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Brixton gets a taste of Hoxton
By Rahul Verma, London Lite 06.11.09
A-class fun at Plan B: clubbers cut loose on the packed Brixton dance floor
Brixton's Plan B epitomised the late-Nineties/early-Noughties DJ bar phenomenon.
It was neither club nor bar, but a bit of both with a touch of bling — offering enjoyable drinking and great dancing.
For years, it was enormously successful — a real south London destination club, but then the prevailing clubbing wind changed.
Glitz and grandiose has given way to intimate, no-frills dance spaces — and clubs need to evolve with the mood.
Fortunately, the revamped Plan B has done just that, reopening at the end of last month with a new, pared-down look, a 24-hour licence and a highly impressive line-up of nights. So we headed down on opening weekend to check it out.
My posse of excited Brixtonians, sceptical south Londoners and adventurous east Londoners arrived at 10.30pm and made a beeline for the bar, ordering beers (£3.60), rum and Cokes (£3.80), white wine (£4.20) and a Moscow mule cocktail (£6.80).
Joe Hot Chip's cheeky set (including Beyoncé's Single Ladies, General Levy's Incredible, and Mariah Carey's Heartbreaker) suited the raucous Friday night launch-party atmosphere perfectly.
By 11.30pm the dance floor — a sea of bobbing quiffs and checked shirts — was heaving and showed no sign of slowing when we left three hours later.
Despite standing next to a Funktion One speaker, holding a conversation proved easy and the lights added colourful flourishes to the muted décor (think Daft Punk-style rows of flashing dots).
On nights with tougher music they're toned down to create that all important dark, heads-down mood. Both Plan B virgins and veterans were impressed.
“It's good but weird because this isn't a usual Brixton crowd, it's like Shoreditch has come to Brixton — all the cool kids have come out. It's a great space and I love Hot Chip,” exclaimed Leila, 24, from Tooting.
Oyin, 26, from Dagenham, was impressed by the new layout: “I really like what they've done when you come in — it looks more open, the seating area is different, it's a fun environment and people are having a laugh.”
The removal of pillars gives the dance floor an airy warehouse vibe, it's less cluttered and the DJ booth now occupies one of the two long walls, while a tiered dancing stage — evoking the popular Rizla Arena found at festivals — sits opposite.
Crucially DJs are no longer elevated and distant but on the same level as the dance floor and within easy reach for the high fives and bumping fists of their appreciative audience.
“After a fire wiped out the main room back in the spring it was a chance to improve on things — we thought, what makes a good night?” explains manager Ben Kreeger.
“Fundamentally it's about good sound and flashing lights in a no-nonsense space. So we stripped the main room right back, which makes it feel bigger. It's a more flexible space capable of hosting clubs and gigs.”
As the opening weekend with Hot Chip (Fri), Goldie (Sat) and Skream and Benga (Sun) demonstrates, Plan B's programming champions cool, cutting-edge club music.
“We had got a bit stale, but we won't be hosting the old names any more. Instead we're working with some very interesting promoters, like Snap Crackle & Pop and Deadly Rhythm,” said Kreeger.
Forthcoming line-ups bear this out: tomorrow night Plan B hosts the after-party (one for the hardcore among you, from 4am-10am) for Swedish House Mafia's Brixton Academy gig with Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso headlining House Rules, and Sunday weekly B:low is south London's answer to Fabric's Wet Yourself with minimal electro and house until 6am (15 Nov).
Other highlights this month include Tilt with Justin Robertson and the Filthy Dukes (21 Nov), Deadly Rhythm featuring bass auteur Kode9 and maverick Zomby (27 Nov), and Lesson1 starring DJ Yoda and Yoyo's Seb Chew (28 Nov).
Bugz In The Attic do a full live show (14 Nov), and gigs will become a major element of Plan B's repertoire on Wednesdays and Thursdays next year — Lee Scratch Perry and The Herbaliser's shows are already linked in the diary.
It will surely only be a matter of time before word spreads beyond south London and the capital's clubbers realise that Plan B's on-point programming, top-notch sound, dazzling lighting and a 24-hour licence means it's actually a “Plan A” electronic music destination.
