The Datsuns at the World’s End (The Underworld)

174 Camden High St London, NW1 0NE

Camden is really one of those amazing areas you never stop discovering new places to spend a good time with friends. None the less, at some point it starts to be difficult to find a surprising one – at the end of the day, a pub is a pub. Not the case of The Worl’s End.

Why is this a different one? First of all, because it is massive, really huge. Second, because it is busy, too busy sometimes. The amount of tattoos per square meter is maybe higher than anywhere else in the UK, and the first time you just realize you are behaving as a stupid tourist looking at all those punks and heavies with their cool attires. Try to avoid it, go to the bar, wait for a long time, pay a quite expensive price – no pint cheaper than 3.20 – and enjoy the loud music, heavy metal or punk mainly. That is what this place was built for.

On the tap they serve Carling, Carlsberg, Carlsberg Export –the one we have in Europe, including Spain-, Lowenbrau – a nice German lager -, Bombardier – a classic ale -, Tetleys –bitter-, John Smiths –best option - and Directors – another ale, slightly stronger than Bombardier. No Guinness, unfortunately, but a variety enough for almost any taste. It takes a lot to get one on the weekends, though.

For everybody's taste...

The building itself, dating from 1875, is an attraction good enough for dropping once or twice. There are plenty of big rooms and levels, with stairs all over the place. Rooms are spacious, even on the weekends when it is supposed to be really packed. I strongly recommend to go on a week day. In fact, I cannot think right now about a bigger pub I’ve been in the UK. Sure there are some, but I cannot make my mind up about it right now… anyway, and to make it clear: this pub is sort of a theme park one, but with enough authenticity to make it worth the trip. It is also really close to the tube station, so while going shopping to Camden is a really appetizing option.

All that said, and after having a couple of drinks in the pub itself, last Thursday we went down to The Underworld, the Club in the basement, to watch The Datsuns. We were Jase, Cesar&Cesar, another friend of mine and me. And after a rude bouncer in the door, everything became quite ok.

The club is nice, creepy but nice. A bit narrow maybe. This is the most obvious flaw if you like quiet concerts, and in the other hand it is a real success point if you like noisy, dirty and crazy ones. As I’m more in the second group, the place is fine for me: mossing, pushing, sweat and all the ingredients you are supposed to have in a rock/metal/punk gig. The drinks in the club downstairs are the same price than upstairs, which is fair enough. Tequila is quite expensive, though, but… who may have in mind having tequila shots on a Thursday nite? :)

About The Datsuns, they performed quite well. If you don’t know them, I recommend a listen or two to their first, self-titled album. They are from New Zealand, and they play good and aggressive rock. About the git itself, the quality of the sound wasn’t perfect, in fact it was quite far away from being good. But they played with heart and feeling, and they got almost everybody in the first rows dancing and having fun, which is actually the point. Maybe they are not one of my favourite bands, and the music they play is maybe not the one I fancy the most, but they do a god job in live.

Motherfucker from hell, as they performed it in the Underworld