Stevie Wonderland presents Rare Pleasures II
After having a lot of fun at a Stevie Wonderland slot at Bestival, we went to their Rare Pleasures I at Bussey Building, only to have to leave early as we may have got a little over-excited with our drinking beforehand. From what we remember the music was good (they specialise in disco house of the finest variety) it was well attended, and the vibe was right, so it was lucky that we’d bought a season ticket including the following event at Corsica Studios.
We hadn’t been to this venue before, which has received rave reviews and a rating upwards of 4 stars on Facebook and Google. Timeout rates its ability to showcase ‘the finest alternative and underground producers and selectors on the planet’, and its ethos, which is to ‘breed creativity and culture in areas of regeneration’ (as do we). It is in Elephant and Castle under a railway bridge, and has a similar stripped-down, warehouse vibe to Bussey building with two rooms and funky lighting.
On entering, we were a bit freaked out by the number of people - there didn’t seem to be enough room to breathe, let alone dance, and the fact that it took 5 minutes to move 2 metres kind of pissed me off. I love small, intimate venues, but when a one reaches capacity surely it should be based on the number of people that can comfortably move in there, not how many you can fit shoulder to shoulder - am I right or am I right? I would hope that this isn’t the case for every event that sells out there, but this is a safety issue and a fuck up that I’d expect to see in venues with less class and that care more about money than clubbers’ experiences. Also, it didn’t really attract a crowd that were all there for and into the music as the reputation may suggest; a lot posers and idiots, including one that spat his tequila shot on my face and didn’t apologise. During a half hour wait in the queue for the bar.
Rant over! Fortunately, the killer line up (Detroit Swindle, The Mighty Zaf and Jake Holloway) did not disappoint. Their mixes were on point - super varied and far from repetitive and we heard some seriously good tunes being played with rare grooves such as Bob Williams’ ‘I’m Alright’ and remixes of old favourites like ‘I’m Here Again’ by Thelma Houston. Despite being squidged on the edge of the dancefloor, we still had a decent boogie! Aside from the overcrowding issue, we had a wicked night and would urge you to go to Rare Pleasures III at Bussey Building on the 16th of December - Stevie Wonderland throw a good party and this venue will do it justice - enough space there to get a bit weirder than head bopping. We aren’t 100% put off by Corsica Studios, but need to be won over next time we go!