The building that houses KOKO has a long and illustrious career behind it, with an enviable guest list that includes Charlie Chaplin and the Sex Pistols. Reincarnated as KOKO in 2004, the place has become an alternative north London venue for big name acts. Architecturally, the place is Grade II listed and the KOKO refit not only restored but also coaxed a lot of its former glory back out into the limelight. Expect excellent club nights and quality live music, all within the luxurious refines of a 19th Century theatre.

Pickles, MyVillage

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Sad **** said on 30th September ... "Its the day after, my ears have finally stopped ringing, my throat is still hoarse from screaming and my chest, arms, feet and knees are nackered from a little too much enthusiasm in the mosh pit. My wallet also suffered as I missed the last train back from paddington, costing me a hefty taxi fair and uncountable acrimony from the missus..

..but by heaven it was worth it...

The sound level were perhaps a little awry to start with - overpowering what is quite a compact space - but the music hall multi-layered arrangement with balcony boxes on either side fitted the theatrics perfectly.

The crowd were a wide mix, old punks, college kids, gay, straight, not telling. Initially as I stood a bit back from the stage, I was concerned that it was all going to be a little too ordered, with people standing quietly, politely tapping their toes (hey if you want to do this thats fine - apologies if I bounced across your field of view).

Once the lights (finally!) went down and the musicians took their places.. and.. and.. here she is.

YYYYYYEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSS!

The rest gets a little hazy...

She looked stunning - crooning through mantaray ballads, twirling parasols as hong kong garden powered the floor, briefly a ballerina for 'Christine'. Most of the time - all slinky rhythyms and high kicks in that wicked glove of a cat-suit.

After ?dancing? till I could barely stand the interval in the middle would have made a good point to rehydrate, doh.. Cos then she was back with a vengeance with more mantaray - spiked with juju.

Did I mention Israel? Dear Prudence? These boots?

Then at the end, after much stomping and baying a final encore, with the black feathered sioux taking a slow grind through 'into a swan'. Before upping the tempo and leaving me gasping for air in her wake.

As the lights go on the missus fights her way through the crowd from the back - we're going to miss the ***** train..

Are we, hey-ho..."
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zoe said on 08th September ... "wicked night"
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Kate Nelson, MyVillage said on 25th April ... "Dan le Sac and Scroobius Pip tour - April 14 2008

Two years ago, Dan le Sac and Scroobius Pip were selling CDs in HMV. Fast-forward to this evening - laptop-wielding Le Sac and bearded poetry professor Pip are headlining Koko, one of London’s finest gig venues.

They’ve accrued a spectacular line-up of supporting artists for their tour. The venue erupts into a cacophony of woops as Scroobius Pip, a formidable sight in the flesh, swaggers on stage while his musical comrade, Dan le Sac, settles at the computer to curate the beats.

They make their way through their soon-to-be released debut album, the make-up of which has already enjoyed widespread acclaim. During their performance the crowd bounces, shapeshifts, and sings along unreservedly.

You have to respect a preacher who practices his own mantra so when Pip hollers again and again “Thou shalt not make repetitive generic music" during the satirical spit ‘Thou Shalt Always Kill’, the audience join him. ‘Letter from God’ and ‘The Beat that my Heart Skipped’ elicit loud and appreciative rapture while the more gently performed ‘Look for the Woman’ has the audience swaying.

There’s a pretty damn stomping finale, with the trippin twosome delivering their cover of Prince’s Cream which ‘went down pretty well’ Pip says when it aired on London’s Xfm a few days earlier. Koko explodes when they come back on for ‘one more’ and when the set ends and the lights come up there’s a sea of smiling faces.

Overall, a truly spectacular evening of entertainment owing to a perfect line-up of masterful artists who complement each other impressively. Certainly worth making an effort to catch another tour date.
"
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human carbine said on 17th January ... "Buttoned Down Disco, Koko, Jan 12th

Astonishing interior of Koko only complimented by awesome music at this particular club night – not your usual xfm/virgin/radio1 daytime playlist mediocrity. But. That’s where the good points end.

Buttoned Down Disco Club Night was advertised as free entry before 10pm (as long as you bring an invite freely accessible to anyone) and £7 after 10 pm. Got there at 9.40 pm with friends. Only to find a stationary queue of about a thousand people. With the door wide shut. The queue only started moving slowly , just after 10 pm. Can’t think why…

After fifty minutes (and £7), I joined another huge queue. This time for the cloak room. Took on friend’s vest and sweatshirt and naturally, tied the sleeves in. The two items got automatically separated and put onto two hangers. When I asked for a reasonable explanation, I was told they “must do that”, for…umm…no reason, other than charging extra £2, of course.

Another 20 minutes later. And…another £6 (3 cloak room items) later, I ventured into the bar. Advertised offers were - £2.10 on selected beer and £1.50 on selected spirits. Since I wasn’t (don’t know anyone who would be) willing to pay £2.10 for a tiny bottle of Fosters (!) or £1.50 for some strange luminous pink shot (the only two ‘drinks’ on promotion), I decided to buy a round of usual drinks (vodka/coke/tonic, lager) for my friends. Forked out £31.50 for five drinks.

So, in 36 minutes, I had blown unexpected £44.50. Still, wanted to have a laugh... And did. Danced a lot, enjoyed the music. Merry people, flying giant balloons…

After checking with a door man that entry to the venue is until 2am, I called my close friend. Bigged it up. Made her get off the bed and come down. She arrived at 1.26 am. Was denied entry. First I asked the bouncer politely to let her in. Using words like “wrong information”, “ 2 am” and “please”. Even after screaming his lungs out at me, he just wasn’t budging. But so wasn’t I. After his walkie-talkie received plethora of shoutingness, like ‘obnoxious, rude woman’ , I was put onto the ‘manager’.

The man arrived with - something only sheepish humans of his intellectual level would call - a ‘smile’ on his face. And. With four carefully rehearsed lines: “Full capacity”, “You’re being rude”, “You’re being obnoxious” and “ I won’t talk to you”. Still always surprises me how, when out of depth and answers, words like ‘rude’ and ‘obnoxious’ seem to be the only way out for individuals who weren’t really around when intellect was given out.

While witnessing tens of people leaving in streams, I caught him upon the ‘capacity’ factor. That’s when the ‘rude’ comment came in. Asked if he knew how many people exactly there were inside. He said he didn’t know. I again questioned his knowledge of the full capacity while not actually knowing how many people there were inside. He amended his answer to “I do know how many, but I won’t tell you” (?). I demanded that somebody takes responsibility over the fact that I had been given the wrong information, resulting in my friend (now waiting outside for 20 mins) getting up and coming down.
After being told to email ‘koko.com’, after eventually the manager agreeing to take the responsibility for a mistake of one of his staff BUT refusing to do anything about it, and after being belittled for not ever working in the ‘managerial area’(?), he finally apologized “I’m sorry, but your friend can’t come in”.

I wanted to go talk to her and say sorry (for the seventh time), but, by that time, it had hit 2 am. Aaaaand…2 am in Koko means ‘no re-entry’. Doesn’t matter if you’re stranded, ill, dying outside, with your coat and your friends inside. So…I had to join yet another massive queue. For coats.

In those 30 mins, every single line of The Trial by Kafka went through my head. By the end, I caught the look of ‘the manager’. It was slightly regretful but also…satisfied. Post-coital kind of satisfied. I bet he did.

Never ever going back and seriously discourage all of you. Shame, because, the architecture, the atmosphere and the music inside were beyond enjoyable. But, I can play the remix of Aerodynamic by Daft Punk and great mash-ups of otherness, at home. Better still…If you yearn for a good dance in Camden on a Friday or a Saturday night, go to the Barfly. For less money on the door, significantly less for the drinks, friendly door staff and pretty much the same tunes. Can’t recommend that enough.


WHERE HAVE ALL THE COWBOYS GONE?!


Misha Chylkova
"
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get up said on 26th December ... "Bad ass"
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Jeff said on 04th November ... "I agree with the last comment.

I was at the same Idlewild gig near the front and I thought it was a really good atmosphere, Loads of true Idlewild fans singing their hearts out to every song. I never saw any unnecessary pushing or anything.

If you’re at the front of a live gig with a band that rock you absorb all of the pressure of the crowd though. It's just the way it is.

To give the venue a harsh review for that is ridiculous.

Koko's is one of my favourite."
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claire sullivan said on 01st November ... "When you are at the barrier of a gig except to be crushed, at the end of the day its the price you pay for having the best stop in the venue. If you wanted a comfy time you should of sat at home and watched it on TV."
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Sarah said on 31st October ... "Went to see Idlewild at Koko's last night. The band were great but my friend and I were seriously crushed against the barrier at the front by a loud, drunken crowd and the security at the front just stood watched and did nothing, even though they must have seen how bad it was getting. I dont think I looked like I was enjoying myself!. I was actually in pain and was afraid I was going to end up with fractured ribs, they were elbowing and pushing so badly. We had to get out in the end, it was so awful. Yobs were trying to prise us away from the barrier and we were both so battered and bruised when eventually we got out, it was really scary and upsetting. I have been to a lot of gigs and this was the worst experience I have ever had."
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maileightan said on 27th September ... "Already being familiar with the brilliant Crazy p and the gorgeous boys of The Tivoli I was expecting this gig to be a good night out... but then there was Kora. There are many definitions of genius, normally I'm in agreement with Foucault as to it's origins, but on this night I was as blown away as the rest of the bouncing crowd.
Loved the venue, adored all the bands and i'm not even related to any of them. It's even worth watching on youtube - have a look at Kora at blackmooncinema

You might even agree with me."
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Cat McGovern, MyVillage said on 24th September ... "UK gig review: Kosheen, September 18 2007

After a 4 year break following their last album ‘Kokopelli’, Kosheen are back tonight to premiere their new album ‘Damage’. Koko (The Old Camden Palace) is surprisingly packed with revellers eager to hear their new material. Lead singer Sian Evans comes on stage, welcomed with encouraging cheers from the crowd. Wearing a black balloon dress reminiscent of Madonna’s attire in the ‘Frozen’ video, choppy goth hair and killer boots, she begins their set.

The element that draws people into Kosheen’s music is Evans’ distinctive and haunting vocals. They pierce through the venue and you can tell that she is incredibly passionate when she sings. They begin with a sprinkling of new tracks which are very different from their first break-through album, ‘Resist’. The tunes are slower and definitely more indie-pop, rather than their trip-hop/dance/drum and bass roots. Some of the distinctive Kosheen sounds are still there but something seems to be lacking.

“What a lovely, lovely welcome! Thank you very much. Thank you for coming up!. Evans humbly says.

To keep the crowd interested they launch into successful, famous singles from ‘Resist’. When these tracks are played the mood of the venue changes. Everyone is more animated and starts dancing and moshing to the addictive drum and bass beats. It is clearly the best reception the band gets all night. Evans seems more comfortable and confident with these it’s reflected in the audience’s reaction of riotous applause and cheering. She sings classics such as ‘(Slip and Slide) Suicide’, ‘Hide you’, ‘Catch’ and ‘Hungry’ but the set declined in quality as soon as the new material was played. They used to be known as a dance/drum and bass group but now they have, unfortunately, transformed into a mediocre indie group with derivative, boring tunes.

It seems the fans were forewarned about Kosheen’s drastic change of musical direction with their second album. This album has paved the way for the future demise of the band and it is an unfortunate spectacle to observe.

“You’re amazing, thank-you. It’s been such a wonderful journey for the lot of us. We’ve had a beautiful journey. Thank you for accompanying us, now, onwards.”

It’s a shame that her audience don't agree with the sentiment...

"
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Gregory Cristal said on 22nd May ... "Featured Columnist
Camden Palace was ever the best club I ever did go to. Feet-First used to have a wonderful tuesday evening here for a mere £3 entry. You'd line up outside go in past the box office desk and past the cloakroom down a shaft into a huge theatre with amazing lightshows and a maze of overpasses, bars and dance areas. It has now been reduced to club NME- featuring live acts which do not follow the hardcore rock culture that was Feet first. Anyway, you pop out into this theatre, there are flights of stairs leading downward and behind you on either side and the sides of the galley trail off around the venue on the first floor taking you above and behind the stage, off into complex staircases running in the clubs walls and down to the dancefloor or up- to the seven or 8 storeys of seating and bars that flow into the main stage like a storm. The top floor is another bar completely- so far away from the main music that it is almost its own club. The drinks are well priced even now at about a pound for a bottle of beer. The queuing times are quite long but if you hunt you can find seating. Occasionally floors are shut off due to private parties and the music is awful. Tjose times are now. The bar is an amazing venue but the club nights are appauling.

I give it a 7/10. It is truely fantastic if you like exploring with pint in hand. Truely appauling if you wanna pull and dance the night away!

Hello, I'm on a mission to visit and rate every pub, club and bar in the UK. I know what your thinking but don't worry- i've got an artificial liver on standby. read about Gregory Cristal's progress on his blog http://barblog.lastminuteliving.com/

"
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Priya, MyVillage said on 01st March ... "If there is one night I have to recommend, it has got to be KOKO's club NME night. Although the queue is ‘tad’ bit exaggerated there is nothing like stomping out to Indie, Rock, Punk or even The Cure.

Like all clubs it can get heated, but KOKO has a way of making you sweat it out like no other-be prepared, as daft as it may sound , portable fans are probably ideal for a night out.

With loadsa room to hang out and explore , you’ve got no excuse not to mosh it out."
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Sarah said on 25th February ... "Been to most of the funkin you nights held at Koko, and have always had an amazing night. I miss Camden the way it was back in the day though, especially behind the stage and you were allowed to run around everywhere.
I think the prices of drinks are just a joke.
"
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pete p said on 24th February ... "could not believe what they have done bring back the old camden palace im gutted i will never go again!!!!! Gutted"
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Martin said on 11th January ... "Oh the day that I entered this club for the first time must've been about a year ago now. I was 17 and visiting a london friend of mine (i'm from belgium) and he decided to show me his city. It was a great night with good music and a good atmosphere. Not that it matters that much but I also met a great girl there (Anna), i still remember her..

ah well, the main reason to write this review is because i just saw the sugarbabes playing there (on tv), and koko club was broadcasted on some national music channel here in Belgium. i decided to look up some stuff and i'm planning to go to London again soon.

Great place to go"
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Daniella/East Sussex said on 07th December ... "I am dissapointed to read these reviews as I was planning a trip up. Camden Palace used to be one of the best venues I had ever been to and I am really upset to read these things.

Why try and fix something if it isn't broken. Ok so the place had seen better dayz but it rocked and the crowd were wild - whats happened???"
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Peter said on 25th November ... "Few night outs in London have been as bad as Koko which stands out as definitively the worse night out of my life. From the point of entry past the racist staff to the chavistic decor, excruciatingly bad music, prohibitively priced drinks - its a journey from bad to worse to a hellhole.

Sadly when you're in Koko's all bad things never come to an end and the nightmare continues till wee hours in the night. "
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claire said on 16th October ... "i must agree with the first comment. We visited the CLUB NME night at KOKO in June this year... again, it was full of clear underage children; it was more like a school disco - and i'm only 21! I felt terribly old!

the drinks horrifically overpriced.... and yep, the 'children' were actually RUNNING AROUND. i heard nothing but good things about KOKO before my visit, i was bitterly disappointed. But on a brighter note, the place is beautiful... you cant fault the decor!"
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Tessa Batacharia MyVillage said on 24th March ... ""Hideous. Saturday night, and I thought that the newly refurbished Camden Palace, now KOKO would be worth a visit. How wrong I was.

It's difficult to know where to begin with what was wrong with this one. As I walked up to the entrance security stopped us, not to check our bags, but instead to tell my friend to take his jumper off from around his waste and put it on, as "It's a VIP ticket only night, and we want people to look like VIP." Fair enough we thought, until we walked in and the place was filled with under aged people wearing baseball caps, trainers and walking around with bad boy attitudes.

Considering that the night was part of a week long free music festival, for people to come and see what improvements had been made to the club, I would have thought that staff would be helpful, encouraging people to come back. However I then wanted to put my coat and my jumper in the cloakroom, and at ?1.50 a ticket, I thought that maybe it would be better to put both items on one hanger. The woman in the cloakroom didn't agree, and instead of politely telling me that wouldn't be possible, she very rudely barked back at me "If you don't have the money, you can't put your coat in." I paid the ?3, and put both items in. Considering that the night was supposedly full of VIPs, it's just lucky that I wasn't one of them, and I was just one of the journalists invited to review the night.

Next stage of the evening, buying drinks, and wow they were expensive, three JD and Cokes cost ?18, which must have been the VIP prices for the VIPS that can afford to drink there.

Club KOKO, the title of the night itself was a diabolical. There was a large stage on the ground floor, where lots of dancers, that looked like they belonged to a boy-band, did some high-kicks, swung their arms around and mimed to Usher.

Escaping the dance floor tragedies that surrounded me, I went upstairs and tried to get into the VIP area. The security guy, at first said no, then asked me if I had a boyfriend, when I said no, he asked me for my phone number and then said I could go upstairs. The VIP area must have been the biggest facade of the entire evening. The lounge was full of girls wearing tiny little skirts, and more of the baseball cap crew, there wasn't a VIP in sight. I went straight back downstairs to join my friends, only to be almost knocked down by several firemen that were rushing up the stairs to deal with an emergency. Thankfully it wasn't anything serious.

The venue is beautiful and MINT have obviously spent money to turn it into the complete opposite of what Camden Palace was. However being generous, all that needs changing to make Club KOKO work is the security, the staff, the crowd, the music, the dancers, and the attitude, and then maybe this place might get another visit, until then I'd rather walk around with a rusty nail stuck in my foot on a Saturday night.""
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Anon said on 24th March ... "" I used to live in Camden Town, about 2 mins walk from what used to be Camden Palace - Kentish Town. I haven't been there in over 15 years. I am 43 now. I was disappointed to read this review on what is now called KOKO, as I had planned a return visit to London, especially my old Camden.

I remember it as very welcoming, warm, lively and a great laugh. I never put anything in the cloakroom - even then I knew I'd be charged. It seems the drink prices have not changed much - it was just as expensive when I was there. I used to sit on the yellow carpeted floor and smoke dope! No baseball caps in sight. Strobe lighting... a lot of girls not particularly in short skirts... No VIP area upstairs - let alone VIPs - I could go where I wanted without being stopped. Again, I am disillusioned.""
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Toma said on 24th March ... ""It's the best night club I have ever been in London! This saturday I had the most emazing party! Me and my friends we had a lot of fun! I liked interior of the club very very much. I'll go back there after 3 months to have the same kind of party again. THANK U KOKO! :)""
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