Our Eileen got down to rave with the city's secret party-goers at Wild Brunch...
Every so often, a new night comes along and it catches your attention for all the right reasons. As soon as the colourful, Bauhaus-esque, wind-instrument-playing character popped up on our screens and throughout our city, marking Wild Brunch’s arrival, it set tongues wagging amongst Nottingham’s party people; this was truly one not to be missed.
With only one month from initial announcement to the night of the event, the promotional period was relatively short compared to other parties. However, with promises of a never-before-used basement to explore, live art and a killer lineup (Nottingham’s own Continuous Movement returning from Bristol, and Vinyl Underground boss Aidy West) it’s no wonder tickets were shifted and the dancefloor was full of a likeminded crowd.
Similar to other secret events, ticketholders only learnt the location on the day of the party. It’s natural to have presumptions of where it might be held, but was a pleasant surprise to learn that we really were heading somewhere new, and it didn’t disappoint.
Based in the centre of town the venue wasn’t a “built for purpose” club, but was skilfully transformed into a safe space to dance with the help of a strobe-light setup and visuals. Illustrator B.Mure provided the live-art element, capturing dancefloor scenes via digital sketches that were then printed by the Dizzy Ink crew, and found in the Wild Brunch zine that was handed out to guests.
At a time when numerous Nottingham institutions are sadly closing down, it is refreshing and inspiring to learn that there are still other haunts to explore and make memories in; something the team behind Wild Brunch cited as motivation to put together the party in the first place, and the care that had gone into crafting it was clear to see.
Musically, the night spanned all manner of premium house, techno and the odd breakbeat track thrown in for good measure – the perfect accompaniment to the impressive 5am licence they gained for the opening event. Classics like Moodymann’s Freaky Mother Fucker and Moby’s Go were heard amongst uplifting disco cuts and underground groovers; a true mixture of styles to keep feet moving.
From the initial announcement to the Facebook call-out for videos and snaps of the night, a real sense of community and acceptance was an overarching theme to Wild Brunch. Something we’re sure founders Robbie and Bobson Dugnutt would take great pride in.
Kicking off with such a success, we hope to see more Wild Brunches planned soon and because of that, we’ll keep their gem of a venue under wraps, for now.
Wild Brunch: Secret Basement Party took place on Saturday 20 October 2018
Wild Brunch on Facebook
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