If your nightlife has been missing something since Banks Bar closed you might want to check out a new night launching in Maidstone in June.

Nathan Martin, who was resident DJ at the Bank Street bar for 10 years until it shut last year, is hoping to recreate its laid back atmosphere, while helping aspiring DJs, with new night Debut at Social Chill Bar.

The venue in Week Street will be decked out in Debut branding one Saturday a month while three or four “bedroom DJs”, chosen by Nathan, demonstrate their skills for the first time.

The 36-year-old, who has DJ-ed at world-famous club Ministry of Sound in London and has gigs booked this summer in Spain, said: “After Banks I had a bit of a break from everything.

“By the time I started going back out in Maidstone I realised there wasn’t anywhere to go for a drink where you could hear a live DJ playing. There are pubs or clubs but that’s it.

“Banks was a pre-club bar for people who wanted to have a conversation while listening to good music but with the option to dance later.”

Nathan and partner Rob Blythe, 40, from Maidstone, checked out Social Chill Bar shortly after it opened in September and quickly got to know owner Bill Turgut, who invited the DJ to play there.

But Nathan, who got his break when a friend asked him to play half of his two-hour set in Gabriel’s on millennium eve, wanted to do more than perform.

He said: “When I was younger, getting a gig was really hard unless you knew somebody.

“We want to give local talent a chance to make their debut. If you’re passionate about DJ-ing send us a mix.”

The only requirement is DJs play soulful, funky, vocal house and can mix tracks together.

Maidstone DJs Nick Strain and Dan Luckham will play the first Debut with Josef from Sittingbourne.

The first night is 9pm to 4am on Saturday, June 11, followed by one on Saturday, July 9. See Debut on Facebook. Entry is free and neither Nathan nor the new DJs get paid. Send a 30-minute mix to socialdebut@hotmail.com