“NU DISCO IN DA HOUSE”
PARADISE 45 – FRIDAY 3RD OCTOBER
CLUB REVIEW
Despite them being some time ago in our life, we still remember our informative days on the dancefloor, our late teens & early twenties being spent finding our feet in clubs down in the southern hemisphere, in South Africa no less, finding those dancing feet that have carried us through a whole host of music genres and an even wider style of clubbing venues, but through all these step changes & journeys through our clubbing history, those early memories are as fresh as ever, especially when we get a reminder every now and then. It would be fair to say that our experiences back in Johannesburg & Cape Town were similar to the iconic New York style of clubbing which we have since heard so much about, but were pleasantly unaware of while savouring our own slice of NYC at the tip of the African continent. Indeed, certain experiences in the capital have evoked this unique form of dance & music, although none quite so upfront & personal as our exploits on a post Bank Holiday trip out east.
Since its launch back in March, Paradise 45 has very much been on our radar, a night promising plenty of new style music, but with its concept planted firmly in that New York underground clubbing style, the whole idea of this new Friday night experience the brainchild of one Guy Williams, a D.J. that has not only been bridging the gap between the gay & straight elements in clubland, which we term as metrosexual, but has also pioneered a new wave of music, applying elements of disco to electro & tech, to produce a stunning sound, appropriately called “nu-disco”, a genre of music which has been played out at a number of club happenings in the capital, but most notably at both Reverse, another clubbing concept that like Guy’s latest offering, has successfully married both gay & straight strands to produce a mixed crowd that have one objective, to indulge in magnificent music, nu disco style. Now, it is true that this style of clubbing is somewhat a departure from our norm, but the enticement of this new style music, which we had savoured for ourselves at Reverse, was a temptation too much to resist, so how did our experience out east turn out? and would we do it again?
Well, having made a couple of attempts to find host venue, The Dalston Superstore and failing, we were more determined than ever to make it this time round, even asking for directions, first from Phil Marriot & pal at Profile bar and then with a collection of friends in Rupert Street, as we warmed up for our trip fantastic that would hopefully see us to our destination much smoother than before. Yet, while we usually pride ourselves on our directional abilities, once again they failed as we ended up heading in the wrong way when arriving in Dalston, mixing our minds in favour of Kingsland Road rather than the High Street, a slip of an error that saw a simple journey turn into an absolute nightmare and a mile long walk yielding nothing, apart from a taxi journey re-tracking all our paces and then eventually delivering us to the Paradise 45’s doors at not long before midnight. However, despite our late arrival and our hideous journey, were we going to be in for a treat or what.
Stepping into The Dalston Superstore immediately brought memories of home back, as the ground floor space had a distinct feel of Cape Town’s Cafe Manhattan meets The Bronx Bar to it, the whole decor, lighting & feel very much a departure from the squeakily shiny Soho spots we had just vacated, the warm & welcoming atmosphere akin to those we had so much enjoyed in our favourite mother city hangouts, the whole floor buzzing with activity and full with an eclectic crowd of locals & clubbers from further a-field, very much enjoying the rustic & uncomplicated nature of this east end entity. Making our way through the bar, familiarising ourselves with the layout as we did, we came across the man himself, Guy Williams, taking a break from the D.J. decks downstairs, our sheer relief at finally making it to a Paradise 45 event, spilling out fervently, as was our praise of the venue which was already proving a hit and we hadn’t even made it down to the real action yet. But that was about to come as Guy led us down the back stairwell and into the small yet perfectly formed basement room, encompassing a small bar at one end, expanding out to a square dancefloor & small D.J. booth at the end, a quite unassuming space, but one that immediately took us back to those early days clubbing in Johannesburg, very much capturing that NYC underground club feel that we had so much been part of back then.
Storing our bits & bobs behind the booth where Serge Santiago was in full swing, it was definitely a case of nu disco in da house, as he laid down a succession of terrific tracks that had us moving & grooving in the tight space towards the end of the room, where our view of the laser beams bouncing off the walls & the images created by the single mirrorball in the corner well & truly captured the whole essence of that underground New York style club venue feel and just kept bringing memories of old flooding back, but yet with feelings of new running through us. With Guy and co dancing alongside us, we sank into the whole Paradise 45 experience with consummate ease, even pointing our phone camera down the short space in front of us to capture the magical memory filled moments we were enjoying in what was turning out to be a trip long in the coming but well worth making, especially given the fact that this was so far removed from our usual clubbing exploits, but refreshingly so.
With Serge’s stint over, Mr Williams assumed the decks and pulled out some truly amazing tracks that had us completely mesmerised with the nu disco sound, lots of 80’s & 90’s disco beats rehashed & re-engineered to produced the kind of groove that not just befitted the moment, but captured the imagination, Guy very much in the zone with his selections and like Serge before him, spellbinding our mind & transporting us back to those heady early dancing days in our clubbing history. So magnificent was the music and so amazing the atmosphere, that we hardly moved from our spot, save for a quick refreshment break back upstairs, which was still buzzing with socialites, all soaking up everything the Dalston Superstore was serving up, the D.J.’s in situ treating the crowd to exciting electro & retro-tastic beats that seemed to be going down a storm.
However, our devotions were back downstairs and the stunning space that we had quickly grown extremely fond of & comfortable with, not least as the music Mr Williams was serving up kept getting better & better, shades of Grace Jones, Imagination, & Shalamar-esque sounds re-treated with modern tech twists but with soothing disco tones running through them that had us captivated on our spot. But the 2 a.m. finish came all too soon, especially as our late-ish arrival meant we only managed to catch just over half the experience, but by golly what an amazing half it turned out to be, we catching up with both Guy & Serge at the end to lament on just have marvellous the music had been and how amazing was the basement space. So, with nu-disco running through our veins, we departed the Dalston Superstore to wend our way home, safe in the knowledge that our extended journey out east was more than worth the initial hassle and that a return the Friday night magnificence that is Paradise 45 will definitely be on the cards again.
Well, it pretty much goes without saying that Guy Williams’ new club concept is an absolute winner in our books. Not only does it serve up something delightfully different to the norm, the nu-disco sounds being truly spectacular, but in host venue, The Dalston Superstore, it has the perfect setting for the Paradise 45 theme of NYC underground clubbing. Yes we may not have sampled the real New York for ourselves, but with memories of our early clubbing days coming flooding back, courtesy of this Friday night fantastique, we certainly say with conviction that this is one club that we will definitely be returning to, and very soon. So, if you want to sample some of the nu-disco sounds, in superb surroundings, with an eclectic crowd well up for social & dance splendour, then Paradise 45 is definitely for you, we know it is for us. (DISCO MATT)
PARADISE 45 – FRIDAY 3RD OCTOBER
CLUB REVIEW
Despite them being some time ago in our life, we still remember our informative days on the dancefloor, our late teens & early twenties being spent finding our feet in clubs down in the southern hemisphere, in South Africa no less, finding those dancing feet that have carried us through a whole host of music genres and an even wider style of clubbing venues, but through all these step changes & journeys through our clubbing history, those early memories are as fresh as ever, especially when we get a reminder every now and then. It would be fair to say that our experiences back in Johannesburg & Cape Town were similar to the iconic New York style of clubbing which we have since heard so much about, but were pleasantly unaware of while savouring our own slice of NYC at the tip of the African continent. Indeed, certain experiences in the capital have evoked this unique form of dance & music, although none quite so upfront & personal as our exploits on a post Bank Holiday trip out east.
Since its launch back in March, Paradise 45 has very much been on our radar, a night promising plenty of new style music, but with its concept planted firmly in that New York underground clubbing style, the whole idea of this new Friday night experience the brainchild of one Guy Williams, a D.J. that has not only been bridging the gap between the gay & straight elements in clubland, which we term as metrosexual, but has also pioneered a new wave of music, applying elements of disco to electro & tech, to produce a stunning sound, appropriately called “nu-disco”, a genre of music which has been played out at a number of club happenings in the capital, but most notably at both Reverse, another clubbing concept that like Guy’s latest offering, has successfully married both gay & straight strands to produce a mixed crowd that have one objective, to indulge in magnificent music, nu disco style. Now, it is true that this style of clubbing is somewhat a departure from our norm, but the enticement of this new style music, which we had savoured for ourselves at Reverse, was a temptation too much to resist, so how did our experience out east turn out? and would we do it again?
Well, having made a couple of attempts to find host venue, The Dalston Superstore and failing, we were more determined than ever to make it this time round, even asking for directions, first from Phil Marriot & pal at Profile bar and then with a collection of friends in Rupert Street, as we warmed up for our trip fantastic that would hopefully see us to our destination much smoother than before. Yet, while we usually pride ourselves on our directional abilities, once again they failed as we ended up heading in the wrong way when arriving in Dalston, mixing our minds in favour of Kingsland Road rather than the High Street, a slip of an error that saw a simple journey turn into an absolute nightmare and a mile long walk yielding nothing, apart from a taxi journey re-tracking all our paces and then eventually delivering us to the Paradise 45’s doors at not long before midnight. However, despite our late arrival and our hideous journey, were we going to be in for a treat or what.
Stepping into The Dalston Superstore immediately brought memories of home back, as the ground floor space had a distinct feel of Cape Town’s Cafe Manhattan meets The Bronx Bar to it, the whole decor, lighting & feel very much a departure from the squeakily shiny Soho spots we had just vacated, the warm & welcoming atmosphere akin to those we had so much enjoyed in our favourite mother city hangouts, the whole floor buzzing with activity and full with an eclectic crowd of locals & clubbers from further a-field, very much enjoying the rustic & uncomplicated nature of this east end entity. Making our way through the bar, familiarising ourselves with the layout as we did, we came across the man himself, Guy Williams, taking a break from the D.J. decks downstairs, our sheer relief at finally making it to a Paradise 45 event, spilling out fervently, as was our praise of the venue which was already proving a hit and we hadn’t even made it down to the real action yet. But that was about to come as Guy led us down the back stairwell and into the small yet perfectly formed basement room, encompassing a small bar at one end, expanding out to a square dancefloor & small D.J. booth at the end, a quite unassuming space, but one that immediately took us back to those early days clubbing in Johannesburg, very much capturing that NYC underground club feel that we had so much been part of back then.
Storing our bits & bobs behind the booth where Serge Santiago was in full swing, it was definitely a case of nu disco in da house, as he laid down a succession of terrific tracks that had us moving & grooving in the tight space towards the end of the room, where our view of the laser beams bouncing off the walls & the images created by the single mirrorball in the corner well & truly captured the whole essence of that underground New York style club venue feel and just kept bringing memories of old flooding back, but yet with feelings of new running through us. With Guy and co dancing alongside us, we sank into the whole Paradise 45 experience with consummate ease, even pointing our phone camera down the short space in front of us to capture the magical memory filled moments we were enjoying in what was turning out to be a trip long in the coming but well worth making, especially given the fact that this was so far removed from our usual clubbing exploits, but refreshingly so.
With Serge’s stint over, Mr Williams assumed the decks and pulled out some truly amazing tracks that had us completely mesmerised with the nu disco sound, lots of 80’s & 90’s disco beats rehashed & re-engineered to produced the kind of groove that not just befitted the moment, but captured the imagination, Guy very much in the zone with his selections and like Serge before him, spellbinding our mind & transporting us back to those heady early dancing days in our clubbing history. So magnificent was the music and so amazing the atmosphere, that we hardly moved from our spot, save for a quick refreshment break back upstairs, which was still buzzing with socialites, all soaking up everything the Dalston Superstore was serving up, the D.J.’s in situ treating the crowd to exciting electro & retro-tastic beats that seemed to be going down a storm.
However, our devotions were back downstairs and the stunning space that we had quickly grown extremely fond of & comfortable with, not least as the music Mr Williams was serving up kept getting better & better, shades of Grace Jones, Imagination, & Shalamar-esque sounds re-treated with modern tech twists but with soothing disco tones running through them that had us captivated on our spot. But the 2 a.m. finish came all too soon, especially as our late-ish arrival meant we only managed to catch just over half the experience, but by golly what an amazing half it turned out to be, we catching up with both Guy & Serge at the end to lament on just have marvellous the music had been and how amazing was the basement space. So, with nu-disco running through our veins, we departed the Dalston Superstore to wend our way home, safe in the knowledge that our extended journey out east was more than worth the initial hassle and that a return the Friday night magnificence that is Paradise 45 will definitely be on the cards again.
Well, it pretty much goes without saying that Guy Williams’ new club concept is an absolute winner in our books. Not only does it serve up something delightfully different to the norm, the nu-disco sounds being truly spectacular, but in host venue, The Dalston Superstore, it has the perfect setting for the Paradise 45 theme of NYC underground clubbing. Yes we may not have sampled the real New York for ourselves, but with memories of our early clubbing days coming flooding back, courtesy of this Friday night fantastique, we certainly say with conviction that this is one club that we will definitely be returning to, and very soon. So, if you want to sample some of the nu-disco sounds, in superb surroundings, with an eclectic crowd well up for social & dance splendour, then Paradise 45 is definitely for you, we know it is for us. (DISCO MATT)
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