Progression Sessions
September 15th, 2005 | by jg3 |
Last night I did something I rarely do, I went out to a club. I have been to club Five before and I really like it. The sound is nice and loud, the lights are, well, clubby but not too overcheesy, the rooftop hangout is sweet, the second level overlooking the dancefloor/deejay booth is awesome, the people seem to be there to have a good time and they ain’t frontin’.
Last night was extra special though. I took two friends who are not familiar with Drum&Bass but are intrested in trying new things. We arrived just after 11 and scoped out the place, stopped by the rooftop bar for a drink but they were playing 4×4 techno up there and I was in a D&B groove. So back downstairs we went to the middle level and found a sweet spot on the corner of the balcony overlooking the dancefloor with a good view of the DJ booth. Around 11:30 the guy who was playing sweet D&B when we came in (Bobby Jae?) went off and the next guy (Godfather Sage?) came on to play something between Drum&Bass and HomoHouse with screaming queens. I personally cannot stand any music — from gospel to garage — with yelling vocals. Some tracks were pretty good, but it seemed obvious that he was just keeping the peace until Bukem came on. I should also note that until about 12 the dancefloor was lit entirely by a couple of candles and ambient light from the bar upstairs. Someone brought in a rack of lighting controllers and about then the lights came to life. This brought up the energy level on the dancefloor considerably. A few minutes of house-divas-and-dnb-breaks later, into the booth steps a scrawny bald guy and a broad chested black man. Progression sessions time, boys and girls! As Bukem dropped his first needle, Conrad started to bellow out, not emceeing or rapping but singing. Full on crooning from Conrad. Definitely not what I expected. I know that he’s gotten more musical since Progression Sessions vol. 1 but this didn’t really suit my tastes. The singing started to wane a bit and he dropped more into the MCing lyrics about positivity that I am accustomed to (although to say that I could really understand the words at first would be a stretch). Another 45 minutes into the set and I and just about everyone else in the house were bouncing. Sometime after this H turned to me and said “I really get it now. I understand what he’s doing and that’s really complex” referring to the mixing that the DJ was performing. From the balcony you are afforded an excellent view to see the mixer’s hands and vynil. Knowing that she’s probably not seen live mixing often and probably never paid close attention to it, this was awesome to hear. A layperson’s new appreciation is perhaps more relevant, more of a complement than props from a journeyman.
A and H were watching from the balcony and noticing how everyone on the dancefloor fell into one of three categories: Really Good Dancer - they have particular repeatable distinct moves, Fun Flailer — they don’t really move so much as be moved by the music sometimes organized by an overall wiggle or foot-step, and the Gawker — they don’t really try to dance, they may be dazed and confused, standing on the dancefloor mesmerized by the sound and the lights and the dancing going on around them. After watching me bounce around on the balcony the entire night, H said to me, “you really need to go down there and just cut loose.” I instantly realized that she was right and even if she didn’t want to go, she could stand there with A and laugh at me (if they wished) and so off I went to carve out my space in the middle of the wooden floor and give my spine a good shake. Another twenty minutes later after I’ve moved up to almost the very front (where space was a bit more plentiful) and A & H magically appear to stand behind me and lean against the wall and giggle at my silly flailing. No problem, as long as you are enjoying yourselves. At some point I turned around and gave each of them a poke to try to get them to wiggle their spines a bit too, but I was afraid they had inopportune footwear for that. Down on the dancefloor there was the normal array of craziness to enjoy and be distracted by. Some girl standing on a speaker grooving and talking on a cellphone. A doughy asian office-worker type dude in slacks and his undershirt making mad sillyness up on the bassbins in the front of the crowd. The wicked dancer spinning and moving in ways that don’t always seem possible, and the groovers wriggling in a trance as if their body was the stylus bouncing in the record’s grooves. The next time I turned around, I almost couldn’t believe it, A and H were — can it be? yes, they are — DANCING! Oh my. This is momentus indeed. It is almost two o’clock Thursday morning and here they are giving it up for the rythm, keeping steady with the beat, and relaxing through breakdowns. I guess that shows the lack of attitude in the place. They were not made to feel selfconsious about dancing. In fact, they could have been self conscious about being on the floor and not dancing. But no matter now. A few minutes of feeling silly and their arms caught up to the drums and they were confidently and expressively grooving in their own way. It was difficult not to watch, but I didn’t want them to become self conscious. I wanted them to do exactly what they were doing: moving, grooving, and having fun.
And then, the next most important thing that happened all night .. when we got outside they both said independently and in different ways, “I had a lot of fun.”
So did I. :)
Filed under: adventures, music
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