Freakscene

Freakscene is a nightclub in Cork City, Ireland. It was launched in 1994 when pseudonymous DJs 'Alan Fadd' and 'Chicken' spotted a gap in the market for an alternative/indie nightclub in the city. The name comes from 'Freak Scene', by Dinosaur Jr. It was first held on Wednesdays in Sir Henry's, a nightclub which already hosted Sweat, a popular dance music night, on Saturdays. While Alan Fadd has said that he never expected it to be a success, Freakscene quickly started to draw a regular crowd, mainly from the large student population of Cork.

One factor in Freakscene's early success was its inception at a time when several alternative music genres were reaching their peak: predominantly American grunge and predominantly British indie (Britpop); the Irish music scene was particularly strong at the time. The playlists of the early years reflected this, but also included classics by artists such as the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and the Smiths but also play classical waltzes and have been known to play jazz on rare occasions. Whilst the DJ sets continuosly evolve as the club embraces new music to help it stay fresh, the club stays loyal to its roots with bands like the Smiths, Pixies, Nirvana, RATM, Smashing Pumpkins. It is this mixture and constant evolving that has enabled the club to last 14 years making it the longest running indie club night in Ireland.

One early addition to the Freakscene family was Danascene, a 70s and retro disco held in another room of Sir Henry's, the Back Bar. DJs were 'Jenny Glitt' and 'Shirley Sparkle'. Some punters started to come to Freakscene solely for Danascene, others would switch between rooms as the mood (and music) suited them.

In 1996, Freakscene branched out and started a sister night, Gigantic, on Friday nights. Gigantic, named after the Pixies song, followed a similar template, but drew a slightly older crowd. At Gigantic, the Back Bar operated as a hip-hop club, DJed by 'Fadd Jr' and 'Keith'.

Freakscene became known for its special events, in particular its Hallowe'en fancy dress party, 'Beatles Night', a 60s fancy dress party held in early December to mark John Lennon's passing. Others include a 'Full Monty' night (thankfully a one-off) and, more recently, beach party and Christmas party nights and a New Year's Eve Masquerade Ball.

In October 2000, Alan Fadd announced that Freakscene and Planet of Sound (as Gigantic was now known) would be leaving Sir Henry's due to an ongoing dispute with the owners of Sir Henry's (the promoters and DJs of Sweat had left a month previously, citing similar reasons). No alternative venue had been arranged, and Freakscene's loyal regulars were distraught at the loss of their club, some going so far as to hold a vigil outside Sir Henry's.

However, a couple of months later, Freakscene had found a new home in the Savoy on Patrick Street, and Planet of Sound had also been rehoused. After two very successful years in the Savoy, Freakscene moved again, first to Club One, Phoenix Street, and then to its current home in the Qube nightclub.