Girl at DOMINION (Courtesy of Ast Riske)

One week ago today DOMINION, spelled in all capitals, opened in San Diego, CA.  The showing, especially for a Sunday evening, was outstanding.  Patrons came from all across San Diego County and descended on a club in La Mesa called the “Satin Lounge.”  Patterned after other medium to large format clubs, DOMINION has more than one room, dedicated to varied styles of music.  The thing that made DOMINION so distinct from other San Diego clubs, including the long-running Sabbat which also supports varied music in two rooms, is that it is a club geared for an 18 and over crowd.

This is not the first time that San Diego has seen an 18+ club.  One of the most notable clubs of this kind was Soil, which had at least two different runs at different locations in the county.  DOMINION differs even from earlier 18+ clubs as it drew a crowd that was age-diverse.  This is undoubtedly due to two separate factors, a club admittance sliding scale and a full bar made available to patrons over the age of 21.

DOMINION employs a sliding scale for admittance.  All patrons that are over 21 and dressed in appropriate attire are admitted for $5.  Any patrons that are between 18 and 20 are charged $10 at the door.  Finally, all patrons that wish to come dressed in club-inappropriate attire are charged $12, which far exceeds club admission for any other Goth-culture venue in San Diego.  This encourages troublemakers to stay away and allows people that are under 21 to enjoy a nightclub in a town that is notoriously underage-unfriendly.

Aside from the sliding scale, DOMINION would run up against trouble if they did not offer a full bar.  Though many over-21 patrons may not drink at a club they attend, easily as many do.  By ensuring that a bar was readily available for all attendees that were of legal age, it assured all patrons access to everything they would expect from a nightclub.

At the end of the evening, attendees seemed pleased with their experience.  The dancefloors were packed shoulder-to-shoulder until the end of the evening and everyone left smiling or, at least, frowning a little less.  One person was overheard saying DOMINION reminded them of Das Bunker in LA.  Perhaps this is the sign of things to come for the San Diego Goth community.

For more information on Club DOMINION, please visit their myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/club_dominion

For a gallery of photos from the event, please visit the gallery by Ast Riske: http://www.blogodoom.com/pretty-pictures?album=1