Backstage With Thievery
If you do a quick Google search on Thievery Corporation at the 930 Club, you're sure to find plenty of reviews from professional publications and local blogs. I threw my hat into that ring two weeks ago when I
posted a quick summary of the Thursday night performance at the venerable DC music venue. I didn't go into the bloody details about the show because everyone and their brother would. But I did want to take you back to that 5-night stop in the District because I had a rare experience with Thievery that I'd like to share.
As a nightlife photographer, I'm used to being close to some of the world's best DJs. Getting a shot right next to the artist is the basis of my art-form. Throughout the process, you learn to operate like a ghost-sneaking in for your shots and then moving the heck outta the way. So after shooting photos of Thievery's Thursday night show from the press pit at the front of the stage, I contacted their publicist about going back for something better. I showed them some photos from past nightlife shoots and asked if I could be granted access to shoot both Rob Garza and Eric Hilton in the DJ booth. Access was granted.
You see, the problem with shooting a concert like this is you can't use a flash. I'm sure you could try, but you'd be moved out of the photo pit quicker than it takes to snap your shutter. That makes it pretty tough trying to capture quality shots of the two stars of the Thievery show, who are perched up behind a wall of lights manning the turn tables. You can capture some
sweet silhouette shots, but the range of light and lens are limited. I knew shooting from backstage would provide me with a better angle to capture Rob and Eric and allow me to bring the fans even closer to the names behind the band.
I wish I could say my problems were solved that easily. Shooting backstage was amazing. But damn if I didn't need that flash. I spent the first few songs at the front of the stage capturing shots I remembered would be good from the first show I attended. I should add that the photo pit had been expanded because Thievery was
shooting their tour DVD that night. This required a very tall man with a very large HD camera to move himself from one end of the stage to the next. The pit was wide, but we had to keep one eye in the view-finder and the other looking out for the film crew. That was interesting!
It was around the 3rd or 4th song I moved backstage to capture some shots I rarely see of Thievery. I'm told I was like a Whac-A-Mole in the DJ booth, popping up for a shot and disappearing just like that. I spent a bit more time near Eric because he was in front of the tradition DJ gear I'm used to shooting. Rob however moved from turn tables to a keyboard, which did offer me something different from my typical nightlife perspective. I probably spent a grand total of 2.5 songs in the booth with Eric and Rob because I never want to seem like I'm taking advantage of my position.
The rest of the time I simply looked for shots that were unique to the Thievery show. The bassist sitting on the floor having a
spiritual experience was one.
Guitarist Rob Myers expressing all of his emotions through his pick was another. These things along with the experience of being on stage with artists of this level made for an unbelievable experience. I'm honored to have been granted that access and delighted to be able to share those sights with you through this blog and the
complete photo gallery on Dougvansant.com.
Photos by Doug Van SantLabels: Clubs, concerts, DC, DJs, Entertainment, Lounge, Music, Nocturnal, Photography, The District
4Play Thursdays Changes Venues
For the past several years, myself and dance music fans around the District have gotten used to spending Thursday nights at
Ultra Bar. The promoters at
Glow have used the Penn Quarter club as their home for 4Play Thursday in which they feature world-class DJs from all over the globe. As you might recall, I've had the pleasure of shooting photos of DJs like
George Acosta,
Blake Jarrell,
DJ Dan,
John Dahlback and many others at this 4-level venue.
So it came as a small surprise when the folks at Glow announced 4Play Thursdays would be moving to
Lima Lounge starting Thursday, Feb. 18th. Now don't get me wrong, I love Lima. I just produced one of my
favorite collection of images from Lima last month and think the venue is one of the more stunning clubs in terms of lighting, textures and design. But what happened to Ultra Bar? What will become of Ultra Bar on Thursday nights? If you have more info regarding this move, please let us know.
Here is my guess... the last night I shot there was Blake Jarrell two weeks ago. The main room was reserved for Jarrell to bust out some of his latest tracks from the same label as Armin van Buuren. Blake is one hell of a name to bring in for a regular Thursday night. Should pack the house...don't you think? Well the crowd was less than stellar. More went upstairs to the generic hip hop rooms and barely glanced when making their way through the main floor. This isn't to say Glow or Ultra Bar did anything wrong. This is simply a product of the mass appeal hip hop has attracted. I personally find it to be generic, lacking character and soul and similar to dining at a chain restaurant in a strip-mall. But that's me.
My guess is the crowds at Lima tend to appreciate the talents of DJs like Jarrell and Acosta more so than the folks who regularly attend Ultra Bar. Lima has catered to house music for quite some time and there aren't competing genres on differing floors that can split your crowd in two, or 4 as was the case at Ultra Bar. And the
DJ set-up at Lima is pretty damn sick. I see this as a good move for my friends at Glow and look forward to shooting more photos from the booth at Lima Lounge. As for Ultra Bar, I still think it's a beautiful club. But unless they host house or trance DJs, I'm not likely to attend any of their weekly parties. But that's me.
*wink*Photos by Doug Van SantLabels: Bars, Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Nocturnal, Trance
BT: Music Should Be An Experience
I've been following the
Tweets of BT this morning and was intrigued when he mentioned a big announcement was in the works. With a gig at Ibiza this coming Saturday and the subject of an Urban Marinade post yesterday, I can't help but think BT and his music are on our minds as the weekend approaches. Well, below is the announcement via his blog at
bt.tumblr.com.
BT Brings the Album Experience Back to Digital Music Consumers
BT Releases His Double-Disc Sixth Studio Album, These Hopeful Machines, as Two Individual Tracks on iTunes and Amazon
January 27, 2010, NEW YORK, NY - Internationally renowned artist, visionary producer, film composer and technologist BT has always been known for being unpredictably groundbreaking. From his artist albums to his film compositions to his production for superstars such as Sting, Madonna, and Britney Spears, platinum-selling artist BT is consistently looked to in the music community as an innovator and pioneer, constantly pushing the envelope of what is possible in both music production and innovation around the modality of his music. In an unprecedented move, BT has chosen to release his new album, THESE HOPEFUL MACHINES (February 2, Nettwerk), as two individual tracks on iTunes: Disc 1 and Disc 2.
“I have always believed in the album experience,” recounts BT. “So much is lost by picking and choosing tracks and shuffling them together randomly. I strive to create an active, rather than a passive, listening experience. I am always opting to engage listeners in a meaningful way. The experience of music should be just that: an experience. Not a passive or secondary activity. These are my fondest memories of music, listening as an activity, and this is the experience that I wish to share with my audience.”
These Hopeful Machines is a double-disc opus that carries listeners through 2 hours of sweeping orchestral arrangements, pulsating electronic beats, heartfelt vocal melodies and even simple acoustic guitar. These Hopeful Machines embodies BT’s ability to weave both his technical prowess and compositional mastery that reminds listeners why he is the composer that all other composers and producers study.
This album is the follow up to 2006’s This Binary Universe, an album that created an entirely new genre of evocative electro-acoustic music. Keyboard Magazine wrote in a review, “In a hundred years, it could well be studied as the first major work of the new millennium. It’s that good.” These Hopeful Machines continues to evolve BT’s distinct technical, lyrical and compositional vision and execution, but his usual melodic complexity and bleeding-edge electronic techniques permeate the album from start to finish.
From an early age, BT, born Brian Transeau, demonstrated a remarkable aptitude for playing and understanding classical music. He was heavily influenced by avant-garde and romantic composers such as Stravinsky, Bartok, Debussy and Rachmaninov. His biggest influences, however, were from everyday sounds that most would take for granted, from noticing the meter of the grandfather clock in the foyer to the micro-rhythms of crickets and cicadas to the ambience of passing trains at night.
“When examining my creation process, it makes perfect sense why I am a forced technologist,” he explains. ”I frequently face the fact that the tools I need to compose music simply don’t exist. It is like being an architect without bricks or mortar. I routinely create my own bricks and connective tissue as the diving off point to the compositional process.” The drive to actualize the tools BT envisions has led to his evolution as one of the most cutting-edge programmers and technologists in music today. He has expanded this reach into a visionary software venture, Sonik Architects, which launched its critically- and commercially-acclaimed iPhone application, Sonifi™, last fall.
Says BT, “My ultimate goal is to keep the emotional counterpoint and the integrity of the song intact, even when pushing the envelope with style and technique. The faster things get, the less people are willing to take in a body of creative work. There are so few things now that will engage us. The intent of consuming music is usually to have an awareness or a feeling, to have a truly, empathic connection to others. My hope is to create something that makes people feel that they have consumed something that completes a void. I want to create something lasting.”
These Hopeful Machines track listing:
Disc 1
1. Suddenly
2. The Emergency
3. Every Other Way
4. The Light Of Things
5. Rose Of Jericho
6. Forget Me
Disc 2
1. A Million Stars
2. Love Can Kill You
3. Always
4. Le Nocturne De Lumiere
5. The Unbreakable
6. The Ghost In You
I know I don't need to say this, but you should
buy this double-disc album. And you should be at Ibiza on Saturday night for a sneak peek of BT's innovative and artistic skills.
Photo by Flickr user Travis CrippsLabels: DJs, Entertainment, Music, Nightlife
Celebrating A Year of Excellence at Muse
It was a quiet Thursday evening in the District almost one year ago when Dan Kelly and I wandered into a nightclub on 6th Street in Chinatown. I had just started writing for the WB and Dan had an idea to do a drink of the week concept for my blog. We had a drink at this new establishment and continued on to our main destination, Josephine. The evening at
Josephine was a bust, so we returned to the Chinatown nightclub because of the warm hospitality we had received. And for one year now we've been going back to
Muse Nightclub almost weekly.
I've had the pleasure of seeing some of the best house DJs hit up the turn tables at Muse, including the likes of
Marques Wyatt and
King Britt. I also had a chance to teach a weekly dance class at the club and see some of the world's
best Lindy Hoppers tear up the dance floor. In other words, Muse has been good to us over the past year.
So on November 13th, Muse Lounge celebrated their 1-year anniversary of epic parties in Chinatown. And of course, Urban Marinade was there to document the chaos and celebrate the success of this downtown nightclub. And in true Muse fashion, they hired world-class artist DJ Icey for the evening.
Icey has a long history within the electronic music ranks as being one of the innovators of "Florida Breaks." He's influenced the likes of Baby Anne and Kimball Collins and was the DJ that convinced the Chemical Brothers to do their first show in the States. So yeah, the guy knows his way around a DJ booth and knows how to make you move. He was also one of the first DJs I had the pleasure of covering in Tampa when I started writing
Nocturnal Vibe 6 years ago.
The following is a collection of photos from the evening. Not enough for a full gallery on
dougvansant.com, but enough to whet your appetite for more of what this great DC nightclub has to offer.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife
Working on the Weekend
Most of you know by now, I spend many nights at the clubs shooting nightlife photos. So it's always fun to come across images that have captured me in action like these included here of #8 DJ in the world, Markus Schulz.
This small passion of mine started a few years back when I worked for TBO.com and produced a
weekly nightlife column. I started snapping photos of people at the clubs to enhance our nightlife pages and give these folks a reason to click on our site and read my column. Then I found it to be very challenging and yet enjoyable shooting photos of the artists on stage, while trying to capture the overall vibe of the nightclubs.
It was in 2006 when I finally purchased an SLR camera that gave me the flexibility to shoot in these low-light settings with limited or no flash. I quickly fell in love with this artistic side of nightlife photography.
Three years later I find myself rarely shooting photos of people at the clubs, but focusing my time and lens on the DJ's themselves. Of course, I try to capture wide-angle shots of the crowd and the occasional glow-stick kid. But my version of nightlife photography is built more on the artist moving the crowd and the lights providing the energy and excitement of a true nocturnal vibe.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance
Indepen-dance in the District
I figured it was time to post some
photos from a shoot with Swedish house music
DJ John Dahlback. This is now the third year in a row that I've found myself shooting photos of a DJ the Thursday before a July 4th weekend. I think this year was the best so far because of the range of images I was able to capture along the way.
We started our evening on the terrace where I was able to catch some amazing shots of the club and the lasers permeating the crowd of house heads below. I also captured some shots of my friends who were happy to give their best
Zoolander face and pose for some provocative silhouette shots throughout the club. Having friends who are models is so rad!
So the part of the evening I enjoyed most was finding the ability to shoot some of these shots with such a low ISO setting. ISO settings for non-photo geeks measures the sensitivity of the image sensor. The lower the number the less sensitive your camera is to light and the finer the grain. Higher ISO settings are generally used in darker situations to get faster shutter speeds (for example an indoor sports event when you want to freeze the action in lower light) - however the cost is noisier shots. You can see this in some of my previous photo galleries where either the lighting was poor or the DJ bounced all over the place and I needed to speed up my shutter to keep my subject from blurring across the shot.
By shooting with a higher sensitivity, my shots of John Dahlback came out much crisper than normal. This was specially satisfying knowing I can print these shots in a much larger format now because the grain was kept to a minimum. It also doesn't hurt that the lighting in the Ultra Bar DJ booth is brimming in blue illumination.
The following are a few more shots from the evening. The complete gallery can be seen
right here on dougvansant.com. Enjoy...
Labels: Clubs, Dancing, DJs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Photography
Pool Party...DC Style
So my coworkers and I decided to take in some sunshine yesterday and walk down the street for coffee. Michael turns to Tina and I and gasps about a great pool party he attended on Sunday at the Skyline Hotel. I'm thinking to myself, the Skyline Hotel is pretty dumpy, how could they host a "great" pool party. Crap, I didn't even know they had a pool.
He explains that the hotel is under new ownership and is hosting a pool party every Sunday with
Top Chef alum Spike Mendelsohn. He tells us the crowd is pretty chic and they even have a DJ.
Now you have to understand why I was so suspicious of this. The Capitol Skyline Hotel used to be a Best Western. It's located on the corner of South Capitol and I Streets SW. It was one of those forgotten hotels in a corner of DC that rarely sees any tourist activity. In other words, it was the hotel that comes up at the bottom of a Hotels.com search result because it was super cheap and lacked one star, let alone 4 stars like some of our other DC accommodations.
But then again, that was before the city invested millions of dollars in a new baseball stadium and a posh condo neighborhood. Within the 2-plus years I've lived in the District, this area went from despised haven of drugs and liquor stores to one of the hottest neighborhoods on the DC map. And so I guess this hotbed of activity attracted new owners to the Capitol Skyline Hotel who decided to bring in master architect Morris Lapidus to splash a little Miami flare on the building. After a complete renovation, you now have a high-design boutique hotel right in the heart of a hot new neighborhood full of activity. And with the new design came the renovated pool.
Now the owners could have just sat by with their new look and been happy. But they went a step beyond and decided to host parties. They've seen the success other venues have had with such an idea, such as The Raleigh in Miami, The Standard in LA and the
Phoenix Hotel in SF. And so now DC has a new Saturday and Sunday afternoon home to the young and chic looking for some sun.
Brightest Young Things is now
hosting a Saturday afternoon party with DJs and live music. Every Sunday, Spike Mendelsohn grills burgers with a DJ spinning lounge and house. Hopefully we'll see some evening events in the near future as well. Regardless, what was once a no-name eye-sore just south of the Capitol is now a hip and happening venue contributing to a thriving social scene in our nations capital.
Labels: DJs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Urban
DJ Dan Lights Up Ultra
Ultra Bar and Club Glow hosted DJ Dan, one of America's most beloved and hardest working DJs on the electronic music scene last night. My good friend Laura Jackson was in town and wanted to tag along with me on one of my usual club photo gigs, so we hit it up.
My knowledge of DJ Dan comes purely from my associations with fellow American DJ Christopher Lawrence. DJ Dan and Lawrence worked and traveled together a few years back and so I had heard some great things about Dan's abilities as a master of the turntables.
What I didn't know was that DJ Dan has been pushing the envelope with electronic music lately, blending hard house with breakbeats and beyond. His style is exactly what I love about dance music...full of energy. From the moment he started his set last night, you could feel the deep and dark energy pulsing from the sound system inside of Ultra Bar. Standing near the speaker boxes along the wall was like having a personal masseuse right there in the club. I'm talking hair on my arms standing up straight...
The good news of the night was DJ Dan threw down a sick set for true dance music lovers. Laura was dancing her butt off all night long and I think I captured some pretty amazing photos. The bad news was the crowd seemed off. While standing in the DJ booth, Dan turns to me and asked me if it sounded distorted on the dance floor. He couldn't understand why certain tracks generated little to no response what-so-ever. I told him the sound was perfect and the tracks were sick...so he need not worry. But clearly the Ultra Bar crowd was more interested in gyrating to their own music and throwing back the alcohol. As I told DJ Dan, I can't say I've ever seen a crowd like this at a Glow event, so it was just as surprising to me.
The other good news was true Glow supporters were out in full force. I saw so many familiar faces that it felt like one of my standard nights at The Jam Cellar where you walk in and see all your dance friends from all over. Regardless of the overall crowd, DJ Dan ripped it and he should be proud.
These last two photos are kinda special to me because as Laura and I got ready, we talked to our good friend Amy Tran on the phone. Amy was stuck on a work assignment in some random West Virginia town and was seriously down about not being able to join us for the evening. So we took one photo of us actually talking to her on the phone and one photo with a sign telling her we love her. It was actually pretty cute because we emailed the images just before we left for Ultra.
We miss you to death Amy!
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Nightlife, Trance
Roger Sanchez Photos From Josephine
Sometimes I'll bring my camera along to events that are slightly more low-key or in venues I'm not as familiar with. And in many cases, this means I come away with far fewer images than I normally shoot in the larger clubs. Such is the case with the above photo of DJ Roger Sanchez at Josephine in downtown DC.
Sanchez is a world-renowned, Grammy Award winning DJ. He's remixed superstars such as Chic, Daft Punk, Diana Ross and The Police, contributed to the soundtrack of Hollywood movie
Blade, and founded 3 record labels. So calling this man a superstar isn't a crazy concept. Unless of course you're at Josephine. I hate getting all down on clubs and/or artists because I feel nightlife should be enjoyable. But we all know there are nights that just don't work and leave us feeling like we've wasted our time and our money.
I had been to Josephine once prior to this night and knew the venue was pretty small. But small micro-clubs are pretty common in the district. And in some cases (like Tattoo), the space is used wisely and creates an intimate and enjoyable party. So when I heard one of the top 20 DJs in the world would be spinning at Josephine, I was quietly optimistic. Small venues with world-class DJs can be amazing. I've been in places like Duplex SF, Bambudda Lounge, HPC and Sullivan Room NYC where a top DJ can connect with the audience and really get into their craft. Sometimes you hear things you wouldn't normally find in major clubs because the DJs feel they can be creative and push things a bit for a smaller, more dedicated crowd.
But these venues all have something going for them Josephine does not. They are all house music temples. The crowds show up on various nights to hear the music and see the DJ. They show up to Josephine to hear themselves and be seen by others. Look, I know there is that "I want to be a celebrity" element of nightlife in every city. Dudes roll into a club
wearing their shades and printed t-shirts flashing money while standing at their VIP table. (Side note: why do douchebag wannabes stand the entire time at their VIP table? I've often wondered about this phenomenon. Do they think it helps them be seen above the crowd?)
I digress... I shouldn't have been surprised at the lack of interest in Roger Sanchez on this particular night. Before we could even get inside we had a young lady at the door act like she was doing us a favor by letting us past the line (even though we were on the promoters list). Her exact words were "we'll expedite you into the club but you still have to pay the cover charge." Now repeat that with a bad fake Eastern European accent and you get an idea of what we were in for.
Inside wasn't any better. Josephine is decorated with the tackiness of a French brothel thrown into the basement of a sterile office building. They have plastic chandeliers hanging over the bar, in a room with what seems like 7 ft. ceilings. And the venue is all VIP tables. So unless you feel like dishing out 1K to sit in the French brothel basement, you get to stand around like an outfielder in a no-hitter. Add to that the
douchebags with hot chicks element and you see why I'm not feeling so warm and fuzzy about this particular night.
Long story short, Roger Sanchez comes in. He sets up his gear. He begins mixing tracks. No one in the club notices. They're too busy standing around with their money clip exposed adjusting their sunglasses to just the right position on their heads. My friends and I feel like we've walked into the twilight zone of nocturnal excess. Dan says to me, "this place is dead anyway." I shoot a few photos of Sanchez and we're on our way. Needless to say, I salvaged two shots from the night. Oh well!
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Nightlife
Random Photo of the Day: Feb. 18th
The above photo was found on the
360nightlife.com entertainment site. It was shot on Friday, Feb. 13th at The Muse Nightclub.
As you can see, it's the usual crew enjoying yet another VIP table and bottle service. This time we were celebrating Mr. Dan's new job with the DC Examiner. And don't ask me what's up with the goofy pucker-lip smirk I have going on.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, House, Nightlife, Trance
Dolce Gallery Finally Goes Live
I used to have a really bad habit of taking my camera with me to clubs in SF and never getting around to cropping and posting the images I shot. So I try to take advantage of the winter weather to dig into the archives and post galleries from the past. So today I'm finally posting a link to
a gallery from Dolce.
Dolce was a lounge-type bar in North Beach that myself, Jarvis, Craig and Bernie used to visit on a fairly frequent basis. It really wasn't anything special other than the fact that I was friends with the promoters who owned the venue and it attracted a good-looking crowd. Plus North Beach was the closest thing SF had to a true nightlife district, which always made for an adventure.
Dolce has since closed and has now reopened as Apartment 24. The Apt24 concept is essentially what a "rock-star's condo" would be like. I can't really say I'm surprised Dolce closed. While the web site suggested it was a unique club experience, there was nothing that set it apart from other venues. The music was the same. The decor was rather bland and like many SF venues, people got tired of it. I suspect Apt. 24 will follow a similar path.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Nightlife, San Francisco, Urban
Nocturnal Vibe Lives Again
Well it's official folks, I'm back on the scene writing about nightlife. My column Nocturnal Vibe went live on
TrenDCtv.com yesterday. I'm actually quite happy with the overall look and can't wait to blow this sucker up with some serious updates.
For those just learning about this, Nocturnal Vibe was a nightlife column I created while living in Tampa, Florida. With the help of Dan Kelly and other assorted characters, the column blew up and became one of the most visited pages on
TBO.com. It went on a 3 year hiatus when I moved to San Francisco.
Because of Mr. Dan Kelly and his position with Tribune Corp., the column is now making a return as a blog on the popular WB entertainment page TrenDC. Mr. Dan has even gone out of his way to have business cards made so we can make this puppy look professional. And I couldn't be happier.
Nightclubs and dance music are a major passion of mine. I've been drawn to the scene for the better part of 8 years now and can't get enough of that pulse pounding sound one experiences when entering a mega-club in any city. Most publications and entertainment rags do an incredibly poor job of covering this scene, so it's become my mission to fill that void. Hopefully the residents of DC will agree and enjoy what I bring to the nightlife table.
If you get a chance, check out the blog at
TrenDCtv.com/nocturnalvibe and please feel free to leave comments and suggestions. And now I'm off to visit the family. Merry Christmas everyone!!!
Labels: Clubs, DC, DJs, Entertainment, Music, Nightlife, Trance, TrenDC
No Walk in The Park
So yesterday I got together with a group of friends to spend an evening out on the town at
The Park at Fourteenth. This was my first visit to this K Street District club and I can't say I was overly impressed. Have you ever built something up in your head to the point that you were totally excited about it and yet it somehow fell way short? Well that's the best way to describe my experience at The Park's holiday party. I felt like a disappointed kid on Christmas morning who didn't get the gift he really, really wanted!
All I really wanted was a decent night at a new club. What I got was a VIP table that we couldn't sit at until 10:30, only to find out it was occupied by 8 people when we were finally taken to the 4th floor. We got a guest list that only had my name on it and so my guests had to stand outside and hope the doorman would finally let them in. And we got a club that was more interested in being a sports bar, with flat screen TVs tuned to NBA games all throughout the venue.
Overall I had an absolutely great time despite my disappointment with the venue. But my enjoyment came strictly from the people I spent my evening with (Dan, Matt, Rob, Lindsay, Lily, Gayle and others). We played Blackjack at several tables, acted silly like usual and Lily and I even busted out some Lindy Hop. So the evening was a success as far as I'm concerned. The following are photos from the evening...
Labels: Clubs, DC, DJs, House, Music, Nightlife
Random Thought of the Day: Dec. 18th
You know you've got a pretty good nightlife scene in your city when you can visit 3 different clubs on a regular Wednesday night and each place is packed.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Music, Nightlife, Trance
Nightlife Photography
People are often asking me, "Doug, what exactly do you do when you go out to all these clubs?" I tell them I shoot photos for the clubs, promoters and DJs. But I'm usually looked at funny because most people figure a club is all about drinking and dancing. And while some of that does occur in-between shots, I usually try to maintain a fairly strict process of focusing my attention on the purveyors of sound. The following image was captured at Ultra Bar in DC one evening while I was there shooting for world-renowned DJ George Acosta.
The funny thing about this picture is you can see Glen at the bottom, almost acting as my personal security guard. Thanks for keeping all those rowdies off me bro!
Labels: Clubs, DJs, Nightlife, Trance
An Introduction to DC Club Life
Yesterday I wrote my first blog posting for
TrenDC. A few months ago Dan Kelly invited me to revive my nightlife writing skill with a blog on the popular WB TV web site. Since the site gets attention for hosting celebrity diva Paul Wharton's blog, I figured I should join the team and contribute with my love of nightlife and electronic music.
My first submission is listed below. I'll update you with a link as soon as things go live on TrenDC.
Nocturnal Vibe...Friday, December 5, 2008Hello DC! Several months ago I was asked to join the TrenDC team and contribute my thoughts to a blog dedicated to nightlife. This isn’t the first time I’ve written about the nocturnal happenings of a city. And since I love writing, photography and nightlife, I figured why not? So what you’re looking at today is the start of a blog that will take you on a journey through the inner-workings of the DC club scene. It’s called Nocturnal Vibe because there is an essence of life that pours from the nightclubs and lounges of major cities worldwide. It’s a feeling. It’s like a sixth sense. It’s a way of life that touches all corners of your emotions and is on display virtually every night here in the District. And I’m going to do my part to make sure you know everything you need to know to be well equipped for a night on the town.
First, let’s get a few things out in public right off the bat. I’m not your typical features writer. I’m not going to play footsies with you by discussing unnecessary details of a club. You already know there are beautiful people there. You already know there will be lines to get in. You already know you can spend your hard-earned cash on a VIP table and get piss drunk off your own bottle of vodka. You don’t need me to tell you that. But what I can do is tell you why you should go to one club or another. I can tell you what the VIP tables at Tattoo have that Ibiza can’t offer you. I can tell you why BT is a show worth braving the December chill and why Baby Anne might just leave you blue. In other words, this is an inside look at clubs. It’s not a press release.
Second, I’m not going to tell you about every single place in DC or the surrounding metro area. There are publications out there that have staffs much larger and far more equipped to do something like that. And frankly, my liver just can’t handle a relentless pounding night after night. But I will tell you about places I believe are the true purveyors of the club world. I’ll tell you about clubs that focus their attention on the true star of their show, the DJ. If it has something to do with electronic dance music; be it house, trance, Dnb, I’ll write about it. If you like to dance at a club, this is your new publication home.
Third, I’m rarely negative. I just don’t like the idea of reading a column about something as enjoyable as a night out on the town and walking away feeling like the author is perpetually bent out of shape. To me, nightlife is enjoyable. And so my blog should reflect that.
So that covers the bases of what this blog is. Now the big question: who in the world is this cat telling me to go to 18th Street Lounge to hear such-and-such DJ?
My name is Doug Van Sant (dougvansant.com). I grew up in Delaware, got a broadcast journalism degree from Shenandoah and have spent the better part of my career working in the online departments of various newspapers and publications. I started writing about nightlife while living in Greensboro, North Carolina. The start was modest with a personal email blast that hit almost 1000 of my closest friends. When I moved to Tampa, Florida, I was introduced to a club scene ripe with world-class talent but starved for attention from the local media. I quickly found a number of clubs bringing in the some of the greatest trance and house DJs in the world, and yet no mention of the fact in any publication, independent or corporate. So I created Nocturnal Vibe as a connection to that scene on TBO.com, the online partner of the Tampa Tribune and WFLA. It fast became one of the most visited pages on the site.
I then moved to San Francisco and expanded my interest in nightlife photography. I shot most nights at the world famous Ruby Skye nightclub and started getting exclusive gigs from DJs like Christopher Lawrence, John Digweed, Timo Maas and Paul Oakenfold. My resume now includes a nightlife column in cities spanning from Miami to LA with photo shoots from Tiesto to George Acosta.
To say I enjoy nightlife is an understatement. I’ve pretty much lived it for the better part of 8 years now. My only true side attraction is my love of dancing Lindy Hop. If you’re lucky, I may break out some words on the subject from time to time. But aside from the occasional talk of 30’s jazz, this blog is all about the club world of DC. Ready… Steady… Go…Labels: Clubs, DJs, Entertainment, Music, Nightlife, Trance
James Zabiela at Club Ibiza
This past Saturday I had the privilege of getting back into the DJ booth at Club Ibiza to
shoot photos for London DJ James Zabiela and Club Glow. Zabiela is a resident DJ at the famous Club Space in Ibiza, Spain and has been burning up the turn tables around the world with his creative and frenetic style of beat bending and blending. He's on the cutting edge of DJ technology employing the use of his Mac and various other techno-gadgets that can do everything but make you coffee.
His set was definitely one of the more creative trance music roadtrips I've ever gone on. You could tell right from the moment he stepped to the tables that this night would be different than a basic mixologist matching beats. My good friend Michelle S came along and even she noticed the difference between Zabiela and the opening DJ. Her eyes grew wide when he started scratching and tweaking sounds on beat, almost as if the original artist meant for it to be that way.
I don't expect everyone to share my appreciation of the club life or this style of music. But when you see a DJ go to work on sound like Zabiela did, you realize this guy isn't just pushing play on a CD player and turning knobs to look cool. He's working his tail off to bring those in attendance on a journey of aural ecstasy.
Click here to see the full gallery.
Labels: Clubs, DJs, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance
If you do a quick Google search on Thievery Corporation at the 930 Club, you're sure to find plenty of reviews from professional publications and local blogs. I threw my hat into that ring two weeks ago when I posted a quick summary of the Thursday night performance at the venerable DC music venue. I didn't go into the bloody details about the show because everyone and their brother would. But I did want to take you back to that 5-night stop in the District because I had a rare experience with Thievery that I'd like to share.
