Labels Acoustic sessions with Jade Ellis and The Trails

Jade (right) with Planet London's Naomi.
Don't worry, Naomi doesn't sing.

A gem of a night with Jade Ellis and The Trails. 

From the sound check we could tell we were going to be in for a treat. 

The acoustics of the venue providing the perfect space for this Labels Acoustic session, as Jade Ellis' unique silky sublime voice resonated around us - and this was before the gig had even started.

As the gaggles of fans turned up, ordering cocktail classics from the newly presented menu, the buzz for the sets grew to a hum.

Following a delightful main course of the tasty small plates of offer (happy to recommend the BBQ Steak, duck, asparagus, potato rosti), we took a front row pew to the acts. 

With just guitar strings and voices, both acts supplied a choice acoustic vibe, with hints of RnB, jazz and modern urban chic.

The Trails, a two-piece, played a set of original material and then later some self-styled covers, with a moody, intense tone that drew listeners in.

Jade's set was an impressive and cohesive blend of covers and originals, with live guitar and guitar tracks. Each song bringing a now-established trademark Jade sound to it. With new maturity and personalisation of the songs, it was hard not to believe they weren't all her own to begin with. And with the added delight of a dedicated version of Ellis' rendition of 'Skyfall' performed for us, what else could we ask for on a cool Thursday evening?


By Katie

Bridging the gap of women's events in South West London

Not happy with another night at home; and making the most of the extended weekend, we headed down to Clapham on Friday for the second Bridge Girls Late event. 

Hosted in Del Aziz, a ground floor restaurant, is a little known but seductive downstairs bar space called the Zahra Bar. As a change from what the LBQ scene has come to expect; although a lower level space, there is disabled access (albeit via the service entrance around the back - still a massive improvement on many spaces used by the LBQ community). 

The bar has a middle eastern feel to it and is a great mix of comfortable seating around the edge; and a great dance floor space. Behind a curtain at the end of the bar you will also find a VIP area for special occasions. 

Featuring DJs such as DJ Lucy Stone and DJ Fomo (Claire Chalmers) as well as guest DJs such as Izzy Trixx this night is perfect for dancing into the early hours. 

Happy hours (all the way until 11pm!) means you can pick up 2 cocktails for just £8 (2-4-1). Our favourite was the French Martini - absolutely gorgeous!! 

This night is still relatively new, and is gaining interest from the community. It is evolving and we would certainly recommend a visit. If you are going with a group of friends, you can reserve a table area; or for those special occasions why not go all out and get a VIP ticket! 

Bridge Girls Late is working with Planet London so you can get a loyalty card stamp each time you go; collect 3 stamps and your next entry is free. Also available is a drinks loyalty card. Get a stamp each time you order a drink and earn free drinks - think Costa coffee but available at lesbian events! So you get rewarded for your loyalty as a thanks for supporting this night. 

Bridge Girls Late is on the 1st Friday monthly. The next event is going to include a fundraiser for Pride in London. Planet London is working with a number of events to help promote the visibility and participation of women at Pride through fundraising events and also by aiming to create the largest ever walking group of women at Pride in London.

Bridge Girls Late can be found at 55-57 The Pavement, Clapham Old Town, SW4 0JQ on the first Friday each month.

Review by Naomi

Killjoy's Kastle - A Lesbian Feminist Haunted House and a grave deal!

Ok, this isn't a film, but is well worth a visit and is available for free at the BFI Flare. 

If you're gutted that you couldn't get tickets for sold out screenings such as Tru Love, or you found the ticket price out of your reach, fear not because there is still a way to immerse yourself into the festival.

Killjoy's Kastle is one example of this.

In the space between NFT2 and the ticket area, tucked away in the corner, a reconstruction of Creep Lez from Toronto in Canada. Originally created in October 2013, gender-queer apparitions, ball-busting butches, paranormal consciousness raisers and polyamorist vampiric grannies were brought to life by a host of collaborators and live performances.

This installation features some of the set, and within this is a video documenting the installation which gives you an insight into the creation of this haunted house, which took 4 months to create.



Killjoy's Kastle was the creation of Toronto artist, Allyson Mitchell.

Allyson Mitchell is a maximalist artist. She works with sculpture, performance, installation and film. She investigates sexuality and the body melding feminism and pop culture. Previous work has included a room-sized vagina dentata, a coven of lesbian feminist Sasquatch monsters, and a woodland topic library complete with wishing well of forbidden political knowledge, to name a few.

The Feminist Library will be running a stall in the installation on Monday 24 and Saturday 29 March.

If you fancy owning your own grave from this installation, they are being sold to raise money for the Lesbian Immigration Support Group (LISG). Suggested donation is just £20-40!

Email nazmiaijamal@gmail.com for more information.

Review by Naomi
 

Jazzing up your Thursday night with good food and live music

When: every Thursday
Time: 8pm
Entry: free
Where: Labels Restaurant and Lounge, Frith Street (opposite Ronnie Scotts)


If you want a sensual, sophisticated, soulful dinner; look no further than Thursday Jazz sessions at Labels.

We enjoyed a delicious 3 course menu of amazing French-Asian style cooking whilst sipping scrumptious cocktails. I had gorgeous king prawns followed by Cajun chicken ad Katie enjoyed hummus followed by steak (they do also have a good vegetarian selection, we just love our meat!).

On Thursdays Labels hosts live jazz sessions from 8pm so if you can wait you can enjoy a romantic meal with live jazz in the background and over the flicker of candle light.

Tonight we were able to enjoy Fatin TheHood who is resident fortnightly, and guest performers The Trail (Voice: Abigael Chesang and Guitar: Alessia de Portis)



If I closed my eyes I could swear I was in some gorgeous riverside French restaurant rather than Frith Street in Soho!!!

Find out what else is on at Labels restaurant and lounge on their website: www.labels-soho.co.uk.

 

Tender, Loving... TLC

Date/Time: Friday 9 August; 10pm - late
Venue: Green Carnation
Tickets: £7

 

 
Following on from our pre event Big Friday Flirt... plenty of women were ready to party as the disco beats rolled from the decks.

Party tunes were the dancers' choice as they took to the floor (and the poles!) and each other to shake some booty, and this month we were not disappointed with special guest DJ Christina Novelli.

The flirting continued late into the night, creating a hot, friendly ambiance where no woman was left on her own (even if she arrived that way...)

If you haven't heard of TLC before, it's a genre spanning dance fest with an emphasis on P-A-R-T-Y. It's usually the first Friday of the month apart from special occasions (like this month due to Brighton Pride falling on the first weekend - they're considerate like that!).

TLC has drinks deals after 10pm: Shot deals from £1.50, DOUBLE House spirit plus mixer £4, Selected beer £3.50

This event is young at heart but mixed in age... with classic and current tunes, there's something for everyone and plenty of dance floor with Green Carnation's ground & basement levels.

By Katie

TLC - Big Friday Flirt

Date/Time: Friday 9 August; 8pm - 10pm
Venue: Green Carnation, Soho
Tickets: £7 (included free entry into TLC after)

Welcomed by the King of Flirting Adam All and our very friendly Planeteers, lovely lesbians and bi women looking to mingle were treated to a very special pre-TLC event in the Planet Pinked up Green Carnation space.

While DJ Poppy played a wicked mix of 90s classics and modern chart floor fillers, a variety of games such Flirty Bingo; I have never; and Truths & Lies ensured the diverse set of women got talking to each other, had a practice flirt with Adam All and the Planeteers and with the crafty use of our Flirt Alerts got to let the woman of their dreams know someone was into them. If requested, our Planeteers were on hand to make an introduction too. Planet London's traffic light badges ensured that it was clear what the guests were after so there was need for awkward introductions...

The Flirt Alerts were so popular that they carried on into the main TLC event...

By Katie

Code at West 5, Ealing (New Event)

"Deciphering the Code"

West 5 is my local gay bar/pub and over the last few years I’ve been here a few times. The recent change in management of the venue has left me intrigued to what they will do with the venue. 

 Upon entering, I was warmly greeted by DJ Fanny Love and she introduced me to those that were there. I felt like part of the group and I could see that there is a real laid back, community feel.

The night started out with chatter and mingling, and subtly moved onto contemporary hits playing. The atmosphere was filled with  laughter from groups of girls; some women standing in the shadows having a little boogie, while others were just having a catch-up.  The night wrapped up with a live performance by singer, Saskia - this did get the crowd involved! 

The venue is imitate and offers a respite from the usual hangouts, with the focus on conversation opposed to drunken frolicking.

I was blessed in that a few of my besties joined, if I’d gone alone I would have perhaps had a different experience all together. As this was the opening night for Code, I can see it gaining momentum in the coming months.

On the whole, as far as first nights go, the evening went well. I feel that the rain and location of West 5 would make it difficult to attract people from farther out. 

However, it doesn’t try and be anything it isn’t and I praise it for that. As I said, the community feel of the place makes me hopeful that it could be a prominent place for the gays of west London to hang out. 

The evening was like a regular pub with a buzzing group of people having a good time without any airs or graces, or glances like some Soho hangouts. I would definitely recommend the night to locals, in that it’s a great place to meet gay people. The drink selection is fairly standard and reasonably priced, the music would suit all tastes too.

By Le Fin

G3 Website Launch hosted by L-Wired at Ruby Blue Lounge

Date: Thursday 31 May

Venue: Ruby Blue Lounge, 1 Leicester Place WC2H

Price: £5 Early bird

Going Live!

 L-Wired continues to dominate the scene with the first of their 3 big parties over the Jubilee Bank Holiday Weekend.

This bash wasn't just about L-Wired though, with the launch of G3's new social networking website for lesbians and bi women (the 'facebook for lesbians') as the main draw - including a raffle of some top notch prizes.

The venue, as we've come to expect from L-Wired is a central location and they had done very well (much appreciated!) with what we would call 2 outstanding drinks offers for a Leicester Square bar - a vodka & mixer for £3 and a Woo-Woo for £4.50 all night long.

A great turnout, cracking vibe and hot tunes from the relatively new Dj Izzy Trixx who's funky mixes and mashes kept everyone dancing - no mean feat given the diverse range of lesbians at the party.

WOW cocktail social at Holborn House

Date: Thursday 31 May

Location: Holborn House, High Holborn

Price:  £6 in advance, £10 on the door, or £35 in advance for masterclass and entry

Shaken, not stirred...

The latest in the revolving cocktail night saw a new twist with the evening starting with an optional cocktail making masterclass - plenty to both learn and drink, at the classy Holborn House (we've voted it the best toilets in a venue for lesbian events). This was accompanied by tasty canapes for those who took part.

WoW continues to offer more than a standard networking event where all the work is left up to the guests,  with creative ice breakers - a cool move on from the successful boat parties last year.

Holborn House provided a seductive setting and juicy cocktail menu - at average London prices, and the option of a £35 fishbowl for those who wanted to go for the distance.

Our host, Julianne, as always mingled and made sure guests were enjoying themselves and took requests for the DJ.

We recommend this night for professional lesbians and bi women looking to get a jump start on the weekend in a setting where it's easy to meet new people, enjoy a drink and hit the dancefloor later in the evening.

L-Wired Launch

Date:             Thursday 8 March 2012
Location:       Clinic, 1 Piccadilly Circus, London, W1
Price:              £10

5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Launch...

No doubt you've heard of Code, Mint or Girl Action. If you've been to any of these events you've most likely met Nikki and Rebecca.

They are both well established on the lesbian scene, hosting a wide range of events aimed at the large variety of lesbians, ensuring the scene has something for most, if not all women.

2011 saw them expand further to include the Big Gay Lifestyle Show. No sooner has one event ended, they're onto the next, ensuring there is always something on. Given the lack of physical venues specifically for gay women, this is quite important.

2012, Despite still being early on, is no different. Nikki and Rebecca have been working hard behind the scenes on a new brand, under which not only do they host their pre-existing nights but also run even more such as a Diversity Role Models fundraiser and Sh! 20th birthday. L-Wired also offers to help you source venues and DJs for your own events - do these women ever sleep?!?

Thursday night was the launch of this new brand, called L-Wired at Clinic in Piccadilly Circus. The venue was quite quirky with mannequins hanging from the ceiling and surgical masks hanging from the menus and the staff in medical uniforms, but this was normal for the venue so what did L-Wired offer?

To thank the ladies who showed up to support them, a free drink on arrival and half price cocktails were just the ticket, and the music was bang on beat, creating a wonderful atmosphere. They'd made sure that whilst the toilets were clean, they didn't have an attendant handing you a paper towel in exchange for wanting a pound. There were lots of them too so there was never a queue!!

We're looking forward to the next big L-Wired event which is the Sh! 20th birthday at Cafe de Paris. Hope to see you all there.

Take a look at the new L-Wired website today!

Review by Naomi Bennett

Crazy Gorgeous from GoodGirlz Gone Bad

Date:             Friday 3 February (launch party)
Location:      The Bowery, Oxford Street, London WC1A 1EP
Price:            Guestlist entry free before 12, £3 after; Non-guestlist £5

Cos you're filthy, ooh you're gorgeous...

Crazy Gorgeous (shortly to be weekly on Fridays, between 10pm and 3am) started bang on time, 10pm means just that and not a moment before.  I arrived at 9.45pm, pre-work drinks having ended rather prematurely, and was advised to wait at the venue’s ground floor bar, so to speak (I can’t attest to the punctuality of the closing time, being old and having left before midnight).  

The bar stocks a range of bottled beers, selection of tap beers and a cider, all for pub prices, which is nice.  Oddly, though, at some point in the evening drinks become served in plastic rather than glass cups, even though you are not allowed to take drinks outside (perhaps the dishwasher broke...)

When we were allowed, we went down to the basement where Crazy Gorgeous was held.  The location is a nice size for a basement bar, with a small stage acting as a dance floor.  

At the time I was there is was very quiet, with a group of 4-6 friends dancing and taking up the whole of the small dance floor, and a couple of groups of young women standing around, in total I'd say there were only about 15 people there, not including me and my group. 

Though the group on the floor seemed to enjoy the music, sadly I am too old and too un hip-hop to get down to the urban music at this event.  But if you are younger (say 18-25) and dig the 'DnB' and FunkyHouse (or even know what DnB should sound like) and you don't like to go out before midnight, even if you will get thrown at 3am, this could be the place for you.

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GoodGirlz GoneBad is a female team of events managers, promoters and DJ management. Set up with the aim to bring you the best music in a fantastic atmosphere to events in and around London. In addition to this new night, GoodGirlz GoneBad also run Halo at Hidden in Vauxhall, London.

GoodGirlz GoneBad website

Review by Katie

Mint Social

Date:             Wednesday 1 February 2012 (normally 1st Thursday)
Location:       Basement Bar, Soho House, Old Compton Street, Soho

Minted

I popped along to Soho House after work this week for the Mint Social. It’s a 'social networking event for smart-savvy lesbian and bisexual women in the UK'.

The venue is very in keeping with the style of the event, Soho House is luxurious, friendly and welcoming and has that professional feel to it. The music is very much a background and there isn't any dancing to be found here. Instead what you'll find is lots of intelligent women networking, chatting and enjoying a few drinks after a day in the office. This event is perfect for networking with other city professionals or an ideal event for socialising with your professional lesbian colleagues.

The event officially starts from about 7pm but most of the women arrive between 7.30 and 8pm.

With a £10 ticket price (unless you're a Black Card member then it is free*), and with Soho House selling doubles as standard for a little under £10, you won't find any happy hours or cheap drinks. The clientele enjoy wine, champagne and vodka mixers whilst enjoying the company of other professional women.

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Nikki and Rebecca run L-Wired, the new company launching in March 2012 that will house all of their events including Girl Action, Code, Mint, Family Affair, The Big Gay Lifestyle Show and more.

*We recommend the Black Card as an absolutely amazing membership offer. For just £90 a year you get free entry to all L-Wired events such as Mint, Code and Girl Action, plus you can take along a guest to each event for free. So you only need to go to 5 events all year and take a friend or partner and you've more than covered the membership fee. The rest of the year you're laughing all the way to the bar! As if that isn't enough, you also get discounts and offers when you flash your card at various establishments in London.

Review by Naomi

Women on Women launch at JuJu Bar

Date:             Thursday 26 January 2012
Location:       JuJu Bar, 316 King's Road, Chelsea, SW3

WOW Cocktail...? Don't mind if I JuJu!

The launch of a cocktail night in a trendy Chelsea bar, filled with hundreds of lesbian and bi women... you can imagine we had high expectations for this evening out. And for the most part we were not disappointed.

JuJu is a fabulous venue - lots of seating, a good variety of dimmed and well lit areas with differing music volumes throughout the bar - lending itself to dance spaces and socialising spaces (although it was on the dark side around the dancefloor, which given it was packed, meant the dancers had to pay attention not to bump into people as they bopped).

The drinks were lovely, and there was an excellent selection of cocktails and mocktails - on the pricey side as you might expect in the area, but they were quality cocktails, not shy on the alcohol, tasty and good value for money (£9 cocktail, £5 mocktail). The 2-4-1 offer before 9pm made them great value for money to that point, but it also meant the queue for the bar was very long from 8.30pm as the women tried to get served before the offer ended.

The venue offered lots of nooks and crannies and intimate areas, rather than one large open space, and the small dance floor was rightly placed in front of DJ booth. The venue really lends itself to groups of friends up for an ambient, fun night out or for couples wanting to spend a little time getting to know each other in a romantic setting with some privacy.

JuJu bar comes with a cloakroom (just £1, not bad) and mood-lit up-lit toilets that are kept tidy with an attendant (they're the darkest toilets you'll ever go in - just light enough to see the toilet roll!).

JuJu bar is very easy to find on King's Road, although not particularly close to a tube station. There are plenty of buses in the area, however the transport links from SE London are somewhat missing (TFL's fault, not WOW's!) so we decided to drive, and despite researching carefully, discovered a bit too late that - parking is hit and miss - most side roads are residents till 10pm, so look for pay and display spaces which are free after 6.30pm either on King's Road itself or further up off King's Road if you're driving.

The low mood lighting and venue layout makes this venue slightly difficult to meet new people - we'd recommend it as a great night out if you've met someone recently and want to see them again to get to know them better as the intimate corners and cosy seating are perfect for getting close and personal and the cocktails will relax you both.

Also, if it is your birthday or special occasion, this venue lends itself to celebrating in style with your friends, and we noticed a nice room towards the back, not far from the dancefloor which had a rope that could be used to section off a reserved space, it was hardly used and would make a great VIP area for group bookings of up to 20!

There is currently a lack of good nights out in SW1/3 so it's great to see the start of a regular night over this end of town and it certainly is a quality, classy night.

Keep a look out for future nights (3rd Thursdays). There may be a door charge to cover the venue hire on future events but for those amazing cocktails and a classy venue playing good music filled with women we wouldn't mind paying £5 if the drinks offers remained (or perhaps even £10 if the happy hour was extended to 10pm!).

Take a look at WOW's website

Join the WOW group on Facebook

Review by Naomi and Katie

CODE - NYE

Date:             Saturday 31 December 2011
Location:       Green Carnation, Soho 

Let me start this review with a confession - I love the Green Carnation (GC)! The touchy velvety wall paper, the friendly bar staff, the classy cocktails, what's not to love!?  So I was properly looking forward to Code at GC, advertised as occupying all 3 floors.  To be honest, I never even knew there were three floors at GC, and the discovery of the basement was an eye opener.  It had a small bar and an intimate dance floor which was well serviced by harder dance music.  It kinda felt like a mini-rave, what with the gyrating bodies in a confined place... mmm mm.  Highly recommended!

The dance floor on the ground floor was the pop and RnB area, with a pretty good mix of tracks and a great crowd of women.  Maybe it was the NYE spirit, or those double mixers they serve, but everyone was very friendly and up for a dance with a stranger.  Circles of stranger joined arms to sing the obligatory ‘Auld Lang Syne’, and my mate came back from the bar with gratis drinks - now that is the NYE spirit right there!!  There were also couches and little nooks that could be used for a break from the music, should one require this.

The upstairs floor had some great old 80's tracks early in the night, before I'd warmed up enough to dance, and before the cloak room queue had dissipated.  Unfortunately, later in the night, after midnight, when my dancing muscles were warmed up and my sense of shame drowned in a fog of booze, the promised 80's & 90's kitsch had become generic pop too similar to the main floor, leaving me wandering listlessly between the floors listening out for some fun tracks to boogie to.

Last but not least, the toilets were kept pretty well stocked with paper and soap, and despite a whole club full of women the queues were not the worst I’ve seen!

OK, that was the love-fest but there are a couple of things that did not tick my box this NYE so let's get them out of the way.  The cloak room was disorganised, the queue long, and not relieved by opening the second cloak room.  I've also been advised that there was some disorganisation getting coats at the end of the night.  I don’t think this was a failing by the organisers as I have attended other 'Rebecca & Nicki' events and not encountered this issue, nonetheless it was taken on board for next time.  

The £8 price tag for a spirit and mixer is quite steep, and the fact that it is a double is a mixed blessing which can leave the night a bit, um... fuzzy (or is it just me?).  I didn't buy a beer but believe they are served in bottles, with the price tag this involved.  

Overall, I had a damn good NYE, and only wish there was more of it that I could remember ;)  Have a great 2012 folks, and I look forward to partying with you for the next 12 months.

Review by Tali

Lounge Christmas Party

Date:             Thursday 22 December (Christmas special, normally 1st Thursday, monthly)
Location:       The Penthouse, One Leicester Square
Price:             £8/£10 (£5 before 10pm)

“Not just Lounging around..."

This event is funky, trendy and cool. 

From the spectacular high rise views of the Penthouse over lit up London icons, to leather sofas, to music designed to get you up and dancing, there is a lot to offer.

The ticket price is pretty standard for lesbian club nights in London, however inside it’s on the pricier end of events on offer for cloakroom (£2 per item) and the higher end drinks charges (two singles with a dash for £9), be prepared to spend (we recommend you take cash as there’s also a 15% surcharge on paying for drinks by card). There were sweets, mince pies and free shots on offer though as it was the Christmas special!

But Lounge is a great night out to let loose on the dancefloor – with a fab mix of music current and retro dance classics (the DJs were Uncle Jane, Philly and Christine Townsend). It’s one to come along to with a group of friends – most of the crowd was various groups of friends. It’s a good range of ages of women up for a good night out.

The event is described as for "metrosexual women" based on a Sex and The City style night out for women. It’s definitely Cosmopolitan, darling!

Oh, and take the lift up – save your energy and avoid the 7 floors of stairs.

Review by Katie Hall

Bijou at the Carter Rooms

Date:             Saturday 10 December (2nd Saturday, monthly)
Location:       Carter Rooms, 56 Carter Lane, City of London, EC4V 5EA

Cocktails, cocktails, cocktails

Bijou feels like one of those nights from ‘back in the day’.  It’s down a quiet City street, and once you pass the front door and tell the security which night you are there for you are greeted warmly by the beautiful Lauren and Robin who run the night.  The location has an intimate yet spacious feeling bar with a good number of comfortable booths to leave your bag and coat and to catch up with friends.  

The music is a fun mix of newer pop and old classics, and is that perfect volume that encourages you to approach people (should you be brave enough) as you won’t have to shout in their ear!  And if you are the type to approach women on the dance floor Bijou is the place to do it, they are a friendly bunch who seem to be there for a good laugh; Bijou is the only place I have ever seen people having splits competitions on the corner of the dance floor, and dancers creating an impromptu dance circle with people taking turns to dance in the middle.  

Of course, if you are the type to approach women on the dance floor you’ll need a bit of Dutch courage, and in this respect Bijou again comes up trumps.  There is a good selection of cocktails at about £8 a pop, but better yet there are two cocktails specially designed for the night at only a fiver.  In the name of research I felt it my duty to road test both and can report that, though I personally preferred the ‘Dyke-quarie’, the ‘Pussy Galore’ was very tasty too.  

The best part was watching the bartender mix the drink, pouring the ingredients free hand.  It is all too rare that bar staff are given the freedom to pour Bacardi sans shot glass, and the result was a delicious drink that went down all too quickly.  The beers are reasonably priced and a good stock on tap and perfect shaped bottle form. 

Finally, a word about the smallest room; the toilet.  These are shared with the other night in the venue and are clean, with a supply of soap.  There is no toilet attendant in the bathrooms, which I prefer, and though there are 3 cubicles the queues didn’t seem any worse then other venues.

Review by Tali and Viene

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Tickets are available in advance and we’d recommend pre-purchasing to ensure entry by emailing elysionevents@ymail.com.

So was the move from Tart Bar to Carter Rooms a good one? Well a larger space was definitely needed, but the Tart Bar offered a very 'Bijou' space (pardon the pun). In our opinion this venue was extremely well thought out. We thank Lauren and Robin for their hours of 'research' into venues as you have done us proud!