| URBAN GROOVE FEATURE
If The Warehouse was an adolescent, this is the year that it would have grown from an awkward teen into full-blown adulthood.
Due to its 18 years in operation as a nightclub, The Warehouse is a legend in Calgary that continues to be an anomaly on the clubbing horizon. It has outlived the much-hyped Electric Avenue strip that once played host to a throng of marauding drunks. It has outlasted its primary competitor, The Republik, as well as a slew of ballyhooed venues that spent more cultivating an image than they did cultivating a scene.
In its earlier manifestations, the Warehouse played home to a musical format that couldn't be found elsewhere – a blend of punk, new wave, industrial, goth, rap and dance music that kept an appreciative audience loyally packing the dancefloor, week in and week out for the first 10 years of the club's life. Later, in the ’90s, The Warehouse made the great leap forward into the realm of global dance culture, giving rise to their two regular weekend DJ nights, Horizon and Blissed.
Currently, The Warehouse is both a private, full-service club and an after-hours refuge for those who just can't stop dancing at last call. Its basement, the Underground, has become home to weekly live shows that feature touring punk bands, while the club upstairs has played host to everyone from Cinematic Orchestra and DJ Icey to Mistress Barbara and Amon Tobin.
It is one of the few remaining local venues that cater to those on the periphery of nightclubbing, whether they're into Brit pop or dance music. Owner-operator Chris, a.k.a. DJ Special Agent, sees this as the club's greatest strength.
"We're the option for those who aren't into the generic 1,000-person club, a place you can count on for everybody else. We've been dedicated to this longer than anyone currently operating and we really are for those who are looking for something different."
For Chris, who is the fourth owner of the Warehouse, the next step in the club’s evolution is to once again incorporate different weekly events for music fans that other venues don't cater to.
"There's so much music that is sold out of places like Melodiya or Sloth that isn't being played in a club setting. The people buying that music should be given a place to go on any given night as well."
The club’s 18th anniversary will see the coming of techno legend Woody McBride on Friday, April 12. McBride is one of the few holistic DJs in the world, and encourages both a clean body and a clean mind. On Saturday, April 13, Five Alive will be the featured guest. New memberships and annual renewals will be available throughout the weekend. |
