Club Connected
Armin Van Buuren
More reviews
Circus, 29/10/2007
After spending the best part of the '90s gurning to Oakey in The Courtyard, it has been quite some time since I have been to Nation and was unsure how it would be under new management.
As I've never had a bad night at Circus's nights in the Masque, the night promised to be good and the lineup was first rate.
We arrived at Nation at around 11.30, the night was completely sold out so we were expecting it to be really busy. The queue for internet-bought tickets and guest list had a waiting time of about 10 minutes.
We first headed to the main room which was packed, where Felix Da Housecat had already started.
I knew I had friends wandering around but didn't think I'd easily find them, so it was nice to bump into them left right and centre, particularly when they all congregated in the Courtyard for Eric Prydz. He was an unexpected treat! After only hearing his chart releases I really didn't pin much hope on a good set but was set straight soon after stepping into the courtyard. It was so busy it was difficult to get a spot to get in your dance swing where you weren't be jostled, but the crowd was really getting into it and the atmosphere was buzzing.
I wandered between rooms for a while to see what was on offer. I ended up back in the Courtyard to see Paul Woolford who really got the crowd going with his eclectic, original house.
Wanting to make sure I still had enough energy left to dance, I was a bit disappointed that SOS were on in the Annex at 3am (legs just aren't what they used to be!) I've been a massive Desyn Masiello fan since hearing his seminal Essential Mix in 2004, but I've only has the pleasure of seeing him once, as he hardly seems to venture up North and over the last 18 months he's taken some time out to produce and work with the other SOS members, Omid 16b and Demi. However they didn't disappoint. As they were on last the crowds had dispersed a bit so there was room to dance. The crowd loved them and everyone seemed to be big fans. I spoke to a guy who had never heard of them before but was really impressed.
In the Main Room, Groove Armada really got the crowd jumping with Superstylin' and all who saw them said they were brilliant.
Armin Van Helden took it back to the Oldschool with 'House of Pain' and 'We Want Your Soul' and the Courtyard loved him.
I was expecting to see some cracking fancy dress outfits but was sorely disappointed, the most shocking thing I saw all night was a guy buying two bottles of Smirnoff for £250!!
Must have had a good night as my ears didn't stop ringing until Monday.
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After spending the best part of the '90s gurning to Oakey in The Courtyard, it has been quite some time since I have been to Nation and was unsure how it would be under new management.
As I've never had a bad night at Circus's nights in the Masque, the night promised to be good and the lineup was first rate.
We arrived at Nation at around 11.30, the night was completely sold out so we were expecting it to be really busy. The queue for internet-bought tickets and guest list had a waiting time of about 10 minutes.
We first headed to the main room which was packed, where Felix Da Housecat had already started.
I knew I had friends wandering around but didn't think I'd easily find them, so it was nice to bump into them left right and centre, particularly when they all congregated in the Courtyard for Eric Prydz. He was an unexpected treat! After only hearing his chart releases I really didn't pin much hope on a good set but was set straight soon after stepping into the courtyard. It was so busy it was difficult to get a spot to get in your dance swing where you weren't be jostled, but the crowd was really getting into it and the atmosphere was buzzing.
I wandered between rooms for a while to see what was on offer. I ended up back in the Courtyard to see Paul Woolford who really got the crowd going with his eclectic, original house.
Wanting to make sure I still had enough energy left to dance, I was a bit disappointed that SOS were on in the Annex at 3am (legs just aren't what they used to be!) I've been a massive Desyn Masiello fan since hearing his seminal Essential Mix in 2004, but I've only has the pleasure of seeing him once, as he hardly seems to venture up North and over the last 18 months he's taken some time out to produce and work with the other SOS members, Omid 16b and Demi. However they didn't disappoint. As they were on last the crowds had dispersed a bit so there was room to dance. The crowd loved them and everyone seemed to be big fans. I spoke to a guy who had never heard of them before but was really impressed.
In the Main Room, Groove Armada really got the crowd jumping with Superstylin' and all who saw them said they were brilliant.
Armin Van Helden took it back to the Oldschool with 'House of Pain' and 'We Want Your Soul' and the Courtyard loved him.
I was expecting to see some cracking fancy dress outfits but was sorely disappointed, the most shocking thing I saw all night was a guy buying two bottles of Smirnoff for £250!!
Must have had a good night as my ears didn't stop ringing until Monday.
READ MORE >
90 Club Hits From The 90's
An amazing collection of dance and crossover tunes from the 90s, '90 Club Hits From The 90's' is a much-needed 4 CD album packed with top club hits from the era that brought you the most hedonistic super-clubs, the biggest earning DJ's ever and the coolest remixes!
With tunes from Armand Van Helden, Robert Miles and Faithless this album encapsulates the absolute best of 90's dance music for the first time all in one package. For anyone who lived through the 90's, reading the tracklisting is like reading a who's who of the dance music charts, with songs such as Professional Widow by Tori Amos, Missing ' Everything But The Girl and The Brand New Heavies ' Dream on Dreamer, surely nothing can define an era more than this album?
Highlights include Baby D, Armand Van Helden, Berry, Orbital, Grace, Stretch n' Vern, Josh Wink, Lisa Marie Experience, Rui Da Silva, Sonique, Wamdue Project, Olive, Moloko, Corona, K Klass, Deee Lite, Robert Miles, Faithless, Tori Amos, Mario Piu, C&C Music Factory and much much more'
Club Connected rating 7 out of 10. An interesting journey back to the 90s.
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An amazing collection of dance and crossover tunes from the 90s, '90 Club Hits From The 90's' is a much-needed 4 CD album packed with top club hits from the era that brought you the most hedonistic super-clubs, the biggest earning DJ's ever and the coolest remixes!
With tunes from Armand Van Helden, Robert Miles and Faithless this album encapsulates the absolute best of 90's dance music for the first time all in one package. For anyone who lived through the 90's, reading the tracklisting is like reading a who's who of the dance music charts, with songs such as Professional Widow by Tori Amos, Missing ' Everything But The Girl and The Brand New Heavies ' Dream on Dreamer, surely nothing can define an era more than this album?
Highlights include Baby D, Armand Van Helden, Berry, Orbital, Grace, Stretch n' Vern, Josh Wink, Lisa Marie Experience, Rui Da Silva, Sonique, Wamdue Project, Olive, Moloko, Corona, K Klass, Deee Lite, Robert Miles, Faithless, Tori Amos, Mario Piu, C&C Music Factory and much much more'
Club Connected rating 7 out of 10. An interesting journey back to the 90s.
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The Warehouse Project
Believe the hype ' the warehouse project is back and this time its bigger and better then ever. Manchester's biggest series of nights has landed on the city again but this time in a new venue beneath Piccadilly station right in the heart of town. For everything the Boddingtons brewery lacked, beneath the streets makes up for plus more ' more bars, better sound system and more places to crash out and flake, for those points in the night were all you can do is chill out and listen. Contained within a series of arches and tunnels, the venue has gritty industrial excitement to it; more intimate and more involved with the audience. Although the capacity is smaller then last year, the slight decrease in size only makes the venue better. Coupled with more intense visuals and cracking line up, the warehouse project is the only place to seen this year.
For those of you who are familiar with resident Manchester night Ape, the line up will come as no surprise. Only on the Manchester scene for two years, launched as the brainchild of well established Manchester promoters, Sam and Lee aka Sabre, Ape reputation has exploded beyond belief, regularly filling venues of a capacity of over 2000 people. It combination of brakes, D n B, MC's and basically any thing with a good beat and base has kept Manchester's party army happy for the past two years. And tonight was no exception.
Arriving around eleven, the event was already well away. Hidden underneath the entrance to the station, it lacked the ques and security presence there was at the previous location. The surprise of the night was the last minute addition of Manhattan notoriety and chart favourite Mark Ronson, who despite sound problems went down a storm. But name of night had to go to Ape favourite DJ Yoda whose combination of classic tunes and deep beats was all round favourite ' who else could get away with dropping some Dolly Parton in the middle of a set and make it sound so good!!! The end of the night steered more toward harder breaks and drum and base, with only the hardest of drum n base fans remaining for high contrast and jungle drummers closing sets. Notable mention has to go to Exit Festival favourites Stanton warriors, who brought that festival feeling back to UK for a stunning set.
All in all, ape did not disappoint. The eclectic range of acts coupled with a top venue meant that the third weekend of this year's warehouse was one to remember. A high standard was set for the weeks to come, so make sure you don't miss out.
Sat 13th October
The Ape 2nd Birthday
High Contrast
Mark Ronson (just added)
Subfocus
DJ Yoda
Foreign Beggars [ Live ]
Q-bert
DJ Kentaro
Stanton Warriors
DJ Food
Youngblood Brass Band [ Live ]
Jungle Drummer Vs DJ FU
Rich Reason
9pm - 5am ///
£15
READ MORE >
Believe the hype ' the warehouse project is back and this time its bigger and better then ever. Manchester's biggest series of nights has landed on the city again but this time in a new venue beneath Piccadilly station right in the heart of town. For everything the Boddingtons brewery lacked, beneath the streets makes up for plus more ' more bars, better sound system and more places to crash out and flake, for those points in the night were all you can do is chill out and listen. Contained within a series of arches and tunnels, the venue has gritty industrial excitement to it; more intimate and more involved with the audience. Although the capacity is smaller then last year, the slight decrease in size only makes the venue better. Coupled with more intense visuals and cracking line up, the warehouse project is the only place to seen this year.
For those of you who are familiar with resident Manchester night Ape, the line up will come as no surprise. Only on the Manchester scene for two years, launched as the brainchild of well established Manchester promoters, Sam and Lee aka Sabre, Ape reputation has exploded beyond belief, regularly filling venues of a capacity of over 2000 people. It combination of brakes, D n B, MC's and basically any thing with a good beat and base has kept Manchester's party army happy for the past two years. And tonight was no exception.
Arriving around eleven, the event was already well away. Hidden underneath the entrance to the station, it lacked the ques and security presence there was at the previous location. The surprise of the night was the last minute addition of Manhattan notoriety and chart favourite Mark Ronson, who despite sound problems went down a storm. But name of night had to go to Ape favourite DJ Yoda whose combination of classic tunes and deep beats was all round favourite ' who else could get away with dropping some Dolly Parton in the middle of a set and make it sound so good!!! The end of the night steered more toward harder breaks and drum and base, with only the hardest of drum n base fans remaining for high contrast and jungle drummers closing sets. Notable mention has to go to Exit Festival favourites Stanton warriors, who brought that festival feeling back to UK for a stunning set.
All in all, ape did not disappoint. The eclectic range of acts coupled with a top venue meant that the third weekend of this year's warehouse was one to remember. A high standard was set for the weeks to come, so make sure you don't miss out.
Sat 13th October
The Ape 2nd Birthday
High Contrast
Mark Ronson (just added)
Subfocus
DJ Yoda
Foreign Beggars [ Live ]
Q-bert
DJ Kentaro
Stanton Warriors
DJ Food
Youngblood Brass Band [ Live ]
Jungle Drummer Vs DJ FU
Rich Reason
9pm - 5am ///
£15
READ MORE >
Judgement Sundays
Judgement Sundays have always been a highlight of our previous trips to the island. For months leading up to this year's holiday our eyes had been firmly focused on the Ibiza Party Calendar to check who was part of the line up. This year Judge Jules, Eddie Halliwell, Fred Baker and BK had been brought
READ MORE >
Judgement Sundays have always been a highlight of our previous trips to the island. For months leading up to this year's holiday our eyes had been firmly focused on the Ibiza Party Calendar to check who was part of the line up. This year Judge Jules, Eddie Halliwell, Fred Baker and BK had been brought
READ MORE >
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After an already very busy week at the WMC, it was about to get even busier. Having been a bit of a lightweight in the past couple of years this was to be the biggest test yet. The first event to kick off the weekend was Armin's 6hr terrace set @ The Pawn Shop. For myself it was a new experience as I'd never been to The Pawn Shop before and I'd already heard many good things about the club which made me even more enthusiastic about going.
After slight delays getting to the club since Ultra was on only over the road we walked straight into the club which was a first for me during a WMC. Then once we were inside I was pretty impressed by the interior of the club, god knows how they managed to fit a truck, a bus, and the inside of a plane into the club. But nonetheless this makes the club truly unique. At first there were only a few people inside the club when Armin kicked off, but I started to get a bit confused as it was supposed to be a terrace set. Even though he was playing inside me and the other few people there were really getting into it. After about an hour the room started to fill nicely then all of a sudden these huge side doors were spread open and the sunlight beamed into the club. I had a quick look outside and noticed that the decks outside had virtually no covers and it had been raining, so it made sense the start inside rather than not at all. Armin mixed one more tune then he led the crowd out like the leader of a gang, which he was technically. Once the last tune he played inside was finished, he kicked off the terrace set.
My first thoughts of this event were that it would be a pretty chilled out set as he was playing for Made Event's the next day, but I was pretty wrong. He banged it out as usual and by 6pm the place was full and the place was jumping. After a couple of hours the sound suddenly went off and everyone was baffled to what was going on, but after about ten minutes the sound resumed and people got on with their dancing. I knew I was going to enjoy his set even if it was going to be a chilled set, but I enjoyed it even more with the fact that he played out his usual banging trance. There were plenty of new tunes which I'm eager to find out what they are and a couple of well known ones such as Sean Tyas'- Lift.
The drinks at the bar there were moderately priced, not like some other clubs in Miami, and the staff who work for made events were the best and most efficient staff I've had the pleasure to be helped by to date. All round a well organised and well executed event, apart from the rain causing a few problems that is.