Maybe it's my age, but for some reason I don't like going to bars. Now that is not to say that I don't like getting a drink, but bars are too loud to talk and the music generally is not good enough to dance. Yet I can be seduced to go out. Last Thursday my friend called, said she was in town, and asked if I was free to go out that night to the Taven in Pacific Beach.
I am not going to go into the details of my night out, although there are some good stories such as my friend forgetting his ID and driving all the way back to the North County to get it. What I do want to discuss is the music that the Tavern was playing. Early on in the night they were playing upfront hip-hop with some classics thrown in. I am not sure if the DJ was using DVJs or some other kind of software (he was not visible in the DJ booth), but the mixes were seamless and the corresponding video for each song was playing on select TVs throughout the club. However the music was being presented, it was working and the dance floor was full the entire time I was there.
With management making such a positive decision to have good music in their club it was disheartening that at 12:30, when the clubbed switched over to house music most the tracks they played were 5 years old. They even played "Shut the f^@& up and Dance!" That song was great, I bought two copies of it, but it definitely sounds dated. I know that I can not expect the newest Trentemøller track but come on... There have been loads of great up tempo vocal house tracks that have come out in the past couple of years that should work just as good for a college crowd.
I don't really care about a bar playing outdated music; there is a general trend to play old dance music and this reinforces listeners' negative opinion of it. DJs, even at the run of the mill bars, need to continue to push the limit. Introduce new songs. It is too easy to cave in and say "The punters only dance to what they know." But then we might as well be jukeboxes.
- Charles Cushman
Showing posts with label clubbing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label clubbing. Show all posts
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Top 5 Clubbing Experiences
So i have been lagging on the posts, I know. It is not for lack of subjects, just lack of time and I just bought iLife '08 so I might be moving the blog to the metronome server. Anyways, just to get something up here is a post that I did 12 November 2003 on my MySpace page (yes I have been a member for that long). These are still some of my top nights. Maybe tomorrow i can update this.
Top 5 Clubbing Experiences
I want to hear them, every ones top 5 clubbing/ raving nights. Here are mine:
5) Groove Armada at Bridge and Tunnel, London: London by myself, trying to find the places to go. Looking through Night Out magazine see that GA will be spinning at some club. Don’t know anything about it, but I call find out that there is no dress code and I am on my way. I got a little lost, but eventually arrived waaayyyy to early. Turns out Bridge and Tunnel is just a little bar. So I hole myself up in a corner and drink and watch. The crowd slowly fills in, the DJ starts up, I make some new friends. After a while they open up the basement (they have a basement?! and GA take to the decks for one of the best house sets ever. Turns out the crowd is mostly made up of their friends from University ( A lot of people wondered who the hell I was) and all very friendly. The best part it was free!
4) Unknown at Dre’s, Las Vegas: This one was with my friend Scottie. We had found Dre’s one night when we were not ready to go home and this was our second visit. There were two firsts though, first time hearing breaks, awesome ones at that, and the first time I saw B-Girls dancing. It was so cool to see some girls really into the music that could go off. Ended up talking to them and hanging out the next night also. One downside to the entire experience, when I told one of them that I had a girlfriend they never talked to us again (Let the record show though I did nothing wrong!) Nikki and Erin where are you?
3) Donald Glaude at 4th and B in San Diego, NYE 2002-3: This was the first night I saw D, and the best one. He owned the crowd completely and fully, and the place was packed to the gills. For the people who have never been to 4th and B, it is one of the largest clubs that I have been to, comparable to Circus, larger than 1015, Ministry of Sound, or anything in Vegas. They even had the stage open that night, pure madness.
2) Tall Paul at Montage, San Diego: Another one of those shows that I went to early and by myself. I definitely miss Montage and the parties that used to go down there. That night, along with great music, the vibe was epic, smiles all around and I had the perfect mix of caffeine and alcohol in me. When I finally got home I would not shut up about this to my parents, they just think I ma crazy.
1) DJ Tiesto at Spundae, LA: I saw Tiesto in London two weeks prior at the Gallery, the place was packed, but the crowd was quite and I was forced into a corner (I did meet my friend Jet though) So I was anxious to hear him again. This time I did not have a pre-sale ticket so I got to Circus 2-3? hours early (7ish ?) and stood in line, and waited, waited, and waited. Finally around 11 I got into the club, a little pissed off, swearing to myself that I would never do that again. Once inside drop a yellow jacket and guzzle some vodka and step onto the floor. I felt better instantly. After an hour on the floor I finally meet up with my friends (Jhoana, Ian, and crew) and the night is fantastic. I never had gone out with so many people at once who were all cool. Plenty of room to move. To top it off Tiesto took over and made us go crazy. I danced harder than I have ever done, hell I danced on a go-go booth! I was so exhausted that I had to sleep on the way home.
-Charles Cushman
Top 5 Clubbing Experiences
I want to hear them, every ones top 5 clubbing/ raving nights. Here are mine:
5) Groove Armada at Bridge and Tunnel, London: London by myself, trying to find the places to go. Looking through Night Out magazine see that GA will be spinning at some club. Don’t know anything about it, but I call find out that there is no dress code and I am on my way. I got a little lost, but eventually arrived waaayyyy to early. Turns out Bridge and Tunnel is just a little bar. So I hole myself up in a corner and drink and watch. The crowd slowly fills in, the DJ starts up, I make some new friends. After a while they open up the basement (they have a basement?! and GA take to the decks for one of the best house sets ever. Turns out the crowd is mostly made up of their friends from University ( A lot of people wondered who the hell I was) and all very friendly. The best part it was free!
4) Unknown at Dre’s, Las Vegas: This one was with my friend Scottie. We had found Dre’s one night when we were not ready to go home and this was our second visit. There were two firsts though, first time hearing breaks, awesome ones at that, and the first time I saw B-Girls dancing. It was so cool to see some girls really into the music that could go off. Ended up talking to them and hanging out the next night also. One downside to the entire experience, when I told one of them that I had a girlfriend they never talked to us again (Let the record show though I did nothing wrong!) Nikki and Erin where are you?
3) Donald Glaude at 4th and B in San Diego, NYE 2002-3: This was the first night I saw D, and the best one. He owned the crowd completely and fully, and the place was packed to the gills. For the people who have never been to 4th and B, it is one of the largest clubs that I have been to, comparable to Circus, larger than 1015, Ministry of Sound, or anything in Vegas. They even had the stage open that night, pure madness.
2) Tall Paul at Montage, San Diego: Another one of those shows that I went to early and by myself. I definitely miss Montage and the parties that used to go down there. That night, along with great music, the vibe was epic, smiles all around and I had the perfect mix of caffeine and alcohol in me. When I finally got home I would not shut up about this to my parents, they just think I ma crazy.
1) DJ Tiesto at Spundae, LA: I saw Tiesto in London two weeks prior at the Gallery, the place was packed, but the crowd was quite and I was forced into a corner (I did meet my friend Jet though) So I was anxious to hear him again. This time I did not have a pre-sale ticket so I got to Circus 2-3? hours early (7ish ?) and stood in line, and waited, waited, and waited. Finally around 11 I got into the club, a little pissed off, swearing to myself that I would never do that again. Once inside drop a yellow jacket and guzzle some vodka and step onto the floor. I felt better instantly. After an hour on the floor I finally meet up with my friends (Jhoana, Ian, and crew) and the night is fantastic. I never had gone out with so many people at once who were all cool. Plenty of room to move. To top it off Tiesto took over and made us go crazy. I danced harder than I have ever done, hell I danced on a go-go booth! I was so exhausted that I had to sleep on the way home.
-Charles Cushman
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