I may have arrived in New York late for the house music scene but I did try to make up for lost time.
I will never forget Danny Tenaglia‘s nights at Vinyl in TriBeCa, which also hosted Shelter. I also remember hearing François K there but it may have been elsewhere–I can’t remember since I was out almost every night at that time but Vinyl was my home base.
I’ll will also never forget Carl Cox at Twilo, where I listened to Junior Vasquez before he became a meth addict and started playing “pots ‘n pans.” Though I also remember Junior from the Tunnel.
My favorite club was probably Baktun in the old Meatpacking District–this is around 2000. I remember hearing Little Louie Vega there and a lot of Drum ‘n Bass. They had a wicked screen set up and you could stare at it as you entered a musical trance while you danced. I remember the video projections being eclectic…sometimes it was animé, other times video art (it is New York after all) or even old Hollywood films.
There was something about dancing at Baktun that was special. People wanted everyone to dance, you could feel it. I remember once being approached by a group of six guys who either thought I was invading their dance space or were looking for something to do because they asked me to battle on the dance floor. I wasn’t interested and I threw up the peace sign. The guys looked amazed. A few minutes later I was standing by the bar and I overheard one of them tell another person in their clan, “We need more peace in this world.” It was that kind of place.
I know Cielo is around today but I don’t click with that place. A club with bottle service doesn’t seem to gel well with the vibe of house.
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