Black Celebration

Black Celebration returns to Sidney & Matilda on Friday 6 November, the next chapter in a night that's built around the pagan fire festival of Samhain. That's the time of year when the Goth King is said to rise from the ashes, and the whole evening is themed around that. The two DJs behind it, Dionysus and Vega Bukowski, describe themselves as his sonic high priests, and they've set themselves the task of invoking a pagan ritual and a 'dance of the dead' on the floor.

The music they'll be spinning covers a wide stretch of the darker end of the spectrum. You'll hear classic gothic anthems alongside dark wave, post-punk, heavy industrial, goth metal and neofolk. It's a broad mix, so the night pulls from a few different corners of the scene rather than sticking to one sound. If you're into the heavier, industrial side of things, there's plenty of that, and the neofolk and post-punk keep it from leaning too far in any one direction.

It's a two-part night that starts in the Bar and moves down to the Basement. The first half runs from 8:00pm to 11:00pm, with a DJ pre-club set in the Bar. From 11:00pm onwards, the club night takes over the Basement and carries on until 4:00am on Saturday morning. Entry is free for the Bar set between 8:00pm and 11:00pm, and then £7 for the Basement from 11:00pm to 4:00am, both paid in cash on the door. So you can just pop in early for a few drinks and a bit of music, or stay on for the full run.