CityLife

Venus ups the ante - again

Venus

One of the laws of the universe is that there is an inverse relationship between the amount of praise given to people and the level of effort they put in to actually being good.

Think about it: how many times have you had a good appraisal at work and then taken your foot off the gas for the rest of the month (or year)?

It’s not just us normal folk who are guilty, though. Bands who meet overwhelming critical acclaim in their early years often stop bothering after a while (Oasis) and the same career trajectory is commonplace among a certain breed of comedian (Peter Kay).

So you’d expect a club which found itself dubbed the best in Manchester by these very hallowed pages, not to mention tipped as the best new club in the world by Boy actual George, to be resting firmly on its laurels, like Hardy after a long night in the pub (go with it).

But, happily, that isn’t the case for Venus.

Even though the club has survived its difficult first year and won praise from punters and pundits alike, they’re not going to kick back and watch the door takings roll in.

“The next 12 months for us is about listening to the customers and what they think will work,” says club manager Ben Egerton. “We want to stay as good as we have been – the club will evolve in a big way in 2011 as the ideas we have are bursting at the seams.

“We are building on the club every week – our sound and lighting engineer needs to be pulled back constantly as his ideas are immense!

“We have some big things in the pipeline too; we have had blinders fitted into the club, new lasers and a ton of equipment including a brand new sound system.”

The changes at the club aren’t just in the paintwork and fancy disco lights, though. Part of the game plan over the next few months involves working with new nights in order to strengthen the club as a complete package, now that it is established as a venue in its own right.

“We felt it necessary to speak to new nights,” says Ben. “The promoters we are working with are exceptional and their comments are fantastic.

“We work together with a couple of common goals – keep the nights safe, the customers welcome, the staff upbeat and keep it real!”

Among the slew of nights kicking off are a trio that Egerton cites as being particularly important, not to mention the return of a legendary draw in the form of Retro.

“Tainted and Kiddfectious have come on board for our Friday nights.

“We don’t see the point in just opening the doors and offering music, we need to get these guys onboard and they can appeal to their markets and directly campaign to get their own nights working alongside our club.

“Retro actually approached the club, which was a turn up for the books.

“Paul Taylor is an absolute legend considering he is Scottish,” Ben laughs.

“We are really looking forward to working together to build Royale Retro in Manchester.”

You’d think that with all this planning for the next 12 months, Venus would have no chance to reflect on what has been a tremendously successful first year, especially at a time when Friday night crowds – half the Venus audience – are looking trickier to pull in than ever.

But when we ask how the CityLife award went down at the club, Ben sums up how he and his colleagues at the club felt with succinct satisfaction.

“We were named house night of the year in 2009 when we were based at our old venue, so to be named club of the year is extraordinary. 

“We have stuck to our guns in 2010 by keeping it the strongest door in Manchester and it’s really paid off. 

“The customers have commented how well we have built the club and with the changes we are constantly making, they can also see where their money is going. 

“Venus always has been and always will be about the customer. End of!”

Tainted launches tomorrow (February 11, 2011) with Mark Howarth and residents.