The Kids™ from The Fair ventured to Planet Earth’s biggest nightclub (wearing a loud hat each) for a night of nostalgic noughtiness, Nick D explores the key takeaways…
THIS REALLY IS THE BIGGEST NIGHTCLUB IN THE WORLD
With a capacity of 15,000 dancers, Drumsheds beat Ibiza’s Privilege club to the title of “Biggest Nightclub in the World” (Guinness confirmation tbc) when it opened its newly repurposed doors in October.
Arriving at the venue, still a shade of IKEA-blue, it’s hard to conceive the amount of work that gone into assembling this behemoth. We rode the travelator (there’s an ongoing debate in our team as to whether it’s a travelator or an escalator) up to the bar and after loading up on White Claws (kids, ey) we set about exploring!
THE RIGHT TOOLS FOR THE RIGHT JOBS
Being the LED-loving, toilet-trained, system-seeking fence-fanatics that we are: the production was a must-see on Saturday’s line-up. Whether it was the chicken wire cladding on the viewing platforms, the permanent installation of tubular handrails, the external MOJO and loos or the 48m LED screen behind the talent in Room X – there was lots to appreciate for an event professional! (Anyone know where I can procure a travelator?)
If it’s the balance of space, music and people that make a perfect night then seeing the minor tweaks made since the opening weekend signals that Drumsheds will only get better and better!
SAOIRSE SOARS + JOB JOBSE IS GOOD AT HIS JOB
Has there been a more prolific selector than Job Jobse this year? Rumour has it, he’ll be the first DJ to play on Planet B.
His fun-filled big-room bangers blended with Saoirse’s cutting edges had the dancefloor bouncing – highlights being DJ Wout’s remix of Johnny Vicious and THE Job Jobse signature sign-off (Jay Bee’s Say My Name, Smalltown Boy mash up) which teleported us to the sunny fields of summer, good vibes aplenty ahead of the main event…
AM I A SUGABABY NOW?
“Nearly there Nick, you’ve made it through this write-up without making any Sugababes puns – don’t ruin it now…”
Nicki Minaj’s “Barbies,” Slipknot’s “Maggots,” Taylor Swift’s “Swifties” – we’re in the era of the super-fan. Clever programming (winding down Room Y and Z ahead of the headline set) brought all of Saturday’s Sugababies (shout out to Liberty for this blinder) together for a noughties nostalgia Overload! Marching on-stage to the synthy-goodness of “Freak Like Me”, the crowd erupted – transforming the space from a two-stepping and shape-cutting warehouse into a mum-friendly singalong for the ages.
Moving through “Push The Button” (wow), “Overload” (wow, I didn’t know they sung this one) through to “Ugly” (which reminded me of the touching singalong of TLC’s Unpretty at Glasto ’22) – the excitement in the room was tangible. My undoubtable highlight was pseudo-Christmas-hit “Too Lost in You” – of Love Actually fame – which confirmed our new identities as Sugababies and brought the realisation that we’d been living with a Sugababe-shaped Hole in the Head for too long… I’ll fetch my coat.
Anyway! Get yourself to Drumsheds if you haven’t already – I’ve not always been keen on big clubs but this is a spectacle to behold – each room caters for different tastes in spaces and the carefully curated line ups means there’ll be something for everyone at some point!
False Idols returns to Drumsheds on the 12th of April 2024 – we’ll see you there for Round Round 2…
