It has been a good year in the clubs/gallery/bar spaces in the Bay Area. After
what seemed like so many bad years, where we heard so few international artists
and so little minimal or techno. A semi perpetual 313er Mr. hurlbut thought
perhaps that 2004 was the possible death of that which we once loved. For
those non SF people on this list, SF has a long running repressive house scene
that is mainly
complimented by an equally overbearing fun fur trance scene with a crap
breaks scene attached. But enough about the horror that we endure.
The last year has brought all sorts of lovely djs and live sets here that it
has
been enough to inject new enthusiam into my already shamefull obsession with
music. And wow, people aren't just playing the same detroit tracks and are
playing things that I cannot trainspot. yippee.
This last weekend, I saw John Tejada and Alexi Delano at club name unknown.
John exceeded my expectation, I have always thought he was kind of the poor
man's Dan Bell with a dash too much house, but this set was very nuanced and
rocking, hot stuff for sure.
Alexi was good, sort of retro acid tech, what he lacked in substance he
made up in acid, it was alright but if it is love it or leave it, I left. The
people that did this party were alright as well, still stuck on house, but
generally good taste. They had a good sound system but forgot to have someone
sound teching throughout the night so there were some painful moments. What is
up with that, you can not just set up a system and expect it to run itself,
right? Good party overall, next month they are bring out jeff samuel and shawn
rudiman, so I am pretty happy.
Then on Saturday at the RX I saw Galoppierende Zuversicht at Kontrol. Note on
party names, if you want to have a really good party you must substitute K for
C or have the letters A, U, or X or some combination or K A U X, this is really
important not just a idle linguistics perception.. This party was going off,
maybe the most going off party of the year, glasses were breaking, people
were dancing on tables and speakers, queer and straight cruising, I was
pumping my fist, people were dancing like they were on the clock. They had the
most blinking lights that I have seen in one place not at christmas time. It
was sort of insane, full moon solstice craziness. Nice, people in SF can still
rock to techno. I had to chose between these people and another party where
the advent were playing. I like choices like that. I have seen the advent
before and felt like it could perhaps be another semi boring sausage party, any
party that is more that 60% male attendance. But note that if a party has
70-90% non homo/bisexual male attendance, that would be considered a sausage
factory, hard hats requirered sexual frustration zone.
Things are looking up, Silicon Scally is playing on Thursday. Maybe we will
see some folx from submerge soon,
cheers to the good times,
tom
