Cruquiusgilde is a medium-sized warehouse space, with both the dance floor and chilling/smoking area in the same room. Each corner of the room feels detached from the symbiotic mingling of the floor, allowing plenty of displaced yet altruistic ear to ear conversations. You’re surrounded by small indoor fern trees, which simply provides the space a more organic environment, and mental clarity alongside your weekend-pack of Camel lights.
Upon arriving, you’ll be greeted by the gentle and renowned doorman of Amsterdam – Herman, then make your way through a series of doors leading to the main room. Its quite dark there, with a few small beaconed lights jutting to the ceiling here and there, a low lying fog just pressing the floor at eye level, and a solid number of dancers gyrating their bodies. It was the kind of place where you’d come across someone you had previously met at an illegal rave in Berlin or Zurich years ago. This was Cruquiusgilde’s secret element – a gathering for spontaneous individuals to carve out long-lasting memories.
Along with the venue’s wonderful appearance, the list of booked talents and obscured party nights could not have been better. We can do nothing but embrace the neural network behind the programming at Cruquiusgilde. Cruquiusgilde still has a few weeks on the clock, but here’s a quick run-up of Five of the best nights at the venue within the past few months.
1. LET Label Nights
The vibe would at times create the illusion of the building being located in some dark quadrant of the Yucatán jungle, with the most memorable nights curating densely textured techno. Some such nights were the LET parties w/ JP Enfant all-night-long – a guy who breaks in the vinyl decks with records that would give Skrillex a serious history lesson.
One of the most memorable nights was probably the LET Easter Weekend which brought along esteemed artists such as Ø [Phase], Deniro, and Sinfol. Rather than collecting easter eggs and cutting cake, everyone was indulging in other delights. Deniro was manning the last call at the decks, spinning tracks that shut off the neural networks of listeners and subjected everyone into a state of rave metamorphosis (take that as you will).
See also: Mix #120 By JP Enfant
2. Redevice Parties
And let’s not forget the frequent Redevice parties, which hosted acts such as Deepchord & Robin Kampschoer. It was nights like these that would leave you contemplating the ideology behind our petty endeavors and capitalist lives.
3. Planet Rock
Another great night was the Planet Rock party, hosting I-Robots, and Planet Rock natives Job Sifre and Sci Fi Hi Fi. It was a fine night of spaced out cosmic disco, African Rhythms, Krautrock, Italo, EBM, proto-techno, and New-wavy acid. Wonderful curation of tunes, and probably one of the most stylish and fashionable nights to date.
See also: Mix #196 By I-Robots
4. Fade Blank
In September of 2015, another stand-out night was the Fade Blank party which hosted Brando Luipi & Aura One (Fade Blank was another great regular party series at the venue). Brando Luipi‘s mixing style is unparalleled, and his record selection is untouchable. He’s been in the game for a while curating a style bound within industrial and classically-rooted styles. There’s definitely a demand for such artistry in Amsterdam, but Cruquiusgilde was one of the first to recognize it.
5. Buitengewoon
A few weeks later in Novemeber, there was also the Buitengewoon party which hosted Young Marco, the Rush Hour crew member and one of Amsterdam’s favorites along with Orpheu The Wizard & Tenzers. Let’s just say it was a blend of your typical Red Light Radio styled grooves and selections, but in reflection to the venue’s steamy dark atmosphere. In the following month of December, Eats Everything also threw an amazing party, along with Voyage Direct‘s William Kouam Djoko and Pets Recordings’ star Beesmunt Soundsystem.
See also: The Pickup: Eats Everything
Its inevitable for these temporary warehouse spaces to shut down, as many run on limited-term contracts, such as the legendary Trouw. However, at this moment everyone’s got Nicolas Jaar’s ‘Gone Too Soon‘ whirling in their ears. Its a bit of a downer to see such a great space hit the curb. On the flip-side, it paves the way for something new to wield the reins and emerge from the dark.
With all else being said, we’ll just have to see what the future offers those seeking a proper night out. Too bad they didn’t serve rave shakes.
To read the official statement by the venue itself, here is the original post in Dutch:
