Till the Break of Dawn
| BEDROCK Heaven, Craven Street, WC2 (020 7930 2020) Monthly Thur 9pm-4am. If it’s the first Thursday of the month then the only place for any self-respecting clubber is DJ John Digweed’s multi-room progressive house spectacular. Top guest DJs, live PAs and a young, energetic crowd make this one of London’s most consistently fine nights out. |
THE END 16A West Central Street, WC1 (020 7419 9199). Thur 10pm-4am, Fri & Sat 10pm-6am. Owned by Mr C (of The Shamen fame) the club is renowned for both the quality of its sound system and an innovative music policy. If you’re looking for spangly Ibiza tunes then look elsewhere, but if you’re after tasty underground house and drum’n’bass then this is the one for you. |
| ROUGE 144 Charing Cross Road, WC2 (020 7240 1900). Fri & Sat 10pm-4pm. After an extensive refit (classy burnt red décor, check, comfy leather sofas, check). Rouge now plays host to a number of decent club nights, from electroclash to R&B. Part of the appeal is its maze-like quality – with three floors and a myriad of staircases it’s all too easy for refreshed clubbers to find themselves temporarily lost in the smart surroundings. It also hosts the ‘polysexual’ party Drama every month. |
TRAP 201 Wardour Street, W1 (020 7434 3820). Mon-Sat 9pm-4am. This two-floored danceteria has been the venue of choice for dozens of film premiere after-parties and product launches thanks to both its central location and its appeal to footballers and models. The music is mostly R&B and house and the crowd is glam, gorgeous and ready to party. Visit www.traplondon.com. |
| BAR RUMBA 36 Shaftesbury Avenue, W1 (020 7287 2715) Mon 10.30pm-3.30am, Tue 8.30pm-3am, Wed 10pm-3am, Thur 8pm-3.30am, Fri & Sat 10pm-4am. After 10 years, Rumba is still packing them in to its small and impossibly busy dancefloor. This basement club is less trendy and more friendly than most, particularly on the flagship nights, Monday’s THIS! with Giles Peterson and Thursday’s Movement drum’n’bass session with DJ Fabio and guests. A clubland institution. |
PACHA Terminus Place, SW1 (020 7833 3139). Fri & Sat 10pm-6am. Bringing the spirit of sun-kissed Ibiza to a grotty bus terminal at Victoria was never going to be easy, but the Balearic superclub pulled it off. With a big main dancefloor and a runaround balancy which is perfect for people-watching, Pacha is a glam clubber’s dream. Check the monthly Kinky Malinki nights if you like your beats of the pumping house persuasion. |
| THE KEY Lazer Road, N1 (020 7837 1027). Thur 9pm-3am, Fri & Sat 10pm-6am, Sun 10pm-5am (occasionally). The rejuvenation of King’s Cross has been good for clubbers, with newcomer The Key popping up to provide a resolutely underground vibe in its intimate surroundings. The walk from the station is a bit grim, mind, so you may want to hop in a cab. Once inside though, you’ll find punters going absolutely crackers to electro and house – this is one of the most fired-up crowds around. Visit www.thekeylondon.com. |
THE CROSS Arches 27-31 York Way, N1 (020 7837 0828). Fri 11pm-6am, Sat 10pm-6am. A dressed up and clued up following make this sprawling five-roomed superclub a safe bet, regardless of who’s promoting the night.Renaissance, Serious and Type are the big hitters but, frankly, with this many up for it, good-looking people in one place, who cares what the backdrops say. Visit www.the-cross.co.uk. |
| CANVAS King’s Cross Goods Yard, York Way, N1 (020 7833 8301). Sat 10pm-6am. Formerly Bagleys, this cavernous 2,000-capacity club is the closest you’ll get to an old-school rave in Central London.The drinks are reasonably priced (Ј3.50 for a spirit and mixer), the sound system is huge. Visit www.canvaslondon.net. |
THE FRIDGE 1 Town Hall Parade, SW1 (020 7326 5100). Fri 10.30pm-5.30am, Sat 10pm-6am. This magnificent former theatre has become a Mecca for trance and hard house in South London with hundreds of wide-eyed acolytes making a pilgrimage there every week. Refurbished earlier this year, it now boasts some of the best lighting and sound design in the country. Visit www.fridgelondon.com. |
| MASS St Matthews Church, Brixton Hill, SW2 (020 7738 7875). Fri & Sat 10pm-6am. With a lively multi-cultural crowd and a revamped ‘Third Base’ dance space, Mass provides Brixton’s clubbers with a credible alternative to the trance/hard house on offer at nearby Fridge and Club 414, Friddays see a packed session where unfeasibly attractive people vie for each other’s attention to a soundtrack of booty-shaking R&B. Visit www.mass-club.com. |
THE MINISTRY OF SOUND 103 Gaunt Street, SE1 (020 7378 6528). Fri 9.30pm-5am, Sat 10pm-7am. The biggest clubbing brand in the world can still put on a cracking night out, not least because of its recently beefed-up soundsystem which, audio aficionados claim, gives perfect clarity wherever you stand in the room. Smoove (Friday) may have arguably the cheesiest club name in the capital but it’s become the must-check party for every urban and hip-hop head in town. Visit www.ministryofsound.com. |
| FABRIC 77A Charterhouse Street, EC1 (020 7336 8898). Fri 9.30pm-5am, Sat 10pm-7am. Those who’ve predicted the death of dance music have clearly never seen the queues outside Fabric of a weekend. This subterranean three-roomed superclub puts on some of the best parties in the capital with Friday being a breaks/drum’n’bass/hip-hop affair and Saturday’s 1,500 capacity crowd getting down to underground house and techno. Visit www.fabriclondon.com. |
THE GALLERY Turnmills, 63 Clerkenwell Road, EC1 (020 7250 3409) Fri 10.30pm-7.30am. Terrifically friendly and always packed, this long-running night at one of London’s most hedonistic clubs attracts a loyal crowd to hear some of the best DJs around. The roll call of past tune-spinners reads like a who’s who of clubland so you can be assured that the music qualify is top notch, whoever happens to be on the decks. Visit www.turnmills.co.uk. |
| 333 333 Old Street, EC1 (020 7739 5949). Fri & Sat 10pm-5am. With legendary queues and some of the most eclectic DJ line ups around, 333 has rightly become a firm favourite for East London’s achingly hip clientele. It may not be the best-looking venue in town but its down-at-heel style fits with the anything-goes music policy and the casually dressed clubbers can dance like loons without fear of spilling beer on the scuffed dancefloors. |
THE RHYTHM FACTORY 16-18 Whitechapel Road, E1 (020 7375 3774) Fri & Sat 9pm-5am. This 400 capacity venue combines a bar, Thai restaurant and nightclub with a crowd of clubbers who are there to dance, rather than pose around with posh drinks. The scene of many stand-out nights, it hosts Air, Ali B’s excellent monthly breakbeat session and a number of ‘back to the school’ raves, where whistles, Vicks and group hugs are in order. Visit www.rhythmfactory.co.uk |
| NICK HOUSE ENTERTAINMENT www.nickhouseentertainment.com. Not a single venue as such, more a party corporation with nightclub expert Nick House at the helm. He puts on nights that everyone wants to be at. From top models to music artists like Jamelia and funky club and bar hoppers of all persuasions, Nick is the man to know if you want to get past the velvet rope. His portfolio of club nights is too long to list here but it takes in some of the swankiest venues in town, from Saturdays at No.5 Cavendish Square to Thursdays at Tantra and Kensington Roof Gardens, plus fashion week parties and music industry bashes for the likes of Jamelia and Fun Lovin’ Criminals. He even organised Prince Harry’s leaving do before the young royal went off for his charity work overseas. ‘Doing events while at college always struck me as a better way to pay myself through uni than working on the meat counter at Sainsbury’s or similar,’ he explains, ‘It’s not rocket science. Always oversubscribe the evening and fill it with characters who bring colour and buzz to a party’. Those after a taste of London’s high life should head for the website and get themselves on the hottest guest lists in town. |
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