Anonymous club nights: a new trend?

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    Sat, Feb 24, 2007, 04:10
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  • Offenbach club Robert Johnson has decided to fight against DJ hype by refusing to publish lineups. “The club and its guests are the stars.�
  • Anonymous club nights: a new trend? image
  • Offenbach club Robert Johnson fights against DJ hype by refusing to publish lineups. “The club and its guests are the stars,” says their website. “There were times when people simply went to clubs. For the music, the atmosphere and beautiful people you could meet there. That was in about 1927,” the club explains. “These days with everything available at the press of a button, the hype is killing name DJ nights, putting all kinds of expectations and dogmas on the essence of a good club night: dancing and intimacy.” Instead of publishing lineups, to give punters a taste of what to music to expect each evening, the club has decided to now just stream anonymous sets from their website. Big DJs such as Villalobos, Richie Hawtin and Tiefschwarz regularly spin at the venue. But the club has another reason for the decision: space. “In 2006, the Robert Johnson was overwhelmed with visitors on certain nights,” the venue explains. “It was tough dealing with the disappointed faces of those who were refused entry due to lack of space.” If you’re thinking of paying them a visit, RA has browsed through the player and can confirm that someone will be spinning some, er, Villalobo-esque minimal tech-house on March 10th. Though maybe not Villalobos. If you’re after more Smagghe-like dark electro pop, best to go on March 16th. Smagghe might even be there. Has a new trend in clubbing been born? Robert Johnson, run by DJ Ata from the Playhouse stable, is located just outside of Frankfurt.
RA