On Saturday I ran into former Grand Duke Brian Busta at a friend's birthday BBQ, and he told me that he had been at the Planning Commission meeting for Cafe Flore, where they got everything they wanted and more.
Cafe Flore (located in the heart of the Castro at the intersection of Noe and Market) has been on a mission to expand into a 24-hour food service operation, with the ability to serve drinks and have DJ music until 2AM and to have outdoor seating all night. There were the usual neighbors (most of whom live over a block away), who complained that this would mean more noise, more crime, and more stuff they generally didn't want (just read the comments over on eater.sf to get a sense of the flavor). Meanwhile, JD Petras, the owner, waged a bit of a campaign of his own, raising fears that Cafe Flore would have to close if it wasn't able to expand in these ways.
I'm glad this one got through; as the boyfriend and I discussed last night, it means that now there's someplace other than Sparky's and Orphan Andy's to go for food after the bars close, or when we're feeling just generally a bit too stimulated to go home and lay around the apartment. I'm especially anxious to see what this scene will look like in the warm months; maybe it will give us back a littl of the old school Castro flavor, when you didn't go home to your computer afterhours to hook up.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Fun with Thugs and Guns
Friday night the boyfriend and I decided to take MUNI to Lucky Pierre - from the Civic Center stop it's only a few blocks down 9th, and since it was early and we wanted some air, we thought it would be pleasant and cost-effective too. What we hadn't expected was to almost wind up in the middle of a shooting.
As we were coming out of the MUNI turnstiles we saw three kids, no more than about 16 years old, in black hoodies coming toward us from the BART side of the station. They were sorta loping along, not in much of a real hurry, but you got the sense that something was up. Two of them got on the escalator in front of us, while the third trudged up the stairs alongside. As we got to the top we heard one of them say something about somebody they had left behind, and then they were skulking around the top of the escalators. Thinking not much of it, we turned left down 8th, and then, about a block and a half away, between Mission and Howard, we heard two shots. We turned and saw three figures in dark hoodies running across 8th toward a parking lot on Mission. Within minutes there were SFPD cruisers everywhere, lights flashing, racing around the blocks, and then, as we got to Harrison, we saw an ambulance headed down 9th toward SF General. Feeling a little shaken up, we went inside and had a couple drinks. The next morning we found this posting in sfcrime (note that not one word about it was in the Chronicle, that bastion of crime reporting).
All I can say is, I'm glad we didn't stand there at 8th and Market waiting for the cross-walk signal to change so we could walk down Market to 9th, or we surely would have been in the middle of this. Later we shook our heads about the whole thing; what the hell are teenagers doing with guns? Over the weekend the Chronicle began running a series of articles about the culture of crime in Oakland, making it easy to draw a relationship between what goes on in the East Bay (and, I presume, parts of San Francisco) and what we witnessed on Friday night, but it's still pretty scary to think that something like this could just randomly happen on Market Street on a Friday night.
As we were coming out of the MUNI turnstiles we saw three kids, no more than about 16 years old, in black hoodies coming toward us from the BART side of the station. They were sorta loping along, not in much of a real hurry, but you got the sense that something was up. Two of them got on the escalator in front of us, while the third trudged up the stairs alongside. As we got to the top we heard one of them say something about somebody they had left behind, and then they were skulking around the top of the escalators. Thinking not much of it, we turned left down 8th, and then, about a block and a half away, between Mission and Howard, we heard two shots. We turned and saw three figures in dark hoodies running across 8th toward a parking lot on Mission. Within minutes there were SFPD cruisers everywhere, lights flashing, racing around the blocks, and then, as we got to Harrison, we saw an ambulance headed down 9th toward SF General. Feeling a little shaken up, we went inside and had a couple drinks. The next morning we found this posting in sfcrime (note that not one word about it was in the Chronicle, that bastion of crime reporting).
All I can say is, I'm glad we didn't stand there at 8th and Market waiting for the cross-walk signal to change so we could walk down Market to 9th, or we surely would have been in the middle of this. Later we shook our heads about the whole thing; what the hell are teenagers doing with guns? Over the weekend the Chronicle began running a series of articles about the culture of crime in Oakland, making it easy to draw a relationship between what goes on in the East Bay (and, I presume, parts of San Francisco) and what we witnessed on Friday night, but it's still pretty scary to think that something like this could just randomly happen on Market Street on a Friday night.
Coming Soon to a Beatportal Near You
Some of you may be familiar with Beatport, the DJ-oriented music download site. A few of you might also be familiar with Beatportal, the sister site that focuses on scene news, info about new gear, and all the other kinds of content that might be of interest to the electronic music producer and afficiando. Well, guess who is the now the San Francisco correspondant for Beatportal? Yes, you guessed right, it's me! I'm working on my initial posts right now, focusing on giving some overviews of our little old scene, and those will be up as soon as the new Beatportal interface is ready, probably within the next two weeks or so. I'll post more info up here when my posts are published there, but you can expect to see some content that I'll be writing exclusively for that blog like scene guides and scenester profiles in addition to event reveiws and scene news. Of course, I'll still be writing here as well for all you local folks, and the Friday and Saturday Night Guides, as well as upcoming event info, will stay exclusive to SFScene. So, when you're bored at work, you'll now have two places to go check out for your daily dose of the Jaded Gay DJ!
Event Review: Lucky Pierre at The Stud
After two extremely busy weekends, the boyfriend and I decided to take it easy this past weekend and do something different, like go to a movie on Saturday night (The Golden Compass, mainly because the boyfriend wanted to see the talking polar bears). After the movie we did stop into Drunk and Horny for a sociable drink with Big Red, Sparky, and Gary, but our real going-out experience for the weekend was Lucky Pierre on Friday night where we found a very fun dancefloor and the boyfriend got a little adventurous playing strip poker.
It's always satisfying to see a club night that you like grow and develop; we first checked into the Lucky Pierre scene back in August on the occasion of their six month anniversary, and in the past four months it feels like the scene has definitely grown. DJ6 and Donimo continue to spin crowd-pleasing electro and indietronica (including original remixes, something you almost never hear at other clubs), and this seems to be bringing in not only a diverse and pretty cute crowd of alternaboys, but also a fair number of sexually diverse clubbers who simply seem to be looking for a good time on a Friday night.
In addition to a fun dancefloor, Lucky Pierre also offers some of the "playful" hanky-panky for which SoMa bars in general, and The Stud in particular, have been infamous for over the years. This time the boyfriend got in on a round of Artemis Chase's strip poker, and while I won't say just how far the boys stripped - I think there are some laws about that, or something - I certainly got to see a loin-stirring variety of physical proportions and attributes. It's even better when you realize that most of these guys have never played a hand of five card stud in their lives, leaving it up to Artemis to determine the winners and losers of each hand. The boyfriend didn't last very long through the poker playing, but he was extremely popular afterwards.
Lucky Pierre shows signs of only getting better with age, and it's certainly your best bet for a $5 cover on a first Friday. Keep in mind that these are also the same guys who bring you Heat on third Fridays at The Stud, and that DJ6 and friends are behind Bender on second Fridays at The Transfer. There, something to do every Friday of the month leading up to Fuck Shit, Let's Dance at Deco.
It's always satisfying to see a club night that you like grow and develop; we first checked into the Lucky Pierre scene back in August on the occasion of their six month anniversary, and in the past four months it feels like the scene has definitely grown. DJ6 and Donimo continue to spin crowd-pleasing electro and indietronica (including original remixes, something you almost never hear at other clubs), and this seems to be bringing in not only a diverse and pretty cute crowd of alternaboys, but also a fair number of sexually diverse clubbers who simply seem to be looking for a good time on a Friday night.
In addition to a fun dancefloor, Lucky Pierre also offers some of the "playful" hanky-panky for which SoMa bars in general, and The Stud in particular, have been infamous for over the years. This time the boyfriend got in on a round of Artemis Chase's strip poker, and while I won't say just how far the boys stripped - I think there are some laws about that, or something - I certainly got to see a loin-stirring variety of physical proportions and attributes. It's even better when you realize that most of these guys have never played a hand of five card stud in their lives, leaving it up to Artemis to determine the winners and losers of each hand. The boyfriend didn't last very long through the poker playing, but he was extremely popular afterwards.
Lucky Pierre shows signs of only getting better with age, and it's certainly your best bet for a $5 cover on a first Friday. Keep in mind that these are also the same guys who bring you Heat on third Fridays at The Stud, and that DJ6 and friends are behind Bender on second Fridays at The Transfer. There, something to do every Friday of the month leading up to Fuck Shit, Let's Dance at Deco.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Mix Downloads: New Mixes from 8ball of the Space Cowboys
A little electro, a little minimal. And look for the return of Breakfast of Champions at Shine at 6AM on New Year's Day!
Electro Con Carnage vol. 2
(Stuff I played on the playa; electro and breaks)
01. dizko shit / malente, manrox
02. trouble / soul of man / deepcut rmx
03. the bump and grind / andrew friendly
04. my bass / keith mackenzie
05. freakshow / krafty kutz / vip rmx
06. any way you choose to give it / the black ghosts / playgroup rmx
07. satisfaction / benny benassi / proxymusic odd school rmx
08. bring the noise / public enemy v benny benassi / pump-kin rmx
09. groove is in the heart / dee-lite / toscadisco rmx
10. harder stronger faster / daft punk / deadmau5 rmx
11. never say never / vandalism / hard rub rmx
12. through the door / krafty kutz & dj icey / dj iceyʼs v12 rmx
13. on the ragga tip / dj fixx
14. flip dat / dj fixx
15. bad girl at night / dave spoon ft lisa maffia / beat vandals rmx
16. defected / robot needs oil / olivier giacomotto rmx
17. the bomb / luke francis / palmer v backside artist rmx
18. rise up / dj disciple / jesse garcia rmx
19. her / kissy sell out / metal on metal rmx
20. space / micha moor / klaas club rmx
21. disco wreck / punks jump up / confuzion rmx
http://spacecowboys.org/files/Electro_con_Carnage_vol._2.mp3
Deckless Modifying Mix Vol. 2
(Minimal - house, electro, breaks)
01. tosca / superrob / henrik schwarz mix
02. simon baker & infant / plastik
03. delon & dalcan / academy
04. balke / rock over you / paolo martini rmx
05. nick muir / i feel real / chopstick rmx
06. square one / vesuvius / justin martin rmx
07. dino da cassino / don't you (forget about me) / dino lenny original - loafer edit
08. julian poker & john-e & diego miranda / wahnzinn / phonique rmx
09. david k / incoming / motorcitysoul rmx
10. rocha & lewinger / miles davis
11. mihell / the grit / dos rmx
12. jjazzy & alex santos / the look into your eyes / phonique rmx
13. chaim / c factor / audio soul project rmx
14. deetron / life soundtrack ft dj bone / rejected interpretation
15. andy cato (groove armada) / uppers on the south downs / andy cato's hot head
16. trentemoller & buda / gamma / perc rmx
17. alterno79 / gti / groove rebels rmx
18. lusine / push
19. resin dogs / she's gone / kraak & smaak rmx
20. ben mono / beatbox ft capitol a / kalbata rmx
21. t.u.m.m. / fur immer / sweno n & pascal vert rmx
22. gui boratto / mr decay / robert babicz universum disco rmx
23. olivier gregoire / empechment
24. grand theft auto / keep moving
25. makossa & megablast / find it ft farda p
http://modyfier-modifying.blogspot.com/2007/12/blog-post.html
Electro Con Carnage vol. 2
(Stuff I played on the playa; electro and breaks)
01. dizko shit / malente, manrox
02. trouble / soul of man / deepcut rmx
03. the bump and grind / andrew friendly
04. my bass / keith mackenzie
05. freakshow / krafty kutz / vip rmx
06. any way you choose to give it / the black ghosts / playgroup rmx
07. satisfaction / benny benassi / proxymusic odd school rmx
08. bring the noise / public enemy v benny benassi / pump-kin rmx
09. groove is in the heart / dee-lite / toscadisco rmx
10. harder stronger faster / daft punk / deadmau5 rmx
11. never say never / vandalism / hard rub rmx
12. through the door / krafty kutz & dj icey / dj iceyʼs v12 rmx
13. on the ragga tip / dj fixx
14. flip dat / dj fixx
15. bad girl at night / dave spoon ft lisa maffia / beat vandals rmx
16. defected / robot needs oil / olivier giacomotto rmx
17. the bomb / luke francis / palmer v backside artist rmx
18. rise up / dj disciple / jesse garcia rmx
19. her / kissy sell out / metal on metal rmx
20. space / micha moor / klaas club rmx
21. disco wreck / punks jump up / confuzion rmx
http://spacecowboys.org/files/Electro_con_Carnage_vol._2.mp3
Deckless Modifying Mix Vol. 2
(Minimal - house, electro, breaks)
01. tosca / superrob / henrik schwarz mix
02. simon baker & infant / plastik
03. delon & dalcan / academy
04. balke / rock over you / paolo martini rmx
05. nick muir / i feel real / chopstick rmx
06. square one / vesuvius / justin martin rmx
07. dino da cassino / don't you (forget about me) / dino lenny original - loafer edit
08. julian poker & john-e & diego miranda / wahnzinn / phonique rmx
09. david k / incoming / motorcitysoul rmx
10. rocha & lewinger / miles davis
11. mihell / the grit / dos rmx
12. jjazzy & alex santos / the look into your eyes / phonique rmx
13. chaim / c factor / audio soul project rmx
14. deetron / life soundtrack ft dj bone / rejected interpretation
15. andy cato (groove armada) / uppers on the south downs / andy cato's hot head
16. trentemoller & buda / gamma / perc rmx
17. alterno79 / gti / groove rebels rmx
18. lusine / push
19. resin dogs / she's gone / kraak & smaak rmx
20. ben mono / beatbox ft capitol a / kalbata rmx
21. t.u.m.m. / fur immer / sweno n & pascal vert rmx
22. gui boratto / mr decay / robert babicz universum disco rmx
23. olivier gregoire / empechment
24. grand theft auto / keep moving
25. makossa & megablast / find it ft farda p
http://modyfier-modifying.blogspot.com/2007/12/blog-post.html
Karlheinz Stockhausen Has Died
One of the great pioneers of electronic music, Karlheinz Stockhausen, has died in his home at the age of 79. The only news piece I've seen about it so far is in German, but for those of you who can parse the language of Nietzsche, Goethe, and Stockhausen, here's a link.
NYE: Freq Nasty and Old-School Goa at SoMarts
This just in; John Wood wanted to put together an old-skool Goa trance party at SoMarts, and was contacted by Adam Ohana about doing a breaks room with Freq Nasty. Well, that should be quite a kicker of a dance night! The rooms look like this: Tantra "Return to Goa" room, an acid techno/drum and bass room, and the Ambient Mafia outdoor heated chill tent in addition to the breaks room with Freq Nasty. Here's a link to the full line-up for all rooms, and you can get pre-sales from the Tantra website. Now I wish I wasn't already committed for my NYE plans!
Mixes and Remixes from DJ6 and Donimo
Just found a link to Discoclique, the blog of DJ6 (Lucky Pierre, Bender, Heat) and Donimo (Lucky Pierre, Heat, Substance), where they're putting out monthly mixes and occasional remixes of their favorite electro/dance/indietronica tracks. This month's mix from Donimo is particularly pleasing for all us ex-goth types who loved us some synthy mixes back in the day, leavened with a little neu-rave and electro to keep us from feeling like fogies. Check it out, and don't forget that they'll both be spinning at Lucky Pierre at The Stud tonight.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)