Roxx is a 'backstage experience' pop-up club and events organisation currently residing at number 4 Winsley Street in the heart of central London. With a heap of positive press, including GQ declaring it their favorite pop-up of the year, and visits from Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood, it's already caused a buzz. The intimate space sees an eclectic, friendly & fun crowd gather every weekend for live bands and DJs playing a mixture of indie, rock and alternative from across the decades mixed with cool dance/house music.
Did anyone else used to frequent the indie clubs in Central London around the time of Panic/Afterskool/Frog/Moonlighting? Well, think of Roxx as a slightly more grown-up version in terms of presentation. The drinks aren't going to break your bank (although it's a far cry from Moonlighting's £1.50 spirit mixers back in the day - oh nostalgia) and the service and staff are both exceptional, whether you have a table or you're just hanging out at the bar, plus it's free entry before 10:30pm. I DJ'd there on the 29th of November and took some photos which you can check out below.
Named one of GQ's 'Pop-ups of the Year' Roxx Club is a backstage style underground venue in the heart of London co-owned by Tyrone Wood, son of Rolling Stones legend Ronnie Wood. This Friday Roxx Club will be welcoming Erol Sabadosh to the DJ decks for a guest set playing everything from Daft Punk to David Bowie with live music from Texas Radio & The Cream Tangerines.
Doors 9pm Free entry before 10:30pm / £10 after Bands from 9pm Erol Sabadosh set time 11:30pm
You can expect to hear a mix of rock, guitar pop, indie, alternative and credible dance music including:
Arcade Fire / Ash / Arctic Monkeys / The Beatles / Bloc Party / Daft Punk / David Bowie / The Doors / Empire of the Sun / Fatboy Slim / Foo Fighters / The Gossip / Iggy Pop / Jimi Hendrix / Joy Division / The Killers / La Roux / Lana Del Rey / MGMT / Modest Mouse / Nirvana / Placebo / Pulp / Radiohead / Rolling Stones / Talking Heads / Vampire Weekend / White Stripes
On December 5th Lana Del Rey will be releasing a 30 minute film to Vevo entitled Tropico. Directed by Anthony Mandler who previously worked with Del Rey on the National Anthem and Ride videos, Tropico sees the singer playing Eve in a modern Biblical story of Adam & Eve featuring male model Shaun Ross and plenty of sinister imagery suggesting this may be the darkest video the melancholy songstress has ever released. Not long to wait now!
November 23rd marks the 20th Anniversary of Snoop Dogg’s highly-acclaimed Doggystyle and in honor of this date, Snoop has created a really cool mixtape of the tracks sampled on Doggystyle featuring commentary from the man himself. All I can say is it's AWESOME! Tune in below.
Pharrell Williams just dropped this concept video for his track Happy for the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack. Featuring the man himself amongst dancers and cameos from the likes of Steve Carrell, Magic Johnson, Odd Future and Jamie Foxx while the 3 minute soulful disco cut plays on loop we see Pharrell and his cohorts dancing and singing through the streets and sights of L.A. thanks to a concept from direction team We Are From L.A. Check it out by CLICKING HERE! Also check out ATM Jam, his overlooked collaboration with Azealia Banks.
Last night I went to check out the new venue Steam & Rye on Leadenhall Street opened by Kelly Brook & Nick House. Situated within the old converted New York Bank the venue features a large open main space dressed to look like Grand Central Station during the 1920s complete with train carriages containing booths as well as a basement and loft space. With a fun, friendly music policy and some brilliantly eccentric cocktails, not to mention a very well done American food menu I'm sure this will be a hit.
Tuesday night marked the end of another London Fashion Week and saw me DJing at Apartment 58's brand new central London location on New Oxford Street for a special event with Open Lab Magazine. A secret live performance from the incredibly talented King Charles and his band took place while guests enjoyed drinks provided by Silver Rocks and Dash Concept. I had a great time on the decks and if you pick up the latest issue of the magazine you can read a tell-all interview with myself as well as fashion icon Diane Pernet, design team Sibling and check out the cover feature with Ashley Stymest. Order a copy HERE!
Interested in becoming a member of Apartment 58? Head on over to their official website!
Below are my personal favorite remixes of the year and the ones that I DJ'd out the most in 2012 in descending order. If you like you can listen to a mix I created using them via Mixcloud and by all means feel free to leave feedback and tell me what you thought were the best of the year:
Here's a rundown of my personal favourite albums of the year and what I liked about them:
1. Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid, M.A.A.D City
I can't praise this album enough, and since it's already topped nearly every single 'best of 2012' album chart I don't think I need to say anything more. But I will... this album is genius.
2. The Mountain Goats - Transcendental Youth
I've been an obsessive Mountain Goats supporter for many years now but it's been a while since I've been truly blown away by one of their albums, and with Transcendental Youth not only do I feel they've made one of the best albums of the year, but perhaps of their entire, almost 20-year long, career. Every strength of singer/songwriter John Darnielle comes out in this odyssey of disillusioned youth and hopeful degenerates and lost souls. It harkens back to their 2004 effort We Shall All Be Healed in its depiction of desperate individuals and life on the edge, but Darnielle and his band sound more cohesive than ever and the beautiful brass arrangements lend the album a cinematic nostalgia that frames these harrowing narratives with a sense of wonderment and hope.
3. Menomena - Moms
Having lost a member Memomena came back surprisingly stronger and more assured than ever with Moms, a stunningly produced collection of songs about memory, life and loss filtered through a surreal almost unhinged outlook. Despite the thematic subject matter there is a celebratory approach to the majority of the album, and when the mood dips into darker territory the emotional sentiment is more genuine and moving than any of their past efforts.
4. Dan Deacon - America
Dan Deacon's America is an ambitious, self-indulgent, bloated, frustrating and insanely brilliant work that goes beyond anything he has ever done before and arrived with little notion of what it would entail. Mixing his brand of harsh electronica with grand orchestral arrangements as an exploration of America; the myth and the modern reality, the album features repeated movements and an overarching journey from beginning to end. As a soundtrack to the madness and beauty of our times and the history we carry with us America is a fitting summation and reflection of experience, interpretation and influence that is both engaging and challenging in its sweeping scope and sense of awe.
5. Beach House - Bloom
With Bloom Beach House honed their sound so concisely and assuredly that they could have pretty much written songs about anything and it would have been entirely mesmerizing so the fact that the lyrics are poetically masterful and deeply meaningful mark this as an undeniable entry into 2012's praiseworthy releases. From the lilting arpeggios and haunting beauty of opener Myth to the simple majesty and dense drones of closer Irene the album doesn't contain a single misstep in its existential journey and depiction of human emotion and what it all means, summed up perfectly by lead singer Victoria Grand's repeated conclusion at the end of it all; "it's a strange paradise."
6. Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
Much has been made of Frank Ocean's revealing letter in regards to his sexuality and what this all means in the world of RnB and hip hop. This aside, Frank Ocean has crafted one of the best albums of the year with Channel Orange, including some of the year's best stand-alone tracks Thinking About You and Pyramids.
7. Xiu Xiu - Always
As a life-long fan of Xiu Xiu they are bound to make my top ten in any year they put out an LP, and 2012 was one of those years. At a time when a lot of artists were either diluting their sound or playing it safe, Jamie Stewart as Xiu Xiu returned with one of his most aggressive and disturbing albums yet which also, interestingly, contains some of his most tender moments too, not to mention some of his most anthemic.
8. Dirty Projectors - Swing Lo Magellan
Swing Lo Magellan marked a move into more 'pop friendly' territory for Dirty Projectors, and yet they still retained much of what makes them special as a left-field indie rock outfit with a penchant for twisting jazz and folk influences into something altogether refreshing and spectacular.
9. Animal Collective - Centipede Hz
Centipede Hz was an unexpected album for many, especially considering the mainstream success of the electro pop influence of Merriweather Post Pavillion, as it sees the band retreating to their more organic and chaotic early sound. The album is so dense and schizophrenic you almost expect it to fall apart at any moment, but for those who appreciate the sound they pioneered for years before they achieved notable chart success then this is a bold and welcomed move from the indie experimental veterans.
10. Rihanna - Diamonds
Almost everything that makes this album great is arguably regardless of Rihanna herself, and yet there's finally something engaging at work here as she bares all and embraces the shambolic and nihilistic character that she has come to embody. As a document of fame and fortune in the hands of someone so unlikeable yet so popular it's compelling, with all its drug-referencing, hazy production, dubstep explosions, indie balladry and shameless pilfering, but you do get the sense that the talent behind the album's construction deserve most of the praise.
Honorable mention:
No Doubt - Push & Shove
Titus Andronicus - Local Business
Matthew Dear - Beams
Bloc Party - Four
David Byrne & St. Vincent - Love This Giant
Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
Patti Smith - Banga
Flying Lotus - Until the Quiet Comes
Lana Del Rey - Born To Die
Roxx is a 'backstage experience' pop-up club and events organisation currently residing at number 4 Winsley Street in the heart of central London. With a heap of positive press, including GQ declaring it their favorite pop-up of the year, and visits from Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood, it's already caused a buzz. The intimate space sees an eclectic, friendly & fun crowd gather every weekend for live bands and DJs playing a mixture of indie, rock and alternative from across the decades mixed with cool dance/house music.
