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25th Anniversary party update - get your requests in!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Right, only two-and-a-bit weeks to go until the glory that will be Offbeat's 25th birthday party. There are now a few more details on how the night (and the weekend) will pan out - see below, complete with annotations for confused old people who don't know what anything on campus is called any more:
THE FIRST BIT
On Fri 5th March from 7pm, there will be an informal meet-up in The Duck, the bar at the glorious remodelled Warwick Students' Union formerly known as The Graduate/Lynam's/probably something else. They sell nice food and (unusually for anywhere on campus) nice beer, so get yourself there at some point early evening to eat, drink, be merry and communally apply eyeliner (or maybe not)
THE MAIN BIT
will take place from 10 till 2 at Electric City, the union's fine indie disco night (that's The Indie Bop/Supersonic/Indiependance/Popscene/GRIP to you, grandad). The DJs will be playing all manner of indie old and new, including plenty of Offbeat classics - as long as you get your requests in that is, either via the wall on this page or the request thread here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=app_2373072738&ref=ts&gid=6252332145
The venue is Copper Rooms 2, which for the uninitiated is a 500ish capacity venue in the glorious new Warwick Student Union (roughly where South Central and the old TSG corridor used to be). The lovely people who run Offbeat on campus at the moment will also be DJing downstairs in Bar Rogue, so between the two rooms there should be no end of opportunities for tearful reminiscence / dangerous moshing / clearing the dancefloor altogether with your typically inappropriate behaviour / etc.
THE BIT THE FOLLOWING DAY
What, that's not enough? In that case, it's probably a good thing that Official Offbeat Interloper Karl Cremin will be DJing at the wonderful We Love the 90s night at the Phoenix (aka the Campbell) on Far Gosford St in Coventry. Don't be put off by the name, just get yourself down there if you're still around on Saturday, he plays some cracking stuff honestly.
ADVANCE TICKETS
You should be fine paying on the door for Electric City, but for added security you may wish to buy your ticket in advance here: http://www.warwicksu.com/ents/event/6033/?skin=CopperRooms&template=CopperRooms_0910
SPREAD THE WORD!
Please spread the word about this event to anyone who you think may be interested. Obviously there are ex-Offbeaters spread out all over the place, so we're going to be relying heavily on word of mouth to make this work.
DID I MENTION GETTING YOUR REQUESTS IN?
Yes? Well, I'll mention it again. The DJs Holly and Rick are happy to play as many Offbeat classics as will keep you happy, but you have to tell them what you want! If you have a request, either reply to this message, post on the wall of the event or on the Electric City group here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=app_2373072738&ref=ts&gid=6252332145
Right that's it - see you on the 5th.
Term 2!
Monday, February 15, 2010
Hello.
Here's a list of everything that's going on for the rest of the term, in handy chronological order.
Monday Week 6 - Walk for Water event.
This is a 24-hour RAG event (the first 24-hour event ever to take place on campus). Volunteers will be walking around campus, collecting for Practical Action, for 24 hours. This is to highlight the fact that many women and children in Africa walk up to 6km per day for water. Offbeat have agreed to "man the decks" (sorry) on the Piazza for this event, and we will be playing music from 12pm until 2am, possibly for longer. We will be collecting money in return for playing requests... the larger the sum, the further up the playlist the track will go. So come along, hand large wads of cash to charity, and we'll definitely play your favourite obscure track.
Thursday Week 6 - Bar night in Robbins Well, Leamington.
We're going to be downstairs in Robbins Wells this evening, having a few drinks and listening to some good music, as ever. Feel free to come along, bring friends & housemates.
Saturday Week 6 - DJing in the Copper Rooms for a Unicef event.
Details on this event will be released later (although we know there's going to be live music).
Wednesday Week 7 - Open Mic night in Jug & Jester, Leamington.
If anyone is interested in performing music, comedy, sketches etc. please get in touch!! We'd love to hear from you. Otherwise, just come along at 8pm, starting at 8.30pm for a night of entertainment and excellent music.
Friday Week 7 - PROPAGANDA trip to Birmingham.
Propaganda is the biggest indie club night in the UK, and we want to organise a trip there on the Uni Express, possibly checking out a few bars beforehand. It looks like an amazing night, so let us know if you're interested as we need a certain number of people for it to be feasible. The price should be around £12 for transport and entry.
Friday Week 8 - Offbeat's 25th Birthday Party/ Electric City.
This event is so exciting I think it is beyond the power of the English language to describe. I will nonetheless attempt to. To celebrate 25 years of Offbeat, we will be transforming Electric City into a birthday party! Lots of old members will be coming, the Copper Rooms will be transformed, there will be games, balloons, sweets and much more besides. We will be doing a lot of publicity nearer the time, and this should hopefully be the best Electric City this year.
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Aside from that, we will be holding elections towards the end of term, details of which will follow later. Some current Exec members may run again, but two of us are graduating and I'm off to France for a year, so we are in need of at least three new members.
Also, is anyone interested in buying Offbeat hoodies (around £15) and t-shirts (around £10). The t-shirts especially will be very impressive, with the band cartoons, designed by Polly, that were used at the quiz. They are truly excellent.
So, you've read this message, and are surely wondering what to do next? The answer is this.
1. Come along to our events.
2. Let us know if you are interested in the Propaganda trip, as we need to work out numbers as soon as possible.
3. Let us know if you are interested in DJ-ing at any of our events. We are always looking for people to do this, we will give you a bit of training and no experience is necessary! Send a message to su256@sunion.warwick.ac.uk or our co-president Jonathan Higgs on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/jonathan.higgs
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Hopefully see as many of you as possible soon. We're always saying it, but Offbeat is a very friendly society so it's never to late to join in, even if you haven't been to anything before!
Offbeat 25 (part 2)
The academic year 2009/2010* marks the 25th anniversary of Offbeat, the greatest university indie music society in the history of university indie music societies - a whole quarter century of putting on discos and making being a student at Warwick a far less tedious experience than it might be. As far as anyone can tell, this makes us the longest running indie night anywhere in the world. Last November we had a party in London, and now we're finally having one on campus. Hurrah.
The event will be for anyone who's ever been part of Offbeat since it began in 1984. At the London event we had recent graduates rubbing shoulders with people whose involvement stretched back to the mid '80s, and it would be fantastic to have such a wide range of people again. The bonus this time is that there'll actually be room to dance. And it goes on till 2. AND it's on campus. All very good things.
The venue is Copper Rooms 2, which old people might need to know is a 500ish capacity venue in the glorious new Warwick Student Union (roughly where South Central and the old TSG corridor used to be). The lovely people who run Offbeat on campus at the moment will be taking over the Union's usual indie event Electric City for the night, and some veteran Offbeat DJs should be elbowing in at various points during the evening to ensure plenty of '80s/'90s/'00s indie classics to bring tears to eyes / cause dangerous moshing / clear the dancefloor altogether / etc.
SPREAD THE WORD!
Please spread the word about this event to anyone who you think may be interested. Obviously there are ex-Offbeaters spread out all over the place, so we're going to be relying heavily on word of mouth to make this work.
TICKET DETAILS AND SUCHLILKE
Will follow shortly.
FACEBOOK EVENT
Here's one: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=284867801170&ref=ts
25 Years of Offbeat - the fanzine!
Copies available NOW of specially produced Offbeat history fanzine, which went down a storm at the London anniversary event to the extent that it sold out shortly afterwards. But we've printed some more now, so that's good. 32 pages, lots (and lots and LOTS) of tales and recollections and ramblings from people who've been involved with Offbeat from 1984 right up to the present day, illustrated with loads of old posters and suchlike. It's great. If you want a copy mailed TO YOUR VERY DOOR then it can be yours for £1.30 (just to cover printing and postage - no one is making any money on this, promise). You can buy it through Paypal or credit/debit cards here:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=9937705
Alternatively, you can buy it from the Offbeat merch stall at the next Electric City.
Offbeat 25 (part 1)
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Autumn 2009 marks the 25th anniversary of Offbeat. This makes us probably the longest-running society of our type anywhere (and, therefore, making our discos the longest-running indie club night anywhere). To mark this, we're having a big party in London for anyone who's ever been involved with the society in our first quarter-century of existence.
The venue is the back room of the very nice Duke of Wellington pub in Dalston (near Highbury/Hackney), London N1. It'll start at 7 and run till 1am. Dance, drink, say hello, grumble about how indie music's not as good as it used to be in 1985/1989/1996/2001 (delete as applicable) - you know the drill. It'll be great.
See the Facebook event here.
READ ALL ABOUT IT!
This night will also be your first opportunity to get hold of the specially produced Offbeat history fanzine, telling the story of Offbeat from the start, in the words of those who were there. This is currently shaping up very nicely, with loads of great (and frequently very funny) contributions from people who've been involved over the years. If you want to stick your oar in, it's not too late - just get in touch via the Facebook event above in the next week or so. It'd be particularly good to get hold of any more old flyers/posters.
VOTE FOR YOUR FAVOURITE OFFBEAT TUNES!
If you want to have an input into the playlist for the evening, post on the Facebook event wall with your top 3 Offbeat songs - these might be personal favourites, or songs that you remember being played to death at discos, or you might associate them with Offbeat for some other reason. These songs will be compiled to make the ultimate Offbeat chart for everyone to bounce around to on the evening. Velocity Girl? Debaser? Freak Scene? AM180? Blister in the Sun? Girl from Mars? Buddy Holly? She Bangs the Drums? Voodoo Ray? Make your voice heard!
(NB Mainly for logistical reasons related to sourcing a DJ rig and dragging it to a pub in North London, we're not planning on having DJs at this - just a pre-prepared playlist that will be left running through the night. If anyone would really, really prefer some ex-Offbeat DJs to be wheeled out for the evening, let me know and we'll see what we can arrange...)
'PART 1?'
Yes indeed... there's going to be something happening in the Midlands next term. Watch this space.
SAVE THE GRAD CLUB!
Not strictly releated to the anniversary, but some of you might (should) be interested. It's emerged that when finished, Warwick's glorious new union building won't have a small club/bar type venue, a la the place that has been known variously as the Graduate Club/Zippy's Joint/The Elephant's Nest, for societies to put on their own discos and suchlike. Effectively this is robbing societies like Offbeat of their core activity, which seems a bit naughty really. Meanwhile, the place that used to be Zippy's is standing empty, without any real plans to do anything with it. If you want to register your disquiet about this, join the Facebook group here or post on the Union's forum here.
WELCOME BACK!
Monday, October 5, 2009
This is Offbeat - the home of indie/alternative music at Warwick. Established in the 1980s when The Smiths and REM graced the union. Despite what could be described as a blip last year, our smashing new exec is all revved up to make it one of the biggest and most active societies - as it should be. Hooray!
This year marks our illustrious society's 25th ANNIVERSARY (woo! etc.), making us one of the, if not the, oldest indie music society in Britain - or the world for that matter. We plan to throw a massive party to celebrate accordingly, and we're drawing up ideas left, right, and centre but we need YOU, yes, YOU to tell us what you'd like to see - bands? DJs? massive inflatable animals?
Exciting Electric City Happenings
First EC of the new year looks like its gonna be a cracker. Pre-EC gig is the NME Radar Tour featuring Golden Slivers, Marina & The Diamonds, Local Natives and Yes Giantess. Who are they you might ask? Well, the Radar Tour is responsible for unleashing some of the following on the world: Maximo Park, Blood Red Shoes, The Automatic, Friendly Fires, La Roux and Crystal Castles. So if they are anything to go on we should see big things from these bands, and if not is still going to be a cracking night of live music. And all this for under £10!!
more info: here
While you're at it, why not check out Golden Silvers and Marina and the Diamonds on Spotify/Youtube - you won't regret it.
MORE COOL NEWS! (no, really)
Kissy Sell Out, 'One of the biggest names in UK dance' (according to our ever so humble SU), is coming to the Copper Rooms on the 24th October, on the back of his soon to be released album, 'Youth'. Now this might not seem that amazing to you, but I would seriously suggest you check the album out (available in full) on Spotify - it's a corker. Mixing the frenetic synth bashing of 'new rave' (the word nu is an abomination and is not to be used) with heartfelt lyrics and a smidgeon of old school house, it really is a cracking album, and should be brilliant live - so get listening, and get excited for the 24th.
Offbeat at the WGA Alumni Weekend
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
This is mainly for the benefit of any old people who may be passing through. This coming Saturday (20 June) will see the WGA Alumni Weekend on campus, where ex-students of varying degrees of decrepitude are allowed back for a couple of days before they get locked up again. As part of this, some ex-Offbeat people will be DJing at the Alumni Disco in the Union's brand new Copper Rooms. Obviously it's primarily for graduates, but anyone at all who fancies coming should go to http://www.warwick.ac.uk/go/alumniweekend - it's free to get in but you need to register. See also http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=93924575963&ref=ts
 since 26.1.09
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