There are so many amazing parties to hit in Seattle. It’s ridiculously difficult to narrow down which ones to actually attend. Besides the extraordinary local DJ’s and live music, Seattle has also consistently brings in huge talent from all over the world. There were so many last weekend, in fact, that I put on my Rockstar Hat to ensure that I made it to at least 4 parties that I didn’t want to miss.
I was feeling pretty mellow on Friday after a long, productive work-week and an intense workout at the gym. I chilled in the papasan with a glass of wine and some left-overs and popped in one of my favorite flicks to get me in the mood. Justin Kerrigan’s Human Traffic is one of the best views of club culture that I’ve found so far. Each time I watch it I notice another brilliant scene or idea conveyed. The witty British humor and Pete Tong’s essential music selection was enough to convince me that that night was not an evening to stay at home.
At 10:30, Momo picked me up to head to Capital Hill. After Rockstar parking and a quick slice at Mama’s, we were off to the newest, hottest, messiest gay night in Seattle, Hot Mess, a monthly brought to you by L.A. Kendall (Hitgirl!, KMA), Julie Herrera (Woord, KMA), and Colby B (Comeback, Woord, KMA, Club Pop) EVERY 3rd Friday at the War Room. Even though the War Room spouts the motto ‘Peace is our Profession’, the kind of piece you’ll really be gettin’ on that night is not something our fair leaders would vote for on their Capital Hill! At 11:30, the crowd was only moderate, but the line was out the door with ‘lesbo lovers, silly queens, hipster fags and all their hags’. By 11:55 both bars, the upstairs patio and the dance floor were completely packed with piece-loving patrons, and the only seat you could find was probably connected to a hottie - and already filled for the evening. Besides, L.A. Kendall’s live vocals and guest DJ Special-T wouldn’t allow you to sit, unless you’d been smart enough to get there before the drag queens took their usual stage-side thrones.
When we arrived at the door, we were greeted by a remarkably tall, slender man in white bunny ears and skimpy red soccer shorts.
‘Hi! I’m Sven!’ He said in a thick Swedish accent. ‘Would you like to have a taste of my spicy sausage?’ We peered at the plate full of small brown crusty balls rolling around limply.
‘I made of zem myzelf, fresh from za house.’ He yelled. ‘Zome people like my spicy balls very much’.
‘No thanks’, we said in unison. He smiled and ran off to offer his gift to another lucky receiver. Slightly grossed out, we headed over to the dance floor to maneuver our minds towards another direction. But the big screen overlooking the disco demonstrated another spicy offer, this time of circa 1970’s gay-male porn. While the level of spice in those days was definitely less potent than you might find at Castle Superstore today, our minds were still in the midst of a sausage-fest. So we threw our hands up, and our heels, and pulled up a rug to enjoy the view.
We were soon joined by some friends who were accompanying a woman whose accent Momo described as ‘really fucking hot’. The accent was British (and indeed ‘hot’). She had been flown into town from London for a local festival where her short film was featured. We soon found out that she was not only a film-maker, but also part owner of two club destinations for Be and I to visit when we head on our trip to Europe next month - The Candy Bar -- in both London & Brixton. Touted as ‘London’s flagship lesbian bar’, this sweet venue offers a 3 floors of DJ’s, female strippers and (you guessed it) Karaoke on Wednesday nights.
Feeling that we’d gotten more than we’d bargained for at Hot Mess, Momo and I decided to bounce to our next destination -- downtown to Trinity Nightclub. Going from the center of Capital Hill’s homo-erotic essence to the hetero meet-market of Pioneer Square was --- not really much different. Parking is still impossible, boys still grab all the ass they want and you can still pick up a wiener from a street vendor, even after the bars close down. But lady luck was on our team, as we rolled right into yet another Rockstar parking spot half a block from the club. Despite my new-found 1st Thursday’s residency at Trinity and Momo’s knack for charming the pants off every door-person in town, we paid the $15 cover to get into the club. Truth-be-told, donating $15 to see the acclaimed, San Francisco-based duo Gabriel and Dresden is still the cheapest price you will pay pretty much anywhere in the United States. We supported the door price happily, knowing that the more cash the promoters collect, the more world-class artists will be willing to visit our city, and Seattle will no longer be a 2nd class electronic citizen.
We sauntered into the Main room of the 2-story club, past the long bar to the packed dance floor where Gabriel and Dresden were building beats live from the DJ pulpit well above the crowd. The church-like room (its features are actually from a local church) hosted a crowd of a few hundred, jumping and dancing to the sexy house synths and techno beats. I cruised through the other 3 rooms of the club searching for the smile of familiar faces and paused in the loft area above the Main room to get a feel of the dance floor from above. While the side rooms of Trinity have yet to encompass the intimate vibe that a House venue inevitably brings, the intensity of the dance floor as it pulls the energy toward one centralized sphere more than makes up for it in the interim. Experiencing the size and energy of the crowd as animated as it was for this San Francisco duo proved that Dragon Entertainment & Trinity had promoted proudly to pack the night for G&D. And, knowing that DJ Chronus had opened the Main Room with his deep Progressive groove was proof that the congregation had been heating up the floor boards for some time.
A familiar face made its way to me around the same time as my first Budweiser.
‘Hey, I have your hat’, he said. It was Tyler, a boy I met at Element a few weeks earlier. He had reminded me in an abstract way that dancing was just as much a part of being a DJ and mixing records. So as an infinite reminder, I had gifted him the first hat I had ever worn to a gig. Soon after, the rest of the crew was located, front and center. Kisses and hugs all around, and the circle for the evening was complete.
A whole night had passed, but the weekend was only half over. I’d intentionally signed up for Saturday to work as a volunteer for the IOSIS Art Party held at Capital Hill Arts Center (CHAC). I knew that Friday night’s events would diminish my motivation to go out the next night. Thus, the commitment of a volunteer position was just what I needed to pull on my Rockstar Hat and set forth for the evening. And I’m glad I did. I would have missed another incredible night of art and music.
The IOSIS Art parties are held by an organization called Infinite Connections, whose goal is to ‘connect people to new experiences through art and music’. With beautiful décor and performance art, the IOSIS parties are nothing less than magical. I arrived at the merchant booth promptly 12 minutes after 10 to report for duty. I was given a quick run-down of my duties -- sell water & CD’s and answer random questions. Volunteering is definitely a great way to support. The 2-hour shift seemed too easy and absolutely worth my free ticket into the show.
An hour into my employment, a very tall gentleman wearing long black pants, a fancy button up t-shirt, a black faux fur vest and a fiery-red streak of red hair color sashayed behind the merchant table and sat next to me. ‘I’m here for my shift!’ he said. It was Kevin Heaven aka Sven from Sveden. Tho this time, Sven was packed safely at home in his drawers and there were no spicy sausage balls in sight! How ‘random’ that I would run into Mr. Heaven twice in one weekend, only 1 week after I’d initially met him at an after-hours party we’d held at my home. All business this night, he was here to help and the bottle of wine that he’d brought left-over from his job at a restaurant was here to help as well. ‘Fabulous’, I said. Indeed it was.
Thom had shown up to relieve me of my shift, but only after I helped him eat the pineapple fried rice that he’d ordered from Jai Thai up the street. Wined and dined, I set out after my work was done to enjoy the rest of the party. The main room in CHAC was filled with ravers and artists 18 and up, while the 21 and over crowd enjoyed the scene from the roped-off area made into the bar. There were too many brilliant musicians playing at 'Primal Matter' that night to name, but I do remember the trio that was playing in the chill room at the end of the night, the Mentats. Their synths and keyboards were tucked pleasantly beside tree branches and a small entourage of listeners were spread delicately around the rest of the room. I felt like I’d happened upon a gathering of electronic faeries at an intimate, mid-morning concert in the forest. Of course, if that room was a forest, the downstairs room was definitely a cave at the center of an immense mountain. The dark room was a perfect place for a sneak peak at Infinite Connection’s monthly ‘Breaks and Freaks’, a night where dark polyrhythmic beats mingle with the peculiar comedy of circus freaks. Pure Cirkus, a local assembly of off-the-wall artists with such acts as street performances, theatre, acrobatics and opera mesh with tribal industrial music, fire manipulation and in the case of last Saturday’s party - body modification!! Indeed, the food and wine in my tummy turned just a little when I walked into the Main Room to see the unusual act of body suspension, the art of hanging the human body from hooks. In addition, the performers' bodies were airbrushed as they were suspended. It was both beautiful and grotesque at the same time. And while I’ll stick with a digital pen to express myself, I give props to those who are bringing ancient art forms to our ‘civilized’ society in such propelling ways.
Feeling that once again an event had wow’d me to the weekend's fullest extent, I headed to my final destination, a good old-fashioned House night presented by Uniting Souls, Amfibius and Innerflight. This party was my first experience at absolutely the quaintest venue for House music in this city. You’ll pass by LoFi heading north from R.E.I. on Eastlake, but unless you are trying out your new Novara you probably won’t notice the front door at all. Once in, however, the front downtempo room holds a small bar and an intimate corner for a DJ booth. It includes a long couch along the opposite wall so you can still appreciate a cuddle puddle. Kadeejah Streets and J-Sun of Innerflight where warming up the decks underneath the red lights. It was so congenial and cozy that I half expected to see a fireplace blazing away. I followed the lengthy hallway towards the back of the bar to the main room where James Curd of Greenskeepers (Chicago) was mixing beats in the corner. There was a mirror on both walls where the DJ stood, so you could check out your own dance moves from all directions. Another bar existed at the end of the room. However, instead of the usual bar mirror, it revealed a large window and a full-size view of the Space Needle, its space-aged eyes twinkling high above the city. To top it off, a loft overlooks the dance floor from the back, hosting a nice couch and love seat where a couple was necking happily to House grooves.
I ended the evening with a spliff and a quick goodbye. After 4 incredible events in 24-hours, all I wanted to do was crawl into bed dreaming of hooks, head, homos, and House music.
