While there’s a strong case to be made that the current trend sweeping the festival scene is going boutique (looking at the troubles of old-school heavyweights like the Big Day Out, it’s kind of a no-brainer), the latest trend to hit the New Year’s party season is ditching the big night for the day after.
And it’s not just Australia’s own Field Day and Let Them Eat Cake that are leading the charge. As The Guardian reports, for thousands of clubbers around the world, the party doesn’t start until New Year’s Day, which provides a more exclusive and laidback alternative to the traditional end-of-year night out.
Yes, what was once the day when we all collectively recovered and attempted to piece together just what the hell we got up to last night is now big business for promoters and party organisers, as revellers look to avoid the gridlocked travel routes and strict ticketing woes that rule New Year’s Eve.
“It’s something we have considered doing for the last six years or so but we’ve only just gone for it,” says James Priestly, a DJ, who together with his partner Giles Smith, will soon be making the switch to a NYD party. “We fancied a change, and we think the crowd you get on New Year’s Day is better – it’s a bit more alternative.”
And Smith says punters are still just as eager to party on the first day of the year. “It’s still the beginning of a new year so it’s definitely a time to party. Plus, we’ve got Berghain [a Berlin club] resident Efdemin and Detroit’s Patrice Scott, so it’s going to be extra special.”
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Meanwhile, one of the pioneers of the movement, Sam Kandel, co-founder and programmer of Manchester’s iconic Warehouse Project, says that since launching his first New Year’s Day party in 2006, the event has grown each year, and he believes it has a special significance with partygoers.
“It wasn’t quite such a big thing when it started out but now it’s one of the main events of the year. There is something exciting about the first: it feels like you’re celebrating the year you are about to have, rather than the year that’s just been,” he told The Guardian.
Then there’s Zeina Raad, promoter of Motion in Bristol, whose NYD party has likewise grown in popularity over the years, and who’s willing to say what pretty much everyone is thinking: most of the time, regardless of planning or where you go, New Year’s Eve can be a real bust.
“Many clubbers feel New Year’s Eve has been an anticlimax for a while now, and this year, the way the dates have fallen means you get a good few days off to recover, which is a double bonus,” said Raad, and Kandel agrees, adding that there’s even the expectation of a different audience.
“New Year’s Eve is historically the biggest night out of the year and so it attracts an audience who don’t go out that often. By contrast, New Year’s Day is the time when all the people who were working the night before can really let their hair down. It’s a different crowd,” he says.
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NYD parties are a boon for revellers, too. Just ask 29-year-old Jessica Taylor from London. “Taxis are twice the price, the tubes are packed and there is too much pressure to have a great night” is how she described the typical New Year’s Eve outing to The Guardian.
By contrast, a NYD party offers multiple benefits. “I’m going to two parties on New Year’s Day instead, that’s the plan anyway. It’s more relaxed, it’s easier to get tickets last minute, and I think it’s more positive – you’re starting the new year off sober rather than feeling hungover,” she said.
However, for promoters, it can still be just as expensive to throw a party on New Year’s Day. “The DJs are just as in demand as they are the night before – some have numerous offers from all over the world, and many play for the highest bidder so promoters still have to pay high fees,” said Smith.
“Most staff are still getting paid a higher rate on New Year’s Day, too, and securing the venue is no less hard – just check the listings in Time Out or Resident Advisor to see that there are probably more house and techno parties this New Year’s Day than there are on New Year’s Eve.”
Regardless, it seems events held on New Year’s Day instead of the party scene’s night of nights are here to stay, and may even overtake NYE as the day when everyone gets turnt up. “We certainly won’t be in the queue for the cloakroom somewhere [on NYE]. That’s one thing we’re sure of,” said Priestley.
