gospel-inspired disco and early house productions. The club ran from 1976 until
1987 and still ‘remains the most mythologized of all the New York gay discos’
(Silcott 1999:19). Levan drew a great deal of inspiration from the idealism of David
Mancuso’s Loft parties held at 647 Broadway and was undoubtedly influenced by
Mancuso’s musical preferences for soulful, rhythmic songs with lyrics that carried
positive meaning, that were playing in a way in which each followed ‘the last in a
profound musical narrative’ (Brewster and Broughton 1999:253). Crucially, the
majority of early UK garage productions were heavily influenced by American artists
who extended Levan and Mancuso’s musical aesthetics, such as Frankie Knuckles,
David Morales, Todd Terry, Tommy Musto, Victor Simonelli, Marc Kitchen,
Roger Sanchez, Masters At Work, Mood II Swing, Kerri Chandler, Blaze and, most
importantly, Todd Edwards and Armand Van Helden. Many house-music records
often feature sentiments of recognition printed on the centre label from producers
to various individuals. These acknowledgements regularly mention ‘thanks to God’,
revealing the religious beliefs present within the American house movement.
South London’s Sunday sceneUK garage events emerged in the early to mid-1990s, originally as Sunday morning
‘after hours’ parties held in various South London pubs in and around the Elephant
and Castle area. These events attracted clubbers keen to keep the party going after
leaving house and garage events across London such as Garage City, Release the
Pressure and events held at the Ministry of Sound. At these parties, DJs such as
Mickey Simms, Justin Canter and Matt ‘Jam’ Lamont became renowned for
pitching up house and garage records to increase their tempo to help clubbers stay
alert (Bidder 2001:223; Sawyer 2000). Subsequently, the first wave of UK garage
productions by artists such as Grant Nelson, then Tuff Jam, Smokin Beats,
Industrial Standards, Booker T, MJ Cole, Baffled, Ramsey and Fen, Banana
Republic, Scott Garcia and R.I.P., began to increase the beat-per-minute ratio of
tracks, whilst creating a distinct skippy beat and heavier bass-line sound. These new
‘roughed-up’ and faster UK productions were clearly distinguishable from the
smoothly produced and slower US tracks (Chapman 2000). At this stage, UK
garage was a relatively underground entity, reliant on the Sunday-scene and pirate
radio support, which began to broaden its appeal. Events also took place at the
Southwark Arches, near London Bridge and, in 1997, the most influential Sunday-
scene party, Twice As Nice, opened at Club Coliseum in Vauxhall. Sunday-scene
events attracted an older dressier crowd, many of whom worked in the club and wider
music industry and helped to establish a glamorous designer dress code that was to
become associated with future UK garage events. Rietveld suggests that this element
of the scene is infused with religiosity, in that events occur on the main church day,
which is regarded as ‘best-clothes-day for South London Caribbean youth, who have
grown up with Gospel Sunday School experiences’ (2000:209). Rietveld goes on to
point out that it is also ‘a day to show off one’s material achievements and upwardly
mobile aspirations’ (ibid).
188 CIARAN O’HAGAN