The Knowhere Guide

The Local Music Scene in Bracknell, Berkshire*

Bracknell, Berkshire Record Shops and Venues

Record Shops

• Go into Reading and go to Sound Machine in the Harris Arcade. It's got an amazing selection of hard to find music.
• MVC just closed down. I go up to Reading or London. There are a few places in the arcade nr the station in reading selling old indy records. For Vinyl in B'nell it is HMV.
• there are actually a good couple of record shop in town centre
• Again, I would recommend Reading or Guildford for specialist stuff...here we put up with HMV and MVC
• HMV........opposite superdrug near princess square. MVC near mccdonalds. both not bad. MVC cheaper. HMV better.
• reading
• we all go to reading for the best cd's cause hmv and mvc are full of bloody townies
• Rock Box in Camberley is the place to go for cheap CDs and something a bit different.
• There used to be a place called ABCDs but alas it's shut down. However internet and London aside, there is still Sound Machine in the Harris arcade in Reading. Not strictly in Bracknell but hey,it gives you an excuse to leave.
• Woolies is the most competitive
• Sainsburys... It does stand out from the rest... £9.99 for an album.
• yeh... right? what in bracknell? bracknell is shite for shops.
• None. Recently got an HMV, but what's special about that?
• Reading
• In the old co-op building there use to be a record department where you could request a record and go in a booth and listen to it (this was in the 60's) very trendy
• MVC Our Price, er - thats it.
• bracknell? shops... where?! na, mvc has got to be the cheapest.
• Hmmmm....not many about however ABCD's was good while it lasted R.I.P....Other than that woolies or our price it is oh not forgetting MVC.!!!!!!(Great for albums and stufff you may not find else where but thats it.)
• There's fuck all record shop's in Bracknell, Frequency closed year's ago, And Wooly's dont sell records any more, it's all cd's and tape's. i suppose there's Our price but they still dont do vinyl.
• No Good Ones
• If you're looking for a decent music shop in Bracknell don't bother.I would suggest travelling that extra 20 miles up to Reading with its Virgin Megastore and HMV. In Bracknell the Our Price is way expensive, plus only stock up on the pop scene cds, whilst all of their workers are grungers!!Whereas MVC may once in a while stock up on some decent cds but it is very unlikely the one you really want and have looked everywhere else for will not be stocked, but they may ask you if you want to order one, which only takes about four or five months.
• There's 1 independant record shop next to The Red Lion pub.
• Just to prove that people don't recognise a bargain when they see it, ABCD's has closed down. It's very sad.
• Our Price (I work there!) ABCDs is the best for Alternative, but it's closing down soon.
• MVC is nice and cheap
• ABCD's. All CD's £11.99. Cheapest in town (so forget Our Price & MVC). The Welsh guy is called Mikey, the short one with spikey hair is Justin, the Blackburn Rovers supporting American is Mike. 6ft 4" Saturday boy is Paul. Collector discount scheme. Polite staff.
• ABCD's - Small but friendly MVC - Big shop, large selection but long queues due to everyone writing out forms at the till to join their loyalty card scheme!
• Our Price is ok if you want CDs, tapes, CDs, tapes, CDs and tapes. Frequency Records (Service Yard A - behind Woolworths) sells real records (vinyl) specialising in all types of dance music.

Clubs (Dance Music) and Music Bars

• The Drum is a fairly new venue, and is pretty much the only place to throw some shapes! They have house and hard house nights, and there's a wicked monthly breaks party called Mumbo.
• Nothing alternative. Shakiras and the drum
• Cellar Bar at South Hill, AWESOME!
• Where to go for us 28ish year olds, Shakiras is too young,Apres is too out of town. What about this new place, The Drum??? Supposed to be over 23`s. Anyone been yet? Under the 3M car park?!?
• CLUBS?? In Bracknell? only sh!tty Shikara's where the sweat drips off the ceiling and old fogies go dancing there (note a 40+ yr old woman with bleach blonde hair!)
• Masquerade WASN'T closed because too many people were stabbed, it was closed because Bracknell Council would not renew either the Masquerade Or the Frisco Jacks' licence. I know this as I used to work there!
• MAsqurades and friskos no longer exist they are now bingo and pizza hut lol
• colours snooker club. full of glue sniffing skinhead 15 year old wannabes. the main nihgtclub - masquerades has been shut down by the police as too ,many people have been stabbed there. no shit. no other real clubs. just pubs. wokingham has a few clubs.
• How old is this site? Is it updated? Shikara NIghtclub has opened in December 03. Kept the name so people know where it is, but no other connection. Was Simpson's, but without the drugs!! Come and try it for yourselves.
• shakiras just opened suposed to be quite good and dats it i think
• south hill again (im noticing a pattern here) all the dancing etc
• By the grace of all things unlice infested masca-pants has shut down and the only club remaining in bracknell is at the coppid beech.Strictly over 25s and the kind of place philandering middle managers take their secretaries.
• Masquarades has closed, Yippee!!!!
• There aren't any clubs in bracknell anymore (11.1.03). Shikaras has a late licence and they're very good (it used to be Simpsons).
• Mascarades and Friscos have closed now, gonna be a pizza hut and a gym!! gonna miss all the bottling and fights by the 'hard' townies!! rumour is that the townie fights mean the licence has been taken away!! ha ha townies :)
• DO NOT ENTER MASCARADES. You will be forced to sign up for a member card, which will accidently fall out of your wallet at the most cringe worthy moment. Do try the Beir Keller and Apres at the Coppid Beech. Heaven knows we need a decent club in Bracnell...... Simpsons was magic, but the Shakara sucks.
• clubs in bracknell are not brill but there no one else to go for a cheap night out the club in bracknell masquerades has got under18s on a monday night not bad somewhere to hang out a see a few fights and friscos next door to masquerades let anyone in get pissesd plus its cheap when its happy hour.
• Masquarades if ur into that sort of thing.. umm frisco's kind of. well lets face it. bracknells pretty crap
• Masquerades Apres night club at the Coppid Beech Hotel
• There is an under 18 night club 4 teens known as eclipse it is gr8 if u wanna show off ur mc skills as all u have 2 do is ask and u can be master of da mic so head down to the 3M car park on a friday night, not on every friday pick up a flyer 4 details.
• ahh, bracknell. what a shit hole?! full of arseholes too?! na, its not too bad, mascapants is it for the night life, well along with a few pubs serving 12 yr olds. but hey?! go down masquerades more than once and you'll be a regular, ask my mate, shes down there every weekend?! my advice, get well pissed and hope for the best...?
• Aghhhhhh!!!!Well ive seen mention of frisco's but yet to see mention of the classy(!!??!!)establishment known as masquerades(Or the Palace as us locals call it)To say the people who frequent there look young would be an understatement,need i say more??Only worth going if your very drunk and have no idea as to what is going on or happening to you!!!!
• We have Masquerades nightclub, Woopi Dooda, are'nt we lucky. Still they did have a wet t-shirt comp down there a few weeks ago, with another one planned.(yipee)
• Things went down hill (Was that possible?) when Oceans under the carpark was closed. My advice go to London on the train from Waterloo
• Bracknell clubs should be renammed Independent School Discos. Get-my-point.
• get on the train and end up in london. believe me it makes sense.
• Personally speaking...for clubs...Bracknell is CRAP!!! I have to say that of a Friday or Saturday I tend to venture into Reading or if I am feeling a little more up-market I will go to the Jagz Club in Ascot. This club is great! Quite expensive but well worth it if you are up for a funky time with some rather funcky people!
• SHITTY SHITTY SHITTY Club at the point. Masquerade's.
• The only major club Brtacknell has is MAsquerades which is alright but you need to consume large amounts of alcohol and be surrounded in mates to thoroughly enjoy the beauty of Mazzas. We need more clubs in Bracknell so can someone please please build one.
• Simpsons Nightclub really was a dive filled with young druggies. (I should know, I use to be one of them). It has closed down now and has been replaced with an Indian restaurant. (haven't eaten there yet!)
• Frisco Jacks at the Point. Masquerades next to that, which I'm told the under 18's night every other monday is a total arse wipe.
• Club CALI has just oppened up outside the old Edwards Joint in Binfield.
• Admiral Cunningham club is a real shithole. Regular criminals of Bracknell attend at weekends and manage to vandalise nearby Priestwood shops and people's houses.
• Apres at the John Nike Centre is good (as I DJ there sometimes - another plug !!). There is loads of crumpet for the lads, and it's crumpet with style.
• There is Simpsons which is good for a fight, has 'orrible toilets and people who love taking loads of drugs.
• Coppid Beech hotel (at the Nike Centre) has a nightclub and beer kellar.
• Frisco Jacks, food, drink and fights.

Live Music Venues

• South hill park, the fez and the purple turtle in Reading and Reading university student union.
• SOUTH HILL PARK
• south hill park
• the celler bar at south hill park
• Yep Cellar Bar's the place to be. And watch out for Neophonics, new Bracknell Soul/R&B original band that's definitely going to make it big for 2006!!!
• South Hill Park have bands on in the Cellar Bar& the Wilde Theatre.They also host the Outhere Festival aka Bracknell Festival.I went this year and it was fantastic. The Bierkeller at Coppid Beech Hotel has live bands every friday and saturday night
• some pubs do live bands - the running horse, the boot e.t.c. south hill park always has bands every thursday in the cellar bar and has the bracknell festival every year. - the best place for music in bracknell. shakiras indian restaraunt sometimes has live bands too. reading 20 mles away really is great for live bands :- bar oz, purple turtle, alleycats, the fez.
• southill park
• Cellar Bar south hill
• Great Hollands community centre is now having a once a month/every two months Punk/metal night, first one february 14th. www.mohawkmusic.co.uk has details.
• The Cellar at South Hill Park is fab when it gets all hot and sweaty and you come out all bruised and battered. Hoorah!
• The cellar bar at South Hill park is pretty cool and the owner of the Newton Pippen in Harmanswater is trying to start up 'alternative' and rock nights on Fridays.
• South Hill Park (yet again) check out the festival can be geuinely good. Oh and I seen a couple of good bands at the football club in the 80's and 90's (ok so it was mainly the Skrews but the beer was cheap)
• South Hill Park or in Bracknellian, Sarrfill Poarrk.
• Not in Bracknell. Shikaras have a turn occasionally.
• oooh rock south hill park!!!! LMAO
• South Hill Park. All kinds of music from D & B to Opera, Jazz to Metal. The only safe-haven from Garage in Bracknell. Possibly the greatest place for miles around, and it also hosts Bracknell festival. If you want a break from the town without actually leaving it, go to South Hill Park.
• Reading
• South Hill Park The bandstand
• south hill park, actually pretty good. many a nice evening have i sat in the cellar bar or out on the terrace. na, its a laugh.
• The 3 day festival in July at South Hill Park is way too expensive but it's the best music venue that happens in Crapnell!!
• gotta be South Hill Park. I used to live behind it and during the summer used to try and bunk into the festivals for free, never worked of course
• Years ago the Sports Centre used to play host to the likes of The Jam, Madness, Haircut 100. The one gig to be played there in the last 10 years has been Abba and that was a fricking tribute band.
• The Cellar Bar at South Hill Park is a good venue and occasionally The Wilde Theatre as well. The Bracknell festival can sometimes throw up some surprises too. This year (2000) The Brand New Heavies are there!!! Famously in the early 90's the Red Hot Chile Peppers played there before they were really famous!
• Fruit & Firkin, South HIll park. Best place for live music in bracknell? Reading.
• South Hill Park (Wilde Theater) has good indie bands and atmosphere on Fridays. I enjoy it once in a while, even though I am a house/garage DJ.
• The Beer Kellar has live bands most nights and comedy night on Thursday. Does food too.

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Last updated: 2007-12-16