New New York Techno Club Tries to Retake Manhattan
Tiga. Jamie Jones and DJ Qu have been announced as the first headliners for Flash Factory, a new large underground club in New York City, which is aiming to succeed by programming underground house and techno instead of the EDM that’s dominated the City’s main clubs in recent years.
The West Side Chelsea Club (on W28th St), which had planned to open last weekend with the Martinez Brothers before being shuttered by the blizzard, has abandoned banker friendly bottle service and LED panels and screens, in favour of ‘organic architectural elements’ including tents and a DJ booth constructed from an altar appropriated from a Bronx church.
“Standing in stark contrast to the electronic functionality of modern day joints, Flash Factory is an homage to an era of vaudevillian eccentricity and Victorian decadence,” the club announced in a press release this week detailing Tiga’s opening night set.
“Whether you love punk, techno, or rock, Flash Factory provides a proper venue for fans to connect with artists and their music, creating a communal experience and a sanctuary for those lost in rhythm,” they promised.
Rival underground house promoters in New York’s current epicentre of credible clubbing Brooklyn welcomed the Manhattan club cautiously in a lengthy feature in the Guardian with Cielo resident and New York nightlife legend François K summing up its potential succinctly.
“It’s very hard for clubs in Manhattan that are trying to stay in the underground ethos.
It’s OK for bottle service, because they generate much higher revenue, selling $600 bottles of vodka to people for the privilege of sitting down on a special couch,” he pointed out.
“But it’s not impossible,” he suggested. (Guardian)