Wicked KL club grand opening @ W Hotel Kuala Lumpur

Wicked-KL-Opening

I was at the launch of Wicked KL courtesy of an invite from Carlsberg Malaysia. This is the latest club to hit the KL nightlife scene. In these few months, I’ve been to new club openings at CE LA VI KL and Empire by Zouk. I have to say, Wicked resonates the most with me. That’s corporate speak for “Damn, this club is fire!”. 🔥 Not “on fire”, kids nowadays just say it’s “fire”. Adapt and learn. The two DJs were slaying it last night. I had a lot of fun. Or should I say, I was turnt.

Wicked

W Hotels is Marriott’s upscale pivot towards youth. This hotel brand is marketed towards a younger crowd while still retaining the luxury of their parent company. Wicked KL is at the 12th floor of the hotel. The DJ console is decked out with an insane light, smoke and visual spectacle which will excite all your senses. They have cutting-edge lasers and state-of-the-art sound systems as well as LED screens to create and unparalleled clubbing experience.

Cute-Uniform

The promoter girls have really cute cabin attendant style uniforms too. Or should I say, fly uniforms. Okay, I’ll stop with the dad jokes. I’m not a dad btw, if any single girls are reading this.

Chivas-XV

Wicked KL had Martell Noblige Cognac and Chivas XV on free flow. Pernod Ricard must have been the spirits sponsor. It’s my first time tasting the XV – a 15 year old Scotch finished in Grande Champagne Cognac casks. The XV has really sweet notes but I preferred the woody Noblige. That’s worth picking up next time I go through duty free.

Wicked-KL

I have a soft spot for cognac though. You know how Chinese families always have a collection of cognac bottles at home? You get them in hampers and older Chinese bought them coz cognac was considered THE premium spirit back then. My first taste of spirits was VSOP and when I was in college, I took up the challenge of whittling down the vast family collection of cognac.

Champagne-Parade

I succeeded, although I later restocked the family warchest with my own single malt whisky collection. As it was the first spirit I tasted and drank in quantity, I have a soft spot for cognac. I really enjoy the flavors, complexity and familiarity.

Carlsberg-Wicked

There’s also Carlsberg Smooth Draught beer courtesy of May. Carlsberg events are the only ones I unequivocally say yes to unless I’m busy with work. They’re really fun and May is so easygoing and nice, she feels more like a friend than a client.

Wicked-Violin

I love the music they play in Wicked. The DJs are really good and I enjoyed the type of music they were playing at the opening. There’s a wicked (pun intended) live violin performance that went so well with the DJ’s setlist too. Till today, I’m still wondering what that song is. This is the video recording I took – please comment or email me if you know the song coz I’ll like to listen to it again.

Sin-City

Wicked will have themed nights too – house music on Lucid Dream Sundays, R&B on Bootie Mashtronix Tuesdays, Boom Bap Wednesdays is Hip Hop, Lui Lui Thursday goes old school retro and EDM is the name of the game on Bang Fridays and Sin City Saturdays.

Wicked-Us

Let’s get Wicked.

Empire by Zouk: A hip-hop club above the clouds at Genting

Empire-by-Zouk

Interesting anecdote: Do you know what the biggest draw in Vegas is? It’s their nightclubs. I’ve read about this recent pivot to mega clubs with big name DJs with interest. It seems that shifting preferences in the younger generation has made nightclubs a very lucrative business. Casinos have the funds to bankroll these huge events with multi-million dollar light and sound systems, so they’re natural partners.

Empire-RWG

I was in Genting over the weekend to check out the launching of Empire by Zouk. Empire is one of Zouk Genting’s two club outlets, and one of the newest concepts introduced under the Zouk umbrella. The idea behind Empire stems from a hip-hop themed, dual club-lounge that is reminiscent of the upscale, private lounges in New York. I know some hip hop kaki who would love the music here.

Empire-Zouk

In true Zouk fashion of having separate areas to cater for different tastes, Empire will be dedicated to hip hop. Spanning 5000 square feet, Empire will seamlessly have an urban blend of art, fashion and music. Designed in homage to the global cultural reach of the genre, Empire drops with swagger from the Bronx-inspired graffiti to Compton-infused flows.

Empire-Genting

It will also be perfect for a private party for anyone looking to throw a blowout for up to 500 people with a bar and 20 tables. A 20 feet long LED screen takes center stage to illuminate the club behind the DJ console which will host the best DJs in the world including guest DJs from Zouk Singapore.

Empire

Global leaders LEDs Control who have played a part in clubs worldwide created the massive piece to make the club a visual feast. At 6000 feet above sea level at Resorts World Genting, Empire will be the new hip-hop central of Malaysia, bringing street beats and urban vibes. Visitors can then end the night by staying at one of the seven hotels spread throughout Resorts World Genting.

Genting-Empire-Zouk

Empire by Zouk will be open from 11.00 pm to 3.00 am and is located at the Zouk Atrium, Level G of SkyAvenue, Resorts World Genting.

CÉ LA VI Kuala Lumpur club opening, Ilham Tower

CE-LA-VI-HB

I received an invitation to a new club opening last week. I haven’t been clubbing in at least 8 years, so I thought I’ll go and check out what the youth of today are into. It’ll be an eye-opening experience, I told myself. Mingle with the millennials and all that. I made sure to wear my best black shirt that day since I’ll be going straight after work.

CE-LA-VI-Kuala-Lumpur

CÉ LA VI is a nightspot that has locations in all the major cities in Asia. They have some serious funding behind them. The outpost in Malaysia is located at the top of Ilham Tower – right in the middle of CBD Kuala Lumpur. This gives it nice panoramic views of KL at night. There’s even an al fresco area where you can sit right at the edge of the building.

CE-LA-VI-Club-Opening

Like I said, I haven’t been clubbing in a long time and the nightclubs I know tend to be places with loud, overpowering music where copious amounts of interesting and unusual recreational substances are consumed throughout the night. I come from a different era, and I cut my teeth in the underground raves and doofs of Melbourne. I also ran in the feng tau circles locally so new (and proper) clubs like this are slightly foreign to me.

CELAVIE

I found out that I enjoyed CÉ LA VI quite a bit! As an older gentleman, thumping bass and shouted snippets of barely audible conversations are not my thing. I also don’t want to be stuck body-to-body with a grinding mass of youthful figures, with nowhere to move while college-aged girls in revealing little black dresses twerk in front of my crotch. Or do I? 🤔 This is much more my speed.

CE-LA-VI-Club

CÉ LA VI has several different themed rooms so you can choose the type of music and ambiance that you want. I found a room where they were playing Jay-Z’s cover of Tupac’s classic “Me and My Girlfriend”. Very nice! I always tell anyone who cares to listen that the song is actually about guns and thug life and not girlfriends. But that is beyond the scope of this article.

CE-LA-VI-Toilet

“Wah piang! Jamban got armchair!” my inner Ah Beng exclaimed.

CE-LA-VI-Us

There is also a dining area where you can sit in relative peace and have proper conversations without having to raise your voice. I found myself most comfortable here, and I took advantage of the delicious tempura prawns and fresh sashimi they were serving that night. I also partook in quite a few of the free flow wine they had going on. Would I come here again? I would. CÉ LA VI is not what I assumed it to be, they have something for everyone, even an old geezer like me.

Win 10 exclusive invites to the star-studded Club Neverland launch!

lab4

Who doesn’t like to let their hair down during the weekends and party the stress of the work week away? I consider myself somewhat of a nightlife connoisseur. I started going to raves in 1996 when I was studying in New Zealand. I went on to be a regular at clubs and doofs (outdoor raves) when I was in university in Melbourne.

rave

I guess you can say that I am a child of the PLUR movement. #hipster

lan kwai fong

I have clubbed in Korea, Hong Kong and even in Sri Lanka. I just came back from Lan Kwai Fong a few days ago and thought to myself, wouldn’t it be awesome to have been one of the people there when it first started?

Wouldn’t you love to be the one of the first, exclusive few to attend the pre-launch of a club?

You’ll practically have bragging rights for all eternity!

Club Neverland is going to be the biggest thing to hit the KL entertainment scene since…well, since sliced bread. Heh.

The name itself evokes good feelings. The story of Peter Pan sets the scene – he brings some good stuff of stripper from https://www.malestrippers.com.au/sydney/ in the club which brings the more spark in the enjoyment.

Well, I’m glad to report that the place isn’t mythical anymore – at least, not the club. Neverland aims to be the cornerstone of Kuala Lumpur’s nightlife scene and it’ll have interactive live performances set in a hip and stylish environment.

Club Neverland can easily fit 900 people in a sitting capacity and it has an on-site car park with bays for 500 cars. You won’t have to worry about parking in the heart of KL again!

Venue: Club Neverland
Event: Exclusive Pre-Launch
Address: 1, Jalan Kia Peng
Date: 7th October 2011

Remember this video that I did?

How would you like to be the FIRST to experience this new clubbing destination? You’ll get to causally mention:

Yeah, I was at the pre-launch before Neverland even opened to the public.

Won’t you love to see your friends’ faces when Club Neverland becomes the place to be in KL?

Imagine being at this historical event before everyone else gets a chance to party at the latest club in town! I have only have 10 exclusive invites to give away and I hear there will be celebrities and personalities attending the pre-launch.

Trust me, you’ll want to be there.

Calling all party people!

Just head on over and click Like on Club Neverland’s Facebook and answer this question to win:

What is your idea of a fabulous Friday night out?

Tell me in the comments below and I’ll pick 10 lucky winners to attend the pre-launch. You’ll get to bring a friend and your friend can bring another friend so each winner will have passes for three (3) people, including themselves!

This contest ends at 8 pm on the 2nd of October. Please ensure that your email address is correct so I can get in touch with you. Nuffnang will contact you after that so you can collect your tickets – each ticket comes with a free drink!

Come and join us in this star-studded pre-launch party for Club Neverland and be forever young for a night! 🙂

Exclusive Singles Valentine’s Night @ Mist Club

vday

I was at toptorontoclubs in Bangsar on Valentine’s Day courtesy of Chingy, who got me three tickets to the event. It’s organized in conjunction with Lunch Actually – the premier dating company in Asia. The event started at 7:30 pm but I was there early with Charlz and Joyce in tow to cover the event. Chingy has just started working in Mist Club, Bangsar.

pam

I met Pam there who arranged for me to get in earlier to take photos and cover the event. She also generously provided me with a lot of drinks vouchers, thanks for the great hospitality! =D

Everyone who went in got a bag of schwag containing party favors, a shot glass and forms (with the obligatory pencil) for games.

us

These are my coworkers – Charlz and Joyce. Er…Charlz, you should make it a habit to wear longer skirts to clubs. 😉 It saves me the time of having to apply mosaic. :p

filling

Anyway, Mist started filling up with people as the night progressed…

dance

…and games went underway. The audience participation was lukewarm (I wanted to go up but the MC started pulling out name cards before I could) but most people were game enough to go on stage when their names were called. There was this funny dancing competition where the music is cut into English, techno and Chinese songs and the paired up couples had to dance according to the beats.

winner

The winner walked away with a bottle of champagne. Nice!

kissing

The next game involved women, lipstick and kisses. The females are supposed to plant as many kisses as they can on their male partners (selected at random). I love shooting this scene. 🙂

xx

We interrupt this program to bring you an XX Chromosome photo – this is one of the staff at Mist.

condom

Back to the games, the last one was a challenge where the fastest person to obtain:
A blown up condom
Two pairs of heels
Boxers
A pair of earrings
Wins a prize. Some guy snagged it in like 3 minutes. Respect.

lina

There was also a lucky draw – a trip for two (2) for three days two nights to Pulau Redang, all expenses paid. Lina, a girl who was sitting with us, won the prize. I’m so gonna suck up to her so she’s gonna take me there with her. 😉

Thanks to Chingy, Pamela and Justin for the warm hospitality (and the massive amount of drink vouchers). 🙂

I had a great time!

(and I met someone special that night – yes, you S)

Clubbing in Miri

cheerie berries

I went clubbing in Miri three (3) nights in a row and ended up spending two days to recover from it all. There is a central clubbing district (CCD?) of sorts at Cheerie Berries, which sounds like a euphemism for MDMA (berries that makes you cheery?). Balcony, Island and numerous other clubs are concentrated in that area.

balcony

I was at Balcony all three nights. The place was absolutely packed on Saturday night with no standing room, much less elbow space. It’s a popular club with the college students and the 20 somethings but people in their late 30’s might find themselves a little bit out of place here.

balcony bar

Balcony has a glass aquarium feature above the bar area where there is a real life shark swimming inside. You can catch a glimpse of our finned friend in the video here:

Balcony Video

chivas regal

I don’t remember much of Balcony the first day due to excessive consumption of a certain NMDA antagonist but the place actually does have a balcony as well as a pretty good dance floor.

balcony dj

The DJ at Balcony mostly plays commercial trance music as well as popular dance hits. I spent most of my nights here hanging out with friends.

rex box ktv

I also went to Rex Box Karaoke MV which…er, pays homage to the popular Red Box KTV franchise in KL and the private rooms upstairs.

rex box

Red Box, I mean Rex Box, is meant as a more legitimate KTV lounge with private rooms.

rex box staircase

There is a staircase going up decorated with a cabinet full of…empty bottles of distilled spirits.

de-luxe karaoke

The two joints are owned by the same proprietor and the “private club” upstairs is called De-Luxe Karaoke and has rooms named after cities in China e.g. Shanghai, Hainan, Xiamen etc.

de-luxe interior

You get an idea of the clientele that patronizes this joint from the interior decor. I was there with a group of 30 other…er, gentlemen of less-than-stellar repute under the same…union, shall we say.

may ketamine

May kindly gave me an RM 1 note coz I was thirsty and wanted to get a bottle of mineral water. It was soiled with some kind of powder which I blew off. Unfortunately, I inhaled instead of exhaled. Bummer.

de-luxe dodgy

There were a lot of China girls inside and things going on involving various substances. It was all very open since this was apparently their stomping grounds. It’s a rather dodgy place and completely dark with only the large projection TV for illumination and loud bass music flooding the room. The place stays open until 7 am in the morning!

v-gas

The other joint I went to was V-Gas Pub and Lounge where May wanted to hang out after hours. It was still open at 3:30 am but the lights were not lit on the signage.

v-gas bar

It’s not really a lounge per se but rather a disco of sorts with a bar seating area.

v-gas disco

V-Gas plays a lot of hard trance and some people can be seen doing the Miri Shuffle.

The Miri Clubbing Photos:

may me faye

May, Huai Bin (me) and Faye doing two NMDA antagonists (alcohol is an NMDA antagonist too).

bitch leash

Damned bitch had me on a leash. 😉

faye lv me

Faye, LV and myself drinking at Balcony.

girl on girl

There was a little bit of girl on girl action going on…

ffm

…and I figured I should make it FFM. 😉

hmm

I have no caption for this one. Huddle puddle? Cringe inducing term.

me back

I took off my clothes at some point – and I have no recollection of that until I went through the photos. Interesting…

I kinda regretted doing the clubbing thing three (3) nights in a row coz it got really tiring after the second night. I wished I had gone to Mulu for a proper nature retreat but the flights were all fully booked. Nevertheless, I see this as an insight into the Miri nightlife that I have now experienced. There’s a lot of people who Party Hearty (TM) over there. 🙂

Rest & Relax (RR)

rr

Rest & Relax is better known as RR and is located above 3 Degrees Celsius (the club). It’s managed by the same proprietors and the place does not have any of the popular neon signboards other clubs and pubs display.

rr bar

There is an RR signage on the top which is not lit and there’s no indication of the 3C club downstairs except for the massive throng of teenagers hanging around the place and the bass emanating from the vicinity.

rr live band

RR (as it is commonly known) also has a live band and is a chill out place with bar seating areas as well as other more private seating arrangements compared to the all out bass music of the 3C club downstairs.

rr noodles

We’ve just watched Kung Fu Panda and haven’t had anything to eat yet so we ordered a plate of fried noodles (RM 6). It’s a pretty large serving…

rr share

…so I shared it with Faye.

rr lamb

We also had their lamb cube (RM 15) which is one of the more popular finger foods. It’s pieces of grilled lamb served with chilli sauce.

high high

I also remembered having several jugs (pitchers) of High High – it’s a local cocktail concoction which consists of Guinness Stout, Heineken beer, wine cooler and vodka. It tastes surprisingly good and is very popular at pubs and bars here and usually goes for RM 48 – 50.

rr susie ting

This is the delectable Susie Ting, which is unfortunately taken. 😉

rr group

This is a group photo of us at RR – that’s me and Faye standing and Susie and Annie seated.

rr group pat

The head pat heard around the world referenced in the next paragraph.

rr faye me

I remember taking a group photo where I patted Susie’s head and Faye insisted I pose in a similar manner…this time with HER patting my head. Pfffffttt…

The Balcony Incident

balcony club

I lost my Sony Ericsson W580i cell phone AND my Sony T2 digital camera on Saturday night at Balcony, Miri. Balcony is a club that opens till late and is very popular with the Mirians. I arrived in Miri at around 8 pm and met up with Kim and Mark at Shiki – the Japanese restaurant for dinner.

island club

We went to Island Club (a pub) after that for drinks and Darren joined us there. I took a total of 111 photos that Saturday but didn’t have time to upload them to my notebook due to excessive social commitments. I had to meet up with some other friends straight after that at Balcony so I went there after Island Club.

ketamine note

SWIM was given a complimentary RM 1 dollar note, folded in a rather peculiar manner as a gift. I was a little taken aback by the RM 1 folded note offering – it’s not everyday someone gives you an RM 1 dollar note. I took the keta…er, I mean currency and opened it up.

ketamine

The content inside the folded RM 1 note was rather unusual – it consisted of a white powder, which I assumed was sugar. *cough* This photo was taken the next day – I lost my digital camera that very day so it couldn’t have been from the original batch. The original gift had MUCH MORE powdered sugar than from this batch.

balcony urinal

I went to take photos and videos of the Balcony club and decided that a sugar rush would do me some good since I was pretty tired from the drive. I locked myself inside the toilet and partook in the saccharine particles. Perhaps I was a little bit too drunk and I accidentally insufflated (snorted) the entire contents of the sugar inside the toilet instead of consuming it for the sugar energy.

balcony toilet

This was a mistake since I don’t think the stuff was sugar at all. 😉 I immediately felt the characteristics of a certain NMDA antagonist come over me the moment the entire batch was snorted. I looked up into the ceiling and saw several layers of ceilings (?) and felt my entire perspective altered. I was looking at the RM 50 dollar rolled up bill that I used to insufflate the powder and thought…Oh, fuck!

balcony stairs

I wanted to call my friend (who were all looking for me – apparently I was inside for the better part of an hour) but I couldn’t manage to move so I was kinda stuck inside the toilet coz I was so fucked up I didn’t even know where I was. I was told the next day that the staff of Balcony unlocked the toilet door and helped me to my feet (and I couldn’t even walk straight even with two people holding me up).

balcony blur

The two staff members went from table to table to ask which group I was with. I think I sat down with an unknown group of people and talked to them (at least to the extent to which you can talk on that particular NMDA antagonist) before my worried friends found me. They took me home and I realized I lost my cell phone AND my digicam. One of my friends went back to search for it but it wasn’t there anymore – I don’t know where I left it.

kj faye

Much thanks to KJ and Faye for taking care of me that night! I lost RM 700 from my wallet and my Public Bank credit card and Faye canceled my cell phone service and credit card that very night in case someone stole it and used it.

boulavard

I went to the Sony center at Boulevard to get a new digital camera the very next day since I really needed one for blogging. Faye gave me her spare cell phone and her backup SIM card so I still could use a phone. I was meeting up with Kim the next day for lunch so I really needed to replace all the photos that were taken that day. I was undecided about whether to get a Sony T70 or T300 but settled for the former since I seem to have a penchant for losing things when I’m less than sober.

sony shop

It cost me RM 1178 for the T70 plus a 2 GB MS Pro Duo memory card and a Sony leather case. The T300 would have set me back RM 1599 which is not a lot more considering it has a 3.5 inch LCD (versus 3 inch for the T70) and it’s a 10.1 MP digicam (versus the 8.1 T70) but the decision to go for the T70 (besides me always losing things) is that that the 3.5 inch LCD on the T300 makes it hard to put it inside my pants pocket and I want a compact digicam for me to bring around.

sony t70

The worst thing about The Balcony Incident wasn’t the loss of the money, credit card, cell phone or digital camera. It’s the 111 photos INSIDE the digicam that I took earlier during the road trip and in Miri. That cannot be replaced while the others can. Oh well, at least I’ve learnt a lesson – reduce my sugar intake. I’m switching to Pal Sweet. There’s a lot less calories in the latter to boot. 😉

Ipanema

ipanema

Ipanema is one of the latest watering holes in Kuching. It’s located at Padungan Road (beside SOHO) at the place that used to be Tom’s. Irene and David has been hanging out here as of late and I went to check the place out on Saturday night.

ipanema interior

Ipanema is named after the beach in Brazil and the place is pretty chill – it attracts a more sophisticated crowd compared to the surrounding nightspots.

kilkenny draught

The place even has Kilkenny on draught. I (heart) Kilkenny! =D

ipanema bartender

Ipanema has an extensive selection of cocktails as well. I tend to judge a bar/pub by the quality and variety of the cocktails they have. It’s important to have a bartender who can mix a good cocktail.

pina colada

Phoenix had a Pina Colada (RM 22) which is made with Malibu (the coconut liqueur), pineapple juice, fresh cream and crushed ice. It tasted pretty good. I love a place with good cocktails.

kilkenny

I went for a pint of Kilkenny (RM 28). Ipanema has the popular Irish beer on draught (!) which I fell in love with ever since I first got a taste of the creamy ale back in Australia.

ipanema girl

There are girls selling Dunhill premium brand cigarettes like Dunhill 360 and Dunhill Top Leaf (also available at your local 7-11) inside. I don’t know if they’re promoters going through the Saturday night crowd at the nightspot but I took the opportunity for a photo op anyway.

ipanema group

I think we hit the ethanol products a little too hard that Saturday night coz we nearly missed the shuttle to Batang Ai Hilton Longhouse Resort due to an alcohol induced coma.

P/S – My apologies…the bartender must have had a case of the shakes while taking our group photo coz there’s a motion blur effect on Phoenix (my travel companion). It didn’t affect the rest of the frame though, strangely enough. 😉

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