"DJS, PARTIES AND PEOPLE ARE MY PASSION"
The other day I asked my sister Liz, "Do you think I'm weird to be going out at three in the morning to hear a DJ spin at an After Hours? I mean, most people are on drugs, partying hard whereas I actually go to bed and set my alarm for two o'clock in the morning so I can jump in the shower and head out. Is that strange?"
"I think it just means you are passionate about DJing. It's just something you love and it's part of your career."
This past week was especially festive with many social events on a nightly basis. On Wednesday there was a sort of last minute Staff Party at Cherry in Old Montreal. Wednesdays are usually my night to head out to Sneaks, Beats and Life to hear Toddy spin and to catch up with Rita and Carla. It was also another opportunity to spend a few minutes talking with Bic about the possibility of becoming and Intern at GotSoul. There's so much that I don't know about DJing and the Electronic Dance Community and how it runs as a business that I thought it would be a great way to learn. Bic is a passionate business woman dedicated to both her brothers who are talented, hard working DJs. It has been a slow process but one I am committed to. Bic introduced me to Rami who used to be an intern but now has a full time position. What I love about them as a company is that they're really interested in what you want to get out of the experience and how they can help you further your own goals and projects.
I love walking through Old Montreal at night because it's like being in a completely different city. The buildings are old and most streets are cobblestone. It can be so quiet and yet you never know what might be happening just around the corner. Mistaya and Kendra joined me at Cherry after I left Segafredo. Before we made our entrance the three of us took a stroll and stood by a huge storefront window for designer clothes. Because the lights were still on inside the flies were attracted to the window and only after taking note of the little flies everywhere did we see a giant web in the corner of the window sill where a very pregnant spider was eating a fly buffet. Kendra and I must have stood there a good ten minutes talking about this spider while Mistaya waited at a safe distance. It was an interesting and unexpected part of the evening.
I have been to Cherry a few times now, mainly to see Jojo Flores but he wasn't spinning there wednesday night. It was an interesting staff party. Let's face it, Bottle Service can lead to drunkeness and shenanigans quite quickly. I stuck with my cranberry and club soda since I had work the next day and was determined to be in bed by one-thirty. It's one of the nice things about getting older. I don't feel as though I have to party like it's 1999 EVERY night. When it comes to music I still adhere to some old-school rules and mentality. For instance, I siren or horn was used to punctuate a rather big build up in the music and Mistaya turned to me and said, "Oh are we there already?" I find a lot of DJs these days don't have a lot of time on the decks to make their mark, maybe two hours at best, so they plough through their sets with all the heavy hitters. Sirens work at four in the morning. Sometimes the sounds of sirens are accompanied by intense blast of cold fog/dry ice, people blowing whistles, screaming the DJ's name with both hands in the air. Sirens don't really work at quarter to twelve. It's like prematurely ejaculating on everybody. Where do you go from there if you blow your wad so early? I don't even think the bpm should be over 130 before one o'clock, but hey, that's just me.
I follow the same rule of thumb when it comes to dancers. If I see a crazy dancer just tearing it up and sweating everywhere and it's twelve o'clock in the morning and the headliner is an after hours DJ I think to myself, "that guy is not going to last." And while everyone else is totally going ape-shit at five in the morning I always see that same guy sitting on a couch somewhere looking exhausted and slightly pissed.
"ONE PLUS NONE"
Work wasn't too difficult the following day since I kept things in check at Cherry. I had mixed emotions that day because we were losing another really great employee at M: Brgr. I think it's always been especially difficult to see people come in and out of my life because that was a major part of my childhood, growing up in a dance school where your best friend could be from another part of the country and might not be accepted back the following year. It made for some really intense and poignant friendships but it also kept me a little guarded too. Maybe that's why I keep myself at a distance at times especially with people I really wish to connect with.
I know that friendships are really important to me. And that within each person I come across there is a story, a dream, a passion that I am attracted to. People fascinate me. I like observing people's social masks. And then I like seeing if I can peer behind the mask. Behind the mask I always see beauty.
Even though I am friendly with pretty much everybody, I don't have many real close friends and the close friends I do have tend not to share my passion for clubbing as I do. Certain events I don't care. But Thursday night I was keenly aware of how lonely I feel sometimes when I am out by myself. GotSoul at Segafredo was packed with people. Again, it was an opportunity to hang out with Bic and Rami but also it was nice to hear Jojo Flores spin. I think Jojo is really a master of deep, soulful House. His sets are always smooth, but with a tinge of dubby electronic beats matched with african rhythms. I love this sound because it's, well, soulful. I've been listening really intently to his style since I am also in the process of developing my own. Afterwards I headed up to Tokyo on Saint Laurent. Kris, who works at M: Brgr is also a DJ and has been doing really well for himself, hitting some of the hip hotspots like Bluedog, Space Ultraclub and The W Hotel. As a space, I really like Tokyo. It has two rooms and upstairs is a pretty nice rooftop patio (in Montreal they are called Terraces) where you can buy burgers and hot dogs etc. I'm always game to support DJs that I know and I was hoping to meet up with Maddy but she wasn't coming until late and as usual, I had work the next day. I think I have to be very careful from now on what sort of events I can attend by myself. There are just certain social events that having an entourage really brings the night together and is a great way to hang with your friends and be silly and party. When I want to hang with my close friends it usually comes in the form of a dinner or a movie. Sometimes it's even an e-mail or a phone call. I felt a little out of my element on Thursday. Both at Sega and Tokyo it was difficult to sit with that lonely feeling I had at the pit of my stomach. Still, I give myself a gold star for making an effort and not sitting on my ass wanting to go out but stopping myself because I have no one to go with. That's bullshit too.
"DEADMAU5 IS PRONOUNCED DEAD-MOUSE"
The apex of my party blitz weekend was Friday night at Stereo. Deadmau5 was spinning and I was so excited to hear his sound live. I had worked that morning so I spent most of the evening just trying to relax and sleep. Both Frances and Liz were going out that night as well to different parties so it was fun to have my sisters around the apartment and everybody getting ready for the respective parties. Liz was going to Orchid but gave Frances a lift to her event on Saint Denis. By the time Liz got back I was sleeping on the couch with the TV on. At around two I dragged my sorry ass into the shower and the warm water kind of woke me up and got me excited about the night ahead. Frances came home around two-thirty and we talked a bit as I got ready.
At three-thirty I was walking to Stereo and that time of night is always kind of funny because so many people are stumbling out of bars drunk or heading home or to a late night place to find some grub. I hadn't expected a line at four in the morning but because it was a Holiday weekend the line went to the end of the street and a little around the corner. Luckily I haven't had to wait in too many lines so I took it in stride and hoped that I would be inside the club within the hour which I was. I chatted a little with the coat check girl because every time I go to Stereo she is always there and once you frequent a club enough these are the people who make your night run as smoothly as possible. I mean, they have to deal with hot messes all night so a little recognition never hurts.
By the time I entered Stereo it was almost five o'clock and Deadmau5 was just about to go on. I thought his set was totally on point. It was driving, electro, progressive. There was a consistency in terms of sound but he was also able to branch out at the same time. Some tracks sounded a bit funky, others bordered on progressive trance but there was an overall theme and cohesiveness that I thought was amazing. At one point in the night I thought I could handle maybe as few full on vocal tracks. Vocal tracks can be tricky because there is a definite message when you have vocals but at the right moment it's like the icing on the cake. If you're feeling on overflow of love from the music and suddenly some diva starts to sing a vocal about love it could easily blow your mind. There were some build ups that I really loved to. Overall I have to say Deadmau5 was probably one of my favourite after-hour sets so far. From all the DJs I've seen at Stereo he'd be number one. Hex Hector would rank second in part because he was subbing for Victor Calderone and he surprised me a little. I think he had a good groove going on. Victor would be third and Danny would be last. But I'm seeing Miss Honey Dijon next Saturday so who knows. I've always known Honey to be a fierce DJ and I am excited to see and hear what she brings to the table for the Montreal crowd.
People have asked if I pick up when I go clubbing and honestly I tend not to. Believe me I am open to it but I am mainly there to dance and listen to the DJ. I come across some friendly faces now and again and I have a few short interactions with people but I am no make out bandit. It's possible that things might be different if I were partaking in party favours but I've been consciously staying away from that lately. I love to dance and I like to party and believe me, I am sure I will at some point. But the two don't have to go hand in hand and I've been in that place before that unless you have the drugs you think the party won't be good. I'm trying to avoid that kind of mentality. Before I left in the morning at around eight I went to the bathroom one last time before the walk home in broad daylight. As I stared at myself in the mirror thinking to myself, hey Mark, you held up pretty well for a long night without drugs, the guy washing his hands beside me looked over and said, "You look amazing, man."
I sort of smiled and half-laughed because I thought it was a bit of a strange thing to say. Still, it was really nice to hear. And as he headed back into the club to hear Jeff Fontaine continue into the morning with his set, I headed for the exit.
"CHEERING ON THE SIBLINGS"
me and FrancesWhen I got home in the morning it was already nine o'clock and both Liz and Frances were up. Liz had a Rugby game in the West Island and was making bacon and eggs. So I ate with them, slept for about an hour and then we all got into Liz's new Tiburon and headed to the West Island. I have never seen my sister play Rugby so it was a really exciting game for me. Since I can now understand the basics through football thanks to my ex, it wasn't hard to be a passionate observer. Liz is a flanker and it was really awesome to see her make some pretty big tackles especially with girls who are quite a bit bigger than her. I can tell she plays a smart game and is always present to the bigger picture in order to support her team and help them win.
It also turned out the Frances had a competition of her own on the same day. Club Soda was playing Host to Bust A Move, an evening of Urban Dance Battles in the Styles of House, Hip-Hop, Waacking, Popping and Locking. My sister was battling in Waacking, a style similar to Vogueing, but not. I really loved the night because I got to see all the major Urban Dance Styles represented and understand how each style put together forms what we see today in every aspect of dance in videos, concerts and movies. Frances did a phenomenal job in her category and I am looking forward to watching her battle it out again next year. Afterwards I headed to Cherry to go see Jojo again spin a night of Classic House for Therapy. What I'm starting to love about Montreal is that there truly is a night for everyone and everyone in the City is so ready to party it's insane. The vibe at Cherry was really warm and inviting and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves without getting too messy which I like. The space is also quite intimate but it can hold a "big room" sound which I think is really special. Places like Cielo and even the old space for Mr. Black are very similar in that respect. I did meet up with Carla and her friend which was nice because it was officially Carla's birthday. But by two they were ready to leave and so was I. I had a whole other night of debauchery planned for tomorrow.
"THE GRAND FINALE"
Liz and Julie, OperaI met Rita Wong when I happened to take her Bartending course when I first moved to Montreal. Meeting her was one of the best things that ever happened to me. After taking her course, she helped me find a job and introduced me to some amazing people in her life: her soon to be hubby, the extraordinarily talented DJ Toddy Flores (Jojo's brother) and one of her best friend's Carla. I can't say enough how much fun these two ladies are. Carla's birthday on Sunday was a bit of a whirlwind and the end of a very long weekend. The party started at M: Brgr where 52 of us sat down for a great dinner. Afterwards a group of us continued to dance the night away at Opera, where Toddy was spinning in the VIP Lounge. Toddy is such a good DJ.
Toddy (is pronounced "2-D"), behind the decks, OperaHe really knows how to work a crowd and create a fun party vibe. Cedric Gervais was spinning in the main room. Opera is quite an impressive space and the little I heard of Cedric I thought he was great. I have to say that the crowd is not my favourite party crowd. I'm a hippy-raver at heart so I kind of enjoy that crowd that stays ups till the crack of dawn and gets all sweaty dancing like maniacs. Opera caters more to a "money" crowd. All the girls look like Paris Hilton and the guys look like they came from a Muscle Beach somewhere. So even though Cedric was playing a great set no one ever really just goes off and actually dances. Still, it was quite an impressive site to see and I have developed quite a soft spot for Montreal. Even though there was a lot of style over substance (the use of the word "style" is objectionable) there is a certain joie de vivre in Montreal that I found lacking in New York City. 
me with Carla at Opera
who are these crazy chicks? Carla, Rita and MyleneAll in all it was a crazy week for social events. And as the weather gets warmer and summer is around the corner I know things will just get crazier and crazier. I'm looking forward to it...
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