DEATH CULT - TEAZERS - 1983

Before the Dance Factory made it's nest in Fat Sams, it used to roost at Teazers (Royal Hotel) in Union Street.

Here's an ad for a gig they put on there in August 1983 featuring Death Cult.

This was the bands' in-betweeny phase - first starting off as The Southern Death Cult, then shortening their name to this version, Death Cult, before finally in 1984 chopping it right down to The Cult, and that's when they then went on to be chart bound around the globe.

The gig was actually the live UK debut of the band under this name. Word of it reached journalists, leading to a gig review in the national music press!

You may recall Vex did a gig at the Tayside Bar in 1982 calling themselves Death Cult, but they reverted back to Vex after this lot here became known.

HEY! ELASTICA - DANCE FACTORY - 1982

Here's a nice close-up shot of Hey! Elastica playing at Dundee's Dance Factory in 1982.

The venue for the Dance Factory back then was Teazers, at the Royal Hotel in Union Street.

Under the photo is an article from Deadbeat fanzine detailing their debut single which had just been released at the time - and although it mentions the gig date as being the 15th, the gig actually took place on the 14th October '82.

Thanks to Al McEwan.

AZTEC CAMERA / SWING CLUB - TEAZERS - 1982

From the pages of Deadbeat comes this review of a gig that took place at Teazers (Royal Hotel), in 1982.
This venue (complete with candles on the tables) was the main home of Dundee's "Dance Factory" nights, before Fat Sam's opened.
I was at this gig, the headline act being Aztec Camera, from East Kilbride. Main man, Roddy Frame, who was still a very young whippersnapper at the time, was quite a flashy guitarist I recall. Not in a Jimi Hendrix way, but it showed through in his choice of chords and his solo runs. Quite sophisticated for bright & breezy pop songs. I mean, goodness knows how many chord changes there are in their chart hit "Oblivious"?!!!
Anyway, it was an enjoyable evening of upbeat sparkly tunes which began with support act, Dundee band, The Swing Club.
No need for me to describe their performance, for it is they who are the subject in the above review.
If you can't read it as it is, just click on it to enlarge.

ROYAL HOTEL (Teazers etc) - 70's & 80'S

The old Royal Hotel building in Union Street was quite a busy place if you go back 2 or 3 decades.
Here's the lowdown on the mid 70's to mid 80's period.
Well "Teazers" was the name of the night club they ran upstairs. The disco in the main lounge was quite roomy, and being a typical city centre club, it was always chock-a-block at weekends.
However, more interesting things were going on in the other rooms in the hotel...
In one of the smaller lounges they put on occasional jazz acts. I remember attending a few back then. Jazz-funksters Morrissey Mullen, and jazz-rockers Soft Heap, are 2 that spring to mind.
In another area of the hotel there was a larger hall that also had a stage. Dundee's alternative music promoters "Dance Factory" used this venue to put on gigs. Although these were usually advertised as being at Teazers, it wasn't the main disco room.
Needless to say, I went to lots of those too. Some of the acts who performed were, Big Country - Aztec Camera - The Fall - Durutti Column - Death Cult - Fischer Z, and on it goes.
This hall was also the place where they had a go at running a regular reggae disco. It was a bit hit & miss attendance-wise, even if the music was great, so unfortunately it only lasted a few months. Shame because it was the only place in Dundee where you were likely to hear Junior Murvin's classic "Police & Thieves" - so it got my thumbs up at the time!
When the Dance Factory moved to their permanent home in Fat Sams in 1984, Teazers started up a new club night called the Rock Machine, and this showcased both the alternative scene and rock music.
The top picture is the main Royal Hotel building's location on the corner of Union Street.
The photo under it shows the entrance area to Teazers Nite Club (the black & white doorway structure behind the pole) which was roughly halfway down Union Street.
Underneath that is the main lounge bar in Teazers disco.

The Teazers advert is a typical example of the kind published in the local press - this one here dating from December 1978.
And below, is a clip of the Royal Hotel entrance which was a separate area to Teazers doorway, and captured on film in 1985.
Although the building itself is till there today, it's no longer in use as a hotel.