“We Started By Throwing Parties In Hiatt Baker”

On the list of things you’d expect to find in the room of a typical Fresher, a nightclub isn’t one of them. Jake Beech and Charlie Layzell-Payne beg to differ.

Their club night, ‘Zeleztial’, has now moved out of the bedroom and into Dojo’s where it has a regular Wednesday night slot. The Tab decided to get in touch with the guys and hear how their Ibiza-esque dance night first got off the grounds.

Tab: Charlie and Jake, tell me how was Zeleztial born?

JB & CLP: Well we started by throwing parties in our rooms in Hiatt Baker last year with all our mates just for a laugh.

Hiatt Baker’s Own DJ Booth

Tab: How did that go?

JB & CLP:  Turns out not everyone was having as much fun as us. We kept getting shut down for playing loud music after hours and eventually had to go and see Gordon the Warden for a telling-off.

Tab: How did you turn the night from something that pissed off your neighbours in Hiatt Baker to an actual event in Dojo?

JB & CLP: We approached Dojo (real name: Dojo Lounge, who knew) at the eagerly early time of 10.30pm one Thursday with a well thought out pitch, only to be told the manager didn’t get in until midnight.

Five Jaegers and a few hours later, Charlie made the executive decision that the original pitch was somewhat lacking (aka shit) and so in five minutes we quickly changed….everything.

Brimming with confidence from our recent epiphany we entered the manager’s office, but no sooner had we walked through the door that confidence turned to fear. I mean he’s big. Really bloody big.

The Next Big Thing?

Tab: But obviously it went well?

JB & CLP: Yeah, despite all that, somehow he decided to offer us a night. Our initial attempts to promote the brand also didn’t go quite to plan. Our first effort to flyer around town sparked what was perhaps one of the most low budget car chases of all time, involving university security and Jake’s crusty Nissan Micra.

Tab: Truthfully, was this just an attempt at becoming Bristol’s newest BNOCs or a move to get noticed in the Hiatt Baker dinner hall?

JB & CLP: No… (both look shifty); we just felt that there was a gap to be catered for. Bristol has so much to offer in terms of nightlife, but much of it seems to be the same.

If you were blindfolded and taken to any club on the Triangle it’s unlikely that you’d be able to identify where you were – (Charlie butts in) Bullshit! I can detect the sweet scent of Lounge a mile off…but at the end of the day the music, entry, treatment are all pretty much the same and we wanted to do something different – Wednesdays aren’t just for sport.

ZBV: That’s sounds reasonable enough. But why shouldn’t we just stick to the safety of Bunker and Lounge though?

JB & CLP: Well to start its only three quid. You won’t be paying five pounds for an entry stamp that rubs off onto your face while you’re passed out, making you look an idiot at your 9am the next day. You’ll be paying three. Also you can actually see where your money goes – we give out free shots and have shisha.

The Plucky Entrepreneurs

ZBV: What would you say is your stand out trait?

JB & CLP:  Mostly the music. In Bristol what they mean by dance music in some other clubs is pop music. What we mean by dance music is real dance music.

Admittedly you will hear some chart stuff but it will be remixes to prevent you from hearing what you heard in your pre lash again, and again, and again. Essentially we want to give you something new and intense, but without losing you along the way.

If you like the sound of that, then check out their Facebook page.