Every third Friday of the month, Cosmic Slop heads to underground dancefloor The Drop in Stoke Newington to play an ecletic rare selection of psychedlic funk, soul and rock'n'roll from the 1950s onwards. This month's Slop sees the regular DJ team joined by Mahssa Taghinia, a dedicated vinyl librarian and archeaologist who runs the US branch of Finders Keepers Records. We spoke to resident DJs Pat Long, Dr. Smith and Chris 'The Judge' Arthur to find out more.
What's the story behind Cosmic Slop?
We just wanted to put on a regular monthly free party for our friends as there weren't really any nights in Stoke Newington that played the music that we all liked. It's developed slightly from that but the ethos remains the same.
Who are your djs, what do they play, and what do they do in the real world?
One of us is a freelance illustrator - check out his work at www.raysmith.bz - one of us is an electrical engineer for London Transport and one of us is a layabout - but we've all been DJing for years and have excellent and wide-ranging taste and record collections.
What is it about the music you play that is so special?
It'll make you shake your ass.
Have you had any celebs on your dancefloor?
Vampire Weekend came along once but it's really not about that. There's no red carpet, dress code or VIP area and if you were dancing next to someone famous you probably wouldn't notice because you'd be having too much of a good time.
The Drop is a pretty new venue (underneath The Three Crowns pub) - what's it like?
We started the night about a year ago at a place called The Gold Bar, but that venue burnt down in slightly mysterious circumstances in the middle of the night. We moved to The Drop when it opened. It's basically just one big dance floor, is in a cellar and has an amazing sound system, so it met all of our requirements.
Tell us one artist you play who we've probably not heard of that we should check out.
What other club nights do you like going to in London?
The Fabulous Cellar club in Camden is consistently great. The best club I've ever been to in London was The Frat Shack in the '90s - great rockabilly/garage/sleaze/burlesque/fancy dress/mayhem night before any of that stuff was done to death and got stale.
Does Cosmic Slop have a plan for the future?
We love doing it, and judging by the number of people who come down we're doing something right. We've done two mixes so far - which you can find here and here - and the next one will be available very soon. Plus you can check out our Facebook Group for our Spotify playlists and stuff.
Name five songs we'll be having a dance about to tomorrow?
'Cottonpickin'' - Jim And The Invictas
'Mony, Mony' - Celia And The Mutations
'Let's Stick Together' - Wilburt Harrison
'Why Can't There Be Love' - Dee Edwards
'Hipsville 29 BC' - The Sparkles
What's your absolute floorfiller?
'Come On Over' by The Vine Street Boys
And finally what's your London secret?
Pom Pom Hair And Beauty in Leyton is seriously amazing.
Check out Cosmic Slop tonight at The Drop (downstairs, 175 Stoke Newington High Street) and get a sneaky peak of their playlist over on spotify. Doors are 10 - 4 and entry is free.
