Dancing Rams VI: Animal Crackers

The sixth year of Dancing Rams lived up to the hype with 400+ people showing up to Bar 13's rooftop for sunshine, shenanigans, super dope beats and of course... animal crackers. I could go on and on about all the hysterical costumes and antics but I think I'll let the pictures, videos and animations speak for themselves.

Extra special lovin to everyone who came in from out of town for the big the day as well as Melanie, Dill, Ali, Joel, Memo, Lloyd, Nora and Karen who all had extra special roles in VI.

Photos:


Betty Confetti Blasts the Cannon:


Wendy & The Zebra Sisters:


Animal Cracker Races (by Lloyd Alvarez):


Stadenco Beats:

Red Bull Big Tune (12/3/08)

"Big Tune began as the brainchild of DJ/producer/emcee—Vitamin D and Hip Hop visionary/event producer --Jonathan Moore, in 2004 with the purpose of bringing emerging and established talent to the forefront. After three years of hosting thriving local battles in Seattle, they forged a creative partnership with Red Bull and the event evolved beyond a beat battle into a dynamic national producer program."

Over 800 people packed Highline Ballroom Wednesday night to see the 16 regional finalists battle it for Big Tune 2008 supremacy and me and a crew were right in the thick of things. It's rare that I'm out at hip hop events but this was something any beat lover could appreciate. These kids were so inspiring... dropping a ton of completely original tracks as well as some others that made use of some really clever samples. Best and most unexpected sample of the night had to go to Beat Makers (aka Country Club) who worked in Rosemary Clooney's Mambo Italiano. Straight up awesome! Besides the young guns, we were also treated to Ghostface Killah, Alchemist and the recently reunited Digable Planets who gave us what we REALLY wanted by playing their 1992 jam, Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat). I don't know how old they were in the early 90s but these cats still look young.

As for the 17 year-old winner, C-Sick, he earned the respect of everyone in the room as well as the chance to spend some time at Red Bull Studios in Santa Monica with either Common, Nas, Lupe Fiasco or The Game. Watch out world, this kid is gonna be big!

Girl Talk @ Terminal 5 (11/16/08)

I first heard about Pittsburgh mash-up DJ, Girl Talk, in Detroit last May and finally got to catch the live act at the All Points West Festival in August. I was so impressed with the energy of the performance at APW I vowed not to miss Girl Talk (aka Greg Gilles) again. Me and a crew hit up the 2nd of 3 sold out shows at Terminal 5 and had a ridiculous time. So many people have been hating on Girl Talk but I must say, I'm leaning toward the party-rocking-hipster DJs these days - they are bringing the FUN back to nightlife and I'm all for it. I can't tell you how many times I've been to electronic music parties recently and found myself utterly bored by the music and the vibe. And... I know I'm not alone despite what many so-called pundits will admit publicly. Where else are you going to get 2 Live Crew, Journey, Notorious B.I.G., Kelley Clarkson and others all in one sitting? Awesome.

Definitely check out the videos below and get on Girl Talk's website to download his mix (pay whatever you want) if you haven't already.



Montage of My Videos:


ON STAGE with Girl Talk:


Photo Credit: NY Times

Ambergris Caye, Belize (11/7/08)

As fate would have it, the very same day I gave notice to Unilever, Travel Zoo announced ridiculously low fares from NYC to Belize. Never one to pass up a chance to travel or soak the sun, I booked (for $200 RT!!) and decided to head down alone for 6 days for some r&r before starting my new job. It's a tiny country with only about 320,000 people but it has a rich history and diverse culture. Once part of the Mayan, and very briefly the Spanish Empire, it was most recently affiliated with the British Empire, prior to gaining its independence in 1981 (from Wiki). In 2007 I started my summer travel adventure in Caye Caulker so this time I opted for the other, more developed island, Ambergris Caye. You may not realize it but you've definitely heard of this island before... probably as early as 1987 when Madonna sung about it in "La Isla Bonita" or maybe more recently in 2001 when Fox aired the Temptation Island reality show. Either way, my blog will not be the first pop culture mention for the 25 square mile island.

I decided to do things a bit differently this time around. For your viewing pleasure I actually created a movie to entertain you and for your reading pleasure I'm going to forgo the day-by-day account and share some highlights by topic instead. Enjoy!



Average Time To Bed: 8:00 pm.

Average Time to Rise: 6:15 am (followed by a 4-mile run on the beach every morning!)

Best Meals: Lobster burrito at Waraguma; Puttanesca-style Cobia (fish) at Wild Mango's; Rice/Beans/Stew Chicken from a street vendor in Central Park; Calamari & Shrimp Salad in a light Peanut Sauce at Blue Water Grill; Creole Conch @ Lily's.

Best Drinks: Iced Mocha @ Island Perk; Michelada @ Cholo's Sports Bar (zinga!)

Biggest Disappointments: Getting a bad Magnum (which must have been melted and frozen many times in transit to the island); Not having a hammock at my hotel.

Biggest Surprise: Being treated to a snorkeling session by people I had met 20 minutes earlier.

Best Raining Morning Activity: 60 minute therapeutic massage.

Most Intense Moment: Having a sea version of a vulture swoop down above my head to try and steal the chum from the sharks I was swimming with!

Most Cathartic Moment: Sitting on my balcony listening to Dixon set thinking about myself, my goals and my purpose in life.

Best New Travel Friends: Patty & Todd from Boise; Yousef & Ahmed from Jordan; Mohamed from Lebanon; Andrew & Miguel from Ambergris Caye; Jennifer and Tenisha from Portland; Girls from San Antonio; Little Girl (name unknown) from Ambergris Caye; Roy Elvis from Ambergris Caye; Elliot and Samantha from NC.

Oddest New Travel Friend: B**** (name withheld) from Jersey City who within the course of a few hours told me everything about his: estranged daughter, crazy ex-wife, drug addictions, millions made, millions lost, views on free trade, thoughts on the bailout, food interests, sex life, rent, social security payments, etc.

Books Read: Water for Elephants, Tribes

Best Mini-Adventure: Renting a bike for the day and exploring all of north island.

Most Satisfying Travel Moment: Knowing many of the locals by name (and vice versa) after only a few days.

Most Annoying Travel Moment: Having to listen to the cat calls from all of the island men (but then again, that happens everywhere)

Circo Loco Halloween Party @ Supreme Trading (10/31/08)

The world's craziest party, Circo Loco, finally made it's way to New York City... and just in time for Halloween. You may remember hearing about this party from my two trips to DC-10 in Ibiza in 2006 - which still sit in my top 5 clubbing adventures ever [Trip #1, Trip #2].

I got out to Williamsburg via the L train which might as well have been the Greenwich Village Parade for all of the drunk, costumed freaks that were piled inside. The venue, Supreme Trading, was just a short walk from the Bedford subway station but it took me 45 minutes to get through the entrance and coat check lines. Admittedly I was somewhat annoyed to start the night but once I saw the 7,500 sq ft space with a main bar room, outdoor area and two large galleries, I knew we were in for a good night. It was gritty, raw, had a truly underground vibe and went LATE...a combination not found very often in NYC these days.

Andrew Grant, the only American resident at DC-10, was already rockin the main room when I got there. He played dirty tech for about two hours and then handed things off to Cirillo who kept things moving nicely. He and Tania (who only played sporadically) played until sometime around sunrise (6:45ish) and then handed things off to a mysterious DJ who I later found out was Tania's boyfriend, Tatto. I thought the music up until that point had been good but was hoping someone would send it to the next level with some BIG ROOM BANGERS. And Tania's bf was just the man to do it. He literally tore the room apart by cranking out one monster bass line after another. The last few hours were pure bliss - a big room full of crazy party people smiling and grinding it out to some wicked beats. It's not easy to replicate the Circo Loco vibe outside of DC-10 but the room had a sky light which allowed the sun to pour into the dirty a$$ room for the last few hours once again proving that daylight is not the enemy of 24-hr party people. When they finally ended the party at 9am everyone in the room was soaked with sweat and covered with gnarly party sludge having just endured the elements of an 11-hour Halloween marathon... yet everyone wanted more.

I have to give a lot of credit to ReSOLUTE and Sheik'n'Beik for throwing a monster bash. It was one of the best parties I've been to in NYC in a long time and not one I'm going to forget anytime soon. Word on the street is that Supreme Trading has been taken over by party-minded management... I can only hope they bring the ReSOLUTE and Sheik'n'Beik boys back for round two.

David Mancuso's Legendary Loft Parties... Revisited (10/12/08)

David Mancuso is now a dance music legend but when he first moved to NYC in the 1960s he was simply a music and electronics enthusiast who happened to have a large loft in an industrial section of Manhattan. At first "The Loft" was used to play records for a small group of friends but by 1971 David was playing host to regular parties. What made his parties unique then was that he kept them "invitation only" and spent a lot of time thinking about "the vibe" and how to avoid using a traditional nightclub business model. For him, it was all about the music and never about money. His success at keeping his parties both underground and legal for so long is quite amazing. Beyond creating his own incredible events in the 70s, David Mancuso can also take much of the credit for many of the most famous venues of the disco era (e.g. Paradise Garage, The Gallery and The Saint) as they were modeled after The Loft. In addition, his parties and music served as a huge inspiration for an entire generation of DJs such as Francois K, Frankie Knuckles, Larry Levan, Danny Krivit, David Morales and Nicky Siano who cut their teeth as party-goers at The Loft.

Believe it or not, the 64-year old is STILL throwing parties a few times a year. I was lucky enough to score an invite to his latest party which was held at a Ukrainian community center in the East Village from 6pm-12am on a Sunday. From the minute we walked in, I knew it was not going to be like any party I had ever attended and I mean that in the best possible way. True to original form, David didn't mix any records and while he was switching from one to the next, the crowd stopped dancing to applaud. He also still uses vintage equipment including Klipschorn speakers which were sprinkled in a circular pattern around the room. The volume was kept quite low (compared to what I'm used to!) but the smooth and crisp analog sound was more than enough to tickle our ears. The track selection is exactly what you'd expect if know anything about David Mancuso - lots of 70s disco and house jams - all happy and groovy. A few track IDs from the night: Afro Medusa - Pasilda, The Police (Unknown Remix) - Voices Inside My Head, Musique - Push Push in the Bush, Damon Harris - It's Music.

The vibe was great - with people of all shades, shapes and sizes grooving around the room - dancing in the middle and talking on the sides. A BYOB policy was in full effect and its such a respectful environment that people leave their drinks at side banquet tables all night without incident. Later in the night they even had a sizable buffet dinner. I had an absolute blast. It was so great to get "back to basics" and dance dance dance and smile smile smile for an entire night out. The way it should be.

If you're interested in reading more about David Mancuso and The Loft, I highly recommend Love Saves the Day: A History of American Dance Music Culture, 1970-1979.








Push Push in the Bush


Photo Credit: John Dill

Banksy's Village Pet Store & Charcoal Grill (10/12/08)

If you're not already familiar with the work of UK street artist, Banksy, you need to take a minute to get acquainted by reading my short blog post from last year. Traditionally known for his distinctive graffiti and stencil style of art, he's taken an interesting turn with his first official show in NYC. The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill is a fake store/restaurant located at 89 Seventh Ave South (near Bleecker) which started as a project to draw attention to the relationship between humans and animals. The Wooster Collective website has a direct quote from Banksy himself:

"New Yorkers don’t care about art, they care about pets. So I’m exhibiting them instead. I wanted to make art that questioned our relationship with animals and the ethics and sustainability of factory farming, but it ended up as chicken nuggets singing. I took all the money I made exploiting an animal in my last show and used it to fund a new show about the exploitation of animals. If its art and you can see it from the street, I guess it could still be considered street art."

Me, Lloyd and Christina went down this afternoon to check it out and it was simply awesome. I find myself bored with so much art but this was right in my wheel house - unique, creative and post-modern in both concept and delivery. The idea of an artist taking over an ordinary commercial space (with a parody of sorts) is simple yet so unique and effective (for me at least)! I've included some of the pictures of the installation I found online but it's worth noting that the work is all Hollywood-quality animatronics (mechanised puppets). There are swimming fish sticks, chicken McNuggets bobbing their heads into BBQ sauce and a chimp scratching himself and watching primate porn, among others. Really, really cool stuff. It's showing thru Halloween so if you're in NYC... get there!

FYI you should also check out Banksy's new street art around town as well - we stopped by Houston & MacDougal and Grand & Wooster. And to top off the day we had a Russell Simmons sighting in SoHo - he was cruising the streets on his dope old school bike!

--NY Times Article
--Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill Website
--Banksy's Website


NOTCOT: Banksy's Village Petstore & Charcoal Grill from Jean Aw on Vimeo.

LoveFest 2008 (10/3/08)

The original Love Parade was held in Berlin in 1989 just a few months before the Berlin Wall came down. It started as a political demonstration for peace and international understanding through music and has since evolved into a showcase for electronic music and rave culture (PLUR) in cities throughout the world. This year was the fourth LoveFest, San Francisco's version of Love Parade, which drew over 100,000 people!! Click here for a bird's eye view.) Many of my friends had made the trip the past few years and after having such an amazing time in San Fran last year for Halloween, I was looking for any excuse to head back. LoveFest was absolutely incredible from start to finish.

Betty and I got to town late Thursday night (and were greeted by three of my favorite people ever - Gal, Steve and Casey - aka The Sheep!) and then spent Friday cruising around town shopping, sipping wine and feasting on oysters. Yes, it's a tough life... I know. We spent the evening enjoying a relaxing dinner at home with Angelina Jolie and an old friend, Artemis. Then... the weekend got underway.

We started things off with a pre-game and costume prep session at Casey and Steve's before heading over to Mighty for Lee Burridge's GET WEIRD party. The night couldn't have been better as I was surrounded by tons of friends and lots of weird. Lee absolutely assaulted the club for multiple hours. Lots of love to the Listed Productions crew who threw a great party which included a sidewalk DJ set-up and RV party-mobile that provided a much needed break in the sweat box action inside. The first trip back home to SF for Moon Beam (the gay dog marionette) who was adopted by my baby daddy (John Dill) during a visit earlier this summer was a resounding success. Some called his performance awe inspiring.

No rest for the wicked as we had to be up at 9:30am to get ready for the actual parade. Our crew was lucky enough to secure spots aboard the Listed "Get Spacey" float which had Lee Burridge, Three, Bill Patrick, Jason Emsley, Dory, Hac Le, Naveen G, Mike Khoury, Nikita and Tim McCormack. Everyone got dressed to the nines including Bill wearing a bumble bee matrix spandex suit and Lee in a full space robot costume (to start) and a unidentifiable dress and wig outfit (to finish). The float had a few difficult moments with lost sound and a lost wheel (ha!) but we made the most of it rockin all the way down Market Street. Sometime around 3pm the floats all parked near City Hall and a massive 100,000+ party raged on. Every type of music, vibe and crowd was represented which was extremely refreshing. We had a blast cruising around the perimeter taking it all in before finally landing back at the mothership which was GOING OFF! The six hours that followed are a bit of a blur but the highlights include: skateboard tricks, a dance-off with a homeless dude, a pair of cock-eyed sunglasses, a power drill, a big green frog, astronaut ice cream, space fairy push-ups, the debut of the San Fran Book of Bad Ideas, Hannah's "hole" decals, saving Lee's space slipper from certain death, "fishing" with The BoBI... and so many more! I went home after the parade, most others FORGOT TO GO HOME.

Sunday = Funday. Let's do it again! Betty and Casey started the day with Bloody Mary's while Steve and I polished off a bottle of Champers with breakfast. Then we went to Gal's to meet the rest of the boys for an 11am pre-party before the Castro Street Fair. I made the move from Champers to Cava Guava and was lit up like a Christmas tree by noon. Lovely. The boys moved on to the street fair while Betty and I resumed the party pole position at the infamous club, The End Up, where party goers had been chugging along since the night before. I had always heard great things about this legendary club but I had no idea it had such a massive outdoor space. I think my friends and I like to pretend we love dark and dirty hell holes, but when given the chance to party outdoors during the day, I realize that's all bullsh*t. The End Up DEFINITELY gets my vote for Best U.S. Club.

We arrived just as Billy and Lee were starting their annual 8-hour tag team set which was filled with filthy tunes. Throughout the party I oscillated between busting a move inside and running around causing trouble outside. Some of the more hilarious moments included: a pathetic air horn, the big hands, the coochie duster (of course!), an appearance by the dirty mo*fo rabbit, Nadia Gone Wild, two lost children (last in the care of Dane'lle and Jason Elmsley!), Moon Beam's Bollywood-esque dance under the waterfall, a late evening massage, Nancy's ketadventure, one ridiculously hot girl I never talked to and lots of new friends. I called it quits after The End Up but surprise, surprise many others FORGOT TO GO HOME (again).



Butt Biting In The Parade:


SIS - Nesrib Blowing Up Again!


Space Fairies Float Dance:



LoveFest 2008 San Francisco FPS (Fast Picture Sequence) from Thomas May on Vimeo.

Fashion Forward (For Once!) (9/27/08)

October 2006





















November 2007
























Jigga What? Jigga Who? In fairness I think the Louis Vuitton Millionaire sunglasses launched in 2005 but I still beat Jay-Z to the punch! And now these things can be found at every cheap sunglasses table in NYC. If anyone wants to buy me a pair of the real thing, they are modestly priced at $1,250 on eBay.

EuJane's Wedding and The Boys' Birthday (9/21/08)

Two of my dear friends - Jane and Eugene - got married last weekend in a beautiful upstate location. So many great friends were there for an amazing, happy day filled with dancing, drinking (vodka!) and absolutely delicious food. Couldn't have been better. Congrats guys!


I also got to spend some time with my nephews for their big birthdays - Aidan (2) and Anderson (5). Lots of fun was had in the bouncy castle and playing with dinosaurs (-: