Swagger's return to The Hub (April Article)

I suppose you just know you’ve got something truly special on your hands when an hour after its return is put into the public domain, it becomes the talk of the town. Yes, last night saw the return of Wakefield’s undisputed king of club nights. I am of course talking about Swagger.

Their second birthday coincided with a special return to the brand’s original venue, Hub. After branching out on a few occasions to Leeds, and most recently their trip to Wakefield’s Black Flag Warehouse, the long-awaited re-opening of Hub just meant there was an added dimension to the build-up.

You see, Hub and its premier brand have most certainly had their critics in the past. The connotations brought from its music policy draw frowns from the most ardent of house music fans, but the numbers simply don't lie. Cynicism comes as a bi-product of success, and its fans in the city will tell you that in its prime, Hub was a phenomenon; particularly so when Swagger brought their dedicated army of ardent followers and descended on Hub’s small dimensions.

So what of the new, re-branded club? Walking down those stairs certainly brought back memories of all those great nights out it gave its customers in its prime. Now known as The Hub, every single aspect of it is better than before. They’ve updated everything from the soundsystem to minor details such as the new décor throughout the club. Little details they may well be, but the little things add up and the improvement is clear. The elevated DJ box in the back room is also a great addition.

Every person who’s witnessed the incredible rise of Swagger will have their own stand-out memories. The booking of Julie McKnight was a tough one to beat though, and her live performance of the hair-raising Finally was just one of those moments that’ll stay with everyone who witnessed it forever.

The venture to Black Flag was indeed a success. Numbers speak volumes but the venue’s size and arena-like set-up meant it lacked The Hub’s key trait: intimacy.

I’m glad to report that this feeling’s back, and although it’s not unfair to say that Swagger can fill far bigger venues than The Hub, the two just go hand in hand. You almost get the sense that in ten years those who were at the Swagger nights at The Hub will reminisce fondly about these occasions. The questionable air conditioning, the classics in the bar, and the iconic moments in the back room will all be remembered when we’re watching our kids getting ready to go out. This is surely testament to Swagger’s huge success that it’s got this aura surrounding it every time it’s on. I think everyone’s well aware that the brand’s now achieved a lot in its two years and could easily become a monthly, even weekly event and still fill clubs, but its current set-up is perfect as the pre-night hype that surrounds it is quite surreal. It truly becomes the talk of the town.

2012 Nissan GT-R

Nissan’s a marque that’s been on quite a roll in the past few years. They’ve been resurgent since the revised 350Z came onto the scene, scaring BMW Z4 owners with its sonorous 313bhp V6 in 2006. Since then we’ve seen the absurdly capable, supercar-slaying GT-R, the new 370Z, the hugely popular Qashqai and a whole host of eco-friendly cars such as the innovative (if a little overpriced) Leaf.

Although the indomitable GT-R has been around for a few years now, in 2012 specification the car has had its 3.8-litre, twin-turbocharged V6 massaged to give 542bhp; up 12bhp on last year’s model. The slight increase in power comes courtesy of a revised intake system and new valves, which promise to sharpen throttle response and be harder-charging past 5000rpm. It’s also good for 199mph.

Its gearbox has been honed further as well, so the already fast-acting paddle-shift changes are even quicker than before. Along with other changes to its set-up including revised dampers and stiffer springs, it’s fair to say it’s had a thorough going over. Annual revisions to models are usually insignificant, but the 2012 GT-R has been typically engineered to within an inch of its life to build upon its already formidable reputation.

It truly is a fascinating machine on every level. It's a technological wonder that's loaded with computing wizardry, and it's also monumentally fast in a way that it has no right to be. Sure, you’d expect it to be fast with 542bhp of twin-turbo grunt, but this car weighs a massive 1740kgs, so its 0-60mph claim of 2.8 seconds is quite hard to get your head around. It's that correlation between the power and weight that simply doesn't add up. The GT-R has no right to be as accelerative as it is; really there’s only the Bugatti Veyron that can match its brutal acceleration figures to 100mph. With launch control engaged there’s no fuss, just supreme tractability and this is its party piece as it's flawless off the line. For the record, 0-100mph takes just 7.1 seconds…

However, for all of its undoubted pace, it does lack in certain departments. There is an edge to the big GT-R’s look that gives it a menacing stance, but it can’t hope to compete with any flamboyant Italian offerings. You get the sense that the GT-R has been designed by an engineer, not a designer. From behind, it has the obligatory Skyline quad rear-light style that we’ve seen on the iconic R32, R33, and the R34. From the side, its coupe-style roof gives cohesion to the shape, and from the front it's a mean looking thing with chiselled bonnet vents to cool its large-capacity V6.

Inside, again it’s a disappointment. The Recaro seats are supportive and are its only saving grace, as the design’s generally cluttered and busy, with a plethora of buttons that access the car’s performance graphs, g-meters, pressure gauges and lap timers. Its driving position is undeniably good however.

Settle into the comfy bucket seat, put your right foot on the brake, press the small but vibrant red starter button on the transmission tunnel and the V6 clears its throat with a dry rasp that, strangely, sounds very like that of a Porsche flat-six. It’s got that same gruff, nasally tone emanating from it.

In manual mode, all that's required is a gentle pull on the right F1-style paddle behind the steering wheel, lift off the brake, and with a bit throttle you're away. It really is as easy as that. Contrary to what people may think, these new-generation, supremely useable supercars are just so easy to get in and drive.

It doesn’t take long to tap into the GT-R’s magic. Second gear acceleration is phenomenal; there’s no other word for it. From 30 to 70mph there's not much that could cope with its devastating turn of pace. The torque is the other notable part of the GT-R experience; it is spread out between 3200-5800rpm so there's always pulling power available wherever you are in its rev-range, and the pick-up is as brutally urgent as you'd expect. With the power band as wide as it is, turbo lag simply isn’t an issue unless you’re at really low revs. Its character is spookily familiar to a naturally aspirated engine as although there is that inevitable twin-turbo kick in its delivery, it revs to over 7000rpm as well and so the power continues.

Combined with the accurate and communicative steering, this agility helps to make the car feel lighter and smaller than you know it is. The GT-R manages to feel sharper and lighter than ever when you show it corners, and you'd swear that it was 300kgs lighter than it actually is. Turn-in is beautifully direct, its traction is spectacular and the security of its four-wheel-drive means there’s an invisible safety net. Pair of all this with the GT-R’s absurd levels of grip and you’re left with something that alters any pre-conceived perceptions of the term 'fast'.

The car’s launch control is something that just baffles your mind as well. Put your left foot on its brake, have a glance at the read out on its centre console which tells you if you’re applying 100% pressure on its pedal, bury your right foot into the carpet, and then it holds at 4000rpm awaiting your next move. Lift your left foot off its brake and what comes next is something extraordinary as the car’s technological genius just grips and goes. All that’s left to do is hold on for dear life as the G-forces build and shove you back violently into the Recaro seat. It’ll execute flawless sub three second sprints to 60mph all day long.

So then, it's got all bases covered. It's perfectly capable at dealing with the mundane stuff, and utterly brilliant when you're in the mood to get to know the car’s abilities. It somehow manages to lose a few-hundred kilos on the move and turns into a manic, brute of a machine at anything above 4000rpm. If out-and-out performance is your thing, for £75,000 the 2012 GT-R is simply unbeatable. Sure, its cabin lacks in quality when compared to its German rivals, but all of that’s forgotten when you feel the GT-R’s unrelenting surge of power. Most importantly, it just immediately feels special, and that’s surely what this car’s all about.

Nissan Juke-R

What happens when you cross a supercar-slaying, performance icon of its generation, with a popular family SUV? Although they might at first appear to be a ludicrous pairing, using elements from both has created something extraordinary.

Complete with its 480bhp GT-R sourced 3.8 twin-turbocharged V6, it’s quite hard to get your head around at first. The Juke is an odd-looking thing in its tamest of guises, but when it’s dressed in sinister matte black, sat on those familiar 20-inch GT-R alloy wheels and with a whole host of aero enhancements, there’s no denying it’s taken on some of the GT-R’s menacing styling cues and it's worked well.

Open the back doors and you’re not greeted by the usual rear seats. Your eyes meet a full competition-spec roll cage, and there are five-point harnesses for the front OMP bucket seats. It’s a bizarre thing to behold.

Getting into the driving position is quite an arduous task in itself. Once you’ve negotiated your legs over the roll cage bar, you’re immediately clasped in by the seat. It’s certainly a snug fit, but once you’re harnessed in and anticipation levels are at an all-time high, you brace yourself for what’s to come.

As with the GT-R, it’s easy to move off the line as it shares the same semi-auto gearbox. It’ll shuffle along through its speeds with consummate ease. It’s a strange thing as your eyes recognise the familiar Juke interior cues but then they catch things such as the GT-R rev counter, the speedo, and the GT-R–style G-meter screen which tells you everything you could ever need to know about how the car's behaving.

So what does a 480bhp Nissan Juke feel like on full power? It’s absolutely bonkers. Stamp on the throttle and as with its bigger brother, there’s instant traction and instantaneous momentum generated by that fantastic engine. It’s not quite as fast as the GT-R, but there are many similar characteristics in the two cars.

First up, the brutality in the way they pile on speed is evident. Zero to 60mph takes just 3.7 seconds in the Juke-R, so it’s supercar fast. Then, because the two share the same four-wheel-drive set-up, that invincible point-to-point pace is there as well. It’s also got that same feel to its responses when you’re pushing its limits as it manages to feel hugely lighter than it actually is. At 1806kg, it’s a heavy car, but you’d swear the car’s a few-hundred kilos lighter once it’s on the move. The noise is louder in the Juke-R, as inside it’s much more pseudo-racer than the GT-R is. Although there are no race-spec materials to the touch, its hip-hugging seat and harness immediately gives the driver a completely different mind-set, as opposed to the relative luxury you're used to in the GT-R.

The rear’s much more playful in the Juke-R, too. It’ll understeer at first, and then oversteer if you’re overly ambitious with the throttle. It’s not the confidence-killing type of inconsistency though, as it’s very easy to judge on the limit and the four-wheel-drive offers its driver a huge margin for error.

As Nissan only commissioned two of these incredible cars to be made, I’m honoured to have been given the opportunity to drive the Juke-R. Its engineers, RML, ought to be extremely proud of what they’ve achieved with their interpretation of the humble Juke. It shares many similarities with the sensational GT-R, but also manages to have a unique character of its own. The Juke-R truly is a revolutionary and hugely memorable creation, and although it was never destined to make it into full production, the Juke crossover is clearly a capable basis for handling a sportier set-up.

Wakefield's Monday Night Scene Has Got Its Swagger Back (January Article)

Wakefield’s Monday night scene had become stale and generic. Traditionally it’s its student night, so whilst it was generally busy, its venues for house music were pretty much non-existent, barring the resurgence of Passion Bar playing the now familiar and infectious Wakefield soundtrack of jackin’ house with pumping, dirty bass drops. Its biggest venue, Havana, has enjoyed the limelight and seen consistent numbers pouring through its doors. However, although it does give the club credibility, all of that’s taken back when you go through the doors into the main room and hear the awful chart-based pop music they’re playing.

Swagger came onto the Monday night scene and immediately saw success, with huge crowds drawing to the city especially for this event. It was the event that single-handedly spearheaded the revitalisation of Wakefield’s dwindling nightlife, and spawned a new generation of house-only clubs for the city; most notably Sub Zero and Rocco. Taking full advantage of Facebook to promote their revolutionary night, Danny Jones and Benji Kershaw rode the wave of success as crowds flocked to Swagger’s original venue, Hub.

If you’re not familiar with Hub, you could easily miss it as it passes under most people’s radar. It’s located down a side street off Wakefield’s main strip, and because it’s underground, it doesn’t stand out. Inside, it’s a small and intimate setting; low ceilings, two small rooms, and only two bar areas.

What it loses in size it sure as hell makes up for with atmosphere. Atmosphere is what Havana on a Monday is severely lacking, and to me it’s the most important ingredient in a club’s feel, so to be in Hub while Swagger was on was a great thing to witness. The brand brought Hub much deserved recognition, and the two just went hand-in-hand together and fitted like a glove.

In its first room the familiar classics from 1995-2000 played by Jonny ‘Bee’ Brown and Danny Bond gave Swagger a touch of class. It was Hub’s back room which saw those memorable, stand-out moments though with the likes of Julie McKnight belting out the anthemic ‘Finally’ over the extraordinary beats of EDX’s mix of Dubfire’s ‘Roadkill’ track. It really was one of those hair-raising moments; each and every one of the people crammed into that small place singing along, word for word. The room shook Hub’s foundations to the core, and although the infamous air conditioning of that room was dubious, it just added to Swagger’s appeal as everyone just put up with it and got on with having a great time. Every venue has its quirks, and without question the sauna-like temperature of Hub is its.

Time and time again the club and club night linked up several times a year, and never failed to pull in the crowds. Although Swagger’s got its doubters, even its most fervent critic cannot deny its impact of the city when it’s on - it becomes the talk of Wakefield. I recommend it because it’s a transparent club night so you know what you’re getting; great music, people who are like-minded and who are simply there to have a good time. Yes, vests and typical drop-crotch jeans are aplenty, but at least they’re best equipped to cope with the soaring temperatures inside…

Although it’s branched out onto the Leeds circuit too, Monday the 19^th of December saw Swagger leave its spiritual home of Hub and move to Wakefield’s biggest venue, Black Flag Warehouse, for a pre-Christmas special. You sort of get the sense that the popularity of the event sadly outgrew Hub’s small proportions, so seeing it at another Wakefield venue was strange but good; strange because Hub and the early Swagger days were a match made in heaven, but good because the bigger space afforded by Black Flag meant that more people could witness the night and maybe, just maybe, the airy warehouse would be a little less humid than Hub’s back room.

What did I think? Well, the big venue was still crammed full of people, so any doubters who questioned whether Swagger could fill a large venue dissipated straight away. You just knew it was going to be a success; the layout was arena-like, so DJs were elevated above the crowd in front of you. It did lack Hub’s key trait of intimacy because of this, but you’ve got to remember that this phenomenon of a night has grown and grown into Wakefield’s undisputed king, so something had to change.

So here’s to Swagger, the sole night that kick started and breathed new life into Wakefield’s ailing Monday night scene. It’s got its critics, but that’s a sign of success as people become envious of people’s good fortune. You can never really predict the future due to the fickle nature of club nights, but there’s one thing that is for sure: Swagger will continue to be a huge success.

For more information: http://www.facebook.com/groups/483407540713/

THR Leeds

The extraordinary rise of The House Rooms in the heart of Leeds was built single-handedly by one house music obsessed businessman. In October 2002, Steve Carter purchased a dilapidated city centre building, and set about creating the space into a unique, high-end club that would be the number one destination for any discerning clubber.

Self-made Steve built his wealth on the property ladder, re-developing the skyline of Leeds city centre and riding the rise of property values. Make no mistake, he’s a major player in how you see the city today, and if the Bentley he’s driving and gold Rolex on his wrist is anything to go by, he’s been a huge success.

Its LS1 address gave the perfect location on which to attract the hordes of clubbers that transcend on the city centre on every single weekend of the year. Fast forward nine months to June 2003 and the club opened its doors for the very first time. Specialising in out-and-out house music, the clientele proved very much to be a knowledgeable crowd, keen on rekindling the golden era of the genre.

Where new club nights were springing up and growing, and in many cases ceasing every bit as quick as their initial growth, Steve’s project was consistently drawing in capacity crowds. The uniqueness of the space was a huge draw; the name’s derived from the genre of music of course, but the building’s many large rooms were its USP. After the first refurbishment, the two floors had three rooms on each level, all capable of holding 100 people in each, equating to a capacity of around 600 people.

Keeping the golden era of house alive was a single-handed feat. Other clubs were drawn to the newly-rising electro sub-genre and so forgot about the period from the mid-nineties which saw the likes of Pete Tong, Danny Rampling, Paul ‘Trouble’ Anderson, and many more house DJs bringing the US-derived scene to the UK.

When the electro revolution started, old-fashioned Steve Carter was having none of it. ‘I actually attended many new nights at clubs around the Yorkshire area, just to see what was happening music wise and see if it’d be worth bringing the sound into my club. I wasn’t impressed with it. I cut my clubbing teeth on brands such as Back to Basics, Hard Times, and at The Hacienda – iconic nights such as those. I think there’s snobbery to quality, true house music in a way and after witnessing the electro rise I didn’t think it had a patch on a good house track from say the Masters at Work. I think that’s why we had success back then; people of a certain age just didn’t get the way the scene was turning, and so we tapped into that knowledgeable crowd and attracted big house DJs.’

And attract big names it did. Frankie Knuckles, Roger Sanchez, Junior Vasquez… These are just a few of the international heavyweights that The House Rooms attracted. Drawn to this old-school ethos, Danny Rampling championed Steve’s mentality towards the scene and it brought yet more big names to the decks. CJ Mackintosh, Tuff Jam, and Terry Farley were mainstays in the early days of THR.

In 2006, the biggest changes to the décor and overall design came to fruition. A £1m re-development commenced, and saw a more open-plan club take shape. Quality was high on the agenda, and state-of-the-art equipment was installed. It was a new era for THR, and Steve welcomed newer club nights through his strict doors.

‘In the early days, I was very keen to preserve the venue as a house-only club. The scene changes yearly though, so specialised nights were incorporated. Classic house was still the main aspect, but that was moved to centre stage on a Saturday night so it was still at the epicentre of the experience. The other nights we’re open were given a tailor-made feel, and that saw trance, electro, jackin’, and all sorts of new sub-genres of house enter the club. Regrettable? I’m not so sure. For sure it was more lucrative financially, but I can’t help but feel that some of the club’s original values were lost in the transition.’

Another dramatic change was made in 2009, when the open-to-everyone aspect was ditched and THR turned into a members-only venue. The main reasons were down to trouble-makers out to ruin the nights of others. ‘I’d grown sick of the amounts of kids breaching security with their fake IDs and attitudes to the place I’d built. It’s hard to explain, but nobody wants to have their night wrecked by some young teenager that can’t handle their drink. Seeing the likes of CJ Mackintosh DJ here a few years ago and watching the youths destroy the club’s reputation was hard to take. Changes had to be made, so it’s now members and invite only. Profits are up, trouble’s virtually non-existent, and so the risky policy change has been great.’

The clientele’s changed, as one would expect. Gone are the days of fake IDs and drop-crotch jeans, and in its replacement are nice watches and immaculately dressed city high-flyers. It’s a favourite haunt for footballers and soapstars too, and because of the protected-feel of the place, it’s free from prying eyes and so there’s an air of coolness to it. People are relaxed, happy to soak up the house beats and revel in the opulence of the décor.

Inside, it’s very different to how it used to be. The three rooms per floor have been knocked through; there’s a vast room on the first floor, and a carbon-copy on the second. There are VIP rooms, but the feel is of a high-end, but quite normal club. People pay £1000 per annum to reside here, and they’re there to get full use of their money. Picture-perfect models, blinged-up footballers, millionaire businessmen. It’s where the rich and famous come to let their hair down, away from the paparazzi.

One thing’s still here though, and that’s the ever-present house music. Tonight’s a Friday so there’s a more club-orientated soundtrack coming from upstairs. In the main room here though, the DJ’s playing the likes of Soul Clap, Julio Bashmore, Jamie Jones, and Groove Armada – really sophisticated tracks that are unique to the place. There’s still nothing quite like it in Leeds.

Asked on his thoughts of his club in 2011, Steve Carter still loves the place just as much as when he first renovated it in late 2002. ‘It’s gone through loads of changes, but it’s still here continuing its success. As long as the music continues to play, people will renew and keep flooding through those doors. If anything, I love it just as much now as I did when the premier American DJs played here. The only thing that’s changed is we’ve swapped blue WKDs and Budweiser for bottles of Grey Goose and champagne. Pretentious? Snooty? Maybe so. Other clubs chase the student money by flogging cheap alcopops and play out tunes you hear day in day out on the radio; that scene’s just not for me. Many people still don’t know about us, which many would see as a bad thing. I on the other hand think it’s great; we’ve gone on for so long being a niche establishment, and that’s exactly what classic house was and is – niche.’

And so much cooler for it.