“BANKING ON A BRILLIANT BLEND OF BRANDS”
AS ONE “MASSIVE FUNFAIR GARDEN PARTY” –
SUNDAY 3OTH AUGUST
EVENT REVIEW
We are very lucky here in the capital to have an incredible amount of strong branded clubs that offer us the diversity that many other cities around the world would bite our hands off for and yet as amazing as the choice is, bringing brands together seems to be a harder & harder prospect, particularly in the scene that seems to be becoming even more fiercely competitive for a slice of our hard earned cash. So, when promoter Alex Erfan came up with the concept to bring clubs together as a united front to produce an event not seen in London for quite a few years, although as successful as the inaugural event on New Year’s day was, which was followed up by an equally popular Easter outing, we had pretty much resigned ourselves to waiting until, January 2011 before the hit of NYD showed its face on the schedule again, plans for a Gay Pride party pulled at the 11th hour and as little as three weeks before this final Bank Holiday of the year, the collaboration talk of town was playing no part in proceedings. But as we keep telling ourselves, a week club & Disco Matt land is a long time and with news of its sudden inclusion hitting our decks, plus the exciting prospect of the inclusion of a Spanish D.J. talent friend of ours in the line-up, as well as a handful of other pals, we made plans to flex our own calendar of events.
As One made such a splash on the gAylist scene when it was launched at the head of the year, that just the mere mention of the name engenders a real sense of togetherness that the drawing in of like minded promoters & their branded clubs created at the first two parties, so we were certainly not going to miss out on the third instalment of this amazing amalgamation, original players Lovechild, Lo-Profile & Megawoof being joined this time, by Brighton’s Wild Fruit & London’s Later, to create an afternoon event combining both indoors & out, the timing changed from the previous parties. In backing this collaborative collective into Sunday afternoon, the team were very much banking on the feeding effects from both Beyond & M.O.S.T., as well as the golden ticket trend that now seems to be swinging in favour of this 7th day p.m. slot and, in the case of a Bank Holiday, a readymade audience very much up for partying hard, some from Friday, others just starting their weekend. So given all this, how did this latest As One affair turn out? Was it the success the team had hoped for? And who & what floated our boat the most?
Despite some last minute jitters which included some upsetting personal developments, having been plucked out of Beyond to gather ourselves back together over coffee, some reassuring words & then a phone conversation with the in-bound Mr Medina, concentrated our mind on the next instalment in our weekend of furied activity and we arrived at Fire’s rear entrance at not long before midday. Finding Javier waiting for us very much boosted our lagging mood and we entered As One’s host venue to not only see it in its empty state, an experience first, but also make the most of a complete guided tour of all six rooms, more for the benefit of our Spanish D.J. pal, but nevertheless an enlightening few moments worth, especially given the renovation plans which were clearly beginning to take shape. But it was back in the Mirrorarch space, the room set aside for the Lovechild branded segment of this afternoon aural audacity, that we rested for a while, waiting for the party to swing into action, being joined first by the ever smiling & engaging Minty, who was back where she belonged, in charge of door & guest proceedings and then by incumbent opening slot D.J., the cute & charming Eduardo De la Torre in usual bubbly mood & ready to kick-start this brilliant blend of brands.
So the scene was set for another scintillating staging of the success story of 2010, the promoters usual apprehensions laid to rest swiftly as the crowds came in ever increasing numbers, soon swelling not just the Lovechild room were Eduardo was stirring up a storm of spectacular sounds, but filling out the main room which was being stoked up by Lee Harris, flying the Wild Fruit flag, through to the Lo-Profile lounge where the wonderful Stewart Whoo was casting his magical music spell. However, our attention was on our Barcelona boy and, following a second excursion out for coffee, we returned to the thick of the action in the Lovechild room, selecting a space by the bar to watch over proceedings, Mr De La Torre’s funky, chunky & octane fuelled tech & electro tunes with, not unsurprisingly, hints of latin beats running through them, were definitely doing the business, the space well & truly rocking. And it would be this rooms that had the lion’s share of activity across the whole event, not just when Javier took over the reins, his tribal & progressive euro styled sounds finding favour with the faithful, even if competing against the other rooms & the outside funfair was a battle, then with Lovechild residents Paul Heron & Alessandro arresting the atmosphere with two amazing performances that were purple patch in their positioning & rapturous in their reception.
But the main room had its say too, Lee Harris’s uplifting soundtrack finding popular resonance, special guests Prok & Fitch playing it tougher for the packed out space and Terry Bryan whipping up a hurricane of heavenly house hits to delight. But to say that the Lo-Profile lounge was simply popular, was a trice of an understatement, the fat end of the afternoon in this select space in the hands of scene favourite Brent Nicholls, whose selection of elements of disco, electro & funky latino house had the room absolutely pumping, torso’s with shirts taken off & the heat very much turned on, such was the energy of the music & the crowd. And as a result of the extent of the room’s popularity, we were finding it difficult to do our best to spread our devotions between Javier across in the mirrorarch & Brent in this, the Lo-Profile lounge, darting two & fro as well as keeping a watchful glance on the main room in-between & the lightbox, which was being managed magnificently by the Megawoof team, also dipping out into the Fire garden area, which was in full Later funfair mode and proving just as popular as each & every space inside.
However, it was the inside rather than the out that would get most of our attention, we continually gravitating back to the mirrorarch to support our Spanish senor and serenade his set with our dancing dervishes next to the D.J. booth, Javier’s tough tech toned tribal beats keeping us moving & grooving right to the end of his stint, his final flurry preparing us for his swift send off to duties in Ibiza, our short first liaison over as quickly as it had began just a few hours earlier and leaving us to sink back into the remainder of our stay. But with Mr Medina gone, our mind seemed to float back to the upsetting issues that had hounded our trip to beyond and whilst we did our level best to get into the stride, first of Brent Nicholls’ barnstorming beats & then Paul Heron’s prolific performance, even the magnificent Minty who rarely fails to lift our spirits, could see there was something not quite right. So, grabbing our bag from behind the mirrorarch D.J. booth, having said our farewells, we sank out into the garden to beat our retreat, but in finding the space packed to the rafters, all the funfair attractions in full swing, especially the helter skelter slide, we bumped into handfuls of familiar faces to whom we had to make our exiting excuses, including friends Michelle & Clayton, still going strong from their similar Saturday start to ours, and then to Alessandro, who was taking a moment before his stormer of a set that, we were reliably informed, short of stole to show. However, despite their pleas for us to stay, our mind was fixed on home and a comforting curl under our duvet, leaving Vauxhall, Fire & As One behind to grab all the plaudits as one of the true highlights of a hit & miss Bank Holiday weekend of ours.
Despite our own gloomy mood, it was clear As One made plenty people happy, not least the various promoters involved, as well as the team around them, reports coming in that the numbers topped the previous party and given the elements up against it, the pretty poor weather in the capital, the draw of Manchester Pride & the general difficult trading environment in clubland, banking on a brilliant blend of brands worked wonderfully. Whist we never really found our own stride sufficiently, going back & forth as we did, we got a feel for just how busy this latest As One incarnation was, each space & club brand playing their part perfectly and plenty of D.J.’s shining with superb sets. To pick out specific highlights would be difficult, as even though we weren’t firing on all cylinders, there was plenty for us to be joyful about, from an exceptionally energetic & entertaining enthralment from Eduardo, to a brilliantly breathtaking ballad of beats from Brent, who did more than his fair share of boat floating and much more besides, but we were thrilled the most to meet & see Javier in action, so that will be our lasting memory of this amazing amalgamation. In terms of As One itself, well there was no doubt that it turned out terrifically and in doing so has secured a well deserved place in our clubbing calendar, meaning that January 1st 2010 is already etched in our diary. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript
To not just compliment but to boost this reflective look at As One, why not check out this videocut from the event, at http://facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1484487706983&ref=mf and also the special compilation mix from Lovechild room opener, Eduardo De Lat Torre, at http://soundcloud.com/dj-edu-de-la-torre/as-one-london-bank-holliday-especial-mixed-by-dj-edu-de-la-torre.
AS ONE “MASSIVE FUNFAIR GARDEN PARTY” –
SUNDAY 3OTH AUGUST
EVENT REVIEW
We are very lucky here in the capital to have an incredible amount of strong branded clubs that offer us the diversity that many other cities around the world would bite our hands off for and yet as amazing as the choice is, bringing brands together seems to be a harder & harder prospect, particularly in the scene that seems to be becoming even more fiercely competitive for a slice of our hard earned cash. So, when promoter Alex Erfan came up with the concept to bring clubs together as a united front to produce an event not seen in London for quite a few years, although as successful as the inaugural event on New Year’s day was, which was followed up by an equally popular Easter outing, we had pretty much resigned ourselves to waiting until, January 2011 before the hit of NYD showed its face on the schedule again, plans for a Gay Pride party pulled at the 11th hour and as little as three weeks before this final Bank Holiday of the year, the collaboration talk of town was playing no part in proceedings. But as we keep telling ourselves, a week club & Disco Matt land is a long time and with news of its sudden inclusion hitting our decks, plus the exciting prospect of the inclusion of a Spanish D.J. talent friend of ours in the line-up, as well as a handful of other pals, we made plans to flex our own calendar of events.
As One made such a splash on the gAylist scene when it was launched at the head of the year, that just the mere mention of the name engenders a real sense of togetherness that the drawing in of like minded promoters & their branded clubs created at the first two parties, so we were certainly not going to miss out on the third instalment of this amazing amalgamation, original players Lovechild, Lo-Profile & Megawoof being joined this time, by Brighton’s Wild Fruit & London’s Later, to create an afternoon event combining both indoors & out, the timing changed from the previous parties. In backing this collaborative collective into Sunday afternoon, the team were very much banking on the feeding effects from both Beyond & M.O.S.T., as well as the golden ticket trend that now seems to be swinging in favour of this 7th day p.m. slot and, in the case of a Bank Holiday, a readymade audience very much up for partying hard, some from Friday, others just starting their weekend. So given all this, how did this latest As One affair turn out? Was it the success the team had hoped for? And who & what floated our boat the most?
Despite some last minute jitters which included some upsetting personal developments, having been plucked out of Beyond to gather ourselves back together over coffee, some reassuring words & then a phone conversation with the in-bound Mr Medina, concentrated our mind on the next instalment in our weekend of furied activity and we arrived at Fire’s rear entrance at not long before midday. Finding Javier waiting for us very much boosted our lagging mood and we entered As One’s host venue to not only see it in its empty state, an experience first, but also make the most of a complete guided tour of all six rooms, more for the benefit of our Spanish D.J. pal, but nevertheless an enlightening few moments worth, especially given the renovation plans which were clearly beginning to take shape. But it was back in the Mirrorarch space, the room set aside for the Lovechild branded segment of this afternoon aural audacity, that we rested for a while, waiting for the party to swing into action, being joined first by the ever smiling & engaging Minty, who was back where she belonged, in charge of door & guest proceedings and then by incumbent opening slot D.J., the cute & charming Eduardo De la Torre in usual bubbly mood & ready to kick-start this brilliant blend of brands.
So the scene was set for another scintillating staging of the success story of 2010, the promoters usual apprehensions laid to rest swiftly as the crowds came in ever increasing numbers, soon swelling not just the Lovechild room were Eduardo was stirring up a storm of spectacular sounds, but filling out the main room which was being stoked up by Lee Harris, flying the Wild Fruit flag, through to the Lo-Profile lounge where the wonderful Stewart Whoo was casting his magical music spell. However, our attention was on our Barcelona boy and, following a second excursion out for coffee, we returned to the thick of the action in the Lovechild room, selecting a space by the bar to watch over proceedings, Mr De La Torre’s funky, chunky & octane fuelled tech & electro tunes with, not unsurprisingly, hints of latin beats running through them, were definitely doing the business, the space well & truly rocking. And it would be this rooms that had the lion’s share of activity across the whole event, not just when Javier took over the reins, his tribal & progressive euro styled sounds finding favour with the faithful, even if competing against the other rooms & the outside funfair was a battle, then with Lovechild residents Paul Heron & Alessandro arresting the atmosphere with two amazing performances that were purple patch in their positioning & rapturous in their reception.
But the main room had its say too, Lee Harris’s uplifting soundtrack finding popular resonance, special guests Prok & Fitch playing it tougher for the packed out space and Terry Bryan whipping up a hurricane of heavenly house hits to delight. But to say that the Lo-Profile lounge was simply popular, was a trice of an understatement, the fat end of the afternoon in this select space in the hands of scene favourite Brent Nicholls, whose selection of elements of disco, electro & funky latino house had the room absolutely pumping, torso’s with shirts taken off & the heat very much turned on, such was the energy of the music & the crowd. And as a result of the extent of the room’s popularity, we were finding it difficult to do our best to spread our devotions between Javier across in the mirrorarch & Brent in this, the Lo-Profile lounge, darting two & fro as well as keeping a watchful glance on the main room in-between & the lightbox, which was being managed magnificently by the Megawoof team, also dipping out into the Fire garden area, which was in full Later funfair mode and proving just as popular as each & every space inside.
However, it was the inside rather than the out that would get most of our attention, we continually gravitating back to the mirrorarch to support our Spanish senor and serenade his set with our dancing dervishes next to the D.J. booth, Javier’s tough tech toned tribal beats keeping us moving & grooving right to the end of his stint, his final flurry preparing us for his swift send off to duties in Ibiza, our short first liaison over as quickly as it had began just a few hours earlier and leaving us to sink back into the remainder of our stay. But with Mr Medina gone, our mind seemed to float back to the upsetting issues that had hounded our trip to beyond and whilst we did our level best to get into the stride, first of Brent Nicholls’ barnstorming beats & then Paul Heron’s prolific performance, even the magnificent Minty who rarely fails to lift our spirits, could see there was something not quite right. So, grabbing our bag from behind the mirrorarch D.J. booth, having said our farewells, we sank out into the garden to beat our retreat, but in finding the space packed to the rafters, all the funfair attractions in full swing, especially the helter skelter slide, we bumped into handfuls of familiar faces to whom we had to make our exiting excuses, including friends Michelle & Clayton, still going strong from their similar Saturday start to ours, and then to Alessandro, who was taking a moment before his stormer of a set that, we were reliably informed, short of stole to show. However, despite their pleas for us to stay, our mind was fixed on home and a comforting curl under our duvet, leaving Vauxhall, Fire & As One behind to grab all the plaudits as one of the true highlights of a hit & miss Bank Holiday weekend of ours.
Despite our own gloomy mood, it was clear As One made plenty people happy, not least the various promoters involved, as well as the team around them, reports coming in that the numbers topped the previous party and given the elements up against it, the pretty poor weather in the capital, the draw of Manchester Pride & the general difficult trading environment in clubland, banking on a brilliant blend of brands worked wonderfully. Whist we never really found our own stride sufficiently, going back & forth as we did, we got a feel for just how busy this latest As One incarnation was, each space & club brand playing their part perfectly and plenty of D.J.’s shining with superb sets. To pick out specific highlights would be difficult, as even though we weren’t firing on all cylinders, there was plenty for us to be joyful about, from an exceptionally energetic & entertaining enthralment from Eduardo, to a brilliantly breathtaking ballad of beats from Brent, who did more than his fair share of boat floating and much more besides, but we were thrilled the most to meet & see Javier in action, so that will be our lasting memory of this amazing amalgamation. In terms of As One itself, well there was no doubt that it turned out terrifically and in doing so has secured a well deserved place in our clubbing calendar, meaning that January 1st 2010 is already etched in our diary. (DISCO MATT)
Postscript
To not just compliment but to boost this reflective look at As One, why not check out this videocut from the event, at http://facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1484487706983&ref=mf and also the special compilation mix from Lovechild room opener, Eduardo De Lat Torre, at http://soundcloud.com/dj-edu-de-la-torre/as-one-london-bank-holliday-especial-mixed-by-dj-edu-de-la-torre.
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