Groove Aspect is an experience designed to move both your body and soul. QX spoke to the promoter, Gavin Brown, about his love of music, the inspiration for Groove Aspect and what we can expect on the night, including a superior bespoke sound system.
When did you first realise you loved music? Who did you listen to then and who are your favourite artists now?
For long as I can remember… it’s in my genes! My uncle had a Soundsystem back when I was a kid, which introduced me to reggae and dancehall scene and at 14 my sister took me to a rave in Clapham Common where I discovered house and acid house – back in the 90s. My taste crosses multiple genres and I am constantly listening to new and emerging music, so it’s difficult to pinpoint my favourite artists that I like now. But the first ever CD I bought was Mary J Blige’s What’s the 411!
When did you first get involved with clubs?
I was dancing at a club in north London in the 90s where I met the late, great Chris McCoy, one of the leading black DJs on the London scene. He introduced me to Off the Hook at Velvet Rooms where I met a lot of the DJs that are now coming to play for Groove Aspect. I hosted with Jeffrey Hinton at Heaven’s Fruit Machine on a Wednesday night back in the day and DJ’d for Patrick Lilly’s Work at Hidden in Vauxhall, and DJ’d and hosted for Urban World Pride. I also worked on a trance night called Escape from Samsara with Mark Sinclair and Shabba – again reflecting my diverse tastes!
In 2009 I met DJ NG (producer of the hit ‘Tell Me’ featuring Katy B). We hit it off straight away through our shared love of music and sound, and joined forces to promote and play for the Factory After Party in Vauxhall which lasted up until the pandemic came along and destroyed the hospitality sector. Since then NG and I have built our own sound system, Vaux Sounds, which we have taken out onto London’s skating scene with huge success and will be bringing to Bricks for our event.
What do you love most about being a promoter?
The drive to put on a good night, the buzz you get from seeing people enjoying themselves and giving people something to remember. I love connecting with a diverse range of people and we created a real community vibe at Factory, with people from all walks of life. Everyone was welcome and it felt like a family.
What is the inspiration behind your latest club, Groove Aspect, and who do you hope to attract?
We want to recreate the family vibe we had at Factory and also cater for the older LGBTQI ravers, which seems to be lacking on the scene. Musically we want to offer the same diversity as our tastes, which is why we have an R&B room and house room with all genres in between. And we want to take people on a journey.
We’re also inspired by the likes of Paradise Garage – a club which bought gays, straights, white, blacks and latins together, all for the love of music.
What else are you passionate about?
Sound design. It’s important to us to have a warm sound with depth that you get from a soundsytems that seems to be lacking in clubs these days. I realise council restrictions have their part to play, but music doesn’t have to be loud to sound good, which I feel isn’t paid enough attention to.
Apart from music I love running and keeping fit – I regularly take part in various marathon around the UK and Europe which give me the same challenges, sense of achievement and motivation that running a night does! Its hard work but the results pay off.
Are there any plans for the future that you can share with us?
Aside from Groove Aspect being a monthly event, but we are also really excited about Brixton Mini Fest, a small festival we’re putting on to celebrate the LGBTQI community in south London and beyond.
Groove Aspect is on Saturday, 3 May, 9pm – 11pm Pre-party, 11pm – 5am Party Upstairs at Bricks, Coldharbour Lane, Brixton, London SW9 8LF, United.
More about Groove Aspect
Celebrate freedom, music, and unity at Groove Aspect, an LGBTQI+ club night devoted to underground sounds and self-expression. This all-inclusive venue brings people together on the first Saturday of every month. The Groove Aspect party features two rooms, where you can expect an exceptional selection of music from both past and present. Join Groove Aspect on a musical journey through RnB, Reggae, Rare Groove, Disco, and Deep, Soulful, Tribal House, all the way to Amapiano — it’s an experience designed to move both your body and soul.
DJ lineup:
Biggy C, Kaspa, John Freeman, Tyrone, Alex Eugenio, Rhythm Session Rooms, Wezaari, Ben Parkes, Terry George, Nikky G, Brandy MC.
