The Best Nights Out for New Years Eve 2024
The only events on NYE in London worth leaving the house for. Get some real club music - funk, soul, disco - dance like nobody's filming.
By Charlie Walker | Updated Dec 5 2024
Going out on New Years is generally considered to be a myth. And generally people are right. However, you haven't heard what we have to say on the matter.
New Years Eve, like any day for going out in London, is really the same as any other night. There's every chance you'll see some quality music and have a great night without breaking the bank on tickets. If you know what you're doing.
So here we present a curated list of possibly the only nights on New Years Eve 2024 in London that we think would be more fun than, say, a house party, or staying in and watching telly, or sleeping. And, because we're nice, we're listing them in ascending order of price.
The Big Disco with Norman Jay MBE - at Brixton Jamm
Brixton Jamm 31 Dec 2024
£15 before 10PM
£20 before 11PM
UK disco extraordinaire Norman Jay MBE brings a big one for Brixton Jamm. Funk, soul, and disco classics, mixed on vinyl, for half the waking day. What a treat.
Norman Jay’s legacy in British dance music is unmatched. A pioneer of Black British Dance music, he became known as the first DJ to play funk and disco at Notting Hill Carnival. His credentials stretch back to when KISS FM was pirate, where on air he coined the term ‘rare groove’, referring to funk, soul, and disco tracks left mostly obscure.
For his efforts in pushing dance music and culture forward, he became the first ever DJ to be awarded an MBE. Quite the repertoire for a man who has never had a studio album.
A solid option without overspending on tickets, allowing you to justify rounds instead, Norman Jay MBE attracts a mature, diverse audience from all across. He's older than most of you anyway, going til the wee small hours, so I don't want to hear any of this “I'm too old” nonsense. You're going!
The South London Soul Train NYE - at Peckham Levels
Peckham Levels 31 Dec 2024
1st release: £16
Final release: £25
Standing strong as a solid option for many a year now, the spacious, reverberating, abandoned multi-storey carpark on Peckham Rye becomes yearly occupied by the great minds behind the South London Soul Train. Truly a match made in heaven, up there with the biggest organiser-venue combos alongside Sinai/Phonox and Rhythm Section/Corsica.
Funk and souls infinite gifts are here matched by the venues openness, the ease of access, the labyrinthine distribution of dancefloors. The rigidity and industrial-feel of the former carparks design matching the rigidity of funk and discos groove, dancing like a production line nailing the first beat of every bar. Sorry got a bit carried away there. It's a magical place.
Rhythm Section does NYE 2024 - at Corsica Studios
Corsica Studios 31 Dec 2024
First release: Sold Out
Final release: £34
Another NYE surefire classic. Our favourite label in London takes to the great Elephant and Castle venue for an intimate evening of great dance tracks and great vibes all round. Expect a warm crowd and fun-loving DJs.
Why do we love Rhythm Section so much? Beyond their label output which includes some of the most exciting jazz/dance fusion music of the last decade, with innovative and influential artists like Saul, Henry Wu, Chaos in the CBD, Duke Hugh, and Hidden Spheres, Rhythm Section also host some of the most fun, carefree parties in the city.
Their crowds are always a delight, catering to and bringing in audiences that care about the music, not just the novelty of clubbing. No baby's-first-ravers in here.
Fever105’s Midnight Funk - at the Lafayette
Lafayette London 31 Dec 2024
2nd release: £34
Final release: £57
The two biggest and best names in modern disco come together for an absolutely huge New Years Eve, perhaps enough to persuade you that going out for NYE isn't a complete waste of time.
Dmitri From Paris, known for his eclectic and enlivening sets that sway from world beat to funk to disco to house, is joining Culture Calling favourite Cody Currie to bring you the serious floor-fillers going into 2025. Perhaps enough to persuade you that going out for NYE isn't a complete waste of time.
New Year’s Eve with Gilles Peterson - at The Standard
The Standard 31 Dec 2024
10th-floor dance-only tickets from 9pm: £50
Dinner:
Early sitting, 6pm-7:45pm: £120
Late sitting, 8pm onwards: £150
This ones for the adults, for the real grown-ups who can afford to drop 50 quid on a NYE ticket that ends at the condemnably early hour of 2:30am (that's not even the night?), for those who are too classy for a straight-up dance, who would rather a seated dinner, though want to have their cake and eat it and see some quality music at the same time.
On the line-up, the great Peterson is joined by a 4-course Decimo menu and Belvedere vodka espresso martinis, but that's gonna cost you extra. This is New Year's luxury at its finest. It really doesn't get better than this. Michelin-starred chef Peter Sanchez-Iglesias merges Spanish and Mexican cooking at his first ever London restaurant. Floor-to-ceiling windows, dramatic views of the city, Decimo is an unreal spot.
And we have barely mentioned that Gilles Peterson, possibly the most important British DJ of the last 30 years, coining the term ‘acid jazz’ and curating the acclaimed We Out Here festival, is taking the reigns on the Serato's. We just can't believe it. How lucky are we.
And there we have it. If it weren't for these five events, anything other than staying in and having people round would be a write-off, so we thought best to let you know. We'll most likely see you at Corsica, take care!