9 things we learned at Club Refuge NYC this past weekend

Saturday September 27 finally saw the doors flung open to one of the most anticipated new clubs in the world.

REFUGE is a serious new space with some serious people behind it. What they don’t know about sound system design, acoustics, curation and building a proper crowd isn’t worth knowing.

From the moment the first kick drum dropped at 360 Ten Eyck Street in Brooklyn, it was clear this wasn’t just another venue, but the start of something truly special.

Here’s what stood out across the first weekend and immediately makes this a must visit spot for any clued up heads.

The audio at REFUGE is in a different league. Designed and built by industry-leader and club founder Craig Bernabau Shorty, the system takes inspiration from the late sound visionary Richard Long. The result is sonic clarity and depth you can only find in a handful of venues worldwide. Even better, Shorty and his team are committed to weekly refinements so they measure, adjust and push the system ever closer to perfection week after week.

Dancefloors without glowing screens, vacant looks and distracted attention still feel like a revelation. At REFUGE, camera stickers with the club’s logo are handed out at the door and no-one has a problem with it. The difference it makes on the dance floor is instant: people dance facing each other, eyes locked, bodies loose, not craning toward the booth like sheep. No one is worried about getting papped so nothing is held back, people express themselves freely and the real human connection that brings is magical.

In an era where venues are so plastered with LED screens and digital overload they look more like Times Square than a place to escape the real world, REFUGE has gone in the opposite direction. Exposed brick glows under simple red uplights while lines of 1-colour moving head creates a warm, immersive atmosphere without distraction. The effect is that people stay locked in the moment and focused on what matters most - the music.

REFUGE isn’t a space full of clones. Students, creatives, plumbers and traders all rubbed shoulders. People of all genders, race and age move as one, just as it should be, and just as it once was. The unity is real here as strangers strike up cod-shit chats in the smoking area, dance-off with each other in the main room and generally make new and meaningful connections. And isn’t it coming together with people outside your usual circle that makes this scene so special?

REFUGE booked DJs in 3 to 4 hour blocks and it paid off. Given the time to stretch their legs a little, dig deeper, show different sides to their sound and take more risk is what all DJs crave. That freedom brings their A-game and the crowd knows it so go with them every step of the way, locked in for the ride and happy to lose all sense of time. It’s simple but game changing stuff that should be standard everywhere.

The venue’s vibey outdoor space that wraps around the entire building is already a talking point. Once summer rolls around and another of co-founder Shorty’s custom sound systems is drafted in, expect it to become a rare NYC open-air paradise offering fresh air, sunlight and another dimension to REFUGE’s program.

Three of the club’s walls are dominated by windows so as dawn breaks the atmosphere naturally shifts into something otherworldly. Sunlight streams across the moving crowd to inject it with subtle rays of euphoria. It’s a great reminder of why marathon parties are worth the endurance.

REFUGE doesn’t deal in half-measures. The opening marathon tested the stamina of even seasoned ravers but the careful programming and knowing selections mean that moods and energies morph throughout the day and night to keep things fresh. There is real beauty in seeing the crowd and energy evolve in waves as some arrive fresh at noon, others cling on from the night before, but everyone dances to the same beat. It felt more like a famous Berlin session than the usual glammed up Manhattan, and that’s exactly the point.

REFUGE proved that hype names aren’t required to pack a dancefloor. Instead, the lineup focused on respected local and international underground talent, and people voted with their feet. Sets from Paranoid London (Live) feat. Josh Caffé, Mike Servito, DJ Holographic, Bruno Schmidt, Miss Parker, Jacky Sommer, Simon Heyliger, DJ Matpat, and Cosmo (NY) B2B Miss Gypsy delivered a journey that was both credible and unforgettable.

REFUGE has already changed the conversation around NYC nightlife. Follow their journey at @refugeclubnyc.