Here in LUSU your Sabbatical Officers thought it only right that whilst your Union nightclub ‘The Sugarhouse’ is closed for the night, that we take in the sights of the big cities to bring you a taste of what else there is to do up here in Lancashire.
Our night of choice was ‘Religion’ at Sankeys. Manchester is a far sight from Lancaster in terms of nightlife, and one of the prime nightspots in the city, indeed in the North in general is Sankeys. Deep in the backstreets of the city this club is known globally for its outstanding electronic music nights and ability to spot fresh music and most importantly, set trends; a hard task usually kept for London based clubs.
‘Religion’ is the club’s Drum and Bass and Dubstep night. With a massive line-up and recognisable names throughout, anyone with an inkling of the genres on show would know that this was set up to be a great night.
The club itself is 15 years old this year and to celebrate this anniversary they are installing 15 new features, everything from ice cannons and multi-coloured lasers to a cinema and my personal favourite, an upgrade to their already ridiculous sound system. On the night it was hard to tell which upgrade had been installed and what week they were up to, but we did enjoy a very interesting subtitled documentary on space and nature in the cinema area whilst having a rest.
What I guess you are hoping I get on to soon is what the music was like; being that is a fairly pivotal aspect of the experience. Well, Religion didn’t disappoint, every set we saw across the three rooms were stellar. Lemon D has a particular skill at whipping the crowd (and SCAN Editor Liam Richardson) into a frenzy, and to be completely honest the line-up in the upstairs room barely missed a beat all night.
It may seem as if this review is full of shiny compliments for the night, but there were a few downsides. Prices were as expected in a big city, fairly high. Short queuing and excellent quick service were just slightly dampened by the amount of change you got back at the end of the transaction. Another stumbling point I always come across with a trip to Sankeys is the flow of bodies through the club, the outside terrace is a great area to relax and chat, but getting there requires a fair amount of waiting and shuffling.
All in all the night was a raving success, the venue was excellent and will undoubtedly be even better after all the upgrades and line-up all performed top class sets. Religion is a definite must for any connoisseurs of the genre. If RnB and dubstep isn’t your thing then check out their website for other nights of equal calibre.
