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Features
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Heat NYE preview — a brief history of all things Riot!
Reported by benz
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Submitted 21-12-05 00:18
I’m sure I speak for most HarderFaster members when I say that we’ve all got our stories about Riot!, the supremely naughty Sunday afternoon hard House and dirty disco party at The End in Central London. Fond memories for me of BK & Ed Real’s all-day classics set at the August Bank Holiday 2004… the first ever Hard Dance Awards at which somehow I ended up presenting ‘Best Label Award’ to the tidy Boys, followed by a thoroughly debauched party… the time Dom Sweeten of OD404 came out of DJ retirement to smack it hard in the main room… or the time Ed Real got immensely pissed and then played an amazing set… actually that sounds like most episodes of Riot!
Anyway, in honour of Riot! hosting the full-on foyer at Heat’s massive New Year’s Eve party at Brixton Academy this year, we thought we’d take a little look back at the party and its history with its promoter and resident himself — Mr. Ed Real.
Ed had his first taste of promoting way back in 1992 (before most of us were born), when he first staged a makeshift party in a hall in his native Oxford. “We paid the DJs in ‘kind’ and never looked back. Those were the days,” he recalls, misty-eyed. His next step up the ladder was staging a club night proper, called Vurt on the South Coast of England, which gave the young Real a taste of what it was like to be a serious(ish) promoter. “I paid £250 to Roni Size to come and play on a Saturday night! The sorts of DJs we had then were true legends: Grooverider, LTJ Bukem, Dave Clarke, Surgeon, Liberators, Oberon and Beamish, Kenny Ken, Colin Favor, Colin Dale... people who were an education to watch and work with when I was a 20 year old promoter and budding DJ.” His new night won acclaim from the dance music press, such as the now-defunct Muzik Magazine, and demonstrated that he definitely knew what he was doing when it came to putting on shindigs. His love for the pioneers of various styles of dance music and for DJs and artists who really pushed the envelope would be something that would stick with him, and would shine through at the exciting and diverse line-ups at Riot! parties over the years.
Further down the line, in 1998, Ed arrived in London to start his work as A&R for the mighty Nukleuz Records, and tried his hand at promoting a drum ‘n’ bass party which went under the name of Firestorm in Brixton’s Mass Club. Here he learnt about some of the more undesirable elements of clubs that can rear their heads from time to time. “Before our opening night we had a gun drill to give our staff the heads up on how to act if someone turns up packing. From there, promoting hard house nights was a doddle!”
So how did Riot! come into existence? And how did Ed manage to blag The End as the venue? It isn’t the kind of place you’d normally expect to hold a dirty hard house event, given the fact that the majority of their parties are house-orientated or thereabouts. Ed explains: “Sundays at The End became free because of a shooting at the garage event that had been running previously. Myself and my original partner wanted to throw a Sunday party where all the hard house scene queens could hang out and party like it was 2999!” Ed adapted the name from a flyer that he picked up in legendary Covent Garden skate shop Slam City Skates way back in 1987. The flyer was for a party thrown by erstwhile Madonna producer William Orbit while he was running progressive house bastion Guerilla Records, and it was called ‘Riot in Lagos’. You do the math.
Another major help to Ed’s hard house cause was that his original partner in Riot! had been promoting drum ‘n’ bass events there for years. Furthermore, he knew that the proprietors of The End were of a similar mindset — “the management of the club are all serious party people who wrote the book on afterhours events since The Clink parties, where owners Mr C (of The Shamen fame) and Layo (of Layo & Bushwacka) met in 1987. They loved the idea!” The mission statement was clear — to provide quality hard music on a Sunday afternoon for London’s hardcore who just couldn’t get enough. The prestigious venue was sorted. Now all that was left to do was to throw the first party, and see how that went down.
Ed describes that fateful first event: “A state of panic used to be the presiding feeling really. Anyone who has passionately put their heart and soul into an event and really put their balls on the line is always going to feel this. Sometimes people come and sometimes people don’t and that anticipation as to whether you’ve done the right thing, booked the right DJs or club is overwhelming.” In keeping with his Nukleuz connections at the time, his original residents were BK, Phil Reynolds, Nick Sentience and himself. Room 2 saw the now legendary Bar Riot! in control, with future superstars such as Tom Real, Tom Neville, King Roc and Matt Williiams funking it up under the name of Ignition Crew.
As with most parties, success for Riot! didn’t come over night. Initially Ed plumbed for a weekly format, for about 10 weeks. It was, in his own words “pretty shit”. The event ran from midday ‘til midnight, and saw around 300 people attending on each occasion. On top of his Monday to Friday 9–5 and other weekend DJing commitments, Riot! took its toll on him in a big way. A change was needed. “The management of the club suggested going monthly and we consolidated everything in terms of vibe and following. Having launched in February, by May we were kicking off and turning people away and a legend was born!”
Riot! has hosted so many parties over the last 5 years both at The End and overseas in Tokyo, Australia and Amsterdam, with each one encapsulating a friendly, energetic and hedonistic vibe that felt so wrong and naughty for a Sunday afternoon. Shouldn’t we be in church or something? Numerous special guests from the worldwide Hard Dance elite smacked the f*ck out of Riot! on repeated occasions, as well as the tastiest in established and upcoming house and electro talent. Ed and his crew set about booking their musical heroes and peers, and attracted many a world-famous name to The End for some Sunday afternoon madness. “Paul Glazby’s first visit to the club was insane. It was the first time he played in London and he smashed it. Ditto when he came back and did the first ever b2b with Karim. Billy Nasty and DAVE The Drummer brought techno to hard dance clubland when they played first. In the bar we had DJ Gee from Bora Bora and every time the Sharp Boys played they would bring a club full of queens along — that kind of mixture between gay and straight hadn’t happened before and probably won’t again.” While Ed always strives to book whoever he wants to see play, with his “educate and entertain” policy for constructing line-ups, some guests still elude them for various reasons. “Carl Cox and Eddie Halliwell would go down very well. It’s all about being able to get close to the DJ in the main room and these two would undoubtedly put on a show never to forget.”
Looking ahead, Ed acknowledges that the scene has evolved and that a change of tact may be necessary when it comes to his events “Times have changed. Clubbers aren’t so hardcore any more I don’t think, or... there isn’t anything in terms of cohesive musical style to draw that mayhem out of them. This means we have to adapt and we’re looking forward to the challenge.” In an addition to the Riot! club brand, Ed and his colleagues set up Riot! Recordings to release what in their view is the cutting edge of hard dance productions, and they rapidly established themselves as one of the most popular, consistently excellent, diverse, forward-thinking imprints around.
“As a label we are releasing hard dance, trance, house, electro and hardcore and we’re going to try and fuse that quality of music but diversity of style into our parties. From here we will create our own style and help move things forward.” In addition to the regular club events at The End, Riot! has also teamed up with other leading promotions across the nation (and further), such as Wildchild, Big, CyberKitten, and even HQ in Holland, spreading its infectious party vibe outside of the boundaries of London Town.
Riot!’s next challenge is to rock the foyer to its foundations at Heat’s massive New Year’s Eve party at Brixton Academy — something that Ed feels is a certainty. “Riot! is a state of mind and a statement of intent. NYE will be the ultimate chance to express your inner hardcore and we’re going to be there to help you raise the roof like it has never been raised! All DJs in our room are playing exclusive sets and we aim to make it a house party within a party giving you the best of both worlds.” It’s a great line-up, with Riot! favourites and regulars joining special guests Pete Wardman, Marc French and the continuously superb production powerhouse Vinylgroover. ”The whole night is bound to be a blur but I'm really looking forward to Type 1 play their first major NYE party. Over the last 12 months these two cheeky chaps have come into their own and developed a great following and I hope that this NYE extravaganza is going to be their making!”
Rob Tissera and Anne Savage at the first Hard Dance Awards in December 2003
Alongside running the Riot! events and the Riot! Recordings label, Ed also juggles a busy DJing schedule with the day-to-day running of the highly successful DJ MP3 download emporium www.trackitdown.net, as well as handling the whole Hard Dance Awards shebang, and somehow finds time to continue his passion for clubbing by exploring some of the capital’s best events when he’s not DJing. Such an unfaltering dedication to the scene that made brought him success, combined with a relentless work ethic and desire to keep pushing things forward is something that is hard to come by in this day and age. We need more people like him, and more parties like Riot! which strive to keep the music interesting while not allowing the party vibe to become of secondary importance. I heart Riot!
www.riotinlondon.com / www.trackitdown.net / www.harddanceawards.com
Photos courtesy of Ed and Benz.
HeatUK & The Gallery: HEATNYE 2005
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On:
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Saturday 31st December 2005
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At:
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Brixton Academy [map]
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From:
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22:00 - 06:00
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Cost:
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supersaver £25+bf / standard £30+bf / advance £35+BF m.o.t.d.
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Website:
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www.heatuk.com
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Ticket Info:
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24 HOUR NATIONAL HOTLINE credit/ debit card / sales / 0870 771 2000
www.ticketweb.co.uk
www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Maria 07813 684399
Camden Cyberdog 020 7482 2842
Mad Records 020 7439 0707
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Buy Online:
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Click here to buy tickets
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More:
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The biggest New Year’s Eve line-up ever seen at the Academy!
HeatUK:
Experience counts in clubland. This is HeatUK’s 4th successive NYE event at this world famous venue. Every year a sell out crowd return to see the greatest party DJs play under the highest standards of production. 4 arenas of sound with over 30 DJs performing house, breaks, trance, techno, and hard dance. This is midnight with a bang! And be warned it’s going to rock with one of the brightest talents of the dance scene performing a very special midnight set - our very own Technikal (Alf Bamford). At only 19-years-of-age he has already produced over 35 records! At the stroke of midnight we move into a new and exciting year, with one of the future stars of tomorrow playing alongside the legends of today.
The Gallery:
Mixmag’s ‘London Club of the Year’ celebrated “10 Years of Clubland” in April 2005 with typical grace and dancefloor brilliance. The Gallery continues to do what no other Friday club can do. As the capital’s leading purveyor of new sounds and trends, this legendary weekly event remains the mainstay for the world’s leading jocks with the likes of Paul Van Dyk, Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren, Paul Oakenfold and more having blown the roof off Turnmills at some stage throughout the year. With new residencies in Brighton and Leeds, The Gallery rides high into 2006 with another 52 weeks of jam-packed parties, taking you through house, trance and techno and beyond. The friendliest crowd in the country? Guaranteed, and there is no other way to start 2006.
Riot:
Riot! by name and Riot! by nature! Ed Real and BK have been promoting some of the most full-on events in London for the last 5 years and now for the first time they take over the foyer at Brixton Academy for one night of total mayhem. From their mothership at world-famous central London venue The End, the Riot! crew have grown into one of the most well-known and respected promotions in the UK. 'Lead from the front' is the company motto and this relates to both their music policy and their party antics! Ed Real from Riot! says; 'The trinity of Heat, The Gallery and Riot! represents the most exciting dance music collaboration in London this year. Each partner strives to present the ultimate soundtrack to your night out and this partnership on New Years Eve is going to be pure dynamite! In the Foyer we'll cover the best hard dance, hard trance, techno and hard house on the planet and with hundreds of our Riot! regulars in attendance you can bet your night is going to go with a big bang.'
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Flyer:
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Other Features By benz:
Introducing: Salerno - part of Chemistry's NuWave selection
Eat Static return for Lost In Space
Coburn bring their live show to UP^^
The return of The Colosseum
Modernism, Politburo and Sedition: Matthew Duffield’s manifesto
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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![[HarderFaster] - Work Hard, Play Harder!](/images/mainbanner_top1-xmas.gif)
Ed Real L.E.G.E.N.D
xx
...and keep representing the jugz as well, innit! 
Bank Holiday Riot! was one of the best events this year for me and Riot! as a label is a permanent feature in my box 