beta nightclub denver review - insane potential

Beta nightclub, recently opened by the owners of Beatport records is probably the best club in the country right now, if not the world.

The biggest? Hell no. The most exclusive? Not even close. The best.

If they can work through some issues with ticketed events, Beta will put Denver on the map worldwide as an epicenter of dance and DJ culture.

If they can’t? Well, we’ll have a repeat performance or two of last Thursday night, and then people will go elsewhere.

Las Vegas is currently the city to beat; club wise. With opening budgets pushing 100 million dollars (I know LAX was close to this) and a steady stream of tourists who help them recoup those costs (often within a YEAR), they know they have to ‘bring it’ experience wise.

“Experience” is where they truly shine.

The environment of a place like Tryst is hard to put into words (although I tried when they hosted us last year - read here). It’s truly out of this world.

Beta is not trying to transport you into some surreal fantasy land. Beta has far more noble goals. Beta wants you to dance your ass off; to the best sound, lights, and DJs on the planet.

Here, they succeed.

Beta is host to the nation’s first installation (actually two - they duplicated the dance floor’s sick system upstairs in the intimate ‘Beatport Lounge’) of the FUNKTION-ONE Dance Array 4 Speaker Stack System. The entire space has been designed with sonic quality in mind:

We’ve taken great lengths to find sonic purity by hiring an acoustical engineer to analyze our space and we’ve installed more acoustic paneling than Webster Hall to insure audio perfection.

Translation: Our shit bumps”

That’s putting it mildly. To stand on the main floor @ Beta and hear the music is something that must be *felt* to be believed. Intense, pounding bass that somehow manages to allow conversation at the same time.

The visuals are jaw dropping as well. Think multiple lasers (several colors mind you..) refracted and scattering off a series of mirrors and disco balls, criss crossing an overhead space full of visual projections, tracking beams etc.

Upstairs, the Beatport lounge takes things up a notch with an LED panel ceiling that wouldn’t be out of place at a Daft Punk concert. Seriously.

On the other hand, Beta is on the small(ish) side; capacity is 950 people.

While this may be just fine for a typical Denver Saturday night, it becomes a real pain in the ass when the best DJ in the world comes to town, madness ensues, and Beta is totally unprepared.

Armin Van Buuren recently took over the decks (or the Ableton set up, as the case may be!) at Beta. A few friends and I had bought our tickets well in advance. Arriving at 10:30 we were greeted with a throbbing mob of angry people lined up for a block and a half.

Ticketed patrons were mixing with those hoping to buy at the door (which was insanity, the show was oversold as it was), the tiny contingent of Beta staffers couldn’t begin to sort through the chaos, and our waiting began.

And our waiting continued. And our waiting continued some more.

As midnight arrived, and the roar from inside announced Armin’s appearance in the booth, we were still standing there. Furious, a bit cold, but hopeful we’d somehow make it through the door.

Finally, at 12:15 we were let in.

I won’t lie to you; even though I only had an hour and forty five minutes to enjoy myself, it was one of most intense nights ever. Armin absolutely KILLED.

Still, the way the queue was handled was asinine.

At the VERY least; they need more people directing traffic. That way, the fools who want to risk a last minute buy can be corralled far away from those of us smart enough to have tickets in hand.

NOD TO BETA, A SOMEWHAT HAPPY ENDING:

I paid $27 for my 1:45 of fun. Not a cheap night by any means. Angered by Beta’s mismanagement I was surprised, and delighted, to find the following in my email Saturday morning:

Hello Beta Friends,

Here at Beta we wanted to send a big heartfelt THANK YOU for your support this past Thursday. Every single one of you made the night very special and memorable so for all our customers who bought pre-sale tickets for Armin van Buuren, we want to extend FREE ENTRY for tonight, SAT. MAY. 17 at Beta. Please print this email and present it at the door to receive complimentary entry. 21+ Only.

Again, THANK YOU for your continued support!

TONIGHT :: SAT. MAY. 17 // 21+ ONLY

Obviously, they recognized their failure. They also respected their customers enough to try and make it up to them. Considering typical Beta cover is $15-$20, free entry was a great gesture.

Let’s hope they can figure out a more permanent solution for keeping Denver’s rabid community of techno fans happy.

If so, Beta’s shit will continue to bump - for ages.

Beta Nightclub
Blake between 19th and 20th
Visit them on the web: Beta Nightclub