Ok, wrote this a while ago but haven't got round to posting it here until now. Enjoy.
Shoplifters Clubnight Review
Upon first glimpses, Shoplifters at Odder Bar could be mistaken for just another so called ‘cool’ club night. All the hallmarks are there; the cliques of vintage clad girls wherever you look, the mood lighting, the oversized couches and the funky house remixes of popular songs. Don’t be fooled though, as Shoplifters effortlessly does away with clichéd pretentiousness to deliver a superb night out.
The Shoplifters team comprises of three Manchester based DJ’s; Jon Claude, Grammar and the femme fatale of the group – Sapnarella. All of whom have a taste for the eclectic and the electric, a taste which they have toured around the UK since the Spring of last year. After finally settling on Oxford Road’s Odder Bar, the trio have carved out what, on the basis of tonight, seems like a thriving cult following.
Upstairs in Odder Bar, where the night takes place every Saturday, isn’t a venue you’d usually associate with a night such as Shoplifters. It’s not a sprawling superclub like a Tiger Tiger or a Pure, nor is it even that big a bar, especially when compared with the likes of Font, also on Oxford Road. However, it is this intimacy that lends itself perfectly to the night as an experience. It’s cosy enough for a couple of pints whilst you bop away to some Daft Punk, whilst at the same time, it’s just the right amount of club to allow for a group rave to LL Cool J’s ‘I’m Gonna Knock You Out’.
The most striking thing about Shoplifters isn’t the music or the intimacy though. It’s the camaraderie. Not just camaraderie between set groups of friends either, but between everyone. An accidental shoulder bump would likely earn you an arm around the shoulder and a free drink rather than an angry scowl. The dancefloor dwellers mesh together, whilst strangers collapse into each others arms on the various seatee’s dotted around the room.
The bar is another area of deception. It looks to be six people deep at all times, but in truth, requires at most, a five minute wait before you’re served. There’s no jostling for position or uncomfortable squeezes either, just a bunch of contented souls looking forward to another drink to make the next song even better. The prices may not be cheap, but they’re certainly better than what you’d find at similar bars elsewhere in Manchester.
So whilst the Shoplifters motto is to beg, borrow, steal and remix everything in site, with, in their own words ‘not a shred of original material’, they’ve actually put together one of Manchester’s more refreshing club nights.
By Joe Baiamonte
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