Night life in Exeter

University of Exeter

Exeter

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boho - What, so just because Dave doesn't agree with you (and tbh the majority of students) on the Exeter clubbing scene his views should be taken with a pinch of salt? :rolleyes:

As for me, I stand in between the two views. Riva is my idea of hell on earth but I do like a bit of Arena.

University of Exeter

Exeter

Reply 21

boho

I take offence to being refered to as a 'poser and self-important snob slags' something i am most certainly not. There are ways of voicing your opinion about a topic - or in this case, place - without insulting others and those who happen to enjoy going there.

Reply 22

Angelil

If it were totally untrue then you wouldn't care so much :p:

Reply 23

kayzy

boho

don't worry about it, it's best to ignore these things :^_^:

Reply 24

Bob Hiroshima

Angelil

boho - What, so just because Dave doesn't agree with you (and tbh the majority of students) on the Exeter clubbing scene his views should be taken with a pinch of salt? :rolleyes:

As for me, I stand in between the two views. Riva is my idea of hell on earth but I do like a bit of Arena.

Who are you to say that the majority of students disagree with me? Have you surveyed each and every one of them recently?*

The student population is made up of many different walks of life, compromising many different life experiences and individual personalities.

It's very easy to 'other' an opinion and artificially portray yourself as speaking on behalf of the majority in order to discredit somebody who takes a different view to you, especially when you have connived your way into winning one or two of the superficial popularity contests that go on at university.

*Granted, though, if you're talking about the majority of EXETER students, you could sadly be right. A lot of people who don't even like the music or that kind of atmosphere end up being dragged along, or convincing themselves (as I have done) that Arena will be a good night out. There is a large enough group of people who like alternative music and hate Arena at Exeter Uni, though, and I don't think they can be discounted. They are just a lot more difficult to find.

Arena reminds me of How Soon is Now by The Smiths:

"There's a club, if you'd like to go
You could meet somebody who really loves you
So you go, and you stand on your own
And you leave on your own
And you go home
And you cry
And you want to die"

Reply 25

Bob Hiroshima

Angelil

If it were totally untrue then you wouldn't care so much :p:

Ha. Indeed. Mutton dressed as lamb. hehe. That's the impression I get leaving most of these places. The music's ****. These places can be OK if you go there with a big bunch of fiends and you all get drunk and have a laugh, but if you want to do that, you go to a place like Time Piece, where there is good music and an outside and bar area to talk before you all start dancing.

What I remember about Arena is being moaned at by bouncers for smoking or drinking in the wrong place while the place stinks of vomit and they turn the heating up to full volume on a hot night, so that people get hotter whilst dancing and end up spending more on alcohol to cool down.

Arena is all about getting wasted and ****ing somebody who you don't know very well, all the while pretending that you are a very important and respectable person just because you don't smoke and are willing to waste a ****load of cash on some **** clothes and shoes just to get some rich rugby boy into your pants.

boho

If I wanted to say things in a boring, wishy-washy way that everybody, or at least most people, accept and are happy with, despite the essentially meaningless, superficial and disingenuous nature of what I was saying, I would become a politician.

Reply 26

kayzy

Dave2

why are you so negative to people that like different things to you? :s-smilie:

i've ignored you up until now but why do you seem to have such a negative and small minded view on people who like arena, in my view arena is one of the only places that just about everybody likes as it appeals to the majority of students, even my friends who dislike clubbing will happily come along for a drink and dance

just because i disagree with you and like to enjoy myself does not make me the type of person you describe

it's about time you shut up or learn how to put your view across without having to use insults to make your point known

Reply 27

Sephrenia

kayzy

why are you so negative to people that like different things to you? :s-smilie:

*claps* Well said.

********************

There are more than 2 viewpoints. And just because its a different viewpoint doesn't mean that we are 'tossers' or 'dull-minded' or any of the other things that you have accused the majority of the student population of being in the past.

Reply 28

Bob Hiroshima

kayzy

why are you so negative to people that like different things to you? :s-smilie:

"I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to death your right to say it," Voltaire.

It's cool that you disagree with me, and you seem like a reasonable enough person from the manner in which you're talking. I can only base my own opinion on all of the negative personal experiences I had at places like Arena and with the kind of people that are attracted to frequently visit these places.

We all have different opinions, and we all have a personal standard of judgement for those who live certain kinds of lifestyle that we do not, due to our own moral or personal objection/disagreement. You're entitled to your opinion, and shouldn't be locked up or persecuted for it, but I'm entitled to my opinion of you for having that opinion, and you're entitled to your opinion of me for having my opinion. This is all a bit philosophical, though.

I had one positive experience at Arena during my entire three years at Exeter Uni, and that was only because I was in a large group and we were all so drunk and hyped up, that we couldn't even stand up straight and kept falling over, which was pretty funny. The buzz was more from the at-the-time friends that I was with than from the venue itself, which is ****.

Sephrenia

The majority of EXETER students - or at least the biggest, and most visible/noticeable group of students - are for the most part how I have described them.

Those two emotive terms that have been singled out were surrounded by other arguments, by the way, for people who didn't read what I originally wrote... which by the way was actually written quite a long time ago.

This is a guess, but I can imagine that Sephrenia is quite a pretty girl, because she seems really shocked by hearing just a couple of the negative things I've said. I've heard plenty of negative and positive things, some of which I agree with and some of which I don't, but I respect people for their opinions if they justify them. Rather than, for instance, waiting for the first opportunity to seize a moment to jump behind somebody else in order to have a go at at a mutual opponent.

*

My original post was only intended to depict my honest personal interpretation of Exeter nightlife. I didn't even think it was that severe, and have heard plenty of people say similar things. I put several positive things in there too.

I guess it's good people have reacted to them, though, cuz at least the prospective students get to see a variety of different opinions.

My following posts were more of a reaction-to-a-reaction, and when these kinda things start happening, you do express yourself a bit more emotively.

I wouldn't worry too much people, I don't post too much on these forums and only really use them as a source of procrastination or distraction from boredom, as I'm sure many of us do. It can also be quite liberating to speak over the net, cuz I feel like I can speak more freely.

Peace.

Reply 29

romeosbitch

Alot of people love love love arena and i like it occasionally so i won't slag it off too much. The thing with arena is that it isn't a good club on a tuesday or thursday, it smells and plays rubbish music and by rubbish i don't mean music i don't like but actual rubbish such as that lion king song. But for some reason, exeter students seem to flock to this kind of thing, i dont know why and on a druken tuesday i can be there enjoying it and yelling away to livin' a prayer like the rest of them.

What annoys me is a lot of students don't give any other club or any other day of the week a chance. Go to arena on a saturday night and you have to play spot the student, who are normally there slagging off the local people like they're offended that local people actually leave their homes. But on saturday nights you will not hear the lion king song and whilst it still smells, it is a good club.

As for the gay scene as someone mentioned, it's called vaults and riva on a tuesday night. vaults tries it's hardest but canal street it aint. there is a general lack of a gay scene in the west country generally.

Reply 30

lmcorr

I feel drawn to Arena every so often when I haven't been in a while. I don't know why. Seems hit and miss with the nights in there though.

If you want a variety of different and varied acts the Lemmy is a decent venue for some 'alternative' (in pretty much every sense of the word) stuff, Cavern is a more intimate venue but has some decent acts every so often.

I've never been to the Pheonix but was surprised when I heard Nouvelle Vague were playing there. Totally out there and different, yet awesome. You have to shop around in Exeter!

Reply 31

Bob Hiroshima

And Abba. Lots of Abba. You have to be really drunk. If you're wasted already and go there to get more wasted, it is possible to have a good night. But that's only because you're wasted. Not because of the quality of music, staff, or dance floor.

Romeosbitch, I agree on the gay scene, though I'm not gay myself. That said, the alternative music scene is quite small too - basically being the cavern and sometimes TP. The West Country is quite small on nightlife, if you want to out out of the usual cheesy studenty thing.

But you can still have a good time if you do some searching and get lucky. Oh, good point on The Phoenix. Not many people look there, but they get some fantastic acts - like The Guillemots and Turin Breaks.

Good sign to stick to your limits, though, is that in my final year a guy tried to take a shortcut back to campus through The Phoenix after it had closed, collapsed, and I think he drowned in his own vomit in the end. Dead at 18. Happens once in a while when masses of people live the lifestyle. Sad, but common. Could easily have happened to anybody.

Reply 32

kates:)

After a week of choatic raucus debauchery in Ibiza, the idea of a few naff clubs and lots of bars and nice pubs in Exeter has never sounded more appealing!