The 1991 Elephant and Castle warehouse that exported British clubbing as a global brand is still pulling tier-one DJs into the Box, with a sound rig that earns its reputation.
Tip: The Box main room sound is the experience, do not get sidetracked into the smaller rooms before midnight.
Address: 103 Gaunt Street, Elephant and Castle, London SE1 6DP
The Brixton Road club run by the Mixmag-tested Phonox crew runs a no-headliner format where one resident plays the whole night, and the Saturday booking policy has built a loyal regular crowd.
Tip: Get there before midnight, the door cuts off well before close and the queue gets brutal on a name Saturday.
The 14,999 capacity warehouse in the former Meridian Water IKEA is the country's biggest indoor club, run by Broadwick, and is where the touring superstar electronic sets land in north London.
Tip: The Overground to Meridian Water is the only sensible way in, taxis pile up on Glover Drive and the walk from Tottenham Hale is long after a 10-hour set.
The Canning Town warehouse with a 24-hour license has built a reputation for serious techno bookings and a strict no-phones-on-the-floor policy that protects the room from becoming an Instagram set.
Tip: Phones go in pouches at the door, that is the rule and it is enforced. Cash for the cloakroom moves the queue.
The Wapping warehouse on Pennington Street runs a multi-room curated programme of techno and house with the kind of long-form bookings that pull in international touring DJs and Sunday-morning crowds.
Tip: Wapping Overground is the quickest way home at 7am, the night buses out of Shadwell are a long wait after a closing set.
The Frith Street basement opened by tenorist Ronnie Scott in 1959 is the central canon of British jazz, with two sittings a night and the late show that real heads come for.
Tip: Book the late show, the room thins out and the playing loosens. Standing bar tickets are the cheapest way in if you do not need a table.
The Gillett Square upstairs room is where London's improvised and contemporary jazz programmes when it wants to be honest about what it sounds like, with a regular Tomorrow's Warriors slot for the next generation.
Tip: Book direct, the room is small and an in-demand quartet sells out in days. The downstairs cafe is the warm-up.