April 29 is the International Dance Day. At Momondo we totally support a day dedicated to dancing and we've decided to celebrate the day too. Therefore we’ve asked our city bloggers to come up with their favourite spots to go and dance or watch others do it. So put on your boogie shoes and let our bloggers guide you through the best dance spots in cities across the world.
Let's dance #4: Melbourne
We’ve all seen the show ‘So You Think You Can Dance’, and yes, thank you very much, I do think I can dance, especially after a few too many drinks. And there was plenty of that last night, at the monthly dancehall gig called ‘Pressure Drop’. Held upstairs at The Laundry, in Fitzroy, Pressure Drop gets going on the last Saturday of every month.
And ‘get going’ it certainly does, with the offer of free beer between 10 and 11pm. Yes, that’s right – free beer at the bar for all the early birds. So by the time midnight rocks around, pretty much everyone in the club thinks they can dance, and why wouldn’t you, with the quality reggae and dancehall DJs who feature regularly at this event spinning the latest hits direct from Jamaica and all your classic favourites.
Dancehall evolved from decades of Jamaican music: mento, ska, rocksteady, roots reggae and dub. At first, a ‘dancehall’ was simply a sound system in a yard that people would dance to, whatever the style of music. But by the early 80’s the term defined a new form of Jamaican music which reflected the change in taste and technology.
Crack cocaine and Casio keyboards supplanted stoned dub and puritanical Rasta roots for a far racier, sexually charged boom boom crack! Today’s better-known exponents of dancehall include Sean Paul, Capleton, Sizzla and Beenie Man, artists you will hear on soundsystems worldwide.
Pressure Drop usually hits its peak between midnight and 1am, with the dancefloor kicking in every direction. It’s not a huge space, and can get very hot, but of course, that’s the way everyone likes it, especially on a cold Melbourne winter’s night.
And if once a month is not enough dancehall for you, you can head back to The Laundry every Thursday to get your fix, although being a weeknight it is a little quieter (and there’s no free beer). But it is free entry (Pressure Drop being AUS$10 and if you’re travelling, well then, it being a weeknight should make no difference to you. Laundry is open seven days and hosts a variety of gigs throughout the week, including hip hop, dubstep, jungle and drum n bass, so just check local street press to see what’s on.
Other regular dancehall events include 'More Fire' (second Saturday of every month at Miss Libertine) and 'I Love Dancehall' (on random, but regular nights at First Floor in Fitzroy). For other reggae and dancehall gigs around Australia, hit ozreggae.com
So if you are in Melbourne at one of these events, and you see a bloke on the dancefloor who obviously thinks he can dance (but clearly can’t), come up and say "g’day".
Meet Bernie
What do you like about dancehall music?
The songs are playful, fun and sexy too. The beat is impossible not to dance to: it gets everyone up on the dance floor.
Have you mastered the style of Jamaican dancehall dancing yet?
Everyone can dance to dancehall but there’s so many cool, sexy or even goofy moves being made up all the time. At dancehall nights people really let loose so there’s plenty to watch and learn!
What do you like best about Pressure Drop?
I love Pressure Drop because in one night it squeezes in lots of different DJs, MCs and vocalists. There’s always heaps of different people from around the world and they’re all there to smile, dance and party!
Go further:
Let's dance #1: Moving and shaking with Cairo's own
Let's dance #2: Swinging New York: Fancy a shag?
Let's Dance #3: Dancing down the Spree
Let's Dance #5: Dancing 'til dawn on the booze cruise
Let's dance #6: London's retro dance explosion