SLENTRE.COM

Compiled by Avarie Parker

If the SLENTRE.COM Traffic Report is any indication, September certainly hasn’t been a very sexy month in Second Life. Last month’s steamy red light district parcel, Plush Zeta, has been forced off the chart by more PG-rated locations such as Help Island and the newly reinvented Second Life club, 5th Element. The hot SL club, owned by Dakota Neumann, has always been a chart topper but Dakota has recently changed the club from a topless venue to something a bit more upscale. The changes have pushed his club up the charts to the #2 spot for the second month in a row. There is one new entry this month; a club called SLeek arrived, coming in at #10. SLeek also avoids blatantly sexual activity like stripping, topless dancing, or S&M. For more information on what these top clubs are doing to get residents to crowd the dance floors, simply keep reading.

Per usual, you won’t find camping chairs, free lindens, automated avatars, or “bots” listed in any of the SLENTRE.COM’s top 10 sites. The weekly population data was compiled by a 3rd party source and then reviewed to exclude any sites that engage in tactics designed to boost traffic rankings. What remains is an accurate listing of where real Second Life residents are dancing, chatting, spending Lindens, and enjoying their second lives.

		Frank’s Place, Owner – Gymmy Sinatra
		The 5th Element , Owner – Dakota Neumann
		Help Island Public, Owner – Governor Linden
		Laguna Bay, Owner -Martin Mounier
		Badlands, Owner – Jesse Murdock
		Sanctuary Rock, Owner – Daisy Beauchamp
		Midnight Reflections, Owner – Missbehavin Neva
		House of V, Owner – Vveronica Pony
		Apollo, Owner – Dane Zander
		SLeek, Owner – Hummer Corleone

Stayed the same

Moved up

Moved down

New entry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1) Franks Place, Owner – Gymmy Sinatra
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Franks%20Place/53/162/24

Frank’s Place is a 30’s/40’s style jazz club paying homage to Frank Sinatra. According to Ray Trafalgar, one of the managers, the place is packed nightly with 80+ residents. The sim also houses a mall where one can find the formal wear required to gain entrance into the club.

“We try hard to keep the formal attire enforced and have a security of some 25 to keep it that way,” says Trafalgar. “If you enjoy the music of Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and the Rat Pack, then this is your place.”

2) The 5th Element , Owner – Dakota Neumann
http://slurl.com/secondlife/GOL%204/128/128/0

The 5th Element, owned by Dakota Neumann, is a large dance club where one can find music, dancers, parties, and live DJ’s.

(5th Element Club in Second Life offers dancing and intimate areas to chat.)

Recently the club has changed from a topless venue to a more conservative, PG rated, experience. Everyone entering receives a note card with the house rules, among them a warning against “vulgar language in any form of chat, sound or rude ascii images, etc.” Despite the lack of exposed avatars, 5th Element is still very busy and again maintains one of the top positions on the traffic report. The club is beautifully designed by Dakota Neumann himself and evokes a sense of modern sophistication. The only complaint: lag. It is often so busy with Second Life scenesters that just getting to the dance floor can be problematic.

(Dakota Neumann, owner of popular Second Life club, 5th Element, discusses recent changes with SLENTRE.COM.)

Mr. Neumann was nice enough to sit down with SLENTRE.COM to discuss the recent changes and the club’s continued success:

Avarie Parker: Your club grows more popular month after month and when I first did an article on it, it was a topless club. Were you the owner then and if so, why did you change the format??
Dakota Neumann: I have always been the owner, yes. This club is the 5th in a row, first one in spring 2006.
It was originally a dance-topless club. I did change it for strategic reasons and it’s been a great decision.
GOL is a large company; 18 sims, residential islands and design sales. I wanted to cut any connection with sex.

AP: Do you own all 18 sims?
DN: Yes
AP: So as you cut back on the sexual element, the success of the club increased?
DN: I have to say the club has always been successful, but now it’s steadily very popular. It’s a pure dance club now with nothing – no shops or anything else – to increase traffic. We don’t have events and we don’t give out money.
AP: So I love the design. Who designed and built it?
DN: I do the design and build all the projects on my sims. All of GOL was born because of my passion for the design
and architecture. I build a new club every 6 months, changing styles along the way. That way we are always offering something new. So we can evolve.
AP: So why do people keep returning to the club?
DN: It’s a mixture – djs, great manager, cool environment. Many managers and staff have been with the club since the very beginning, 2006. It’s a like a family.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3) Help Island Public, Owner – Governor Linden
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Help%20Island%20Public/128/128/26

If you want to learn more about Second Life, then Help Island is where it’s at. According to the information on the sim, a resident can “learn to script, learn to build, and pick up Freebies on Help Island Public!”

4) Laguna Bay Nude Beach, Owner – Martin Mounier
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Laguna%20Bay/128/128/0

Laguna Bay Nude Beach is an adult sim that is heavily populated with unclothed and clothed avatars alike.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are many ocean side areas to chat, cuddle, sun bath, etc.

5) Badlands, Owner – Jesse Murdock
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Badlands/128/128/0

Badlands hosts Bad Girls club, one of SL’s most popular nightclubs.

Floating above the packed dance floor is an intimate private area to chat and escape the crowd.

6) Sanctuary Rock, Owner – Daisy Beauchamp
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Sanctuary%20Rock/128/128/0

Sanctuary Rock is a hardcore dance club with a very friendly vibe. Every time I stopped by, the dancers greeted me with a very warm welcome – so no pretentious attitudes here. The music varies but leans toward rock. I was able to ask Sanctuary Rock host, Kit Henhouse, a few questions:

Is this place full almost every night?
Yeah, it gets uber busy!

How often do you host here?
Currently, I’m hosting 3 times a week. When I’m not hosting, I sometimes take the role of dancer.

What keeps residents coming back??
Well, besides the good music, the atmosphere here is just fun and exciting.
The staff here are very welcoming and a lot of people have made such good friends! Ha Ha! I met most of my very good friends here.

7) Midnight Reflection, Owner – Missbehavin Neva
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Midnight%20Reflections/128/128/0

Midnight Reflection is a sim that boasts “love and romance”. It is decorated with lush foliage and beautiful waterfalls. The center of activity is the large dance floor nestled among the high clifftops. A pathway runs along the upper ledge of the rocks making for beautiful views and a nice romantic getaway from the action on the dance floor. The owner, Missbehavin, is very friendly, accessible, and willing to answer questions.

(Monet Bury sports her new frock on the dance floor at the Midnight Reflection sim)

One resident, Money Bury, makes Midnight Reflections a major part of her regular stomping grounds.

“I love it here! They have many dances and events. Most everyone is rather friendly and there is always someone here. Evenings they have events, contests, a live DJ, and theme nights.”

8 ) Chained Lust ( House of V), Owner – Vveronic Pony
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Chained%20lust/81/61/57

House of V on the Chained Lust sim is one of the most popular BDSM clubs in Second Life. Closed to anyone under 18, the club works to ensure that all who participate in activities here are willing participants and not innocent victims. There is a large billboard with the following warning:

Every Tuesday and Friday is Member’s Day. Any paid up House of V member or Gold member can claim the free use of anybody they find at House of V on Tuesdays and Fridays (Midnight to Midnight SLT). This includes HoV escorts, dancers, staff, friends, and non-member visitors.
The only people who can say no are House of V members, Gold members, HoV Concierges, DJs and HoV Officers. The only safe places are the landing and vendor areas! If you don’t want to be used, we advise you leave or stay in the safe area.
Duration of any session is 30 minutes minimum.
CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED!

So what does the term ‘free use’ mean exactly? I had a chance to talk to Ebony Takacs, House of V Concierge, for the juicy details:

“We are a rather friendly bunch – it IS BDSM sim of course, but I feel residents come here for the chatter and the obvious – to dance, hang out, and have fun. It’s open not only to those in Dom/Sub but for anyone who likes to play and follow the rules. I will say that its best for members on Tuesdays and Fridays. On those days, members are able to claim others – sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t.
For 30 minutes a member can claim you as a sub and you do what she asks.
This can often mean something as innocent as dancing. However, this is an adult sim, so other things happen as well.
I like it because you never know from day to night what you might see.”

(House of V Concierge, Ebony Takacs dances while working at the club.)

Do you make money here?

“Honestly, Tuesdays and Fridays? Not much. Other days more.
I must admit I have worked and not gotten paid much,
but I have made up to 2 or 3,000L ($8.00 -$12.00). But trust me, this is not common.
It is fun to work here. That and the people I interact with outweigh the money I make.
At the House of V, come out and enjoy dom/subs, beasts, your fantasy – this is what it means to me.”

9) Apollo, Owner – Dane Zander
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Apollo/128/128/0

Apollo is a beautiful Grecian-inspired garden with an under the stars dance floor called Salsas y Boleros . The sim doesn’t allow nudity but lists itself as a place for starlit romance where rules apply.

10) SLeek, Owner – Hummer Corleone
http://slurl.com/secondlife/SLeek/128/128/0

SLeek is the newest club to hit the SLENTRE.COM Traffic Report. The vibe is fresh and international and there seemed to be many chats going on in languages other than English.

(DJ Janine Cummings spins funky house electronica at SLeek, Second Life dance club)

Club manager and SLeek DJ, Janine Cummings, was happy to answer a few questions about the club and why it’s so popular among residents:

Avarie Parker: Why do residents come to the club?
Janine Cummings: Residents come here to dance, talk and meet other people from over the world. A lot of people simply hangout at the beach area, which is packed with people windsurfing, parasailing, kite boarding, swimming and a wide range of activities to discover.
AP: What is the music like?
JC: We have focused on House music and have a wide range of DJs playing here from all over the world.
AP: How long have you been DJing at SLeek?
JC: I DJ very rarely, because I am too busy with other projects in SL. I do the DJ bookings for the Club. I work in RL in the Music Business, so it’s interesting for me to spot new talent in SL.
AP: How long has the club been around?
JC: SLeek has existed for two years now. The actual location (Region) has been around since February 2007.
AP: Do you make good money?
JC: I guess the fact that that the club has continued running for two years speaks for itself.
AP: Why did the owner open the club?
JC: SLeek is not only a dance Club. Hummer Corleone (Owner) runs his Furniture and Gym Equipment business on the Sim and some selected shops featuring the best designers in SL (including Sartoria Traveller Bade (Men’s Clothing), Wrong (Women’s Clothing), Kalnins (Eyewear), SOREAL, Akeyo, Hyperion Studio (Shapes), Concrete (Urban Wear) and RE.ACT).

AP:What are the best nights to come out?
JC: We run events with changing life-DJ’s every Day in European peak time (12-04 PM SLT).

 

*This report was compiled using the powerful mapping tools provided by Mappa Novus, http://www.mappanovus.com/. Their in-house data collection technology regularly collects population data for each region of the Second Life metaverse. The data is stored over time so various statistical analyses can be made. Any sim that offers camping, free-lindens, or bots is disqualified.