Exeposé Music went Quayside to check out A1 Bassline perform at the Cellar Door. Kiah Shabka explains how it got pretty dark down in the basement…
Image Credit: Facebook.com/A1Bassline
Armed with the promise of ‘fresh, darker techno.’ we donned the obligatory denim shorts/crop top combo and made our way down to the Quay to see the Thick as Thieves residents and headliner A1 Bassline. Making up half of the newly-formed Laszlo Dancehall and having just launched his own label, Sourceunknwn, we were expecting big things. As usual, The Thieves did not disappoint. Once residents Aerial and Vandeleur had warmed the crowd up with ambient blend of house and techno, Brighton-based A1 made a fashionably late appearance, delivering a set that proved he was worth the wait.
As we made our way through the eager masses to get a sought-after space by the decks, the urge to join with the contagious, trance-like swaying so unique to Cellar Door became unbearable. A1’s infectious bass proved impervious to claims by some that ‘no one likes House music.’ On the contrary, hi-hat melodies complimented epileptic snares to form unique minimal sounds that proved popular with TaT freshers and veterans alike. The ‘fresh, darker techno’ we were promised was more than delivered and A1 provided us with a magnetism that pulled the crowd towards the decks faster than rugby lads to the TP burger van.
It’s safe to say that the Thieves have started Term Two on top form, and with the announcement of their new festival this summer, Hijacked, they have a big year ahead of them.
EUTCo’s production of ‘After The End’ is showing at 7pm on Wednesday 27th – Thursday 28th November at Cellar Door. Tickets are £5 for EUTCo members and £6 for non-members, including a free drink at Cellar Door. Email the show’s producer Jessica Burrage (jlb230@exeter.ac.uk) to book tickets.
Image Credits: EUTCo
A bomb explodes. You wake up underground, in the dark. You don’t know what to think, what to do, how to react. No, I’m not describing you passing out in Cellar Door as the bass drops, but rather, the premise of Dennis Kelly’s gripping play After The End on in Exeter this week. For two nights only, Cellar Door, the Quay’s go-to venue for drum and bass nights, will be transformed into a nuclear fallout shelter as Exeter University’s Theatre Company (EUTCo) stage their second play of the term there.
Dennis Kelly’s After The End explores how human emotions are pushed to extremity as his two characters – Mark and Louise – are entrapped within a bomb shelter with only each other for company. It is Mark’s shelter: he has rescued Louise and prepared everything he thinks they will need to survive; tinned chilli, Dungeons and Dragons and a knife. They both must wait until it’s safe to go outside. Yet, it soon becomes apparent that the real danger lies inside the shelter. Mark and Louise have survived the bomb, but will they survive each other?
The dark humour and electrifying tension of Kelly’s script is what attracted co-directors Joanna Ward and Matthew Holmquist to the play. In an interview, Matthew and Joanna commented on the challenges it presents to the conventions of love, hate and human relationships. They also highlighted how lucky they feel to have secured Cellar Door as the play’s venue: “Cellar Door is great for the underground environment of this play. We want the audience to feel like they are entering the world of After The End. It’s such an intimate space, we’re trying to create an intense atmosphere that the audience will hopefully thrive off”.
With only a two-person cast, the play certainly demands a lot of its actors. Armonie Melville and Freddie Thorp – playing the parts of Louise and Mark respectively – describe the play’s intensity as “enjoyably challenging”. With many lines and a number of intimate, violent scenes, they both emphasised the essentiality of “trust and a strong on-stage chemistry”: something they hope will come across in their performances.
Sarah Gough
To watch the ‘After The End’ trailer as well as interviews with the actors and directors, visit the Facebook event here. For updates on the show, follow @AfterTheEnd13 on Twitter.
The show contains scenes of a violent and sexual nature.
The Beats and Bass crew are on a roll. After luring Artwork to their new spiritual home at the Cellar Door last week, the music mad clan have bagged yet another heavyweight in the form of Mak and Pasteman. The duo will take over the quayside venue for a night of unparalleled partying.
Image Credit: beatsandbass
They may sound like a builders’ merchants or a law firm, but Mak and Pasteman have garnered a big reputation in a short period of time after breaking out of the Leeds underground scene in 2011. The twosome, singed to Lobster Boy, draw heavily on soulful beats to craft a sound that bridges House, Techno and Jungle. Tracks like Mak and Pasteman’s ‘Chunky’ and huge summer banger ‘Dither’ were made for the dark doldrums of Cellar Door and promise to go down well with the house heads.Carefully crafted samples compliment deep basslines and garage beats to produce tracks cut from the same cloth as the likes of Leofah, Boddika and Paleman. The result is an uncompromising sound that has earned them headline spots all over the world, including Ibiza Rocks and Hideout.
It is testament to Exeter’s growing music scene that such renowned acts come down and party in our humble little city. Much of the credit goes to both student-run Beats and Bass and Thick as Thieves for continuing to attract big names and providing the perfect platform for DJs to showcase their talents.
Swamp 81’s Klose One will provide support for the headliners. One for the dance music purists, Klose One began on pirate radios and has ended up as one of the most respected DJs in the scene. No genre is spared the Klose One treatment: 4/4 Garage, House and Techno will fill up the underground pit with all the energy and effortless mixing regularly displayed on his Rinse FM slot. Classic hits meet cutting edge dubplates to form the perfect warm up for the main event.
Get your tickets on the door for £5 (BnB members) or £7 for non-members.
So, if you’re new to Exeter, chances are you might be wanting to know a little more about one of the biggest parts of Exeter student life.. the NIGHT life! Well here at Lifestyle, our editors have had a think about their 2 years worth of Exeter clubbing experience, and put together a short (yet hopefully useful) guide to get you started! Featuring 4 of the biggest clubs in Exe, we hope you have a fantastic Fresher’s Week!
Despite rumours of a distinct smell of feet, and once you have gotten over the slightly bizarre carpeted decor around the bars, you will likely find yourself inexplicably in Arena every Monday and Thursday night, without fail, regardless of whether you intended to go out at all. While it’s always a great night where you’re guaranteed to see the same old faces while enjoying the latest tunes, it’s risky taking your bank card because chances are you’ll wake up with a hangover from one (or 10) too many Arena Jäger Bombs.
Tuesday night is the night for those with an arguably more questionable music taste, as we see the return of the 80s and of S-Club 7 for ‘Cheesy Tuesdays’. Boys beware… Your shirts will not remain on for long when the dulcet tones of the Baywatch theme tune hit the dance floor!
TIMEPIECE:
Exeter’s largest club brags three floors and is known as THE place for a Wednesday night. The sporting types descend upon Timepiece after Wednesday sport socials, so blind drunk rugby lads, (easily identified by the obligatory chinos, blue shirt and club tie) are a common sight,and if you can make it through the queues it’s always a fun, if very messy or forgettable night out.
MOSAIC:
With long bars, sofas and booths to relax and drink before you hit the dance floor upstairs, and even a roof terrace for a little fresh air after… What could go wrong? Well, when you’ve queued to get in, and then find you have to queue to get upstairs too it puts a downer on the night – so if you’re keen to dance get there ahead of the crowd! But if you just fancy the bar, it’s still worth a trip, and conveniently close to the incredibly cheap (if questionable) Walkabout and EX4.
CELLAR DOOR:
If you’re not into chart music, the slightly longer walk to Cellar Door on the quay is definitely worth it for a different night out. Prepare for a night of skinnies and sneaks, as Cellar Door showcases the best of Exeter’s student DJ scene in an underground club with a great alternative atmosphere.
Bryony James discusses the results of a poorly planned evening courtesy of Thick as Thieves, seemingly caused by a considerable overselling of tickets past venue capacity.
After managing to secure online tickets for Thick as Thieves before they sold out in a matter of minutes, I was extremely excited at the prospect of seeing Duke Dumont DJ in Exeter. Best known for his hit track Need U (100%), Duke Dumont has had increasing airplay on Radio One and was a big name to book for the comparatively quiet Exeter club scene.
“Duke Dumont was DJing – the whole reason why the tickets were more expensive than usual.” Photo Credit: caiusp via Compfightcc
The event sparked massive interest with over 600 tickets sold. However, this was the problem. Thick as Thieves sold far too many tickets for the small capacity of The Cellar Door, promising that the space would be increased by linking, ‘The Cellar up with the Revelry for a double floor blowout.’
This did not quite go to plan. Everyone obviously wanted to go downstairs to The Cellar where Duke Dumont was DJing – the whole reason why the tickets were more expensive than usual. We paid over £8 each and ended up queuing for a shocking hour and a half to go downstairs. Not only that, but the queue was outside in the freezing cold. Jack Reid, a first year student, described how he is normally a big fan of the bi-weekly Thick as Thieves night, but this one was just ‘poorly thought out’.
The queues were badly organised as they moved the queue for downstairs from one side of the door round to the other, causing a massive surge and the people at the front pushed to the back. Feeling more like cattle than humans, we were squashed, battered and bruised. The most frustrating part was that we had actually paid for this experience.
When we finally got downstairs it was clear that people were having a good time. The dancefloor was packed and the whole place was pounding. However, we were exhausted from battling to stay in the queue, so, extremely disappointed, left the club.
It was only when we saw the furore of comments on the event page that we realised the whole extent of the disastrous night. It seems as if we weren’t the only ones dissatisfied with how the event was handled, with many people complaining about the poor organisation.
The Thick as Thieves management have since apologised on Facebook, stating that they are ‘incredibly sorry’ as it ‘was never [their] intention to cause any dissatisfaction’ and will ‘endeavor to make sure this never happens again.’ They have promised refunds to those who feel that their night was ‘severely affected’. Email thickasthieves.exeter@gmail.com with your complaints for a refund.
It is great that club nights such as Thick as Thieves are attracting bigger names to Exeter. They just need to make sure that they take place in bigger venues or restrict the amount of tickets sold. It is better to be disappointed about not being able to buy tickets, rather than having the frustration of buying tickets but not being able to get in.
Bryony James, Online Arts Editor.
When does selling tickets past capacity stop being sensible and start being greedy? Were you affected by the poor organisation of this event? Leave a comment below or write to the Comment team at the Exeposé Comment Facebook Group.
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