Dorian Grey : Frankfurt's 90s Techno Club Culture - Jockey Tails! 😉
I have definitely had a wild and interesting life. I have been fortunate to travel and party at some of the best venues in many countries. When I look back on my dance floor career Germany is clearly the birth place for me. Amongst so many amazing clubs throughout Germany Dorian Grey stood out for me as one of the craziest and most interesting venues I have ever been in.
How they got away with it for 20 years I have no idea!
Dorian Grey - Get Into Magic!
During this period of my life I was a teenager visiting my lover in Frankfurt. We were too young to get into the clubs but we were never denied entry. Her incredible father would drive us over an hour to reach the clubs, then drive home and back again to collect us in the morning. What a gentleman! Out of several excellent clubs Dorian Grey was the best in my opinion even if only for its location.
The fact that it was the name of the first book given to me by my lover added delightful synchronicity! 😉
Dorian Grey was located in the very depths of the basement of Frankfurt International Airport which was already know to have bars and sex shops in the transit area. People used to fly in just to party at Dorian Grey! As revellers entered down into the deepest part of basement they passed a door with the logo and the tag line "Get Into Magic!" here is what it looked like:
Total Mayhem
Dorian Grey seemed to have between two or three dance rooms but even after many visits I never really worked it out - must have been the beer! One room had house music playing and was blazing with hot sweaty bodies doing what can only be described as "the Frankfurt techno dance! - which I can still do quite well! 😉 To put things in perspective it was a little like the much later Melbourne Shuffle but infinitely cooler and funkier! 😉
In the middle of Dorian Grey was an temperature controlled, soundproof room where you could eat and watch the sweaty half naked mayhem of the other rooms. The music was ambient and the style was refined compared to the soundless mayhem through the windows.
The entire ceiling of Dorian Grey was made up of all the pipes from the airport. Millions of them painted matt black and stretching into infinity. It was here on this dance floor that I first heard Daft Punk's
Around The World with devastating effects many times. I went straight out and bought the vinyl.
The Americans
As you left the Dorian Grey you would be hassled by endless people pushing hash, ecstasy and kocs on you. This was all in the airport and juxtaposed by the presence of heavily armed German police with automatic weapons. After navigating this minefield my lover and I went to the McDonalds for something to drink. It was totally silent inside the McDonalds but the Germans were all doing the Frankfurt techno dance on the tables and smoking cigarettes.
As I sipped my drink I saw a family of very tired Americans coming towards the McDonalds with tired children, many bags and red eyes. As they entered the freaky silent McDonalds their faces dropped as they saw all the tripping Germans dancing in silence on the tables. The Americans slowly baked away and I laughed heartily.
Dorian Grey was a legend of a club that closed its doors with consumate style on December 31, 2000. Many amazing DJs cut their teeth there and the dance floor was ripping! Did any other Steemians make it there? 😉
For those of you who couldn't make it here is a youtube video for you but I found I had to turn the music down in parts!
good story very impressive
Cheers! I was only young! Still at school! 😉
What a great club! Remember good old days :-)
You were there my friend? =)
Yes, very often! Upvoted and resteemed :-)
Upvoted, and followed too my friend! If you pass through Cambodia lets make some beats! =)
Thanks, bro :-)
;-)
Did you ever make it to the legendary Firestone stateside?
No but I was also super super sad I missed Stadium in Jakarta! LOL!
i grew up in eschborn, so not very far from the airport. sadly i was not old enough to visit the dorian gray back then..and when i turned 18 it was already closed down due to fire security restrictions...