Neil Scott Interview: It's clear that Manchester is unique

We love a long-standing party here at Skiddle, and they don’t come much well-worn than the delightful El Diablos Social Club. Excelling in providing what they in their own words describe as ‘psychedelic disco deviance’, the soiree has achieved cult status in the North West for their own inimitable brand of Balearic themed musical goodness. The end of the month sees them clock up a full decade of fun, with Metro Area’s Darshan Jesrani the guest as they celebrate ten years of musical non-conformity

Bolstered by house and disco at the centre, they’ve booked guests with the free rein to musically go where they want, enabling that very unique sense of delicious debauchery that can only come about when genre restrictions have been thrown to the wolves. But what has really made them special has been the residents, with Dave Walker and Neil Scott the central force behind it all.

With the latter also doubling up as the head of music at 2022NQ where the tenth birthday is held, we decided to give him a shout to find out everything about the showcase. Both El Diablos and 2022NQ were on the agenda, but Neil also waxed lyrical to our editor Jimmy Coultas about life in Manchester, the emerging scene in Croatia and his dream booking.

Hi Neil. So El Diablos Social Club turns ten this month. How has the ride been so far, and did you expect it to last this long?

Hi Jimmy, yeah it’s been a great ride so far and can’t believe it’s been ten years. Makes me feel old! When Ben, Duncan, myself (and later Ste) started it we didn’t expect it to last more than a couple of parties so we’ve done well I think.

What would be your favorite moments over the years at the event?

Some of my favourite moments were when we were doing the secret afterhours parties at weird places like Corbieres and the Tiger Lounge or disused shops on Tibb St. Mostly they were residents only nights or we had guests like Moonboots or Sean P. It was a great party atmosphere with sweat dropping from the ceiling.

There were also some special memories from the Deaf Institute - some particular favorites of mine were the Jacques Renault, Rub n Tug nights. We also had a few secret after parties in the flat behind the Deaf which is where the bands usually stay when they play there. I think we only managed to have 3 of those before we got in trouble.

The party features Metro Area’s Darshan Jesrani. Why did you decide to place him at the helm and has he been a fixture at the club in the past?

I’ve seen Darshan play quite a few over the years at my beloved Electric Chair and Cutloose and more recently at The Garden Festival in Croatia, and he always blows my mind. One year he played an amazing disco fuelled beach bar set where he killed it, then later played a darker kind italo / proto house set in the early hours in the club where I didn’t know half the records he was playing but desperately wanted all of them.

He’s an excellent DJ who I’ve tried to get on a quite a few times over the years but it’s just never fallen right, so I was determined to get him to play the 10^th birthday.

The party is at 2022NQ, a venue you look after the music for. How has the venue done since opening and do you feel it’s achieving its vision of being multi-faceted?

2022NQ has been going from strenth to strength in the last year and I think we’re reaching our goal of being muli faceted with events ranging from Art exhibitions, Pop up theatre events, Fashion events, club nights and our new Friday After Work social which is aimed at Manchesters creative arts folks.

What future plans have you got for the venue you can let us know about?

There’s lots going on at the moment. We’ve just launched our Print shop where prints of the work of artists from one of our many exhibitions are for sale on our website right now. The Greg Guillmen pop art prints being particular favorites of mine.

We’re also just launched our food menu during the daytime Tuesday to Friday which is great for people who want to come and hang out, have a coffee, do some work or look at the current exhibitions. Next on the horizon is our desk space which we’re aiming at creatives who need a space to work but can’t afford a full office of their own. We hope this will lead to people networking and collaborating whilst using 2022nq as a creative hub.

Musically we’ve got some great events coming up over summer… We’ve got a Quadrophenia night with a viewing of the film and live music plus Horse Meat Disco will be playing all night long on June 15^th and Greg Wilson is returning on 17^th August plus lots of other things. Check out our website for full listings.

Let’s talk about Manchester as well. How special is the city? And could a party like El Diablos have existed anywhere else?

From travelling around a bit and meeting people from all over the place it’s clear that Manchester is very unique and well respected around the world for its musical heritage. I think we get that balance of people who are both very knowledgeable and passionate about the music but also know how to party.

Top that off with our friendly northern demeanor and you’ve got the recipe for a great crowd. Something which seems to be lacking at some parties I’ve been to in other cities. I think El Diablo’s Social Club could have existed anywhere but it probably wouldn’t have been as good or lasted as long as it has.

You're due to play the Garden Festival in July; what do you make of Croatia as a new destination for ravers with the likes of stop making sense and Electric Elephant also being on the site? And how would you say it compares to the more traditional party place of Ibiza?

I think this will be my 5th year over at the Garden Festival and each year it somehow gets better. I can only speak for the site at Tisno but compared to Ibiza it's a breath of fresh air. It's still very unspoiled and relatively cheap. The beach bar and outdoor clubs at Tisno are largely a thing of the past in Ibiza. There's also a really friendly inclusive vibe there.

I just hope it doesn't get spoilt with the influx of British promoters going over to try and cash in.

What other plans have you got in the future then from a producing point of view?

Well I plan to get my own EP out soon for our EDSC Recordings imprint which has already had a couple of well received releases. I’ve also got a track coming out on fellow Manc label Red Laser Disco Records later in the year. I’ve also been working on a project with Flash Atkins on Paper Recordings which should see the late of day later in the year. 2022nq has taken over much of my time for the last 18 months but I’m hoping to get back in the studio again soon.

And finally, dream situation time. If you could put on your dream El Diablos party where would you do it and what three acts would you book, budget being no restraint? And what record would bring the house down?

I think it would ideally be on a boat somewhere very hot and beautiful. Probably in Croatia. Some of my best DJ experiences have been on the boat parties we do with Crazy P at the Garden Festival over there. I know this is an obvious one but I have wanted to put DJ Harvey on for years so would love to see him play from sunset to sunrise. 

Tickets are no longer available for this event