"THE LEOMEO LOVECHILD LOVE-IN"
LOVECHILD “HOT TROPICANA” - SATURDAY 31ST JULY
CLUB REVIEW
Now we love our clubbing and we love our club brands, although it takes a lot for us pay homage to events more than once in a month, well with the possible exception of those weekly outings that are too much to resist. But then, the occasions that we are faced with two parties in one month by the same brand is rare indeed, although this July was to prove the exception to the rule, as unbeknownst to us, the team behind Lovechild had planned for their big extravaganza of the month to fall at the final rather than its usual third Saturday slot. Therefore, we were somewhat caught off guard and unprepared for the month end madness of “Hot Tropicana”, having already pledged our allegiance to “Makin Hay” just two weeks before, added to which some serious unravelling of plans was required given the arrival of a special guest D.J. to the decks, that made our attendance at this second Lovechild outing a virtual certainty. So, were our change of plans worthwhile? What made this latest Lovechild event stand out from the rest? Was the move to the end of the month a success? And who and what did it for us the most?
Now probably the first question to answer is, who was that special guest D.J. we were deluding to? Well, it was French fancy Leomeo of course, whose trip to the capital had been preceded by whistle-stop tours of New York, & Barcelona, the hectic schedule of this amiable Parisian pal meaning that London bound appearances were few & far between, making our decision to make changes to our plans a simple choice. However, having met up with the man earlier on Saturday afternoon, we at least managed to keep to some of our old plans, our liege Leomeo accompanying us, along with fellow party head Marco Cerrone, to Circus’s Pyjama party, before duty called in Vauxhall. Arriving as a threesome (in the clubbing kind of course) at Lovechild’s door, we were greeted not just by head poncho Alex Erfan and a supporting cast including Simon Patrick & Romain Lopez, but had to beat our way through the plumes of palms that were decorating the entrance to this “Hot Tropicana” themed event, really setting the scene for the prolific production that was to behold our eyes inside.
And it was into the club that we found ourselves in an instant, Alex leading Leomeo & Marco away while we headed to the coatcheck to drop off our belongings, before stopping off at the bar to fuel our body with refreshing energy drink and painkilling remedies for our expected dancing onslaught in the hands of this latest Lovechild luxuriate. There we were surprised by an off-duty Tom Fuller and a departing Craig Daniels, both men stopping us in our tracks, we engaging in catch up news with Tom before continuing on our way. Descending down onto the main room dancefloor we were immediately impressed by the sheer level of effort the team had gone to in decorating the space, the extent of palms we had witnessed on our entry, paling into insignificance compared with the lavish greenery that was festooning Fire’s main space, added extra’s all around the D.J. booth complimenting the look and certainly deluding to the jungle like feel of the place, the tongue in cheek visuals full of extracts from the famous Disney movie adding a camp touch to the truly tropical theme.
But we were intent on finding our favoured spot in this main room madness and as we approached the D.J. booth found our friends Leomeo & Marco in situ, with resident Lovechilder Tony English in charge of the tunes, rousing the room with a rip roaring rendition of euro style & Balearic inspired beats intermixed with tunes of now, all of which were striking resonance with the packed out premier Fire space. Mind you, our late arrival had meant we had missed out on the usual opener by Phil Hewson, who spotted us in our usual place and bounded over to quiz us on absence before speeding off in search of his companions. This kind of spurted us into carrying out our usual tour of duty around the club, first dropping in on the lounge space and headed straight for the D.J. booth to say our hello’s to Gabriele Cutrano who was once again in charge of this intimate offering, serving up a more laid back yet tech infused funky house soundtrack compared with the more upbeat offerings next door, although it was clear this lounge area had its following, a comfortable crowd lapping up his alternative musical delights. But our tour was to continue as we urged Alex to introduce us to second guest D.J. for the night, Nick Wolanski, as we were keen to see this model turned music maker in the flesh, although on arriving in the contact room and heading to meet the man, it was clear he was engrossed in his set and far from interested in our introduction. So, instead we stepped back down to observe him in action and it has to be said that we found his performance far from inspiring, his music not quite hitting our mark, perhaps reflective of his monstrous mood.
Returning to the main room was now a simple choice, especially as the lovely Leomeo was about to hit the decks and were we in for a treat or what, as this terrifically talented individual set about stoking up the already impressive atmosphere with a mesmeric mix of uplifting and funky vocal infused house, slowly sliding into more tribal and progressive beats, that took us on a journey of magical musical exploration. With every new track Leomeo selected, we became more engrossed with his delightful delivering, dancing deliriously to recognition of his rip roaring raptures and it was clear he was enjoying his lot too, bopping up & down behind the decks, occasional hands in the air invoking similar reactions from the packed out dancefloor. Such was the strength of his set, that the numbers next door in the Mirrorarch soon drained into the main room to soak up Leomeo’s scintillating sounds and to add to the excitement, we were joined by a whole load of familiar faces, including Lovechilders Roni Inan & Danny Shubert, the delightful Dorin, who had torn himself away from duties in the Lightbox and bello Alessandro who had just landed from his gig in Barcode, our Sicilian friend in fine fettle & ready to party deep towards dawn.
With Leomeo now very much in charge, the atmosphere was to get even better when Thigio Drewry’s drop dead gorgeous go-go dancers hit the podiums placed around the main room, stilt walkers adding to the stage show antics and our gaze pointed in the direction of this massively muscled man displaying his wares and swinging his man tool around with baring bravado, his proud appendage big enough to more than poke your eye out, we wondering exactly where the Seen Queen video camera was when you needed it. Having missed the snake charmer & all the other audacious activities earlier on, our time was definitely now and we were very much enjoying our lot, the saucy shows adding to the magnificent music and the vibrant visuals, which had replaced the jovial jungle book screen shots before, the impressive Lovechild images the work of the immensely talented Alan X, who had also joined us to pour out his take on this Tropicana tribal transmission.
With the dancers retreated and our love-in liaison with Mr Drewry over, it was down to Leomeo to fulfil our hearts desires, he failing to disappoint, as one rousing tribal inspired tune after the next well & truly made a mesmeric mark on our musical mind, especially a brilliant brand new track full of tech & tribal tones that our Parisian pal had created with close compatriot D.J. friend Javier Medina in his Barcelona studio, we being treated to a first live airing of this terrific tune. And in essence this summed up Leomeo’s pulsating performance, a two hour showing of spectacular sounds that left us wanting for more and searching for inspiration once he had stepped down from his D.J.’ing duties, he handing over the reins to Lee Harris who was to see out this “Hot Tropicana” main room marauding, while we made the most of our last few minutes with Leomeo before he retired to rest on what had been a jam packed Saturday of socialising, partying & performing, his departure leaving us to soak up the remaining uplifting sounds from Mr Harris, which included our tune of now “World Go Round”, this in itself signalling our own go round and journey off to the afterhours action across Vauxhall.
What was clear from the moment we graced the doors of this Lovechild “Hot Tropicana” party was the sheer amount of effort that had gone in to the production of the event, from the entrance through to the main room & beyond, all really inspiring the jungle fever feel of this outing, indeed the best we have seen of any Lovechild party yet. Having arrived a little late to catch the snake charmer, we heard that part of the string of shows was an absolute wow, although the slices of Thigio’s dancers were more than enough for us, especially that muscular man who certainly had a snake of his own! However, whilst the numbers were certainly up on the last outing, this particular month end move was always going to be up against the exodus to Barcelona and once again it seemed the contact room failed to ignite anywhere near the passion of Lovechild parties of old, this occasion like “Makin Hay” before it, proving that it was all about the main room. But in reality this was no surprise, as the Leomeo show certainly packed a punch, his brilliant blend of funky, chunky tunes sliding into tribal tracks, had us hooked from start to finish and yes we were pleased to change our plans in order to make this “Hot Tropicana” happening, as his set was our outstanding highlight & well worth the visit. (DISCO MATT)
LOVECHILD “HOT TROPICANA” - SATURDAY 31ST JULY
CLUB REVIEW
Now we love our clubbing and we love our club brands, although it takes a lot for us pay homage to events more than once in a month, well with the possible exception of those weekly outings that are too much to resist. But then, the occasions that we are faced with two parties in one month by the same brand is rare indeed, although this July was to prove the exception to the rule, as unbeknownst to us, the team behind Lovechild had planned for their big extravaganza of the month to fall at the final rather than its usual third Saturday slot. Therefore, we were somewhat caught off guard and unprepared for the month end madness of “Hot Tropicana”, having already pledged our allegiance to “Makin Hay” just two weeks before, added to which some serious unravelling of plans was required given the arrival of a special guest D.J. to the decks, that made our attendance at this second Lovechild outing a virtual certainty. So, were our change of plans worthwhile? What made this latest Lovechild event stand out from the rest? Was the move to the end of the month a success? And who and what did it for us the most?
Now probably the first question to answer is, who was that special guest D.J. we were deluding to? Well, it was French fancy Leomeo of course, whose trip to the capital had been preceded by whistle-stop tours of New York, & Barcelona, the hectic schedule of this amiable Parisian pal meaning that London bound appearances were few & far between, making our decision to make changes to our plans a simple choice. However, having met up with the man earlier on Saturday afternoon, we at least managed to keep to some of our old plans, our liege Leomeo accompanying us, along with fellow party head Marco Cerrone, to Circus’s Pyjama party, before duty called in Vauxhall. Arriving as a threesome (in the clubbing kind of course) at Lovechild’s door, we were greeted not just by head poncho Alex Erfan and a supporting cast including Simon Patrick & Romain Lopez, but had to beat our way through the plumes of palms that were decorating the entrance to this “Hot Tropicana” themed event, really setting the scene for the prolific production that was to behold our eyes inside.
And it was into the club that we found ourselves in an instant, Alex leading Leomeo & Marco away while we headed to the coatcheck to drop off our belongings, before stopping off at the bar to fuel our body with refreshing energy drink and painkilling remedies for our expected dancing onslaught in the hands of this latest Lovechild luxuriate. There we were surprised by an off-duty Tom Fuller and a departing Craig Daniels, both men stopping us in our tracks, we engaging in catch up news with Tom before continuing on our way. Descending down onto the main room dancefloor we were immediately impressed by the sheer level of effort the team had gone to in decorating the space, the extent of palms we had witnessed on our entry, paling into insignificance compared with the lavish greenery that was festooning Fire’s main space, added extra’s all around the D.J. booth complimenting the look and certainly deluding to the jungle like feel of the place, the tongue in cheek visuals full of extracts from the famous Disney movie adding a camp touch to the truly tropical theme.
But we were intent on finding our favoured spot in this main room madness and as we approached the D.J. booth found our friends Leomeo & Marco in situ, with resident Lovechilder Tony English in charge of the tunes, rousing the room with a rip roaring rendition of euro style & Balearic inspired beats intermixed with tunes of now, all of which were striking resonance with the packed out premier Fire space. Mind you, our late arrival had meant we had missed out on the usual opener by Phil Hewson, who spotted us in our usual place and bounded over to quiz us on absence before speeding off in search of his companions. This kind of spurted us into carrying out our usual tour of duty around the club, first dropping in on the lounge space and headed straight for the D.J. booth to say our hello’s to Gabriele Cutrano who was once again in charge of this intimate offering, serving up a more laid back yet tech infused funky house soundtrack compared with the more upbeat offerings next door, although it was clear this lounge area had its following, a comfortable crowd lapping up his alternative musical delights. But our tour was to continue as we urged Alex to introduce us to second guest D.J. for the night, Nick Wolanski, as we were keen to see this model turned music maker in the flesh, although on arriving in the contact room and heading to meet the man, it was clear he was engrossed in his set and far from interested in our introduction. So, instead we stepped back down to observe him in action and it has to be said that we found his performance far from inspiring, his music not quite hitting our mark, perhaps reflective of his monstrous mood.
Returning to the main room was now a simple choice, especially as the lovely Leomeo was about to hit the decks and were we in for a treat or what, as this terrifically talented individual set about stoking up the already impressive atmosphere with a mesmeric mix of uplifting and funky vocal infused house, slowly sliding into more tribal and progressive beats, that took us on a journey of magical musical exploration. With every new track Leomeo selected, we became more engrossed with his delightful delivering, dancing deliriously to recognition of his rip roaring raptures and it was clear he was enjoying his lot too, bopping up & down behind the decks, occasional hands in the air invoking similar reactions from the packed out dancefloor. Such was the strength of his set, that the numbers next door in the Mirrorarch soon drained into the main room to soak up Leomeo’s scintillating sounds and to add to the excitement, we were joined by a whole load of familiar faces, including Lovechilders Roni Inan & Danny Shubert, the delightful Dorin, who had torn himself away from duties in the Lightbox and bello Alessandro who had just landed from his gig in Barcode, our Sicilian friend in fine fettle & ready to party deep towards dawn.
With Leomeo now very much in charge, the atmosphere was to get even better when Thigio Drewry’s drop dead gorgeous go-go dancers hit the podiums placed around the main room, stilt walkers adding to the stage show antics and our gaze pointed in the direction of this massively muscled man displaying his wares and swinging his man tool around with baring bravado, his proud appendage big enough to more than poke your eye out, we wondering exactly where the Seen Queen video camera was when you needed it. Having missed the snake charmer & all the other audacious activities earlier on, our time was definitely now and we were very much enjoying our lot, the saucy shows adding to the magnificent music and the vibrant visuals, which had replaced the jovial jungle book screen shots before, the impressive Lovechild images the work of the immensely talented Alan X, who had also joined us to pour out his take on this Tropicana tribal transmission.
With the dancers retreated and our love-in liaison with Mr Drewry over, it was down to Leomeo to fulfil our hearts desires, he failing to disappoint, as one rousing tribal inspired tune after the next well & truly made a mesmeric mark on our musical mind, especially a brilliant brand new track full of tech & tribal tones that our Parisian pal had created with close compatriot D.J. friend Javier Medina in his Barcelona studio, we being treated to a first live airing of this terrific tune. And in essence this summed up Leomeo’s pulsating performance, a two hour showing of spectacular sounds that left us wanting for more and searching for inspiration once he had stepped down from his D.J.’ing duties, he handing over the reins to Lee Harris who was to see out this “Hot Tropicana” main room marauding, while we made the most of our last few minutes with Leomeo before he retired to rest on what had been a jam packed Saturday of socialising, partying & performing, his departure leaving us to soak up the remaining uplifting sounds from Mr Harris, which included our tune of now “World Go Round”, this in itself signalling our own go round and journey off to the afterhours action across Vauxhall.
What was clear from the moment we graced the doors of this Lovechild “Hot Tropicana” party was the sheer amount of effort that had gone in to the production of the event, from the entrance through to the main room & beyond, all really inspiring the jungle fever feel of this outing, indeed the best we have seen of any Lovechild party yet. Having arrived a little late to catch the snake charmer, we heard that part of the string of shows was an absolute wow, although the slices of Thigio’s dancers were more than enough for us, especially that muscular man who certainly had a snake of his own! However, whilst the numbers were certainly up on the last outing, this particular month end move was always going to be up against the exodus to Barcelona and once again it seemed the contact room failed to ignite anywhere near the passion of Lovechild parties of old, this occasion like “Makin Hay” before it, proving that it was all about the main room. But in reality this was no surprise, as the Leomeo show certainly packed a punch, his brilliant blend of funky, chunky tunes sliding into tribal tracks, had us hooked from start to finish and yes we were pleased to change our plans in order to make this “Hot Tropicana” happening, as his set was our outstanding highlight & well worth the visit. (DISCO MATT)
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