Party people
“We’re creating spaces with no conditions”
For the NIMBYs of the nation, the night out is dismissed as an essentially fleeting experience, of little moral value and already forgotten once the keys are taken out of the nose and into the door. Yet nightlife is a socially influential force, impacting architecture, our experience of community and how we relate to the city. The bland, eight-pound-a-pint consumerist-hedonist paradigm that increasingly infects nightlife is being fought against by those who recognise the party as a space of cultural power and political action. Though a night out might be a time-limited experience, for those who organise the occasion, creating joy is a full-time proposition. TANK spoke to three community building collectives, dressed here by Khrisjoy, who are creating new methodologies for nightlife organising.
Pxssy Palace
A tiered ticketing system with free entry for those on low income; security with specialist safeguarding training; a community-funded taxi rank to ensure ravers get home safely; these are only a few of the measures Pxssy Palace, a club night established for black, brown, queer and trans people, have incorporated to support their ravers.
The trailblazing collective, emphasising “equity over equality”, have made essential contributions to conversations around racial parity in nightlife. Their interventions are now being incorporated by raves across the nation.
Nadine Noor, founder and musician
Over the past 10 years, Pxssy Palace has been about trying to emulate the feeling of safety and control that we felt at our house parties, in a club setting.
Ryan Lovell, musician and DJ
We can see our impact in how we’ve influenced security and welfare. That came off the back of us disrupting spaces and going, okay, if we’re going to be here, these are the things that will make us and our audience feel comfortable.
Mya Mehmi, musician and DJ
My relationship with physical space has always been quite triggering. I’m allowed in spaces, but only under conditions where I have to dress and act a certain way. We’re creating spaces with no conditions in how people can express themselves.
life is beautiful records
The musicians, artists and dancers that make up life is beautiful records have been hosting some of the most transformative, mind-expanding nights London has to offer. Beginning life as a radio show hosted by head honcho aloisius, the group has expanded into an eight-strong collective operating predominantly out of Bermondsey venue Ormside Projects. In the hangover of a particularly macho, swaggering post-punk boom, the gesamtkunstwerk-style ambition and collectivist philosophy of the group comes as a necessary corrective.
Abi Asisa, musician There’s so much value growing in and with a space. At Ormisde, the space facilitates us to do the best job we can. The crowd associated with the space grows with us and allows us all to progress forward.
THE NARRATOR, musician At one of our events, you can just come with your day, come with your night, come with who you are, and just experience. I’ve never been very good in group settings, but there’s so much belief between us all that makes me feel so comfortable to be on that stage together, creating music, eating dinner, rolling around in the field. It’s given me a firm, unwavering belief in my own practice. It’s a choir, it’s a chamber, a chorus: why would you want to be up there doing a solo?
Boudica
When lockdown prevented Samantha Togni from hosting Boudica, her fledgling club night at Oval venue the Factory, she launched a conference aimed at empowering FLINTA* and LGBTQ+ individuals within electronic music. Since then, the organisation has blossomed into a multi-hyphenate enterprise, with radio shows, podcasts, a residency at FOLD, and more recently, a record label.
Samantha Togni, founder and DJ Engagement with our community is crucial. We reach out to our community to ask for their input on what they would like to see at our events, including which DJs they are currently excited about. We would not bring Boudica to a venue just for the sake of throwing a party; the venue must support our goals of inclusivity, education, and community-building. Young female, trans and non-binary individuals, particularly those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, are often made to feel undervalued by a society that constantly tells them they are not good enough or that there is no space for them at the table. We were inspired to create a space where these individuals could explore electronic music, feel comfortable, and evolve into the headliners and role models of tomorrow, surrounded by others with similar experiences. .