Having visited the Czech capital a few times before, I was under the impression that I pretty much knew what to expect. The beautiful architecture of the city mixed with a vibrant cosmopolitan atmosphere. Lots of Americans, apparently close to 30,000 inhabit the city on a permanent basis and lots of expectant lads from all over the place searching for the signs of the world renowned Czech ladies. Of course Prague does offer this is bucket loads since its rise to prominence as a party capital and of course the ridiculous beer prices – around 50p a pint. The `Magic City` as it has been dubbed in recent years is a haven of bars, pubs and clubs and with this reputation is constantly playing host to the worlds best artists, both on the decks and off. Clubs here like to mix it up a little and with the two most famous venues in Prague – The Roxy and Radost FX (Radost meaning Happiness) this is obvious. The programs for the new year include DJ performances from Paul Rogers (Sumsonic, UK) and DJ Vadim, Kosheen and Machine Head doing the live thang as well as theatre performances during the week.

Monday 29th December 2003

The party that’s bringing me to Prague for my first New Year here is in a brand spanking new place called simply `3` - www.klub3.cz .
`A new club is long overdue` - says Kev Quadrant, one quarter of `The quadrant Sound system` and one of the clubs new monthy residents. Alongside him as fellow residents are none other than arguably the 2 most respected DJs in Prague today, Trava and Loutka. The opening of the club was but 2 weeks ago with all three on duty but not everything went according to plan as Kev explains, `the place was completely packed, I’d say roughly 2000 people all came to check out this new place, it was free too. The thing was that the owners didn’t have all the correct paperwork, and when neighbours complained about a disturbance in came the police and closed it at about three in the morning.` So with this in mind, we grab a tram and head over the city to see what all the fuss was about.

As we walk through onto the balcony over looking the main stage my breath escapes me and I have to say its one of the best venues I have seen, ever. The club is basically a converted theatre, much like the Roxy but has a bigger balcony area, the whole place is red (its still being painted) and the lighting looks like something from a Marylyn Manson Arena concert, that means its f***ing amazing. Im sweating, and a toothy grin creeps onto my flushed face, this is gonna be fun.