Killer Kitsch: 7th Birthday

All Euan Neilson wanted was a midweek night that wasn’t heavily underground and wasn't a student night. Back in 2005 he felt that nothing like that existed and thus the techno/electro/new wave night Killer Kitsch was born. Having set the pace for Tuesday nights since 2005, the Buff Club-based night that he now runs along with Dave Sinclair and Alan ‘Hushpuppy’ Miller is celebrating its seventh year. “There were not as many clubs then and a lot of the big ones didn’t open during the week" he says. "We just wanted to put on a night that we would go to.” The midweek setting of KK has helped it to become part of people’s weekly routines as well as somewhere those who might be split between mainstream or underground nights at the weekend can happily find a place offering something in between.

The crowd that KK regularly pulls confirms that a lot of folk feel the same way and the guests they have attracted have changed expectations of midweek clubbing. Simian Mobile Disco, The Glimmers, Joe Goddard of Hot Chip and Optimo have all helped KK to, as Euan puts it, “punch above our weight, even for a Tuesday." This year will see some changes in the plans for the night though. “My aspirations have changed over the past years. I’m happy to be playing records to people and enjoying it but the future strategy will be to book big guests once every two months rather than smaller ones. Our next guest will be our 50th so we’re holding off for something amazing that people won’t believe is on a Tuesday!”

The last seven years have seen some changes in the clubbing landscape and in the last six months it has become more noticeable. “Recently the music that we play and really like is not so fashionable! When we started it was Optimo, 2ManyDJs and Bassment Jaxx and then Justice came along which really propelled us along on that wave. Now a lot more bass culture has emerged; but everything comes in waves." Undeterred by this change, he puts it in context. "Daft Punk’s Homework was big in ‘94, Justice was about ten years later so right now we are seeing a development coming through from hip-hop and r’n’b. It hasn’t changed what we play that much – although we always reference what is going on we don’t just follow something for the sake of it. In another few years, if we are still going, we’ll be at the forefront of the next revival. ”