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A Night @ Zouk with Sander Kleinenberg

Author: Derrick/Song @ TranZfusion
Tuesday, December 11, 2001
Singapore: the land of the mystical merlion: to most - a brief stop-over destination or a shoppers paradise, to the informed: home to one of the most talked about club in the world: ZOUK.

Asia's Superclub - or infact clubs - (the Zouk complex containing 3) is a renovated warehouse built in the the late 1910's which has been completely transformed to a clubbers paradise. - Multiple levels, multiple rooms, multiple experiences..

"Velvet Underground" - an intimate club full of all that is grand - with original Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and psychedelic 60's prints this room resembles more an art gallery with its exquisite decor - marble, leather, gold (and of course velvet). The room features nothing but smooth deep funky house from residents Jeremy, Adam and Djb.

"Phuture" - especially made for beat junkies - rolling out funky hip hop, big beats, breaks and drum and bass. This long winding bar plays host to some of the best beat technicians in asia.

"ZOUK Club" - The main room - massive dancefloor - multiple bars - multiple levels - with definately one of the best lighting/sound setups i've seen at a club - blows anything i've seen in Australia out of the water!

We were lucky enough to be shown around in style - with press pass in hand - my new DV camera - and copious amounts of alcohol: We roamed - soaking the vibe that is Zouk - the vibe that has had DJ's from all over the globe rate this as one of THE best. - And i must say - had one of the best clubbing times to date.

Thanks to our new contributor Song from BedroomJocks.com - a Singaporean based DJ/Dance site - here's a detailed review of the night - as promised video footage will be coming shortly (Just need to get my PC sorted!)

Sander Klenenberg - The ZOUK Experience
Dutch Trance, as we know it today, is one of the few sub-genres of dance music that's been pushed forward in recent years despite more producers nowadays wanting to go "deep". It's not really the kind of trance that most of us are used to ( think Tiesto, Paul Van Dyk and all ) but slightly more sublime. Of this scene, the hottest deejays/producers would be Lucien Foort, Jimmy Van M and Sander Kleinenberg. And it was Sander himself that graced the decks on this fateful Tuesday evening ( although much more a Wednesday morning, as the set started at midnight ).


It's the eve of a public holiday and on such occasions, Zouk is the nightspot that's quickest to fill. Perhaps the economic repercussions of the Afghanistan terrorist war had token its toll on clubbers. Or the notion of clubbing on a Tuesday messed around with the sensibilities of a sane clubber. Whichever the reason, the crowd is ample in the main room and yet not overwhelming. Which is a brilliant change for those who enjoy their breathing ( and dancing ) space in a club.


Sander Kleinenberg pops out shortly after midnight, clad simply in a v-necked top and jeans. He's taking over from the night's resident Aldrin, one of the finest deejays in the country ( for the record, Aldrin was featured in Muzik magazine in July 2001 as the DJ of the month ). The crowd has been dished out the usual hard-hitting style of Aldrin's Tech-House influenced set, although he did bring the tempo down a notch for the Dutchman. Nobody's sure if Sander's grateful and nobody cares; they see only the Global Underground NuBreed DJ and cheers come on quickly for his first piece, a light Progressive House piece that normally pre-empts the rest of a Global Underground Mixed CD.


20 minutes later, it's clear our deejay-on-the-decks-at-the-moment doesn't intend to throw in anthems in succession. He's building up his set, albeit ever so slowly. Mixed reactions from the punters. Some are wondering why this in't a usual Zouk night with the hard stuff. Some leave for the other rooms, Phuture and Velvet Underground, but others pour in to catch Sander Kleinenberg on his maiden deejay excursion. It remains a healthy amount of people and Sander c
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