In less than a month’s time, we will be saying goodbye to 2017. Whether it has been a year to remember or one to forget, there are better things to do than spending New Year’s Eve at home, anchored to the sofa watching repeats of Home Alone, When Harry Met Sally or Boogie Nights.
To get you into the mood to party, we have put together a mini guide to this year’s best New Year’s Eve parties happening in London to tempt you out to drink to old and new friends and dance away the first night and possibly morning of 2018.
Our list hits the road in South West London, to be more precise in Battersea and its Magic Garden, which will be transformed into Wonka’s Chocolate Factory especially for the occasion. From 6PM until 4AM, it will be all about Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Magic Garden’s bar will treat you with ‘fizzy uplifting drinks’, while its stage will host upbeat Ska, reggae and calypso bands like Chainska Brassika and Pangaea Steelband, as well as funky DJs Jake Pike and DJ Shed Dweller. Wonka-inspired costumes are very much encouraged.
Chainska Brassika will be the protagonists of another NYE party just a few miles away. In fact, the London-based band will also perform at Fox & Firkin’s Reggae Roast NYE Bonanza. The Lewisham venue will dedicate its last event of 2017 to reggae in all its forms. Reggae Roast will be the party starters, gathering the full crew of Adam Prescott, Vibration Lab, Interrupt, Clifford Junior & Leo Samson. They have also invited a bunch of remarkable friends like General Levy, Mad Professor, Joe Ariwa, Kenny Ken and Natty Campbell. Reggae, dub, dancehall, Ska, roots and jungle will all be part of the bill.
Moving back to Brixton, one of its most renowned venues, Hootananny, will enter 2018 with a grand fanfare. Not only because it will celebrate its 10th anniversary year, but the final remnants of 2017 will also be blown away by the mighty lung power of Dat Brass, The Correspondents, and the incendiary electro-swing and vintage selections of DJ Fizzy Gillespie.
As you might already know, Peckham has recently welcomed the opening of a new venue: Ghost Notes. They will not miss the NYE occasion to introduce you to their refined music tastes. On the 31st of December, behind their venue’s decks, you will find some great names of the most soulful electronica and global beats scenes, like Quantic and legendary Eglo Records founder Alexander Nut.
To keep up with the Peckham vibe, we move to the CLF Bussey Building. There you will have 4 floors, 5 rooms and 9 hours of quality music to wish in a ‘happy new year’ with your friends. The Soul Train crew loves to go big and they will be taking over the Peckham High Street building for a 9PM to 6AM dance shift. Soul, groove and jazz – with Jazzheadchronic, Dom Servini and AJ Kwame – will monopolise the first floor with funk, while next-door will be welcoming Snowboy, DJ Perry Louis and Dean Rudland. The second floor will be all about vintage rock and roll, R&B, and Motown classics thanks to Richio Suzuki & Oscar Romp, while Northern Soul Beats will take over the third floor with Rob Messe & Danny Peach. Finally, the fourth floor will go all disco with Disco Freaks, as well as hip-hop, garage and drum & bass rhythms from DJ BobaFatt.
From the South London smooth vibes, we move further up north. In Camden, for their New Year’s Eve event, The Jazz Café will take the music time machine straight back to the 1980s with Greg Wilson. The legendary DJ and his dance instinct will not be the only ones to fire up the venue’s dance floor. Brighton-based jazz & nu-soul quartet Yakul, London rapper Barney Artist, and groovy Afrobeat and afro-funk trio Lady Yaaba Future Funk (part of Yaaba Funk) will also give you enough reasons to move your feet and welcome in the New Year in good spirits.
We chose not to overdo things, giving you just seven choices for your NYE, so before wishing you a Happy New Year, we have one last (but not least) suggestion…
When it comes to London’s venues, Rich Mix is constantly one of our first choices, and it could not be otherwise, considering that they also host some of our most beloved promoters. After the success of 2016, Movimientos, Lizard Stage, and Arriba La Cumbia will join forces once again to offer you the perfect New Year’s Eve party. They will do it over two floors and three rooms, playing Latin, African, Gypsy & Balkan sounds from 9PM to 4AM. Their NYE: Love Revolution party will bring on stage a festival-like line-up including live acts Conjunto Sabroso, Honeyfeet, and The Odd Beats, as well as a troupe of DJs with all-embracing tastes: Cal Jader, Russ Jones, Carlitos Niño, Danger, Spamalot, Jamie Renton, CousCous & The Man from Timbuktu.
We hope you are spoilt for choice about where to spend your NYE. Whatever you choose to attend, we are sure that your 2018 will start on a good note and a positive dancing step.
Back in October, Manchester-based band Honeyfeet, fronted by Ríoghnach Connolly, published their third album titled It’s Been A While, Buddy, featuring a fusion of musical genres fully representing the sound of the band, from protest songs to jazz, funk to psychedelic folk and pop to African rhythms. “Work It” is…
Artists: Honeyfeet , Ríoghnach Connolly
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Preview of the album: This Album is no longer available however if you want to receive exclusive access to a free album like this each month just sign up to our monthly newsletter by filling in the form below: Track List: 1. Cimafunk – Caramelo [from El Alimiento; Terapia Productions] 00:00…
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Artists: Alice Russell , Hot 8 Brass Band , Quantic , Rodney P![Album Review: Quantic & Nidia Góngora – Curao [Tru–Thoughts Records, 12th May 2017]](https://www.rhythmpassport.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/a1363138718_10-620x620.jpg)
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Artists: Nidia Gongora , Quantic
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Artists: Channel One Soundsystem , Mad Professor
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