“OH TO BE IN LOVE”
THE LOVE WEEKEND – FRIDAY 14TH TO SUNDAY 16TH MAY
SPECIAL CLUB/EVENT REVIEW/OVERVIEW
There is something extra special about that feeling of love, not just the rush of emotions running around your head, your heart pumping that extra beat, but the sheer feeling of happiness & euphoria that comes with falling for someone or for something, meaning that the feeling of love is like no other sensation for us, it ignites a real spark & injects unparalleled levels of excitement into our bodies. Whilst they say that the first love is sometimes the deepest, it is fair to say, that in lots of ways, we fall in love nearly every weekend, in love with the amazing variety & brilliance of clubs we have before us in gAylist/land London, in love with the amazing music on offer in our clubs & hot spots, in love with the people that deliver it all, but most of all in love with life and for being party to all this lovely loveness. So when news hit our desks of a weekend dedicated to love, we simply couldn’t resist throwing our heart & soul into it all.
The concept of throwing a whole collection of events into one massive weekend is nothing new, in fact circuit festivalling as it is more commonly known as is an activity that is part of clubbing culture right across the world, a great example being the huge week long party held in Barcelona each August, However, London is not necessarily renowned for this type of clubbing, yes it has held massive warehouse parties in the past, remember Famous Five out at Bagley’s in Kings Cross, it has often combined club brands under one roof, an event like Universe being a good example, but stringing a series of parties together is something we haven’t come across in the capital for a long time, so the thought of one such happening was definitely wetting our appetite for an enormous weekend of clubbing activity and with the clubs in close proximity, it made for an even more palatable prospect.
So, where and when did it kick off?, well as all weekends generally start, the when was on the Friday (mind you ours usually gets going on a Thursday, naughty!) and the where was the club that seems to be the talk of the town at the moment, Onyx at Area, which was launched by Steven Gellar to critical acclaim back in the summer of 2009 and reached award winning status, but just seems to be going from strength to strength under the steership of new promoter kid on the block, Jonny Marsh. And starting the “Love Weekend” here was a perfect choice, not least that its home, Area, has built a reputation not just for its magnificent lighting, pyrotechnics & visuals, but for sporting some truly great parties & club brands, Onyx rightfully taking its place amongst the elite and in many ways transforming Friday clubbing in the capital. With a host of resident D.J.’s including Phil Marriot, Jamie Hammond, Ariel & Lisa German, the three rooms of fun offer an exciting mix of house genres to delight the truly eclectic crowd the night draws in and this Friday was no exception, as we swooped in on Onyx for a brief yet thrilling look at its “Love” offering.
With the Terrace bar room filled with party goers waiting in anticipation for the inbound Lisa German to stoke up the sounds with a tech infused set, we squeezed our way past the mass of bodies that were cramming the corridor into the middle Blackbox room, where an altogether more uplifting & disco tinged musical direction had the space packed. We headed straight for the D.J. booth to find the joyful & smiling Lee Harris behind the decks, treating the masses to some seriously sparkling sounds that also had us dancing in a jiffy. But, as good as Lee’s performance was & as brilliant as the atmosphere was difficult to resist, we were soon main room bound, where returning guest D.J., the Italian stallion himself, Pagano, was in charge of the tunes, delivering an altogether more tantalising & trippier string of sounds, that saw the main room swell to capacity right before our eyes, the trademark Area lighting & effects swinging into action, complimenting the masters work behind the decks. So the scene was set for yet another spectacular Onyx party, taking the huge packed crowd of clubbers deep into Saturday morning and starting the “Love Weekend” off in superb style.
The next instalment was A.M., the Friday afterhours at Fire which has been pulling in punters and then pouring them out into Saturday lunchtime fulfilled with an outrageous & overt experience to match no other. Since A.M. was launched back in 2000, it has, week in week out, provided that niche gap for those that simply want to extend their partying beyond Friday night and the special synchronisation of sounds from resident D.J.’s David Jminez, The Oli, Paul Martin, D’Johnny, Jamie Head & Alan K, have proven irresistible for many and indeed, in the early days, we used to make our weekly homage to Vauxhall especially for this audacious outing and more recently having enjoyed an awesome 9th Birthday celebration that certainly left is wanting more. But in the “Love Weekend”, A.M. was going to be something extra special, as the resident D.J.’s were being joined by no one, but two incredible international stars of the decks, Eduardo De la Torre & Paul Heron. But with all plans laid to waste, a quick trip home to change, found us napping well beyond dawn & missing out on a simply spectacular & stupendous party, with the two guests truly captivating the crowds & adding superbly to the stellar performances of the resident jocks. However, all was not lost as the event was captured in a brilliant video which gives a real feel & insight to just what a terrific party it was, so take a look at http://facebook.com/?ref=home#!/video/video.php?v=433480385983&ref=mf
Having recovered from our momentary slumber, we geared ourselves up for the further instalments in this massive weekend of love, first shimmying down to Fire on Saturday night for what turned about to be a very enjoyable Lovechild, with Albert Neve, P.A. Kaysee & Paul Heron huge highlights in an altogether engaging gathering, which was followed by the holy grail style homage to Beyond, this club once again proving why it is such a draw, both parties getting our full review focus and deservedly so. However, as has been the trend of recent times, the club that not only proved to be the most wonderful end to the quintet of “Love Weekend” events, but once again came into its own, delivering delightful debaucherous & decadent deep cuts of action, was Later at Fire, making the most of the Beyond crowd that wanted their weekend of partying to continue unabated, but also drawing in those who had either rested or chose to spice up their Sunday. And this has been very much the ingredient of the club, since its launch some seven years ago, which has seen Later consistently deliver an afternoon of audacious action week in week out.
It was certainly true of this “Love Weekend” too, as we arrived at just turned 1 p.m., accompanied to the door by fabulous friend & companion Tom, who had persuaded us to complete what turned out to be a quartet rather than a quintet of clubs, but nevertheless resulted in an auspicious end to a very enjoyable weekend. Right from the minute we entered Later & the Mirrorarch room, we knew we were in for a treat, being welcomed by the angelic Naomi & the stupendous Steve Pitron, who had delighted us with another stormer of a set back in Beyond. Inquisitive as to whether we had been to bed, a surprised Steve seemed impressed we had not and with refreshing energy boosting drink in hand, we soon sped onto the dancefloor to soak up the scintillating sounds being sent our way by the man behind the decks, Jon Bills, who was treating us to some of our tip top favourite tunes, including a couple of Soul Avergerz’s classics, “Drop The Bomb” & “Shame” causing us to dance deliriously on our spot within a packed out space, soon joined by Steve & co, as well as Paul Heron who, like us, was making the most of this love weekend. But the afternoon was only going to get better, as first guest D.J. Mikey D took to the decks to take up the gauntlet laid down by a departing Mr Bills, taking us to dizzier heights with a delicious & heavenly house music drenched stunner of a set, but was then followed by resident Terry Bryan who rounded off a purple patch & perfect Later to well & truly savour, a gathering that promoter Jay & his team should be proud of.
So, what was our verdict on the “Love Weekend” and what were the real highlights? Well, given the fact that it was the middle of the month and particularly one sandwiched between two bank holidays, the numbers at all five parties were very impressive. Yes, it seemed like a bit of an Orange group love-in, but the theme was very much about “Love” and in offering five fantastic events as one massive party for the phenomenal price of £20, the organisation was definitely spreading the love this weekend. As for the highlights, well Onyx yet again delivered in virtually every department, we were told countless times just how good A.M. was, with Eduardo & Paul delighting the audience and Lovechild had sparks of brilliance, Albert Neve in particular impressing us with his performance.
But as is usually the case, it was all about Sunday for us, as not only did Beyond leave us breathless, but Later saw to it that our weekend finished on a real high note. We can hear some of you say, “...this “Love Weekend” was just about Fire & Area...”, but you know, two better venues you couldn’t have asked for, plus we were impressed by offering from the selection from the cream of the crop of D.J.’s, all that ensured the music offer was top notch. And of those we witnessed, well Pagano was definitely up there, Paul Heron had us moving & grooving like a good-un, Jon Bills hit plenty of our sweet spots, but once again it was those Beyond boys that really did it for us. Not only was Steve’s set surreal, but Alan’s multi mixing was magical and whilst Mikey was in Later territory, he laid down a set that would have been just at home in the main room at Beyond, so good were his track selections. Were we once again in love? you bet ya, loving the music, loving the people, loving the clubbing and loving the weekend!! (DISCO MATT)
THE LOVE WEEKEND – FRIDAY 14TH TO SUNDAY 16TH MAY
SPECIAL CLUB/EVENT REVIEW/OVERVIEW
There is something extra special about that feeling of love, not just the rush of emotions running around your head, your heart pumping that extra beat, but the sheer feeling of happiness & euphoria that comes with falling for someone or for something, meaning that the feeling of love is like no other sensation for us, it ignites a real spark & injects unparalleled levels of excitement into our bodies. Whilst they say that the first love is sometimes the deepest, it is fair to say, that in lots of ways, we fall in love nearly every weekend, in love with the amazing variety & brilliance of clubs we have before us in gAylist/land London, in love with the amazing music on offer in our clubs & hot spots, in love with the people that deliver it all, but most of all in love with life and for being party to all this lovely loveness. So when news hit our desks of a weekend dedicated to love, we simply couldn’t resist throwing our heart & soul into it all.
The concept of throwing a whole collection of events into one massive weekend is nothing new, in fact circuit festivalling as it is more commonly known as is an activity that is part of clubbing culture right across the world, a great example being the huge week long party held in Barcelona each August, However, London is not necessarily renowned for this type of clubbing, yes it has held massive warehouse parties in the past, remember Famous Five out at Bagley’s in Kings Cross, it has often combined club brands under one roof, an event like Universe being a good example, but stringing a series of parties together is something we haven’t come across in the capital for a long time, so the thought of one such happening was definitely wetting our appetite for an enormous weekend of clubbing activity and with the clubs in close proximity, it made for an even more palatable prospect.
So, where and when did it kick off?, well as all weekends generally start, the when was on the Friday (mind you ours usually gets going on a Thursday, naughty!) and the where was the club that seems to be the talk of the town at the moment, Onyx at Area, which was launched by Steven Gellar to critical acclaim back in the summer of 2009 and reached award winning status, but just seems to be going from strength to strength under the steership of new promoter kid on the block, Jonny Marsh. And starting the “Love Weekend” here was a perfect choice, not least that its home, Area, has built a reputation not just for its magnificent lighting, pyrotechnics & visuals, but for sporting some truly great parties & club brands, Onyx rightfully taking its place amongst the elite and in many ways transforming Friday clubbing in the capital. With a host of resident D.J.’s including Phil Marriot, Jamie Hammond, Ariel & Lisa German, the three rooms of fun offer an exciting mix of house genres to delight the truly eclectic crowd the night draws in and this Friday was no exception, as we swooped in on Onyx for a brief yet thrilling look at its “Love” offering.
With the Terrace bar room filled with party goers waiting in anticipation for the inbound Lisa German to stoke up the sounds with a tech infused set, we squeezed our way past the mass of bodies that were cramming the corridor into the middle Blackbox room, where an altogether more uplifting & disco tinged musical direction had the space packed. We headed straight for the D.J. booth to find the joyful & smiling Lee Harris behind the decks, treating the masses to some seriously sparkling sounds that also had us dancing in a jiffy. But, as good as Lee’s performance was & as brilliant as the atmosphere was difficult to resist, we were soon main room bound, where returning guest D.J., the Italian stallion himself, Pagano, was in charge of the tunes, delivering an altogether more tantalising & trippier string of sounds, that saw the main room swell to capacity right before our eyes, the trademark Area lighting & effects swinging into action, complimenting the masters work behind the decks. So the scene was set for yet another spectacular Onyx party, taking the huge packed crowd of clubbers deep into Saturday morning and starting the “Love Weekend” off in superb style.
The next instalment was A.M., the Friday afterhours at Fire which has been pulling in punters and then pouring them out into Saturday lunchtime fulfilled with an outrageous & overt experience to match no other. Since A.M. was launched back in 2000, it has, week in week out, provided that niche gap for those that simply want to extend their partying beyond Friday night and the special synchronisation of sounds from resident D.J.’s David Jminez, The Oli, Paul Martin, D’Johnny, Jamie Head & Alan K, have proven irresistible for many and indeed, in the early days, we used to make our weekly homage to Vauxhall especially for this audacious outing and more recently having enjoyed an awesome 9th Birthday celebration that certainly left is wanting more. But in the “Love Weekend”, A.M. was going to be something extra special, as the resident D.J.’s were being joined by no one, but two incredible international stars of the decks, Eduardo De la Torre & Paul Heron. But with all plans laid to waste, a quick trip home to change, found us napping well beyond dawn & missing out on a simply spectacular & stupendous party, with the two guests truly captivating the crowds & adding superbly to the stellar performances of the resident jocks. However, all was not lost as the event was captured in a brilliant video which gives a real feel & insight to just what a terrific party it was, so take a look at http://facebook.com/?ref=home#!/video/video.php?v=433480385983&ref=mf
Having recovered from our momentary slumber, we geared ourselves up for the further instalments in this massive weekend of love, first shimmying down to Fire on Saturday night for what turned about to be a very enjoyable Lovechild, with Albert Neve, P.A. Kaysee & Paul Heron huge highlights in an altogether engaging gathering, which was followed by the holy grail style homage to Beyond, this club once again proving why it is such a draw, both parties getting our full review focus and deservedly so. However, as has been the trend of recent times, the club that not only proved to be the most wonderful end to the quintet of “Love Weekend” events, but once again came into its own, delivering delightful debaucherous & decadent deep cuts of action, was Later at Fire, making the most of the Beyond crowd that wanted their weekend of partying to continue unabated, but also drawing in those who had either rested or chose to spice up their Sunday. And this has been very much the ingredient of the club, since its launch some seven years ago, which has seen Later consistently deliver an afternoon of audacious action week in week out.
It was certainly true of this “Love Weekend” too, as we arrived at just turned 1 p.m., accompanied to the door by fabulous friend & companion Tom, who had persuaded us to complete what turned out to be a quartet rather than a quintet of clubs, but nevertheless resulted in an auspicious end to a very enjoyable weekend. Right from the minute we entered Later & the Mirrorarch room, we knew we were in for a treat, being welcomed by the angelic Naomi & the stupendous Steve Pitron, who had delighted us with another stormer of a set back in Beyond. Inquisitive as to whether we had been to bed, a surprised Steve seemed impressed we had not and with refreshing energy boosting drink in hand, we soon sped onto the dancefloor to soak up the scintillating sounds being sent our way by the man behind the decks, Jon Bills, who was treating us to some of our tip top favourite tunes, including a couple of Soul Avergerz’s classics, “Drop The Bomb” & “Shame” causing us to dance deliriously on our spot within a packed out space, soon joined by Steve & co, as well as Paul Heron who, like us, was making the most of this love weekend. But the afternoon was only going to get better, as first guest D.J. Mikey D took to the decks to take up the gauntlet laid down by a departing Mr Bills, taking us to dizzier heights with a delicious & heavenly house music drenched stunner of a set, but was then followed by resident Terry Bryan who rounded off a purple patch & perfect Later to well & truly savour, a gathering that promoter Jay & his team should be proud of.
So, what was our verdict on the “Love Weekend” and what were the real highlights? Well, given the fact that it was the middle of the month and particularly one sandwiched between two bank holidays, the numbers at all five parties were very impressive. Yes, it seemed like a bit of an Orange group love-in, but the theme was very much about “Love” and in offering five fantastic events as one massive party for the phenomenal price of £20, the organisation was definitely spreading the love this weekend. As for the highlights, well Onyx yet again delivered in virtually every department, we were told countless times just how good A.M. was, with Eduardo & Paul delighting the audience and Lovechild had sparks of brilliance, Albert Neve in particular impressing us with his performance.
But as is usually the case, it was all about Sunday for us, as not only did Beyond leave us breathless, but Later saw to it that our weekend finished on a real high note. We can hear some of you say, “...this “Love Weekend” was just about Fire & Area...”, but you know, two better venues you couldn’t have asked for, plus we were impressed by offering from the selection from the cream of the crop of D.J.’s, all that ensured the music offer was top notch. And of those we witnessed, well Pagano was definitely up there, Paul Heron had us moving & grooving like a good-un, Jon Bills hit plenty of our sweet spots, but once again it was those Beyond boys that really did it for us. Not only was Steve’s set surreal, but Alan’s multi mixing was magical and whilst Mikey was in Later territory, he laid down a set that would have been just at home in the main room at Beyond, so good were his track selections. Were we once again in love? you bet ya, loving the music, loving the people, loving the clubbing and loving the weekend!! (DISCO MATT)
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