The Guvernment

Last updated
The Guvernment
The Guvernment.jpg
The Guvernment's south side exterior in July 2007 (main entrance was on east side).
The Guvernment
Former namesFresh (1984-1985)
RPM (1985-1995)
Location Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Coordinates 43°38′39″N79°22′08″W / 43.644212°N 79.368804°W / 43.644212; -79.368804
Owner INK Entertainment
Capacity The Guvernment (3,000)
Kool Haus (2,500)
Entire Complex (10,000+)
Construction
Opened1984 (as Fresh)
December 1985 (as RPM)
September 1996 (as The Guvernment)
Renovated2007
Closed25 January 2015
DemolishedFebruary 2015

The Guvernment, formerly known as RPM, was a nightclub complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was also the name of one of the two main performance venues within the complex. The other venue was Kool Haus (formerly The Warehouse). Other smaller rooms within the complex included: The Drink (renovated to become Cathouse then Surface), D'Luxe Lounge (renovated to become Haven), The Orange Room (renovated to become Chroma), SkyBar, Charlies (renovated to become Gallery), Tanja and Acid Lounge. The Guvernment opened in 1996 and closed in early 2015.

Contents

Prior to closure, the property was sold to The Daniels Corporation real estate development company and is since March 2015 in the process of being turned into C$700 million condominium development called City of the Arts. [1]

History

Fresh

The site of the Guvernment was first converted into a nightclub in 1984 as Fresh Restaurant and Nightclub by Tony and Albert Assoon, two of the four Assoon brothers who had simultaneously been running the successful and influential Twilight Zone after-hours club at 185 Richmond Street West in Toronto's Entertainment District. [2] However, Fresh did not do well and was quickly sold by late 1985.

RPM

The space returned almost immediately as RPM under the ownership of Murray Ball, an artist who had formerly fronted the Toronto-based punk/new-wave band The Dishes before turning to hospitality entrepreneurship on the Toronto nightlife scene having successfully run The Copa in Yorkville on behalf of its owner – Tom Kristenbrun's Chrysalis Group. [2] Joining Ball in the new RPM ownership group were Martin Arts, formerly The Copa's original general manager, and Neil Vosburgh. [3]

Within a few months, by March 1986, well known local DJs Terry "TK" Kelly and Chris Sheppard were brought over from The Copa to be RPM's residents. [2] [4] Initially, TK played Mondays (billed as 'Psychedelic Mondays'), Thursdays ('Disco Thursdays'), and Saturdays ('dance‐music Saturdays' blending house, funk, and new wave), while Sheppard was hired away from his popular alt-rock Sunday-night gig at The Copa to recreate the same energy at RPM. [3] TK's Monday nights quickly began gaining in popularity, attracting patrons with an eclectic rock mix covering a wide range of old and new from The Four Horsemen, AC/DC, and Jimi Hendrix to The Doors and Nirvana. [3] Bringing his Sunday-night club act over from The Copa, Sheppard decided to infuse it with more underground music and remove the age restriction; his all‐ages Sundays immediately became RPM's signature night with teenage crowds reaching capacity well before 9 p.m. each week and many lining up outside around the block at the foot of Jarvis Street. [3] Sheppard occasionally booked live acts for appearances during his club Sundays such as the time during fall 1986 when he brought on the still-not-widely-known Beastie Boys whose debut album had just come out. [3]

From the very beginning, in addition to club nights, RPM served as a live music venue. Among others, its star DJ, Chris Sheppard, participated in booking acts for live gigs at the venue, bringing Ministry, Skinny Puppy, and Chris & Cosey throughout 1986. [3] A synth-pop band in the middle of making a turn towards industrial music with the release of their second album, Ministry's show at RPM on 10 April 1986 became particularly notable due to its bootleg recording that would end up getting circulated for almost thirty years before the band eventually decided to release it as an official live album named Toronto 1986 .

Initially capped at 1,100, RPM's capacity steadily expanded over the years due to high demand. Featuring oversized art, blacklight, and bright psychedelic lighting throughout the venue, the group of individuals running RPM especially focused on the club's visual component, manipulating it regularly every year with different installations including dinosaurs, dolphins, an airplane with parachuting soldiers, flashing neon signs as well as a black convertible Cadillac suspended from the ceiling with wax figures of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis sitting in it. [3] The club's sound system was installed by the Canadian audio engineer Ted MacDonald. [3] Located in a semi-industrial area on the eastern edge of Toronto's downtown, due to being somewhat off the beaten path, RPM's management arranged a free shuttle bus service from Union Station throughout the night. [3]

A few years into RPM's operation, Sheppard moved to Fridays for a 19+ age-restricted night that was simultaneously broadcast live-to-air on CFNY while his vacated Sunday spot got taken over by Terry Kelly and later Matt C. [3] Initially playing dance music in the most general sense, Sheppard's club nights at RPM gradually began moving away from rock and coalescing around house music and the emerging rave culture with even some early bleep techno. [3]

In the early 1990s an adjacent venue opened as The Warehouse, a large club space used for concerts such as Björk, Suede, Radiohead, Pet Shop Boys, Bush, Catherine Wheel, David Bowie, and Foo Fighters. [2] [5]

The Guvernment

The declining RPM and The Warehouse venues were taken over in late 1995 by Charles Khabouth. Following extensive renovation, he renamed RPM as The Guvernment, reopening in September 1996. Initially kept, The Warehouse name got changed to Kool Haus by late June 2001. Khabouth revamped RPM by installing a series of smaller lounges and bars within the complex. A sound system was designed for the main room by audio engineer Steve Dash and remained throughout the club's existence despite various renovations. [6] Khabouth credited the system as one of the best in the city and would call Dash up from the United States to tune the room's mixer when required. [6] Additionally, Khabouth also arranged for the installation of a wooden raised floor that had to be redone every year due to wear and tear by dancers at a cost of $30,000 to $40,000, citing it as a necessary component to achieve better sound. [6]

Saturdays at The Guvernment (promoted as 'Spin Saturdays') featured underground electronic dance music until 7AM with resident DJs Mark Oliver and the Manzone & Strong duo. Additionally, 'Spin Saturdays' (later known as 'Alive until 7') played host to many international DJs such as Above & Beyond, Armin Van Buuren, David Guetta, Ferry Corsten, Marco V, Markus Schulz, Deadmau5, Sasha, Paul Oakenfold, and Carl Cox.

Deep Dish created a Global Underground compilation, Global Underground 025: Toronto , based on their performance at the Guvernment.

In 2009, Markus Schulz released a compilation album, called Toronto '09 , which reflected on his affection towards the city of Toronto and, in particular, the Guvernment complex. [7]

In December 2014, John Digweed released a live recording of his final set at The Guvernment from two months prior. [8]

Annually, The Guvernment / Kool Haus venues would host "full-complex" events where all seven rooms that made up the complex were accessible. These events were held on long weekends and special occasions and sometimes went as late at 10AM. Some of these events included 'Labour of Love', 'Decadence', 'Freedom', 'Thriller', and the nightclub's anniversary party. On these nights, various international electronic music artists performed in the different themed rooms hosting upwards of 10,000 guests. [2] Steve Lawler's Canada Day sunrise sets on the roof top terrace SkyBar were considered legendary by many.

The Guvernment consistently placed high in DJ Mag's Top 100 Clubs annual list. Its highest ranking, number 8 in the world, came in 2008. [9]

Closure and demolition

In parallel with the Toronto-wide condo boom that had been on since early 2000s, the rumours and speculation about the imminent sale of The Guvernment's attractive Queen's Quay East lakefront location to property developers and subsequent closure of the nightlife complex have circulated for years. [10] With the rampant trend of downtown Toronto buildings that house nightclubs being sold and then demolished to make way for condominiums, the Toronto Star reported during April 2013 about The Guvernment's fate already being sealed in the same manner. [11] The official confirmation occurred over a year later when, on 1 May 2014, The Guvernment's parent company, INK Entertainment, announced plans of closing the entertainment complex effective 31 January 2015. [12] [2] The decision was prompted by the sale of the city-owned property, that INK had been renting since 1996, to The Daniels Corp, a property development company, [13] which outbid INK and also bought out the rest of the block in preparation for what was expected to be a massive condo development. [14] According to the club's owner Charles Khabouth, the venue had already been slated to close a year earlier, but did not due to his company putting up a legal fight: "We fought tooth and nail, spending a lot of money on legal fees, and ending up not being able to stretch it much more than a year...I knew about it and delayed it as much as I could". [15] He further promised a series of farewell events leading up to the closure.

On Sunday, 25 January 2015, The Guvernment hosted its final event with deadmau5 as the headliner. Resident DJ Mark Oliver along with Khabouth played the final track, Patrick Cowley's mix of "I Feel Love" by Donna Summer. Following a month-long dismantling that commenced immediately after the final night, [16] the complex began demolition in late February 2015. [17]

Khabouth has indicated his intention to build a bigger venue of approximately 100,000 square feet to replace the Guvernment while admitting that it would probably have to be outside of downtown Toronto due to difficulty of finding a suitable property of that size in the heart of the city. [14]

In late March 2015, at a presentation attended by Toronto mayor John Tory, The Daniels Corporation announced plans of building a C$700 million development named City of the Arts that is to include two mid-rise commercial towers, two sky-high residential ones and post-secondary academic space. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judge Jules</span> Musical artist

Julius O'Riordan, better known by his stage name Judge Jules, is a British dance music DJ, record producer and entertainment lawyer. He is known for his DJ activities, music production and long-running radio show which achieved global success. He was voted best DJ in the world by DJ Mag in 1995.

Zouk is a Singaporean nightclub located in the Clarke Quay district. Opened in 1991, the brand has since expanded to various cities around Asia and North America. One of the country's most prominent nightclubs, it has won the Singapore Tourism Board's "Best Nightspot Experience" award 6 times, between 1996 and 2007. Zouk was ranked number 10 on DJ Magazine's list of Top 100 clubs in the world in 2006, 2007 and 2010. In 2017, Zouk Singapore earned its highest ranking yet at number 3, the top entry for clubs across Asia. In 2021, Zouk Singapore was ranked number 11 while Zouk KL was ranked 33 on the DJ Mag Top 100 Clubs list in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turnmills</span> London warehouse building

The Turnmills building was a warehouse originally on the corner of Turnmill Street and Clerkenwell Road in the London Borough of Islington. It became a bar in the 1980s, then a nightclub. The club closed in 2008 and the building was later demolished, replaced with an office building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mod Club Theatre</span>

The Mod Club Theatre was an entertainment venue in Toronto that operated from 2002 to 2020. Its address was 722 College Street, which is in the city's Little Italy neighbourhood.

UK hard house or simply hard house is a style of electronic dance music that emerged in the early 1990s and is synonymous with its association to the Trade club and the associated DJs there that created the style. It often features a speedy tempo, offbeat bass stabs, hoovers and horns. It usually contains a break in the middle of the track where no drums are present. UK hard house often uses a long and sharp string note to create suspense. Most of the time, the drops are introduced by a drum roll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The End (club)</span> Nightclub in the West End of London

The End was a nightclub in the West End of London, England. Started in December 1995 by DJs Layo Paskin and Mr C, it was also responsible for the label End Recordings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twisted Wheel Club</span>

The Twisted Wheel was a nightclub in Manchester, England, open from 1963 to 1971. It was one of the first clubs to play the music that became known as Northern Soul.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabric (club)</span> Nightclub in London

Fabric is a nightclub in Farringdon, London, England. Founded in 1999 on Charterhouse Street opposite Smithfield Market, the club was voted World Number 1 Club in DJ Magazine's "Top 100 Clubs Poll" in 2007 and 2008 and ranked World Number 2 in 2009, 2010 and 2017.

The Zap was a beach-front nightclub and performance arts venue, in Brighton, England that became known in the late 1980s and early 1990s particularly for its acid house nights. It has been described as an "influential ... club which pulled together many of the underground strands of visual art, fashion, music, design, comedy, cabaret and theatre which were circling at the time".

The I-Beam was a former popular nightclub and live music venue active from 1977 to 1994, and located in the Park Masonic Hall building on the second floor at 1748 Haight Street in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco. The I-Beam served as one of San Francisco's earliest disco clubs, as well as serving as a "gay refuge".

The Palladium Niteclub was a nightclub in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, which shared the same name as the famous Palladium in New York City. It opened in 1986 as part of the MacKenzie group. The Palladium was the first night club in Christchurch city to include a full laser lightshow. It was also the largest nightclub in Christchurch with a capacity of about 800 people. As the largest club in Christchurch, the Palladium was frequented by several international acts. During their 1986 tour of New Zealand, Simple Minds spent the evening there after their show at the Christchurch Town Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto Entertainment District</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The Toronto Entertainment District is an area in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is concentrated around King Street West between University Avenue and Spadina Avenue. It is home to theatres and performing arts centres, the Toronto Blue Jays, and an array of cultural and family attractions. The area was also home to most of the nightclubs in downtown Toronto. They have mostly moved to King St west of Spadina Av just beside the Entertainment District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nightclub</span> Entertainment venue at nighttime

A nightclub is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a bar and discothèque with a dance floor, laser lighting displays, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who mixes recorded music. Nightclubs tend to be smaller than live music venues like theatres and stadiums, with few or no seats for customers.

The Weekender Club and Weekender Café was a music venue in Innsbruck, Tyrol, Austria. It programmed a broad variety of musical events reaching from live concerts and club nights with DJs, through to album release parties and guest events. In May 2017 it was closed, but there are still concerts presented by weekender in Innsbruck taking place.

Chris Sheppard, also known as DJ Dogwhistle, is a Canadian DJ, record producer and musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beacham Theatre</span> Movie theater in Orlando, Florida

INK Entertainment is a hospitality and entertainment company headquartered in Toronto that maintains various properties, mostly nightclubs and restaurants, as well as a country club, two annual music festivals, two talent agencies, and a hotel currently under construction. Most of its properties are located in Toronto, with a few others in Montreal, Niagara Falls, the Miami area, and Las Vegas.

Bechara "Charles" Khabouth is a Lebanese Canadian nightclub owner, restaurateur, music promoter, and hotelier. Controlling several Toronto-based hospitality properties and venues, he's been dubbed the "King of Clubs" due to his influence on the city's nightlife. In addition to Toronto, he also has venues in Niagara Falls, Montreal, and Miami Beach.

Hot Mass is an electronic music dance party held weekly since December 2012 below Club Pittsburgh, a private gay club and bathhouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The event indirectly grew out of Pittsburgh's LGBT, disco, and electronic music subcultures of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Critics have noted the experience and quality of music at Hot Mass is difficult to find elsewhere in the United States, comparing it favorably to European nightclubs and parties, including Berghain.

References

  1. 1 2 Alcoba, Natalie (27 March 2015). "$700M project at site of old Guvernment nightclub set to transform the Toronto waterfront". National Post . Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 BlogTO History of Guvernment
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Benson, Denise (21 July 2015). "Remembering RPM: Toronto's Wildest and Weirdest Club of the 90s". Vice.com . Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  4. ↑ Boles, Benjamin (30 May 2016). "An Oral History of the Legendary 80s Club That Introduced Toronto to House Music". Vice.com . Retrieved 21 February 2017.
  5. ↑ Discogs – The Warehouse, Toronto – Discography recorded at The Warehouse
  6. 1 2 3 DJ Mag article Archived 2015-09-23 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ trance.nu – Markus Schulz – Toronto 2009
  8. ↑ "Discogs – John Digweed Live in Toronto". Discogs.
  9. ↑ DJMag – top100clubs – Guvernment
  10. ↑ "Rumour: Is the Guvernment closing this year?". EDMCanada.com. 6 February 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  11. ↑ Micallef, Shawn (11 April 2013). "With clubs disappearing, where will Toronto dance?". Toronto Star . Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  12. ↑ Mudhar, Raju; Menon, Vinay (1 May 2014). "Guvernment nightclub to close next Jan. 31". Toronto Star . Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  13. ↑ Starr, Ryan (8 May 2014). "Daniels confirms it has bought Guvernment and Koolhaus complex". Toronto Star . Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  14. 1 2 Stevenson, Jane (25 January 2015). "Legendary Guvernment nightclub faces wrecking ball". Toronto Sun . Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  15. ↑ Chan, Connie (28 January 2015). "THE GUVERNMENT'S FOUNDERS REFLECT ON ITS HISTORY AND THE FUTURE OF CLUBBING IN TORONTO". Vice.com . Retrieved 23 February 2017.
  16. ↑ Andrew-Gee, Eric (30 January 2015). "Dismantling the Guvernment, piece by garish piece". Toronto Star . Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  17. ↑ Teo, Mark (25 February 2015). "Toronto's Kool Haus and Guvernment are currently being demolished". Aux.tv. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.