A superclub is a very large or superior nightclub, often with several rooms with different themes. The term was first coined in Mixmag, the British electronic dance and clubbing magazine, in 1995, referring to the new wave of clubs such as Ministry of Sound and Cream, which were dominating the English club scene. Superclubs may include nightclubs that have high capacity, or are multi-story, high profile, and operate city and region wide or are well known. Some superclubs are owned and managed by a dance music record label or a club that was or is culturally important. The term may also be used to define its position within the club scene hierarchy. Forerunners of contemporary superclubs already existed in the early 20th century. The Guardian describes the Moka Efti in Berlin, a major dancing establishment of the Golden Twenties, as a "1920s superclub". Privilege Ibiza is the "world's largest nightclub" according to the Guinness Book of Records, with a capacity of 10,000 people.

History

Notes: The list of clubs below indicate the dates they were first established.

1960s

Early examples of "superclubs" include Annabel's (London, 1963), Blow Up (Munich, 1967) and Pacha (Sitges, 1967).

1970s

Examples of "superclubs" from this period include Pacha, Ibiza in (1973), Studio One (nightclub) Los Angeles (1975), BANG (club) London (1976), Amnesia, Ibiza, (1976), Studio 54, New York City, (1977), Paradise Garage, New York, (1977), Ku Club Ibiza, (1978), Xenon, New York, (1978), Roxy NYC, New York, (1978), Dorian Gray, Frankfurt, (1978), Heaven London, (1979), Danceteria, New York, (1979)

1980s

Examples of "superclubs" from this period include The Saint in New York in (1980), The Fridge, London, (1981), The Haçienda in Manchester opened in (1982), The Limelight, New York, (1983), Hippodrome, London, (1983), Space, Ibiza, (1986), Tunnel, New York, (1986), Palladium, New York, (1985), Quadrant Park, Liverpool, (1988), Excalibur Nightclub, Chicago, (1989), The Sound Factory, New York, (1989), The Venue, Tower Park Poole, (1989).

1990s

Examples of "superclubs" from this period include Trade and Turnmills, London, (1990), Club 051, Liverpool (1991), Ministry of Sound in London (1991), Juliana's Tokyo, (1991), Zouk, Singapore, (1991), Renaissance (1992), Avalon, Boston (1992), Bunker, Berlin, (1992), E-Werk, Berlin, (1993), G-A-Y, London, (1993), Cream at Nation, Liverpool, (1993), Miss Moneypenny's, Birmingham, (1993), Cavo Paradiso, Mykonos, (1993),Ultraschall, Munich, (1994), Twilo, New York, (1995), The End, London, (1995), Nation, Washington, D.C., (1995), The Emporium. Coalville, (1995), Privilege, Ibiza, (1995), Gatecrasher One, (1996), Godskitchen, (1996), KW – Das Heizkraftwerk, Munich, (1996), The Church, Denver (1996), Fabric, London (1999), DC10, Ibiza, (1999), Home, London, (1999)

2000s

Examples of "superclubs" from this period include Womb, Tokyo, (2000), Bungalow 8, New York City, (2001), Hakkasan, Las Vegas, (2001), Vision Club, Chicago, (2002), Vanguard LA, Hollywood, (2002), SeOne, London, (2002), Berghain, Berlin, (2003), Cielo, New York, (2003), Opium Garden Miami, (2003), AIR, Birmingham, (2003), Crobar, Chelsea, New York, (2003), Sound Bar, Chicago, (2004), Myth, Minneapolis, (2005), TAO, Las Vegas, (2005), 1015 Folsom Nightclub, San Francisco, (2005), Belo, (San Diego), (2006), XS Nightclub, Las Vegas, (2008), Marquee Nightclub and Dayclub, Las Vegas, (2010), Omnia, Las Vegas (2015) (formerly, Pure, (2004)), Marquee Nightclub, Singapore, (2018), KAOS Dayclub and Nightclub, Las Vegas, (2019).

2010s

Examples of "superclubs" from this period include: Echostage, Washington D.C., (2012), Output, New York City, (2013), White Dubai @ Meydan, (2013), MMA Club, Munich (2014), Bassiani, Tbilisi, (2014), Laroc, São Paulo, (2015), Printworks, London (2017), Kompass klub, Ghent. Student Society in Trondheim, Trondhjem Norway, (2024).

Culturally important clubs

The clubs listed here do not necessarily meet the criteria for the spatial definition of a "superclub" but are included for their significant cultural importance: Peppermint Lounge, (1958), New York City, UFO Club, London (1960's), The Loft, New York City, (1970), The Warehouse, Chicago, (1977), Mudd Club, New York, (1978), Billy's, London (1978), Blitz Club, London, (1979), Pyramid Club, New York, (1979), Club 57, New York, (1979), Camden Palace, London, (1982), The Batcave, London (1982), Taboo, London, (1985), The World, New York, (1986), Kinky Gerlinky, London, (1989), Tresor, Berlin, (1991), Trade (1990-2008), Vague Club, Leeds, (1993), B 018, Beirut, (1994).

Superclub the album

Cream, Gatecrasher and Pacha teamed up in 2010 to produce the album Superclub. Released on 22 November in the UK, the 3 CD collection has one disc for each of the clubs and was the first release from Rhino UK's dance imprint One More Tune. A second album, called Superclub Ibiza, was released in July 2011 by EMI.

Sources