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| Bat Country |
Date:
Saturday 19th April 2003
Address: The Union, Churchill Way, Cardiff
Occurrence: Bi-monthly
/ Saturdays
Hours: 8pm - 4am
Ticket Price: £6
/ £5 in Advance / £3 NUS
Dress Code: Wear what
you like - bat outfits welcome!
Genre: Freestyle dance
Capacity: 500 |
Line-Up:
MC Ribbz, MC N.R.G, Jon the Dentist, Maxmanic, Dan
Kela, Fixed Rate,
Ant Williams, Jonathon Thomas |
2003 is the Chinese
Year of the Sheep so it makes sense (albeit warped
sense) that I hang around Wales to test out some
of my New Year's Resolutions. I know, I know! April
may seem a bit late for all this, but I am somewhat
renowned for my sloth-like tendencies and, as my
Mum always said "It's better later than never!".
So..Resolution one: I will try new and exciting
things. Resolution two: I will save money. Resolution
three: I will overcome phobia of creepy crawly nasty
things. Sadly in my slightly inebriated post New
Year state, that was the best I could come up with,
but even so, a certain Mr Jones from Cardiff may
have just what I need to get things underway!
Rod Jones aka MC N.R.G is a former resident @
Helter Skelter, Dreamscape and Slammin' Vinyl
and has, for the past 18 months, been bringing
something original and underground to Cardiff's
club scene. Infact it's so underground that some
locals still don't know much about it yet! Rod
describes his venture as "a freestyle journey
incorporating Funk, Break-beat, all elements of
House, Drum & Bass, Trance, Pure Techno and
Acid Techno mixed up into one big cauldron of
purist fun", and to you and me, it's known
as Bat Country.
To me, the name Bat Country flings up visions
of dank, infested gothic underworlds (although
I claim ignorance to what it's really about as
I'm yet to see 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas',
to which the name refers)! I was pleasantly surprised
therefore, to discover 'The Bat Cave' - in The
Union, just
off of Cardiff's main shopping street - filled
with fresh, classy décor comprising of
white sheets, large comfy sofas and mirrors, topped
off with an impressive customized Arkhaos Visual
Jockey show. Bat Country is definitely different
to other dance nights in the area offering, amongst
other things,
live PA's, minimalistic MC's, percussionists,
visuals, backdrops and extra- sensory lighting
shows. There was even scheduled to be a tarot
reader. Unfortunately, she was ill on this occasion
so it looks like I'll have to wait until next
time to see whether I'll stick to my New Year's
Resolutions!
Despite initial reservations at the unorthodox
music code, I was really impressed at how the
DJs were able to bring their different styles
of music together so seemlessly. The night saw
us moving from uplifting trance classics to hard
trance to beats & breaks (DJ Fixed Rate -
I think you're great!!), to
hard house to UK-NRG, all assisted by the combined
lyrical genius of MCs N.R.G and Ribbz, not forgetting
Tom Danks on percussion. Now I'm not normally
a fan of MCs but these guys really are amazing!
How anyone can MC to trance is beyond me, but
it definitely worked and had me dancing my socks
off until the very end!
Finishing up in the DJ box was Maxmanic. Well
known in Cardiff circles for his mental party
presence and overall deck wizardry (he's won a
number of local DJ awards), Max's reputation did
not let him down! As Promoter Rod concluded on
the night (quoting 'The Italian Job') "You
were only meant to blow the bloody doors off,
not the roof as well!"
So, in just one night I was able to kill two
bats with one stone. I certainly sampled something
new and exciting and saved myself money into the
bargain. The Bat Country door tax is less than
a third of some of the more commercial dance nights
in South Wales, yet boasts a distinguished and
talented line-up whilst showcasing a whole array
of extras. And with all this bat malarkey, I have
even changed my perception of things that go bump
in the night!
Before zooming off in the bat mobile to make
party preparations for the next Bat Country, Rod
sums up the Bat Country philosophy: "We're
in to collaborating with everyone and catering
for all tastes."
So, whether you're into sheep or bats, house or
techno, keep your wings peeled for Bat Country 6
coming to Cardiff later this year! It'll certainly
be my next resolution to be there! |
Venue: 7
Music: 9
Crowd: 5
Sound System: 7
Total: 28 / 40
Rating: Silver Award |
| Review written by:
Pammy T |
pammy@uk-cl.co.uk |
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