The Greatest City On Earth (Manchester in General)

Member Name: GodToldMeTo

Product:	Manchester in General
Date:	16/05/02 (439 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: diverse

Disadvantages: too big to see everthing

While I was making my way to the night bus last Friday night / Saturday morning I realised just how much I love the city I live in. Maybe it was taking advantage of the £1 bottles of beer at 42nd Street, maybe it was being asked directions by a gorgeous girl or maybe it was just being able to walk into town knowing that my every musical whim would be catered for. I came to the conclusion that it is by far the best city on earth.

Manchester is as diverse as someone could possibly imagine. Hundreds of different cultures each adding their own part to the town. You’ve got everything from the Chinese offering cuisine to the Irish offering entertainment.

If ever there were a city that came to life at night then Manchester would be it. There are clubs on every street meeting every possible taste. For example there’s a part of town called Princess Street, for locals it’s just off Piccadilly Gardens. Well Princess Street plays home to Satan’s Hollow, which is perhaps the most diverse club I’ve ever come across.

Satan’s Hollow

It’s open every night of the week each time offering something different. You’ve got everything from Indie Vs Pop on a Wednesday to Metal Vs Punk on a Monday to Hard House Vs Trance on a Saturday. What’s more is that the club offers, for a £10 entry fee, a free bar throughout the night. If this wasn’t everything, it’s even open until 3 am weekdays and 4 am at weekends.

There’s even something known as Tranzgressions that are on every other week. The opening hours are 4am to 12 midday and are advertised as Manchester's largest official hard house and demonic trance after party. Nice if you like that sort of thing. Just remember your glow sticks. Never threat through, they do sell them inside including UV gel and an array of other ‘weird’ things. An example being the hallucinogenic shot called Speed Demon that is on sale for
£1 a go.

The club itself is relatively small and the queues outside are sometimes a little long. The security are quite strict and have a ‘clubbers not scrubbers’ rule which means smart casual dress code, definitely no Rockport.

Expect refusal of the free bar if you look wasted and even to be escorted out of the club. The club has somewhat of a reputation of being a trouble spot but I’ve never experienced it. Plus going off the size of the bouncers I’m pretty sure if it ever kicked off they’d have it sorted.

Just to re-iterate my point about Manchester being so diverse, if you walk across the road from Satan’s Hollow there’s a Jazz club facing it. My friend and I stumbled in one Thursday night but left pretty quickly as it seemed a little eerie. By this I mean there was nobody in the bar whatsoever, no bar staff or customers, just one old man wearing dark sunglasses playing piano. So, we left. The décor was quite nice though.

Gay Village

Down the road from Satan’s Hollow you have Canal Street, which is famous for it’s gay population and clubs catering specifically for them. I’ve only been down here once and it was quite a pleasant atmosphere if you’re not put off by the drag queens or huge men in tank tops. There are something like 20 bars and clubs in the space of about ¼ of a mile. Including Bar 38 and the comedy meets nightclub Jongeleurs. As I say, only visiting once I’m not entirely qualified to give a fantastic review but for the time I was there, I enjoyed it.

I’ve heard tales of being refused entry if you don’t look gay enough. I don’t really believe it, I’ve always been let in, hmm I wonder what that says for me though?

If you continue walking down the same street you’ll find, tucked away 5th Avenue which is the ultimate in Indie / Alternative club. It’s open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, F
riday and Saturday offering mostly the same kind of music every time.

5th Avenue

I’ve been every day and Fridays are by far the best. The entry price is a little steeper than usual. £5 for gents as opposed to £1 most other times. However if you happen to be the proud owner of an N.U.S or a leaflet that you can pick up quite close to the door, you can get in for £2.

Women are treated quite nicely in that they get free entry before 11pm. Drinks are always cheap no matter what day you go. You can get everything from 50p on a Monday night to £1 on a Friday. I don’t think it goes much over which is great for the students it aims to attract.

Students are the core audience so if you don’t get along with them, stay away. Especially if you don’t like Parka wearing, Ian Brown mopped hair students, as when I Am The Resurrection comes on, this is all you’ll be able to see. Speaking of the Stone Roses, if any fans are reading, yes they play the full 9-minute version.

The DJ claims to take requests although in my experience he just sticks to his own set list. It does change depending on how many people are in the club though. If it’s particularly full then it’s mainly indie as advertised. If it’s not so full expect more of a diverse mixture including everything from the Charlatans to Rage Against The Machine to the Prodigy.

If you’re dance fan then Manchester can cater for you too. There’s hundreds of clubs offering entertainment for the arm waving madmen amongst you. One of the only real ‘club’ clubs I’ve experience and somewhat enjoyed although spending my duration in the toilet throwing up is Infinity located next to the Midland Hotel just off St Peter’s Square.

Infinity

Infinity is open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday again like most other places offering something different each time. The night I went, T
hursday it was quite cheesy pop with the occasional dance tune mixed in. Entry fee depends on what time of the night you arrive but I don’t think it goes over £5.

When I went it was a little empty and I remember being asked if I wanted to sell someone drugs, not being a drug dealer or having any drugs in my possession, I declined.

Drinks were a little cheap but I imagine if it were fuller it would definitely be a fantastic club. I’d recommend a Monday night, although never seeing for myself it’s school uniform night.

Just up the road from Infinity and proving Manchester to be the diverse capital of Britain is Rock World.

Rock World

By far my favourite club and despite its flaws (price of drinks, too much metal etc) it is a really good place to go. What’s more it opens at 9 and shuts at 7am on a Friday.

Its open Thursday, Friday and Saturday each time proving to be quite metal orientated but the occasional punk and hip hop slots make it what it is.

There are three different rooms each having their own style and DJ. There’s a classic metal room, a Goth room and a main room that tends to play everything mainstream. Every room has its own bar but the drinks are a little expensive. Its £2.50 on average for a pint and expect them, more often than not to be flat. I tend to stick to cans although a Red Stripe will cost £2.65.

The music is not all that varied and the DJ's in the main room are quite reluctant to take requests unless they know it will fill the floor. But the have a decent taste and more often than not it’s bearable if not enjoyable.
So there you go, some of my recommendations proving that Manchester has it all. I could spend hours writing more… but I won’t. So if you live here, check them out. If you don’t come on down. We’ve got two train stations and a hell of a lot of hotels.

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