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The DJ bar is a concept that grew out of South London to take over the world. Dogstar was the pioneer - whacking a couple of decks in the corner and staying open until whenever turned the place into an overnight sensation. Since then every bar in the capital has latched on, but what makes the scene stay fresh is London’s absolutely unbeatable underground music scene. You won’t hear the same thing twice!
DJ bars are a great bet for New Year’s Eve if you feel like paying pub prices for your drinks, mingling with unpretentious characters from London and beyond, and checking out the latest tunes before they set the world alight in 2006. We’ve selected ten of the very best for you.  Hat Club New Year 31st December 2005  Hat Club rules. These good-time kids have gone from throwing smallish parties for a crowd of mates to selling out the colossal Canvas in the space of a year, but for Hogmanay they’ve scaled it back a bit – the Tabernacle is a medium-size venue and you can expect a ‘Friends of Hat Club’ vibe at this event. There are three different themes packed into this rambling, inexpensive venue. The Funk Room features Alex Miles of Bora Bora and Little Lee of Dusted. Meanwhile in the Filth Room you can expect dirty beats and jacking house from Nick Piper, the Ninja Cowboys and Lovechild. There’s also a chill-out room which will be much used over the course of a long, exhausting night. Great venue, and a really happening party organised by some lovely people who simply wanted to spread their love of hats… but have found an army of followers. This will be a special one… but do not forget your hat or you will not get in. Venue: The Tabernacle Address: 55-61 Tabernacle Street, EC2 Phone: 0870 246 2050 Times: 22:00 - 06:00 Price: £20 advance Nearest Station: Old Street Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information   Good Times vs Dusted31st December 2005 This pub is so big it could be called a club – except you can get your lager in pints and the prices are far from disgraceful. The White House is the venue of choice for Dusted after-parties but for New Year's Eve they’re gathering a crew together and hosting an intimate mash-up with some kick-ass DJs, which will be one of the most crammed, jumping parties in South London – and that’s saying something. On the decks – none other than Norman Jay OBE will represent his carnival sound system with a three-hour set of the most soulful grooves. This is the man who will get the crowd down. The House will be shaken to its foundations as hundreds of lucky punters bust their booties far into the morning. From 6am the Dusted crew take over to carry the crowd up to midday with a soundtrack of pure, fun-loving house. Book early for this one – the limited space and not one but two major sound systems on the bill means this will be a sold-out, roadblock event... and the midday finish should attract some proper animals. Venue: The White House Address: 65 Clapham Park Road, SW4 Phone: 0871 711 3044 Times: 21:00 - midday the next day Price: £35 advance Nearest Station: Clapham Common Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Plan B New Year 31st December 2005 Had to give a mention to Plan B this New Year's Eve. What a place! It’s not really small enough to qualify as a bar… except… they do serve pints! And it’s cheap! And full of rowdy locals shaking their booties and trying to make friends with you! We’ve had many a slamming night in here, and it’s a good bet this will be one of the focal points of Brixton’s noisy celebrations this year. The bar is planning a no-frills party, charging a small fee and lining up their own resident DJs to do the hard work – Adrian Blunt, Sarah Foote and Simon Reade will spin top-notch house all night, laced with a few soulful funk grooves and oddities to keep the crowd guessing. Great venue, stomping music, and a crowd that can’t be beaten. We love Plan B and wish them as much fun in 2006 as they clearly had this year. Venue: Plan B Address: 418 Brixton Road, SW9 Phone: 020 7733 0926 Times: 21:00 - 05:00 Price: £20 advance, more on the door Nearest Station: Brixton Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Ginglik New Year 31st December 2005 West London’s favourite underground nightspot has had an awesome year. Finally granted a late licence, the place is attracting huge crowds thanks to an incredible word-of-mouth reputation. This is a truly unique venue. Accessed via a gated, fairy-lit stairwell, Ginglik has a great bar, a chill-out room with games and a lounge full of sofas, tables, and dancing friends. It’s got a really local vibe thanks to the support it has shown to several young artists and musicians, and you’ll feel like old friends at the end of your first night there. New Year’s Eve sees the club building on their reputation for live music. The DJs down here are always impeccable, but the low-ceilinged, comfortable venue has recently come into its own as a jazz spot. New Year will see live New York Funk up to about 1am, followed by some resident DJs. The tunes are always spot-on down in Ginglik but what sets it apart is an exceptional, friends-and-family atmosphere. The perfect choice for a musically diverse, chilled out but funky New Year. Not just a super-cool hideaway, this place is also a friendly wonderland. Venue: Ginglik Address: Shepherd's Bush Green, W12 Phone: 020 8749 2310 Times: 19:00 - 03:00 Price: £15 non-members Nearest Station: Shepherd's Bush Tube (Central) Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Throb at Jamm31st December 2005 Cheap as chips and nearly as tasty, Throb is a night with real character. The last party spiralled onwards and upwards from venue to venue, with the organisers leading the ongoing celebrations and last heard of setting off for a new bar at midday on Sunday. This New Year's Eve they’re in the excellent Jamm in Brixton, a match made in beer-lovers' heaven. Compulsory fancy dress. Ten quid in and pub prices all night. Fantastic house, breaks and electro from a bunch of randomly selected DJs and drunkards. And strip poker - a regular feature at Throb nights. These are the ingredients for a wild and crazy New Year’s kicking-off at Jamm from 8pm and finishing at some totally unpredictable time and place in 2006. We salute this chaotic bunch and if you’ve got a sense of humour, a taste for liquor and a fancy dress costume you’ve been itching to wear, why not check them out? Venue: Jamm Address: 261 Brixton Road, SW9 Phone: 020 7274 5537 Times: 20:00 - 04:00 Price: £15 Nearest Station: Stockwell Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Cargo New Year 31st December 2005 Cargo is laying on a great New Year’s Eve bash to see in 2006, featuring a live performance by extraordinary vocalist Eska Mtungwazi, a South London Zimbabwean whose beguiling nu soul vocals have graced a number of releases this year, ranging from hip hop (Ty) to world music (Nitin Sawhney). She’ll sing in the New Year in style. Also appearing tonight are warm-up DJ Karen P, herself a producer at Radio 1, crowd-pleasing hip hop virtuoso Earl Zinger, and the somewhat famous Gilles Peterson, perhaps the most sought-after collaborator and producer on the planet. Cargo is the spiritual London home of all these global acts. Of all the various bar-cum-clubs in trendy Eastside, this place has had the most aggressively groundbreaking music policy from day one, offering a platform to a huge diversity of British underground talent. With great beer and delicious food as well, Cargo is always a great night out - especially tonight, though as they roll out the big guns to make sure everyone slides into 2006 in a smooth, smiling fashion. After the main festivities, and right through til 10am, the club will still be open and serving drinks, plus a platter of deep soulful house for those too emotional to go to bed. Venue: Cargo Address: 83 Rivington Street, EC2 Phone: 020 7739 3440 Times: Part 1: 19:00 - 04:00 / Part 2: 02:00 - 10:00 Price: Part 1: £35 / Part 2: £15 Nearest Station: Old Street Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Telegraph New Year 31st December 2005 This lively, run-down Brixton venue, decorated by local graffiti artists, and boasting two impressive sound systems and a cheap bar, is throwing an all-nighter on New Year’s Eve through ‘til six in the morning! The hosts for the evening are Menage a Trois, who have promised to glam the place up a bit with extravagant décor, a mini casino and exotic dancing girls. Plus, of course, a selection of sophisticated house and electro for the discerning clubber. The Telegraph is a well-loved Brixton venue and you can expect a big crowd of well-dressed locals to turn out for this upmarket party. The space lends itself to relaxed drinking as well as mad dancing so if you feel like a relatively chilled start to the evening, stepped up to the next level after several inexpensive drinks, this is a good bet. The music policy is spot on as well – sure to get the crowd bumping and moving. Venue: The Telegraph Address: 228 Brixton Hill, SW2 Phone: 020 8678 0777 Times: 21:00 - 06:00 Price: £15 advance Nearest Station: Brixton Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Herbal New Year 31st December 2005 Herbal is one of our favourite Shoreditch DJ Bars, but by far their best nights this year have come courtesy of Antigua’s favourite export, Jazzy B and his Soul II Soul Sound System… and thank goodness, for Hogmanay the club have managed to get Jazzy B on deck! We’ve been to a couple of his nights, and left sweaty, grinning wrecks after a night of incredible musical diversity and intense dancing. This will be an honest-to-goodness blast, with great tunes and the happy Herbal crowd on their very merriest form. Jazzie and co will be complimented with some trendy hip hop and breaks in the other bar, but the real party will be on the Soul II Soul floor, as loving fans jostle around the decks and let out whoops of pleasure for each track dropped. This one is worth booking early as anybody who’s attended one of these nights before will put it top of their list. Venue: Herbal Address: 12-14 Kingsland Road, E2 Phone: 020 7613 4462 Times: 21:00 - 06:00 Price: £31 advance Nearest Station: Old Street Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Big Chill New Year31st December 2005 Brilliant news – the Big Chill Bar are doing their crazy recovery session again this New Year’s Day, opening at 5am to provide a chilled-out haven for party stragglers in the mood for chilled-out live tunes, a spot of slow dancing and some much needed alcohol. The kitchen will also be open for food. This is the best sanctuary in town. The night before, they’re also laying on what looks like a riot of a party, with Sean Rowley of Guilty Pleasures spinning his intoxicating collection of records we’re all ashamed to like, plus some more fashionable fare from Pete Lawrence, the Leggo Beast and The Ombudsman. All power to the Big Chill Bar, bringing a little bit of festival spirit into our winter lives with hilarious, intoxicating results. Venue: The Big Chill Bar Address: Dray Walk, Off Brick Lane, E1 Phone: 020 7392 9180 Times: 20:00 – 03:00, then 05:00 - all day Price: Evening session: £15 / New Year's Day: FREE Nearest Station: Shoreditch Tube / Old Street Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  New Year's East 31st December 2005 Gigantic pub turned trendy club, 93 Feet East is covering its courtyard on New Year’s Eve to allow an extra hundred or so revellers to get seriously plastered and party the night away. They’re also open til 6am. 93 has the most credible music policy of any Brick Lane super-pub, with nights like Our Disco attracting some of the freshest electro producers in the world to play to a beer-loving, musically savvy crowd. This place is all about the tunes, but you can still afford to buy a round. The New Year’s line-up includes acclaimed electro disco producers Chicken Lips mashing out a live PA, and a DJ set from Jeff Automatic, who’ll play anything… as long as it’s banging. With residents Beatmerket, Hooga and the 2Disco Crew backing them up, this place has an impressively warped line-up and should guarantee plenty of fresh tunes among the crowd-pleasing favourites. Apparently they are also installing Christmas trees, ice sculptures and exotic dancers, but as any true fan of 93 knows, you won’t notice the frills… just the beer, the hip crowd and the blinding music… a perfect way to see in the New Year. Venue: 93 Feet East Address: 150 Brick Lane, E1 Phone: 020 7247 3293 Times: 19:00 - 06:00 Price: £25 advance Nearest Station: Shoreditch Tube Click here for Local Travel and Hotel Information  Did You Know?New Year's Eve song 'Auld Lang Syne' was written by Robert Burns, the most famous Scottish poet of his or any generation, but it was never performed until after his death in 1769. The poem was published posthumously and quickly became a Scottish Hogmanay classic, spreading throughout England and then the world after it was sung by Scottish troops in the trenches of World War I. |
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