Everyone has heard of the Ministry of Sound of London , a venue inspired by the great nightclubs of New York and Chicago, in Particularly the Paradise Garage. The idea was by Justin Berkmann who instead of creating a mixed place for dancing and for live music wanted a place where the sound system was the dominant part.
His goal was to be able to set the sound system as loud as possible without disturbing the neighbours, and they tested it at 156 decibels without the sound spreading outdoors. At that point Berkmann met James Palumbo who worked in the field of real estate finance and who became the co-founder name came to Berkmann when he was passing by the Ministry of Defense.
The venue opened in an old abandoned bus garage at Elephant and Castle in Southwark in 1991 and is still in the same place.
The club has five main areas: the Bar, the Baby Box, the VIP, the Loft and the Box, which houses the club’s audio system, with a roof specially built to contain the sound and a floor basement intended to allow clubbers to dance for many hours without getting tired.
The Ministry of Sound has undergone numerous rinnovations over the years, which have removed it from the original and gritty disused bus shelter, boasted flexible plastic doors, no alcohol license, and connected rooms with scaffolding walkways.
But his beating heart, the Box, remains more or less the same as the day it was opened, his attention to sound and production is still at the forefront of the technology of his weather.
The main space, The Box, has a capacity of 600 people and there are numerous smaller rooms inside.There are three nights a week at the disco: Lock n Load’s The Gallery plays trance music on Fridays and house music on Saturdays. The main area of The Box now has a sound system at 64 speakers and 22 channels that allows artists to customize the positioning of the sound.
Gentrification of Elephant & Castle has threatened the existence of the Ministry of Sound on several occasions and the venue has had to cer care public support to campaign to stay open
Ministry is the new club for members and a space of work shared for creative companies open in 2018 on Borough Road. The immersive tech suite includes a restaurant, long bar 70 feet, an outdoor terrace, a cinema from 40 seats and an event room.
Artist & Repertoire was formed in the early years’ 90 under the label “Sound of Ministry.” Internal labels Open, Data, Substance, Smoove and Rulin ‘have released a number of singles.
The labels of the artists were renamed “Ministry of Sound Recordings”. Recent acquisitions include London Grammar, whose debut album If You Wait garnered platinum sales in the UK.