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Features
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| Introducing NEM3SI$’s new label Infinite Resistance! | | Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! | | Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! | | Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! | | Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. | | Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! | | Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! | | NEM3SI$ - I Live for the Night – talks superficiality, psychopaths, and bittersweet success, ahead of a plethora of evocative, emotional, and passionate upcoming melodic techno releases! | | Psy-Sisters Spring Blast Off! We talk to DJ competition winner ROEN along with other super talents on the lineup! | | Blasting towards summer festivals with Bahar Canca ahead of Psy-Sisters Spring Blast! | | Shyisma talks parties, UFO's, and Shotokan Karate ahead of his upcoming album 'Particles' on Iono-Music! | | SOME1 talks family, acid, stage fright and wolves - ahead of his upcoming album release ‘Voyager’ on Iono-Music in February 2023! | | The Transmission Crew tell all and talk about their first London event on 24th February 2023! | | NIXIRO talks body, mind and music production ahead of his release 'Planet Impulse' on Static Movement's label - Sol Music! | | Turning the world into a fairy tale with Ivy Orth ahead of Tribal Village’s 10th Birthday Anniversary Presents: The World Lounge Project | | The Psy-Sisters chat about music, achievements, aspirations and the 10-Year Anniversary Party - 18/12/22! | | A decade of dance music with Daniel Lesden | | Earth Needs a Rebirth! Discussions with Psy-Trance Artist Numayma | | Taking a Journey Through Time with Domino | | New Techno Rising Star DKLUB talks about his debut release White Rock on Onhcet Republik! | | PAN expands on many things including his new album 'Hyperbolic Oxymoron' due for release on the 14th April 2022 on PsyWorld Records! | | Psibindi talks all things music including her new collaborative EP 'Sentient Rays' on Aphid Records, her band Sentience Machine and 10 years of Psy-Sisters! |
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The Final Zoo
Reported by Steve Milton
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Submitted 19-10-11 18:36
I’ve retired from writing features. I made that clear some time ago on these very pages and intend to keep the promise I made to myself. I’ve seen better partying days and it’s time for those younger and with greater staying power than I to take over the reins. However, just this once I’ll put finger to keyboard and send off an old friend of 10 years who, like me will be finally retiring and moving into the realms of clubbing history. To survive this long is a testament to the organisation and dedicated following they created in conjunction with one of London’s best loved small venues.
A solid combination of good, home grown DJs with a realistic approach to the scene and an unhealthy ability to drink their weight in alcohol kept them going whilst others faded into obscurity. I’ve been lucky enough to play for them on several occasions and although my attendances have been few and far between in recent years I will acknowledge this is the passing of something special and deservedly they intend to go out with a bang. On the 4th of November at Club 414 in Brixton there will be the . . . Last Ever Zoology.
Before we get there it’s my intention to get a few last words from the two main men behind the promotion, Latex Zebra and B.S.E.
Welcome chaps once again to HF’s features section. First off, how does it feel leading up to the last Zoo, can you believe you’ll never going to be doing this ever again?
LZ: Blimey, kind of weird. Especially after the penultimate Zoo which was awesome and for a moment it made me question why we’re stopping. It is the right time though and despite the fact that the last party will, deep down, be kind of sad. I’m also convinced it will be one of our best parties ever and will get the send off that it deserves.
B.S.E: In a weird way it doesn’t really feel that different to leading up to any of our other birthdays, still have that excited/worried buzz in my belly when I think about it, worrying if we’ve forgotten something major excited by the prospect of an epic blow out. I think come 7am on the 5th it will really sink in that that’s it. The end. Game over.
LZ: As for never doing this again . . . well it’s only Zoology we’ll never be doing again. I have no plans to hang up the headphones just yet. I still have Alumni to periodically maim people with and who knows what B.S.E and I might come up with once we’ve kicked back our heels a few times on the first Friday of the month.
I guess the question I really should ask is why now? Was it due to personal commitments or something more?
B.S.E: When we started we never imagined that we’d get to the big one-oh, hell I was shocked we got to one! But as we went on, gained some fans and a following of sorts we knew we could go on for a while but in the back of our minds was the fact that all good things must come to an end. With aging bodies and growing families putting on a monthly party was becoming an ever increasing battle and after lengthy discussions that involved a lot of denial about getting on a bit we decided that getting to the tenth birthday and retiring Zoology to live out its days with its pipe and slippers was the best thing all round.
LZ: No there is no dark reason for stopping; we thought getting to 10 years would be an amazing achievement. As Chris has said, many of the Residents have moved on and the scene is now 10 years older . . . as are all of our regulars.
We could have looked to reinvent, as we have in the past, but Zoology is getting old now, especially in animal years. We’d be 70 if we were a dog!
Looking back over the years what have been the highlights and lowlights? Anything you’d like to have done differently?
B.S.E: Highlights for me include standing at the back of the dance floor at our first party, looking over the crowd throwing more shapes than an epileptic geometry teacher and thinking “we did this”, and I still get that great feeling at almost every party.
LZ: Highlights are Altern8 for the 5th Birthday, DJ Wag for the hell of it, hosting a Frantic event at the 414, having an absolutely rammed 414 two days after New Years Eve . . . loads of stuff. Being in DJ Mag as one of their featured parties on several occasions was utterly amazing. That’s made me smile and chuckle just thinking about it. How cool to be us.
B.S.E: I say almost as one of the lowlights of the past 10 years is putting on a party with what we consider a great line-up and four people and tumbleweeds turn up, on those occasions I think “we did this?”
LZ: Fortunately not many lows, a New Years Day party that cost quite a bit and had about 20 people turn up. That was gutting, especially when I was still paying for it with my January pay check when it came through. I think any time you take a hit personally is always a low. Fortunately this has only happened a couple of times. Trying to change the past is a bit mental and a waste of energy so I don’t think we’d have done anything differently. Even the things that make me face palm now!
DJ wise you’ve had a whole host of people behind the decks, who’ve been your favourite guests and are there any you wish you hadn’t booked?
LZ: Favourites, well Altern8, Man With No Name and DJ Wag will always stand out. Not because they’re the biggest names but they all contributed to how Zoology was perceived.
B.S.E: For sheer oh-my-f*cking-god-I-can’t-believe-we-got-them-to-the-414ness it has to be Altern8. Probably the only time the crowd has called for “one more” at 3am when they finished their set. But for me my favourite was Man With No Name, who turns out has a name. Proper meet your idols stuff and I was not disappointed. He played an epic set even taking a request from Dan & I for Floor Essence and then stuck around dancing the night away with us, and was still there when we left at 7.
LZ: There are only a few DJs that disappointed but I’d never name them. If someone did that to me, no matter how unlikely it is  , I would be really upset. There have been a couple that just didn’t fit or didn’t try and fit in. It’s just an hour or so of the night and one bad set does not a bad party make. At least they gave us something to talk about on the train home.
B.S.E: As for the other side of the coin I don’t think I regret booking any DJ, although there have been a couple that have misjudged the crowd quite epically.
Following on from that if money wasn’t an option and you could have booked any DJ or live act past and present who would it be?
LZ: Paul Van Dyk and Carl Cox. Gutted Billy Nasty fell through, especially after we announced it. Still at least we didn’t pretend he was still playing.
B.S.E: Carl Cox. I think we tried to get him at one point but we’d of needed to sell out the 414 many, many times over just to afford him, hell we’d have probably needed to sell out the O2!
Moving on now to the stranger side of clubbing. Everyone knows Club 414 gets its fair share of weirdo’s which I guess is part of the attraction but what has been the strangest thing you’ve seen on a Zoology night?
LZ: Altern8 getting the crowd to scream one more . . . When the night still had 4 hours to go! Some mad dude who was painting using ketchup and mustard sachets on bits of cardboard. People turning up in suits, superhero costumes or other mad outfits. I remember some guy in a suit turning up after having paid £500 for a charity ball ticket when he decided a night at Zoo would be more fun. People flying in from Scotland and Europe specifically for Zoology. It’s been 10 years of oddness. Some of the oddest stuff is probably not best shared in public.
B.S.E: Of all the strange things to see at the 414 someone removing their own tooth upstairs in the chill out area has to be the strangest of them all.
LZ: Jesus . . . I remember that. (so do I! - Ed)
As we all know the whole clubbing and electronic music scene has changed a lot over the years Zoology has been in existence, how have you managed to keep going whilst other promotions went the way of the Dodo?
LZ: Stubbornness and the 414 for having us all this time. They’ve stuck with us as we’ve stuck with them. We’ve never thrown in the towel because we’ve had a run of quiet nights, always set out to reverse that. I suppose we never tried to be bigger than we needed to be. If we’d have tried bigger venues we’d have been finished years ago.
B.S.E: Our philosophy has always been to get a friendly “house-party” vibe in a club and I think we achieved that over the past decade quite well. That and we have never rested on our laurels, or were afraid to try something different. Sometimes that didn’t go quite as planned but we had more hits than misses.
And finally, any famous last words, thanks and f*ck yous?
LZ: No f*ck yous. A few DJs that I roll my eyes at for refusing to play because we were at the 414. I’m sure if we’d have asked them this year we’d have easily got them for a fraction of what we offered back then.
Thanks to everyone. To the 414, to all the regulars, to the other promotions at the 414 for the support, to all the DJs, to the people who threw open the door of the 414, stopped, smiled and got straight on the dance floor. To the DJs that took them there.
To HarderFaster as well, for a while we where almost a HarderFaster meeting ground and what an amazing bunch of people that brought to the party.
B.S.E: Thank-yous could go on forever but all the people who’ve come along to support us and have a great time with us over the years, the DJ’s who, by-and-large, rocked it time and again, and our ever evolving crew and residents deserve lots of thanks. But I think a special thank you has to be said to T & Louise from the 414 for putting up with and sticking by us for this long. As for the f*ck yous: All you detractors and nay-sayers out there. Famous last words? F*ck knows . . .
LZ: Thank you everyone seriously. What you’ve helped us give you over the years has not just touched our lives but taken over it. Don’t stop because we’ve stopped. There are still amazing parties to be had out there. I’m sure we’ll see you at some of them.
And with that it's time to sign off. If you've never been to a Zoology well then this is your last chance and it should be a goodun. Get in there and see them off in style. I'm even going so if this tired old git can make it then you've got no excuse.
I'll see you (for the last time) on the dance floor
All photos courtesy of Pink Kitty and Latex Zebra. Not to be reproduced without permission.
Final Zoo
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On:
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Friday 4th November 2011
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At:
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CLUB 414 [map]
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From:
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22:00 till 07:00
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Cost:
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£10 All Night
£5 Paying Guest list
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More:
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Just over ten years ago three friends decided to launch the record label Vinyl Zoo.
After the huge success of the launch party a regular event seemed the logical choice.
Zoology was born in November 2001.
With no expectations to become the biggest party in the World we set out to throw the best parties we could… And if we could do this for ten years... Wouldn’t that be amazing?
Since then Zoology has set the bar for what a smaller promotion is capable of.
Flying DJs in from Europe, booking chart topping acts, team ups with some of the biggest parties around and hosting rooms & events with some of the finest promotions (and at the finest venues) in London.
The reason for this is one of the most varied music policies around with the emphasis on perfect progression throughout the night. Delivered by DJs (resident or otherwise) that have the freedom to play what they want and not what they feel they have to play. The result is a crowd of people that soaks up the music and parties like crazy, in vibe always reminiscent of a house party.
Ten years is approaching and the time is right to put Zoology to bed. This is it. No hosting rooms or reunions in years to come. Zoology opens, and closes, its doors for the very last time on November 4th 2011 at our home Club 414 in Brixton, a venue that hosts its own countless accolades.
Deciding a line up for a last party is tough. You have to look at what made the party and at Zoology it was the residents.
As well as the three founders RedCat, B.S.E and Latex Zebra, the party was soon joined by DJs that shared the same music views as the dance floor.
DJ Broadsword, Mr Mark, Markus Buhmann, The Future Sound of Elvis (now just Elvis), Matt Dahl, Jim Wild, DJ Forth and Adam Symbiosis & Miles Gorfy.
For the final Zoology we have grabbed as many as we can of those that are still in the country (how time marches on) and added a guest that repeatedly won the hearts of the Zoology faithful.
Zoology welcomes back the Queen of Techno Clodagh.
To try and thank everyone who has helped make Zoology what it is would be a massive undertaking… That probably would be quite dull to read as well.
Rest assured, if you’ve partied with, or played for, us you have helped shaped what Zoology became over the coming years.
For that we thank you... Forever.
If somehow you’ve missed out.
One more.
And that’s it.
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Flyer:
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Region:
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London
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Music:
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Trance. Acid Trance. Euro Trance. Hard Trance. Tech Trance. Psy Trance. HardStyle. Old Skool. House. Bouncy House. Funky House. Hard House. Prog House. Vocal House. Electro House. Acid House. Tech House. Acid Techno. Funky Techno. Techno. Breaks. Commercial Dance. Club Classics. Electro.
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DJ's:
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Clodagh
B.S.E
RedCaT
Latex Zebra
DJ Forth
(The Future Sound of) Elvis
Markus Buhmann b2b Matt Dahl
Adam Symbiosis b2b Miles Gorfy
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Other Features By Steve Milton:
The Death of Clubland?
Trousers, Caps and Trance Anthems - It's Dave Pearce!
Boom Box, Bulldog Breaks and V1 - It's Time to Reload with DJ-X(lab4)
Clubbers Guide to Photography: Part Two
Clubbers Guide to Photography: Part One
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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Comments:
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From: Stakker on 26th Oct 2011 18:47.06
Good luck guys!
From: bear grrrr on 27th Oct 2011 09:32.48
Good feature. Gutted I cant make the last one but so enjoyed the penultimate one. Happy 10th birthday and thanks for so many great memories.
From: Slink. on 27th Oct 2011 12:05.16
Excellent piece for a quality night. Can't stress enough how many top nights and good fun me & the Mrs have had at Zoo. Looking forward to one last time at the Final Zoo.
From: Craig Luck on 28th Oct 2011 13:19.55
Many great memories over such random nights through the years. A great party every time and a sure fire top night. Will be sadly missed. Good work for keeping the standard high for a decade.
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