CityLife

Clubland Live is in the house

Clubland has attracted a new wave of neon ravers

THE relationship between fashion and music is about as obvious as an Oasis chord progression.

The extent to which the former is informed by the latter is tangible: the stoned beats of indie Madchester conjure up visions of baggy jeans and jumpers; angular Eighties electronica bred asymmetrical haircuts and sharply cut clothing; and the emo effect gave rise to lashings of black and eyeliner applied with deadpan sincerity.

If the clothing worn by fans of a genre is reflective of the characteristics of the music, it is perhaps little wonder that the upfront, never-not-banging sounds of the Clubland brand have given birth to a uniform as garish as the beats on offer within. 

For the boys, a colourfully embellished explosion of casual sportswear that often resembles a track runner who’s just sprinted through a south central paint factory; for the girls, vest tops of all colours worn with hot pants, tutus and leg warmers that are about as coordinated as a park full of cider-swigging teens.

All accessorised with visors, wristbands, whistles, glowsticks and more neon than you’d find in a highlighter pen factory.

Truly, such an anarchic outburst of gaudy couture has not been seen since the dawn of rave, which seems appropriate given the obvious parallels between the early 90s cow field fave and its latter day cousin Clubland.

“I just love getting dressed up as colourfully as possible,” says Hannah, a firm exponent of the hot pants and neon tutu look who we find shivering outside The Printworks.

She’s getting ready to enjoy a night at Pure, a venue to which the colour-drenched club kid has swarmed in recent years. “It’s fun and it seems to go well with the music. It’s not like you want to be wearing a huge sack when you’re out dancing; you want something that’s fun, sexy and easy to move in.”

Phenomenon

The extent to which the uniform of modern day mini ravers has pervaded youth fashion is directly proportional to the impact of the genre that popularised it.

Whatever you choose to call it – bounce, Scouse house, alcopop or donk – the hi-NRG sound of Clubland and its parent label, the Blackburn-born ‘n’ bred All Around The World, has made an undeniable impression on dance music this decade.

And while many bemoan the act of laying down pumping beats over already perfectly danceable records or crafting tunes whose structures follow a remarkably similar ‘build, drop, bludgeon’ formula, they are often drowned out by legions of kids jumping around to the neon-infused brain-pummelers.

Since launching in 2002 with a seemingly innocuous compilation of that summer’s most banging floorfillers, Clubland has become a phenomenon.

By the time the second and third collections dropped, its popularity had soared, with both discs selling out almost instantly in record shops nationwide (note to younger readers: record shops are where people used to by CDs, those shiny things with music on them).

Since then, the brand has given birth to various spin-off compilations, a TV channel, website and a live tour.

The jaunt returns to Manchester this month with a line-up headed by Cascada –the German outfit fronted by Brit Natalie Horner.

Joining them will be Agnes, who won massive Radio 1 airplay for her hit Release Me, and the amazing N Dubz, a group who have tapped into youth culture more effectively than Match Attax and swearing.

Undeniably the biggest and most credible urban pop group in the UK, N Dubz were first viewed with suspicion, particularly since hat-loving front man Dappy and singer Tulisa were former stars of the teen show Dubplate Drama. A string of infectious singles later and now the whole world, including Gary Barlow, is a fan; making them the main attraction for the neon-clad faithful tonight.

December 4, 2009. MEN Arena.