Swap your pyjamas for your best getup and that hungover cup of tea for a hard seltzer, because if the last few years have proven anything, it’s that New Year’s Day has become the optimum time for one thing: no, not hangovers – clubbing!
After investigating for ourselves how this all came to be, it became clear that January 1 has stepped out of the shadow of its big, glitzy sibling to emerge as one of the best days for dance music events in the capital. Whether you’re planning to roll through from your New Year’s Eve party into a marathon of the very best techno, or you’re having a more chilled end-of-year celebration to prepare for hours upon hours of classic disco anthems, there’s something for everyone to mark the first day of 2025 as they see fit.
Here, we’ve rounded up some of the very best dance music events in London on New Year’s Day.
Glitterbox
It’s house label Defected’s longest-running club night and a staple of the modern Ibiza clubscape, but if that doesn’t whet your appetite enough, Glitterbox describes itself as “a party where everyone smiles, hugs and throws their hands in the air to classic house and disco”. But instead of trekking to Ibiza’s Hï, you can pop down to KOKO on January 1 to catch the grooves of Horse Meat Disco and Mousse T (the genius behind Horny ‘98). Also included: confetti canons, podium dancers and enough sequins, mesh and glitter in the crowd to make even the campest of drag queens green with envy.
Get Pickled NYD x Last Ever Ever Party at The Pickle Factory
The Pickle Factory
For some time now the team behind Bethnal Green’s The Pickle Factory have been hinting (via some cryptic Instagram comments) that the intimate venue would change form towards the end of the year, with some worried that the beloved 200-capacity space was on its way out for good. Well, great news: a brand new venue (with a new layout and name) will take its place – phew. There’s still time to experience the pickle magic, though, with its last-ever New Year’s Day knees up. Home to a new room for music and cocktail bar (a sign of what’s to come?), the party’s line-up is being kept under wraps, with the owners promising it’s “by far” the biggest in their nine-year history. Clearly it’ll be one one not to be missed.
The Cause/Luke Curtis
It’s commendable how Adonis has managed to grow into one of London’s favourite queer parties without surrendering the unmistakable DIY energy it arrived at a north London warehouse with back in 2017. Since, it’s blessed the halls of Venue MOT, two iterations of The Cause and most recently Waterloo’s 26 Leake Street with a barrage of queer-fronted techno, and thankfully, its mammoth New Year’s Day marathon – which sees it return to the Docklands favourite – promises no different. Proceedings kick off bright (well, January bright) and early at 8 am, so you can either roll in from your New Year’s Eve celebrations or arrive fresh-faced and ready for a full day of in-your-face techno.
Day One at Corsica Studios
Fresh to Death
Another option for those keen for a NYE rollover, festivities at Elephant and Castle’s no-frills Corsica Studios begin at 7am. Dedicated to underground techno and aptly titled Day One, the day’s lineup pulls in an international roster of upcoming names, including Marina George, a resident of Berlin’s famed techno palace Tresor. The club – often referred to as one of London’s best – boasts two Funktion-One sound systems (the same systems used by Berghain and the late Space Ibiza), so you’re guaranteed a day of top-tier dance music.
Jake Davis
Where else better to spend the first day of the year than at a certified dance music institution? Fabric is no stranger to a star-studded New Year’s Day party, either, with Overmono, Midland and Call Super playing at the club’s January 1st celebrations in the past few years. This year, Croydon’s Skream is top of the bill. Widely considered one of the UK’s most influential DJs, prepare for six hours of deep house, minimal techno and maybe the odd flash of dubstep (he did pioneer the genre in the 2000s, after all). The night finishes at 2 am, so it may be wise to book the 2nd off of work.