, killed the cat.
So, with Saturday 6th February a date in our diaries and The Fridge named as the host venue for the new look Matinee (haven’t we been there before with the brand?), our Soho jaunt the night before included popping into a packed The Box, host bar for the pre-party & perhaps an indication of things to come, as we had never seen the place so busy, asking ourselves whether it was the Logan magical wand being waved or just coincidence. Nevertheless, The Box was well & truly pumping, the lovely duo of Mauricio & Lunarde flying the new Matinee flag, with long time resident Paul Heron spinning the discs and our trip to the event real was set fair with the gift of the latest Matinee t-shirt version. And it was this that found its way onto our back, as we headed to Brixton, a little later than planned after a disco nap (well we are getting on a bit!), to be greeted at the busy entrance to the fridge Logan’s partner Michael, looking very healthy & relaxed after his Caribbean cruise.
With our ticket in hand we were keen to get amongst the action and nearly missed the gorgeous & glamorous Naomi Cuiz on the door, hosting alongside Michael, remarking it had been literally hours since we had seen each other at A.M.’s birthday bash. But, the Matinee party was calling & after the usual search we were in, interrupted by a phone call from clubbing pal Joel as well as being spotted by Rupert Street’s G.M. Cathy, before heading to a frustratingly long queue for the coatcheck, discussing the issue with scene face & new found friend Dorin, who was just as disappointed at this start as we were, memories of SuperMartXe’s launch flashing through our minds. Having said that, we had a superb bird’s eye view of proceedings below, Paul Heron presiding over an absolutely packed main room from his stage elevated D.J. booth which was encapsulated by a huge & magnificent neon displayed frontage & backdrop, flashing Matinee images and making a broad statement to the whole club. High above was a gigantic banner exclaiming “Logan Presents Matinee” and with a myriad of laser lighting illuminating the theatre like space, it was clear that this was going to be one very super sized event.
With the coatcheck frustration over, we headed down into the main room and ignoring the four deep crowd at the bar, aimed straight into the thick of the action, struggling to weave around the packed out dancefloor in search of friends Stephen & Stefan who had arrived not long before us. And we connected soon after, just shy of one of the two massive podiums in the middle of the dancefloor, both topped by muscle hunks in revealing construction gear, strutting their stuff to the euro style sounds of J Louis, who had taken over centre stage from Paul Heron. And with two other podiums each side of the D.J. booth, it became clear to us that Logan’s Matinee was going to be much more about the music, yes with some eye candy, but what we can best describe as a “stripped down and raw look”, much more akin to the style of parties seen in Spain and definitely taking Matinee London back to its roots in 2006, the music speaking the volumes & setting the tones.
With a whole collection of people around and with just one massive room of fun to frolic in, we spent the next two hours connecting with J Louis’ music, connecting with a whole host of familiar faces, including photographer Chris Jepson, off duty D.J.’s Antoine 909 & Jamie Hammond, finished duty D.J. Paul Heron, who remarked on seeing us, “hear she is!” (SHE?!), Lovechild’s Jerry Boston, a host of Rupert Street & Barcode boys and even our hairdresser Louis, amongst others, all who seemed to be having a fantastic time savouring electric atmosphere that was building. The first of many crescendo’s were reached as the P.A. for the evening, Vanessa Klien took to the stage in amongst a massive plume of ticker tape explosions & firing rockets high into The Fridge’s expanse, Vanessa bursting into song, belting out a sequence of hard hitting dance tracks, including her massive hit “Addicted”, which is still topping the charts across Europe. Her energy was inspiring & served to fuel an already lively crowd, the dancers on the podium moving to the music in superb style and creating, along with the pyrotechnics & lighting, more than enough of a display to compliment rather than detract from proceedings.
With pal Stephen having retired early, obviously shattered from his day at the sea, our expectations turned to the arrival of Italian stallion Pagano, as many around us also seemed to and whilst we really enjoyed J Louis’ performance, it was to completely pail into insignificance compared to the perfect precision that became the set from Pagano, taking us on a musical journey like no other we had savoured of his at Matinee, except since the days of Colloseum. His enthusiasm for his music choices rubbed off on his audience amazingly and we lost count of the scores of people craving for his attention, truly finding our stride on the dancefloor, with all thoughts of moving onto pastures new shunned from our mind, rather concentrating on the mesmeric music being served up by Mr Francesco, the master at work making for us this “Under Construction” party his own.
But, with 6 a.m. fast approaching, we knew time would be called on our escapades soon and we reluctantly said our goodbyes to a whole host of people, including Logan himself, who looked delighted with the result of this magnificent Matinee party. With Pagano still pumping out the music, we headed into what was yet another lengthy queue at the coatcheck, but even we couldn’t have anticipated the wait, as it was gone 7 1.5 a.m. before we eventually reached the light of day out into The Fridges foyer, only to be beckoned by the welcoming arms of Tom Fuller & Steve Sharp convincing us that a decision to keep the party going was the best course of action, resulting in our next outing of the weekend, where else but Beyond.
So, what was our verdict on the new look Matinee? did we enjoy the experience? and what, if anything, could be improved? Well, we had thought the party would be busy, but could never have imagined to kind of numbers we saw in the Fridge, without doubt one of the busiest Matinee’s in its London history. It is clear that the Logan promotions machine must being doing something right, even taking into consideration that the curiosity card must have played a part. Without question the big theatre style feel seemed to suit the event and yet the temptation of a laying of a swashbuckling show was sensibly avoided, as in our view Matinee should always be about the music & there was no doubt this party very much was. Yes, the dancers were delectable & the P.A. was prolific, but the performances of Paul Heron, J Louis & Pagano truly made this a night to remember.
So, it goes without saying that we enjoyed our experience very much, even overlooking the somewhat tired feel The Fridge has. But that didn’t seem to affect the party in anyway & there is no mistaking that the sound quality and the laser lighting & effects were top notch. So what can be improved? Well without doubt, if it is to host future Matinee parties, The Fridge has to address the appalling coatcheck issues as well as the lack of staff & stock behind the bar (no Red Bull for the first few hours?! – a full 80 minutes to get our bag out at the end?! – ridiculous!!!) but it is these very things that affect a club night’s reputation and we would be doing an injustice not to mention them, no one more frustrated than Logan himself, whom we spoke to after the event, the man vowing to get the issues sorted. As for some other ingredients, well we did miss the option of a second room, but in reality this party didn’t really need it, although we will be one of many people pleased to see this addition next time. The rest of the absent elements can only be down to Logan and his team, but without doubt the “construction” continues and we were made truly welcome by each & every one of them, just like Matinee parties of old. So for that alone we are extremely grateful and we look forward to the next Matinee event with interest. (DISCO MATT)
REVIEW FOR SEENQUEEN
If there has been one club that has dramatically changed the gAylist clubbing landscape, creating immeasurable interest and then spurning a whole wave of other clubs to follow its lead in delivering dynamic production, spectacular shows & groundbreaking music, there can be little doubt which club we are talking about. Ever since its arrival in London back in 2006, the brand which is known the world over, and one that has laid siege to its dominance of the gAylist scene in the capital until recent times, is a genuine measure of its success & popularity. But the scene can be a cruel & ruthless place sometimes, with promoters fighting tooth & nail for the lion’s share of the market, some employing devious tactics in pursuit of the dominance goal, often overlooking the desires of the clubber in just wanting to have a great time and with some huge parties going head to head in 2009, some would say, promoters ganging up to see their rivals downfall, as 2010 dawned, we were faced with dramatic news, as the club responsible for the so called “Spanish Armada” in London was changing hands.
Matinee, for virtually all of its history in the capital had been in the hands of promotions team Evolved Events, headed up by Oliver Mohns, who had steered the brand in the capital through a series of homes & incarnations, although the splitting of company with his then fellow business partner was set to be the catalyst to the change that this New Year revealed just hours into 1st January. But with heads in a spin over the news of the Logan Presents outfit claiming the Matinee prize, this team already responsible for hosting competitor brand SuperMartXe’s London parties, it would be fair to say that feelings were divided as to what lay ahead for Matinee and who the potential conflict of interests would be handled by Mr Schmitz & his team. But in typical Logan style, the calm & collected professional approach was quickly adopted and the theme of “Under Construction” was broadcast to an expectant public, in an instant creating the kind of curiosity that, as the going says, killed the cat.
So, with Saturday 6th February a date in our diaries and The Fridge named as the host venue for the new look Matinee (haven’t we been there before with the brand?), our Soho jaunt the night before included popping into a packed The Box, host bar for the pre-party & perhaps an indication of things to come, as we had never seen the place so busy, asking ourselves whether it was the Logan magical wand being waved or just coincidence. Nevertheless, The Box was well & truly pumping, the lovely duo of Mauricio & Lunarde flying the new Matinee flag, with long time resident Paul Heron spinning the discs and our trip to the event real was set fair with the gift of the latest Matinee t-shirt version. And it was this that found its way onto our back, as we headed to Brixton, a little later than planned after a disco nap (well we are getting on a bit!), to be greeted at the busy entrance to the fridge Logan’s partner Michael, looking very healthy & relaxed after his Caribbean cruise.
With our ticket in hand we were keen to get amongst the action and nearly missed the gorgeous & glamorous Naomi Cuiz on the door, hosting alongside Michael, remarking it had been literally hours since we had seen each other at A.M.’s birthday bash. But, the Matinee party was calling & after the usual search we were in, interrupted by a phone call from clubbing pal Joel as well as being spotted by Rupert Street’s G.M. Cathy, before heading to a frustratingly long queue for the coatcheck, discussing the issue with scene face & new found friend Dorin, who was just as disappointed at this start as we were, memories of SuperMartXe’s launch flashing through our minds. Having said that, we had a superb bird’s eye view of proceedings below, Paul Heron presiding over an absolutely packed main room from his stage elevated D.J. booth which was encapsulated by a huge & magnificent neon displayed frontage & backdrop, flashing Matinee images and making a broad statement to the whole club. High above was a gigantic banner exclaiming “Logan Presents Matinee” and with a myriad of laser lighting illuminating the theatre like space, it was clear that this was going to be one very super sized event.
With the coatcheck frustration over, we headed down into the main room and ignoring the four deep crowd at the bar, aimed straight into the thick of the action, struggling to weave around the packed out dancefloor in search of friends Stephen & Stefan who had arrived not long before us. And we connected soon after, just shy of one of the two massive podiums in the middle of the dancefloor, both topped by muscle hunks in revealing construction gear, strutting their stuff to the euro style sounds of J Louis, who had taken over centre stage from Paul Heron. And with two other podiums each side of the D.J. booth, it became clear to us that Logan’s Matinee was going to be much more about the music, yes with some eye candy, but what we can best describe as a “stripped down and raw look”, much more akin to the style of parties seen in Spain and definitely taking Matinee London back to its roots in 2006, the music speaking the volumes & setting the tones.
With a whole collection of people around and with just one massive room of fun to frolic in, we spent the next two hours connecting with J Louis’ music, connecting with a whole host of familiar faces, including photographer Chris Jepson, off duty D.J.’s Antoine 909 & Jamie Hammond, finished duty D.J. Paul Heron, who remarked on seeing us, “hear she is!” (SHE?!), Lovechild’s Jerry Boston, a host of Rupert Street & Barcode boys and even our hairdresser Louis, amongst others, all who seemed to be having a fantastic time savouring electric atmosphere that was building. The first of many crescendo’s were reached as the P.A. for the evening, Vanessa Klien took to the stage in amongst a massive plume of ticker tape explosions & firing rockets high into The Fridge’s expanse, Vanessa bursting into song, belting out a sequence of hard hitting dance tracks, including her massive hit “Addicted”, which is still topping the charts across Europe. Her energy was inspiring & served to fuel an already lively crowd, the dancers on the podium moving to the music in superb style and creating, along with the pyrotechnics & lighting, more than enough of a display to compliment rather than detract from proceedings.
With pal Stephen having retired early, obviously shattered from his day at the sea, our expectations turned to the arrival of Italian stallion Pagano, as many around us also seemed to and whilst we really enjoyed J Louis’ performance, it was to completely pail into insignificance compared to the perfect precision that became the set from Pagano, taking us on a musical journey like no other we had savoured of his at Matinee, except since the days of Colloseum. His enthusiasm for his music choices rubbed off on his audience amazingly and we lost count of the scores of people craving for his attention, truly finding our stride on the dancefloor, with all thoughts of moving onto pastures new shunned from our mind, rather concentrating on the mesmeric music being served up by Mr Francesco, the master at work making for us this “Under Construction” party his own.
But, with 6 a.m. fast approaching, we knew time would be called on our escapades soon and we reluctantly said our goodbyes to a whole host of people, including Logan himself, who looked delighted with the result of this magnificent Matinee party. With Pagano still pumping out the music, we headed into what was yet another lengthy queue at the coatcheck, but even we couldn’t have anticipated the wait, as it was gone 7 1.5 a.m. before we eventually reached the light of day out into The Fridges foyer, only to be beckoned by the welcoming arms of Tom Fuller & Steve Sharp convincing us that a decision to keep the party going was the best course of action, resulting in our next outing of the weekend, where else but Beyond.
So, what was our verdict on the new look Matinee? did we enjoy the experience? and what, if anything, could be improved? Well, we had thought the party would be busy, but could never have imagined to kind of numbers we saw in the Fridge, without doubt one of the busiest Matinee’s in its London history. It is clear that the Logan promotions machine must being doing something right, even taking into consideration that the curiosity card must have played a part. Without question the big theatre style feel seemed to suit the event and yet the temptation of a laying of a swashbuckling show was sensibly avoided, as in our view Matinee should always be about the music & there was no doubt this party very much was. Yes, the dancers were delectable & the P.A. was prolific, but the performances of Paul Heron, J Louis & Pagano truly made this a night to remember.
So, it goes without saying that we enjoyed our experience very much, even overlooking the somewhat tired feel The Fridge has. But that didn’t seem to affect the party in anyway & there is no mistaking that the sound quality and the laser lighting & effects were top notch. So what can be improved? Well without doubt, if it is to host future Matinee parties, The Fridge has to address the appalling coatcheck issues as well as the lack of staff & stock behind the bar (no Red Bull for the first few hours?! – a full 80 minutes to get our bag out at the end?! – ridiculous!!!) but it is these very things that affect a club night’s reputation and we would be doing an injustice not to mention them, no one more frustrated than Logan himself, whom we spoke to after the event, the man vowing to get the issues sorted. As for some other ingredients, well we did miss the option of a second room, but in reality this party didn’t really need it, although we will be one of many people pleased to see this addition next time. The rest of the absent elements can only be down to Logan and his team, but without doubt the “construction” continues and we were made truly welcome by each & every one of them, just like Matinee parties of old. So for that alone we are extremely grateful and we look forward to the next Matinee event with interest. (DISCO MATT)
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