The sheer scale of Alley Pally could best be described as a covered Glastonbury. Inflatable hanging sculptures that usually seem enormous in clubs just dwarfed into microscopic nullity under the mile high Victorian roofs.
Around ten thousand people trailed in from the inclement gales of 2000 through the Palm Court foyer, via the hotel style carvery into 3 palatial temples of sonic celebrations for this new millenium.
Glad rags aside, and hiking boots probably being more appropriate than heels, Jon Carter, accompanied by his amour de la siecle, Sara Cox, played for the 2 and a half hour slot in room 2 to bring in the New Year.
With the countdown being projected on the screens to the sides of him, overlaid by pictures of sporting heroes and classic sport moments (why?) and the odd feed of Carter himself in blown-up godlike style- he just looked very happy and very much in control.
He's come a long way since the Heavenly Social days with 80 people.
Playing his own breed of Junior Cartier house music, utilising the Mean Fiddler's fantastic sub-bassy system, Jon faded the EQ for moments of pure cliff-hanging love and those extra seconds of pleasure as the audience waited for the bass to drop. As he built up from fairly minimal breaks to Tenaglia-type boom moments and Mirwais-style Madge Ritchie tomb-shakers, Liam Prodigy who was playing in the other main room had a minor audience fall out.
The other room, hosted by Creation Records' grande fromage, Alan McGee, was more trashy and one hundred times smaller. Dressed in neon red strips the room had more of a personal feel as the Poptone DJs supplied grooves of old and =91You give love a bad name=92 Bon Jovial kind of stoopid party riffs, but worth the queue nonetheless.
As the champagne splurged as midnight those with partners hugged each other, and those without did the same. Carter dropped a massively unobscure disco track and the wasted members of the audience really didn=92t know what time it was as they collapsed around the edges of the huge space.
The fallout which Liam Prodigy had suffered from earlier reversed at 12.30 as the Primal Scream fans abandoned Carter to get their rocks off with the best young rock 'n' roll band in the world. However, forever the survivor, Mr Carter squelched out the Groove Armada-type anthems giving the crowd a lovely, round ear hug. Before bombing off to Brighton for his next disco ransom, Carter smiled for our camera and dropped the most belligerent of skank rock anthems. What an unstoppable sex machine!
