Jason Greene at Gazuza
My friend Jason Greene informed me one afternoon that he'd be spinning some records at the Dupont Circle lounge Gazuza on a recent Friday evening. Excited to help my friend get some exposure, I went out and shot some photos to add to the collection. Gazuza isn't a large club with an extensive light show and nocturnal atmosphere, but it was a cozy venue that worked well with the soulful house Jason was spinning.
Hopefully other venues will get word of Mr. Greene and we can help spread the word of House to the fine residents of DC. Enjoy...
Roger Sanchez Photos From Josephine
Sometimes I'll bring my camera along to events that are slightly more low-key or in venues I'm not as familiar with. And in many cases, this means I come away with far fewer images than I normally shoot in the larger clubs. Such is the case with the above photo of DJ Roger Sanchez at Josephine in downtown DC.
Sanchez is a world-renowned, Grammy Award winning DJ. He's remixed superstars such as Chic, Daft Punk, Diana Ross and The Police, contributed to the soundtrack of Hollywood movie
Blade, and founded 3 record labels. So calling this man a superstar isn't a crazy concept. Unless of course you're at Josephine. I hate getting all down on clubs and/or artists because I feel nightlife should be enjoyable. But we all know there are nights that just don't work and leave us feeling like we've wasted our time and our money.
I had been to Josephine once prior to this night and knew the venue was pretty small. But small micro-clubs are pretty common in the district. And in some cases (like Tattoo), the space is used wisely and creates an intimate and enjoyable party. So when I heard one of the top 20 DJs in the world would be spinning at Josephine, I was quietly optimistic. Small venues with world-class DJs can be amazing. I've been in places like Duplex SF, Bambudda Lounge, HPC and Sullivan Room NYC where a top DJ can connect with the audience and really get into their craft. Sometimes you hear things you wouldn't normally find in major clubs because the DJs feel they can be creative and push things a bit for a smaller, more dedicated crowd.
But these venues all have something going for them Josephine does not. They are all house music temples. The crowds show up on various nights to hear the music and see the DJ. They show up to Josephine to hear themselves and be seen by others. Look, I know there is that "I want to be a celebrity" element of nightlife in every city. Dudes roll into a club
wearing their shades and printed t-shirts flashing money while standing at their VIP table. (Side note: why do douchebag wannabes stand the entire time at their VIP table? I've often wondered about this phenomenon. Do they think it helps them be seen above the crowd?)
I digress... I shouldn't have been surprised at the lack of interest in Roger Sanchez on this particular night. Before we could even get inside we had a young lady at the door act like she was doing us a favor by letting us past the line (even though we were on the promoters list). Her exact words were "we'll expedite you into the club but you still have to pay the cover charge." Now repeat that with a bad fake Eastern European accent and you get an idea of what we were in for.
Inside wasn't any better. Josephine is decorated with the tackiness of a French brothel thrown into the basement of a sterile office building. They have plastic chandeliers hanging over the bar, in a room with what seems like 7 ft. ceilings. And the venue is all VIP tables. So unless you feel like dishing out 1K to sit in the French brothel basement, you get to stand around like an outfielder in a no-hitter. Add to that the
douchebags with hot chicks element and you see why I'm not feeling so warm and fuzzy about this particular night.
Long story short, Roger Sanchez comes in. He sets up his gear. He begins mixing tracks. No one in the club notices. They're too busy standing around with their money clip exposed adjusting their sunglasses to just the right position on their heads. My friends and I feel like we've walked into the twilight zone of nocturnal excess. Dan says to me, "this place is dead anyway." I shoot a few photos of Sanchez and we're on our way. Needless to say, I salvaged two shots from the night. Oh well!
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Nightlife
Random Photo of the Day: Feb. 18th
The above photo was found on the
360nightlife.com entertainment site. It was shot on Friday, Feb. 13th at The Muse Nightclub.
As you can see, it's the usual crew enjoying yet another VIP table and bottle service. This time we were celebrating Mr. Dan's new job with the DC Examiner. And don't ask me what's up with the goofy pucker-lip smirk I have going on.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Nightlife, Trance
More Washingtonian Photo Submissions
I've blogged about this before
here and thought I would share again. These are images I recently entered in the monthly
Washingtonian Magazine photo contest.
Last month the topic was "black & white" so this month the editors went with "color." Any subject would do, just make sure the image pops. I had a bunch of nightlife shots I thought would qualify, but I didn't have a ton of time to find them and so I went with these. I definitely think they "pop" with color and excitement.
Dolce Gallery Finally Goes Live
I used to have a really bad habit of taking my camera with me to clubs in SF and never getting around to cropping and posting the images I shot. So I try to take advantage of the winter weather to dig into the archives and post galleries from the past. So today I'm finally posting a link to
a gallery from Dolce.
Dolce was a lounge-type bar in North Beach that myself, Jarvis, Craig and Bernie used to visit on a fairly frequent basis. It really wasn't anything special other than the fact that I was friends with the promoters who owned the venue and it attracted a good-looking crowd. Plus North Beach was the closest thing SF had to a true nightlife district, which always made for an adventure.
Dolce has since closed and has now reopened as Apartment 24. The Apt24 concept is essentially what a "rock-star's condo" would be like. I can't really say I'm surprised Dolce closed. While the web site suggested it was a unique club experience, there was nothing that set it apart from other venues. The music was the same. The decor was rather bland and like many SF venues, people got tired of it. I suspect Apt. 24 will follow a similar path.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Nightlife, San Francisco, Urban
Hot Corsten Set Ushers in Warmer Weather
Well it seems as though the depths of winter just might be behind us for awhile. I got to walk all the way into the office this morning for the first time in what seemed like several weeks. In fact, the last time I actually walked the mile to my office was inauguration day when my metro station was closed. I know, I know... 1 mile is nothing to walk. Trust me, I love my morning stroll into the office. But when the weather hits below 20 degrees, my nose and ears just can't take it.
And it seems only fitting that this warmer weather made its debut the same weekend Ferry Corsten rocked the house at FUR Nightclub.
As you'll see from the photos in this post, I was lucky to get on the guest list and shoot for TrenDC and Club Glow. I've been shooting photos of DJs and clubs for several years now and slowly but surely I'm checking off a list of every top DJ in the world. Ferry Corsten is currently the #7 rated DJ in the world and is one of the biggest names in trance. Having a chance to add one of his energetic sets to my resume was a very big deal for me.
Many of my friends aren't really into electronic music or understand the draw of such an artist. I can't really explain why the music and energy drives my passion so much or why these DJs are so popular around the world. But there is a moment in a club when you realize you're no longer just a guest in a nightlife venue...but are now part of something bigger. The only thing I can compare it to is when you're at a major concert and everyone, the music, the crowd, the atmosphere becomes one.
Ferry Corsten hadn't even touched the mixer before the crowd started going nuts. That was my cue to move toward the DJ booth. When I got fully inside the DJ booth, I was greeted to a club full of dance music zealots all with their hands in the air and all screaming as if Beyonce just walked on stage with her dance crew. This is that moment. Its that moment where everyone in that club and their energy fully hinged on Ferry's next move with the turn tables. When the beat dropped...the crowd melted into a rhythmic frenzy that ebbed and flowed in the direction of the music. Shooting photos in a scene like that is one of the coolest things a fan of this music can do. You can literally sit there and watch this DJ take every person on a ride they most likely won't forget for a very long time. And Ferry has an energy about his style and persona that only multiplies any emotion you have for this style of dance music.
I'll eventually have all the photos posted on the site. But for now here are a few more...
Headline of the Day
I got word of some breaking news today when
Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination for health and human services secretary. So you can understand my surprise when I saw the above headline on FOXNews.com.
First we have the Arizona
porn clip in the middle of the Super Bowl and now this. Someone is up to no good, but it sure made me laugh.
Labels: Headline, News, Politics, Random
