13 Dec 2005

swingin' singapore

Not sure where to head this X'mas and New Year party season? Try swingin' Singapore, the place du jour for regional partyholics to shay, shay, shake it off this holiday season. Just grab your confetti and stuff your stockings, as the fairies at Fridae present to you a grab bag line-up of the hottest holiday bashes on the island.

Pre-X'mas

Happy Fag Hag X'Mas
Happy's so-hip-it-hurts rep was cemented when Wallpaper magazine billed it "unapologetically pink" and "Singapore's hottest nightclub." This month, it pays tribute to our beloved other half (for those without other halves). Every fag together with his hag (or stag) gets free entry plus a chance to win some special X'mas goodies. You've seen Fag Hag arm wrestling, quizzes and imaginative uses for toilet paper, what will you see next? Grab your hag, head over and find out! Starring DJ Princess Ann. The celebs hold court at this joint, with recent sightings including Hong Kong star Karen Mok and Singaporean Sun Yan Zi, so keep your eyes peeled!

When: Friday, Dec 16
Where: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road
$: Entry Free With Your Faghag/ Stag. 1-4-1 housepours 11pm-Midnight; Moët & Chandon S$99

From the top: Happy Carolling! with Robin Goh and friends @ Happy, White X'mas with DJ Antwone @ Taboo and White X'mas Eve with DJ Pippi @ Zouk
Happy Carolling!
Join the very Singaporean (and very twinky) thespian Robin Goh and his pals Emma Yong and Sebastian Tan for Happy's very first sing-a-long session just in time for the festive season. Robin will be singing some of his favourite happy songs, and then everyone will be invited to sing-a-long to well loved X'mas carols. All the better to spread the X'mas spirit of love, joy and yes siree, harmony! Showtimes: 9.30pm & 10.30pm (20 mins each show).

When: Wednesday, Dec 21
Where: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road
$: Free entry. All Nite 1-4-1 Housepours & Piper Heidsieck @ S$90

X'mas Eve (Saturday, Dec 24)

White X'mas, Taboo
If you're looking for chastity, purity and innocence this X'mas then boy, have you got the wrong club! It's gonna be quite the opposite at white hot Taboo this Christmas, with break neck beats served up by the hunkalicious DJ Antwone (Nation.03, Bed Supper Club) to whip you into a frenzied state and make you cream in your designer jeans. Taboo's had as many face-lifts as Joan Rivers, so it's always looking shiny and new. It's a veritable meat market as well, and a hit with the gym-bunnies and stud muffins. So head there and tuck in for a platter of loin, thigh and other gratuitous slabs of meat. Don't say we didn't warn you!

Where: 65/67 Neil Road
$: Pre-sale: S$20; At-the-door: S$25 (incl. one drink); Moet & Chandon Champagne @ S$99

Gold Christmas, Tantric
It's gonna be a ghetto-fabulous Chirstmas at Tantric. Come decked in your finest gold ornaments and threads as we gild up the club for a bling-bling take on X'mas. Take your style cues from Ms Minogue's hot pants in 'Spinning Around' and get double housepour shots all night long! Coupled with Backstage, Tantric's a hit with potato queens who like their daily dose of meat white and their music Top 40s. Like its sister outlet Backstage, Tantric's a gathering den for those who want a cosier atmosphere to intimate conversations and gather with friends.

Where: 78 Neil Road (opposite Taboo)
$: Housepours at S$9.50; Cocktails @ S$12-$18

Hot Santa and Icy Claus, WhyNot
Get fired up and chilled out from WhyNot's Fantasy Land of Christmas. Why Not's repertoire of mostly of handbag music draws in hot, hot twinks by the (school) busload who promise to melt in your mouth, not in your hand. Catch house DJ Raj and a performance by The Midnight Flaunte. Showtime's at 11:15-11:55pm, followed by an X'mas countdown at 12am sharp! Come down on X'mas Day as well for their Christmas Extended Party, and slurp up the WhyNot boys, who'll be oh-so-naughty. Feel like a spank anyone?

Where: 56-58 Tras St
$: S$30 (inc. one drink) Pipers Heidsieck @ S$98

Red Hot Christmas, Happy
Get set for one helluva sleigh ride as Happy brings you the dynamic DJ Wayne G (Arq, Sydney; Heaven, London) who's also a much sought after producer - who's mixed hits for Cher, Madonna, Kylie & Whitney to name a few. Wayne made his rockin' Happy (and Singapore) debut during this year's Chinese New Year celebrations, and promises a night that is anything but silent. Warm up the mistletoe for one red hot Christmas party that's gonna make Jack Frost quake in his boots.

Where: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road
$: Pre-sale: S$25 (tickets available at Happy); At-the-door: S$30 (incl. one drink)

White X'mas Eve with DJ Pippi (Ibiza), Zouk
Zouk isn't a pink club. Nor does it have a boys' night. Yet, throngs of muscly studs and other members of the pink brigade take to their podiums and shimmy their toned glutes there each week. Why? Simply because Zouk is one of the world's most feted clubs. See for yourselves on X'mas eve as DJ Pippi, one of the original Ibiza DJs, is slated to bring the Balearic sound and Ibiza spirit to the club. Male models and beautiful people in general are never in short supply here.

Where: 17 Jiak Kim Road
$: To be confirmed
NYE (Saturday, Dec 31)

Two-Oh-Oh-Six, Happy
Happy the year's over? Happier that a new one's about to begin? Then get your lips taut, toned and puckered for a countdown party that's gonna be so oh-oh-sexy that you'll just go crazy at the stroke of midnight. Sydney's mighty fine DJ Shigeki (Midnight Shift, Queer Nation, SWEAT.01) returns to Singapore to spin up a storm and send you screaming with glee into the new year. Doors open 10:30pm.

Where: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road
$: Pre-sale: S$40 (tickets available at Happy; At-the-door: S$45 (incl. two drinks)

NYE (Let's Celebrate, Taboo)
DJ Galactic Soul (Q Bar, Bangkok) rip-roars into the New Year with his unique blend of Deep Funky Tech House at Taboo, Tanjong Pagar. Thrust those glowsticks and pumped biceps in the air, as there's no letting up on the revelry here. Tip: Wear a tanktop, or washboard (abs) here. Any more, and you'll feel out of place. Oh, and be prepared for a bump 'n grind as well as the boys play hard here!

Where: 65/67 Neil Road
$: Pre-sale: S$25; At-the-door: S$30 (incl. one drink); Moet & Chandon Champagne @ S$99

Countdown 2006, Tantric & Backstage
A simultaneous celebration happening at both bars. Backstage's chill out space is for the more mature crowd, or simply those who want to wind down with good company. Their housepour double shots, a festive favourite, will be on offer all night long. Get all liquored up as they bid adieu to good ol' 2005 and give a warm welcome to the new year!

Where: 78 Neil Road (opposite Taboo). Backstage is at 13A, Trengganu St (corner of Temple St & Trengganu St, entrance in Temple St).
$: Housepours at S$9.50; Cocktails at S$12-$18

The 2006exual countdown, WhyNot
Twinks are Energizer bunnies, and nothing beats the way they count down at WhyNoy this year! Look out for DJ Vishal & Raj on the decks, and a flamboyant performance courtesy of The Flair. Leave your chastity belts at home this time, and prepare to usher in the new year with a shag bang! Don't forget to recharge for WhyNot's encore 2006exual Rejoice Party happening the very next day.

Where: 56-58 Tras St
$: S$40 (inc. 2 drinks and door gifts)

New Year's Day (Sunday, 1 Jan)

First Day '06, Taboo
Enough is never enough it seems, as Taboo lives it right up till the morning light. How else do you start a year, if not with a smashing party with DJ Louis at the helm? Pink Alert 2004 Recovery, Blackout Party & Rubber Ball 2005 were all his, and he makes Taboo his first pitstop of 2006. As is standard practice, slabs of rippling muscles and stitched chests will worship at Taboo's altar topless. So make your way down to feast on a buffet of choice cuts of hunk!

Where: 65/67 Neil Road
$: House Juggies @ S$28, Tequila & House shots @ S$5 all night

With back-to-back parties and clubs pulling out all the stops, party season looks set to be stuffed left, right and centre. And it looks as if nanny Singapore's undid her straight laces and put on her dancing shoes and matching feather boa! So cum one, cum all, and be a part of all that's going on in Singapore this Yuletide and New Year season!

For more information on the clubs & bars featured, head on down to Singapore city guide.

Singapore