A seasoned observer of Norwich's nightlife offers a rebuttal to an article published in the last issue of Concrete, drawing attention to the city’s underground scene.
To many, singing along to the latest pop chart hit and blacking-out drunk on £1 Jägerbombs is the very height of student hedonism, and there is nothing wrong with that. However, there are leagues of students who prefer Diplo to David Guetta, Loadstar to Lady Gaga, and going to Fabric rather than Falaraki. If you’re bored on the dancefloor at your usual haunts, perhaps you should delve into Norwich’s vibrant underground scene.
If you’re a fresher, these nights probably don’t show up on your radar. That’s because generally underground clubs think it is bad karma to spam you or use other nefarious promoter tactics (fake fresher groups anyone?) But if you do choose to dig deeper, dancefloor gold awaits.
Students start the majority of these clubnights. Dance Club was the brainchild of an ambitious art school student and POW!, the party brand formed in 2007 by two UEA second years, is still going remarkably strong.
The word underground is a misnomer too. They’re consistently the busiest nights in the city, regularly packing out with like-minded heads who believe music is king, dress codes should be abolished, and aren’t afraid to listen past the radio for their tastes. They cater to tastemakers, propelling underground club hits such as Levels by Avicii and Barbra Streisand by Duck Sauce to chart success. These songs were being hammered in the right nightclubs months before the radio jumped on the bandwagon.
The most prominent of these underground nightclubs are Kartel and Carnival, although smaller venues such as Bedford’s Crypt, Karma Café, the Birdcage and the Rumsey Wells are also worthy of attention.
Kartel boasts wild DJs with an anything goes policy, the occasional 6am finish and an impressive smoking terrace. The clubnights to head to are the Rooftop Rave (already earning legendary status), Rebel Lion for all one’s reggae and dub needs, and the return of ex-UEA student-run club night, Get Low, who also run events in Brixton and host rooms at some of London’s biggest events. Carnival has recently changed hands and aims to become much more promoter led. Nights to watch out for there are Tropico, a very promising new event for people who like 90s R&B and Rubicon; 808, a new future bass night; and of course POW!, the original house party in a club.
There used to be a time where you could see artists such as Example, Pendulum and Nero in Norwich nearly every week. The recession and different demands from the public changed that, causing promoters to hibernate because the financial risk was too high. Thus, a special mention goes to Color at the Waterfront, one of the few clubnights to successfully buck that trend. It has bought exciting names in drum‘n’bass and dubstep to Norwich, including: High Contrast, 16bit and Netsky.
It’s impossible to describe an entire city’s nightlife in 500 words; there will be howling omissions. Nonetheless, for those seeking the underground, this article should help you find it.