ABSOLUTION tonight- DJ JASON'S BIRTHDAY and PIKER RYAN!!

Tonight is a very special ABSOLUTION honoring the birthday of DJ JASON! He is the one and only person in NYC who values the Goth/Industrial scene enough to devote his energy to doing a Weekly Party for all of us. He deals with bands, artists, performers and photographers on a weekly basis- things that others had considered "too much trouble", in order to keep NYC's tradition of a lively, intelligent and interactive nightlife alive! In addition we will have classic NYC band PIKER RYAN(music in the style of Nick Cave) flying in from Oslo, Norway to do a reunion! 87 Ludlow St corner of Ludlow and Delancy www.absolutionnyc.com

Things that Everybody Knows about Nightclubs in NYC!

Since restarting my nightclub project, I have often been surprised when people have asked me questions that in the past Everybody Knew. I decided to make a page about what Everyone Knows, as a refresher or maybe a tutorial for people who have entered the world of NYC's nightlife in the past three years when there was a lack of professionally executed nightclub events.

Q: When do you start?

A: Most nightclub events in NYC begin at 10pm and end at 4am. Occasionally you may see an event that opens a bit early like at 9pm, but that could be because they are on an off night like a Sunday or an early weekday like Monday-Wednesday. But normal club hours are 10pm-4am.

Q: What do you spin?

A: If the theme of the party is Goth and Industrial, I will play what is customarily played at Gothic and Industrial nightclubs- Goth, Industrial, Synthpop, 80s New Wave and New Romantic, and Underground Cult Classics. I would never spin another type of music if this is the theme of the party. Everyone Knows that the music always matches the theme of the party.

Q: Can you play my favorite Hip-Hop song?

A: No. That's not what kind of DJ I am. I don't even have Hip-Hop in my collection, nor do I know the most popular Hip-Hop songs right now, nor do I want to know them. As a matter of fact, I deliberately shelter myself from that kind of knowledge because to me it's gauche. So PLEASE- Everybody Knows that a Goth/Industrial DJ does not have the slightest idea what you mean when you ask for a Hip Hop song or any other song outside their genre.

Q: Blah Blah Blah, Blah Blah Blah Blah(while I'm spinning).

A: Everybody Knows that you can't ask a DJ questions or start talking at them while they are spinning. Most DJ booths or platforms are elevated, to prevent this sort of thing which can cause the club to suffer if the DJ gets distracted. For DJs who are unlucky enough to be spinning at crowd level, don't come up and start a big conversation while they are spinning- even if there is nobody dancing or there is nobody in the room at that particular moment. Saying Hi is ok but that's about it. DJs need to be ready to catch people's attention when they do walk into the room. If you are standing there yacking, it will be that much harder to build the room up. Talking to a performing DJ- Don't Do It.

I'm sure there is more but that is all for now. I will probably add more things onto this particular blog as they come up.

CLICK N DRAG For The Discerning Underground Party Patron in NYC...

MOTHER, a Nightclub created by CHI CHI VALENTI,raised the bar for all underground nightclubs in NYC, challenging producers to see that nightclub production could actually be an art form.

My first real impression of New York Nightclubs was received when I was randomly hired as a "method go-go" artist at this club.  I had been to NYC nightclubs before and liked them but was not overly impressed.  MOTHER and CLICK N DRAG were totally different.

The doorperson was in actuality KITTY BOOTS, a lauded fashion designer who doubled as wardrobe mistress for the dancers.  The basement of MOTHER was stuffed with her creations, and before the event she would go in and pick out something for the dancers to wear.  Because MOTHER was my first experience with working for an NYC nightclub, I thought it was normal for nightclub performers to have not only a large dressing room but a large stock of costumes and someone to make them look fabulous!  Little did I know that this is far from the case with MOST other clubs, LOL.

The video displays(yes, they had someone to just do video displays) were done by noted visual artist ROB ROTH.  And the staff in the club were all hand picked as a casting director would choose in addition to being able to do their jobs.  Needless to say, when you combine these elements it makes for a Party on a very high level, far higher than most other nightclub productions.  It was like being part of a play or performance art piece rather than a club night. This production was actually run WEEKLY, for four years.  So anyone who is operating under the misconception that nightclub parties are "too hard to do on a weekly basis"...how about a party that needs new visual displays, costumes, dancers and performers EACH WEEK?  And this was done with aplomb.

There was a strict dress code for this party- NO blue jeans, NO white button down shirts, NO baesball caps WHATSOEVER.  I remember going there with a CBGBs employee and even having HIM turned away because he was wearing blue jeans.  Someone not well versed in how to run a nightclub would probably think this was not the best business policy.  Nothing could be farther from the truth.  Because of the dress code,  people went out of their way to dress up for this party, and come out to this party, knowing that there wouldn't be any disagreeable people there.   People worked for hours and hours on costumes for this party.  The dress code stimulated business not only at the club but for related businesses like costume shops, underground fashion designers, etc, and made NYC a much more fun and fashionable place.  It became a haven for artists, photographers and other "artsy" types.

So tonight is the night- I'll see you all at CLICK N DRAG!