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
So...You Want To Go Clubbing
Now that we've taken care of the whole business side of this Urban Marinade (
Twitter, Facebook,
Flickr), it's time we write about the meat of the weekend. We have more damn DJs spinning great electronic music in DC this coming weekend than I know what to do with. How is a respectable nightlife photographer and fan of dance music supposed to choose? Seriously, I really wish I could be in two places at the same time.
So you want to go clubbing? Well this is your weekend to do it. When I go through my list of venues and parties being thrown, it's usually pretty easy to map out a weekly agenda. You know from my past photo shoots that I tend to gravitate toward Ultra Bar on Thursday nights. Well the
Glow crew is doing it up right again this week featuring Nic Fanciulli at this Penn Quarter gem.
Fanciulli has gained massive respect from DJs across the spectrum for his unique take on house music. Many of the biggest names in the business have labeled Fanciulli one of hottest rising stars in Europe while Pete Tong proclaimed him the finest resident in the UK. What it all boils down to is yet another great DJ set will be thrown down inside "the box" at Ultra.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention DJ Manifesto spinning at Lima Lounge on Thursday night as well. If you recall, I captured some freakin sweet
images of Manifesto and DJ Jason Greene at the inaugural Love of Haus party at Lima. What you can't see in those images is the hard hitting house that tickled my ear drums all night long. I can't tell you which event to attend. That has to be a game time decision for you to make. But either way, you can't go wrong with either Lima or Ultra Bar.
Friday nights are usually saved for dinner somewhere and a stop at my favorite Chinatown club
Muse Lounge. Muse has done something very few clubs attempt by featuring electronic music on multiple floors. Listen, I totally understand having each room of your venue feature something different. You have a better chance of making everyone happy. But what Muse is doing is making dance music fans downright giddy.
This Friday, Muse and District Ignition present Snatch Rewired featuring the sounds of Treasure Fingers, Spiggy and Steve Bugbee on the first floor. Not enough? Head up to the third floor where Tanc, Aligning Minds and Amitai will be spinning house all night long.
Tired Yet?
This brings us to Saturday. Ah Saturday in the District! Put your hands up for DC, the lovely city... But seriously folks, Saturday has two parties that I have absolutely no idea which to choose. You can't go wrong either way. Both are being held in our biggest and best nightclubs. Both feature world-class DJs respected around the globe. Both will leave your heart buzzing and your adrenaline boiling.
My friends at
Glow will feature
Cedric Gervais at FUR Nightclub. My heart leans toward this party because I personally had tremendous success shooting photos of Gervais. The one featured at the top of this post remains one of my favorite nightlife shots of all time and is hanging on my wall at home. The last time Gervais spent time on the FUR decks, I remember a crowd that stayed amp'd all night and a certain photographer (this guy) who didn't want the night to end. Of course we shoot nightlife photography because we love the music. But sometimes you just don't get into a set or maybe it's just not enough to keep you out super late knowing you'll need to find a cab after 3 a.m. But Gervais is one of those DJs that can keep your energy high all night and keep you wondering how each track seems to get better and better.
For years, Gervais has captivated clubbers and partygoers as he reigned supreme over the Miami dance scene. Although originally born in Marseilles, Cedric Gervais has chosen Miami as his adopted home, and the city has been more than happy to embrace him. He has held residencies at Crobar (now Cameo) and the world famous Nikki Beach, before taking over the Space Terrace. Cedric’s presence at the Space Terrace was felt immediately as people in the thousands began lining up to witness him devastate the after-hours scene. He'll bring it on Saturday night which is why you can't go wrong spending the evening at FUR.
But here is the kicker. Because of a little snow storm we had back in December so affectionately known as Snowpocalypse 2009, this Saturday night features another world-class DJ. Ibiza will feature the sounds of Maryland native and
dance music pioneer BT.
From an early age, BT 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.
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™.
So as you can see, techno-wizardry will be on display at Ibiza DC this Saturday. And the choice of which party to attend won't get any easier as you do even more research on both of these artists. I won't tell you which one I plan to attend because that's a secret. You'll just have to come back to this blog to find the answer.
Photos by Doug Van SantLabels: Clubs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance
Rising Dance Music Star Headlines Ultra Bar
One thing most of my friends don't realize about DC is how great this city is for dance music. Sure, Miami has great DJs spinning house and electro in the
local grocery store. And babies seem to be
born with headphones in NYC. But of all the cities I've lived in, The District holds it's own when it comes to local talent and national draw. And thankfully we have promoters and club owners who embrace the popularity and passion that comes with bringing in world-class performers.
Such is the case with the folks at
Glow, who booked Chicago dance music star
Blake Jarrell this Thursday at Ultra Bar in downtown DC. If you're searching for things to do and think you'd like to try your hand at some really good dance music, this is your best bet!
I had the chance to listen to and
photograph Blake during his last visit to DC at Club Ibiza. I recall pausing for a moment in the middle of the shoot thinking to myself, damn this is good music. Blake is quite literally a natural behind the decks. He knows how to blend smooth trance-like music with driving rhythms. And he can work a crowd as good as the best in the business. I think this is what has helped place Jarrell on the upward trajectory in the electronic music world. A good DJ can mix well. A great DJ can read his crowd, feed off their energy and tap into their senses for a stunning musical journey. Think I'm making all of this up? Come to Ultra on Thursday and you'll see what I mean.
But the journey for Jarrell hasn't always been as spiritually uplifting. Blake carved himself a niche in the underground dance music scene in his hometown of New Orleans, performing at some of the cities biggest venues while producing and releasing singles on various labels. But when tragedy stuck the city during Hurricane Katrina, Jarrell packed his car with whatever he could and set forth to Chicago.
It was in the windy city where he fell in love with the booming house, techno and trance scene, which further helped shape his sound. It also brought a chance meeting with Armin van Buuren, who Blake passed along a CD of his productions. “It’s bittersweet that I had to lose my hometown to Hurricane Katrina to find such a musically nurturing city as Chicago,” says Blake who claims the storm as “simultaneously the best and worst thing that has ever happened to me.”
After listening to a few of his original productions, Armin contacted Blake and soon after he joined the Armada artist roster. Since that time Armin has invited Blake on several of his world tours as an exclusive special guest performer. Finally, Blake cemented his relationship with Armada Music when he joined a select group of international stars for full summer residencies at Armada’s weekly shindig at Amnesia in Ibiza in 2007 and 2008.
Blake put himself at the helm of a very unique project with his recent “Concentrate 2009″ album. Unlike other mix compilations, Blake painstakingly hand picked music selections to completely rework and remix them in the studio from the ground up in order to carve his signature sound into each of the 25 tracks, creating an incredibly cohesive journey across a vast storyline of sound.
The story continues this Thursday at Ultra Bar.
Photos by Doug Van SantLabels: Bars, Clubs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance
It's All Gone Pete Tong
I recently got around to posting a few more galleries on my site and wanted to share with you this collection from a
night with Pete Tong at Glow.
For those not familiar with Tong, his work transcends many years of dance music artists and styles. As a DJ, Pete has graced the decks of the best clubs and festivals worldwide. As a producer he's assembled the music for many different soundtracks and was the inspiration behind the hit film "
It's All Gone Pete Tong."
Pete's success as a broadcaster, clubland DJ and music industry maven is his ability to create a balance between credibility and commerciality and is not afraid to drop the hits on the decks. "People forget it's entertainment," Pete explains. "I wouldn't be doing this if I couldn't champion new music, but a mix is the key. And it's supposed to be fun."
I was pretty excited to see
Pete for the first time because he's a name I've become familiar with through the BBC-One essential mixes. I can't even begin to tell you how many DJ mixes I've listened to with the BBC (Radio)-One call sign announced. You almost begin to expect to hear it while listening to any dance music mix.
I wish I could say I was as excited about the
images I captured from the evening. I like some of the color in these shots, but I was very disappointed with the clarity and sharpness of the photos. I've been over-thinking my nightlife photography, trying to use different techniques to pull out more color and style in my shots. What's happened is that I'm getting vibrant the color but losing some of the crisp and clean, noise-free shots I've captured on recent outings.
The following are some of the better images from the gallery. To be perfectly honest with you, the best shot came during the opening DJ set. I had everything set correctly and just got a little happy with my exposure settings throughout the night. I really can't wait to get back out and continue to refine my nightlife style and try to correct some of my mistakes in these shots. In the meantime,
enjoy these photos and please let me know what you think.
Labels: Clubs, Dancing, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance
Random Photo of the Day: Nov. 3rd
I started going through some files on my desktop and came across this adorable photo of Joelle and I. It was taken two weeks ago on a Saturday night at Muse Lounge by one of their party photographers working for
DCNites.com.
The funny story about this photo is that we had no intention of hitting up Muse that night. The original plan was for Joelle and I to get together with Francis and Samm and to see Armin van Buuren at FUR. But mother nature decided to open the skies and dump rain all across the region. We braved the colder temps and Hurricane FUR (this is what we decided to call it since it felt like a damn hurricane swept through on our walk from Metro to the club) to attempt to get into the club. But we decided against it when it was clear only my name was on the guest list and everyone else would have to pay a high price for their ticket. Not that Armin isn't worth spending a little money to see. But on this night, it just seemed like everything was working against us.
So we jumped into a cab, went downtown and enjoyed cocktails at Zola and some dancing at
Muse Lounge. The weather sucked, but the night was a huge success because of the great company and awesome management over at Muse.
Labels: Clubs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Random, Trance
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
Exploring The Meatpacking District
A few weeks ago a group of us from DC traveled up to NYC for the Frankie 95 memorial celebration. This was a 5 day Lindy Hop festival celebrating Frankie Manning, the man we all look up to as one of the original Savoy Ballroom dancers and a true ambassador of Lindy Hop. The event was inspiring, exciting, moving and at times very hard to enduring knowing we had lost such a great person.
But like all true lindy hoppers, we took the celebration as a chance to do what it is we do best... have fun! If there was one thing I know Frankie Manning would have wanted of the weekend, it was that everyone was dancing, smiling and having the time of their lives. With that said, the weekend was a massive success.
One thing that I knew would bring a smile to my face was the chance to explore Manhattan with my camera. I knew time would be limited, so I had to pick and choose when I could seriously enjoy the urban fabric of this great city. I was given a golden opportunity to get my start
shooting nightlife photos at Cielo, one of the powerhouse clubs of New York on Thursday night, May 21st. I figured this would be a great way to kick off the weekend because Thursday night events at dance weekends tend to be the slower of the evenings activities. So Manuel Ferdinandus and I hopped a cab for the meatpacking district and found ourselves shooting photos in what is regarded as one of the
top house music clubs in the U.S.
Shooting photos in Cielo was a bit challenging because it's not a very large club. And the DJ booth is actually quite small. The best way to describe this venue is it's a glorified recording studio. Seriously, it's one room about the size of a moderately sized clothing store with one of the top sound systems ever constructed. The walls and ceilings are covered with a soft material and padding, giving the room the acoustics you'd expect in a recording studio. One giant crystal ball hangs in the center of the sunken dance floor which is flanked with VIP tables facing out around the room.
The club has a small patio for those wishing to get some fresh air or smoke, but that's basically it. I think the thing I really enjoyed about this venue was that despite the high-level design and attractive people coming and going, it's clear Cielo is all about the music. After shooting for several hours and shaking hands with house music ambassador
Frankie Knuckles, Manny and I decided to wander the neighborhood and see what we could find. It was clear the
Meatpacking District was a see and be seen type of district. Most of the clubs had long lines of trend-setting style mavens hoping to squeeze their way past NFL sized bouncers upholding an iron-fist like command of guestlists and tables.
At one point, with camera's in hand, Manny and I were mistaken for paparazzi. As you'll see in my
"Meatpacking District" gallery, we found several beautiful cars parked in front of one of the more popular clubs. It wasn't the fact that a Lamborghini was parked in front of a club that caught our attention. It was the orange construction cones that were placed on top of said fancy car that had me grabbing my camera. It was at that point a large group of nocturnal participants began mingling close by. One of them coyly asked, "are you guys paparazzi? who's inside???"
Manny and I simply said... we can't tell you, it would compromise our jobs.
Long story short, this trip to New York City was dedicated to shooting photos in this ultra-hip district that was once known more for butchers rather than bling. But after spending Thursday evening and part of Saturday in the neighborhood, I think I captured some of the spirit as best I could on limited time. Enjoy...
Labels: Clubs, Dancing, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance, Urban
Crazy How Things Change So Quickly
I found myself reflecting the other day on a ton of things that have changed in my life over the past two-plus years I've lived here in DC. I moved across country, got separated, lived with rednecks, started dancing, moved into the city, got divorced, traveled a ton, moved again, and made more friends than I could have ever asked for. In a nutshell, the past two-plus years has been some of the best and worst in my life.
When I moved to DC, there was so much uncertainty in my life. My marriage was on the rocks and I didn't really know where it would go. I had just started dancing but still sucked and really didn't care to social dance while feeling like a swing dance reject. Even my job was on contract and wasn't going to last more than three months. The only thing consistent in my life was my photography and my friends...of which two of my closest (Dan and Matt) lived right here. I rented a room in a small townhouse in Annandale because it was close to my contract work and because I still had an apartment in Oakland. My first roommates were awesome and a joy to live with, but they moved out 3 months later and I was left with an empty townhouse and two other redneck roommates who had their friends get drunk and pass out on the empty living room floor. Life kinda sucked at that point and I missed the days of tearing up the town in Tampa with my crew at some of the hottest clubs in one of my favorite cities. That was when I had to make some hard choices and make a change...
Fast forward one year from that. I had moved into a one-bedroom apartment off Connecticut Ave. I had all brand-new furniture, a new LCD TV, new Macbook Pro, and a new car. I had fully immersed myself into Lindy Hop, started traveling to dance events in other cities and had even thrown myself into a competition. I was back with my soon-to-be-ex-wife, had really gotten into exploring and living in DC and even found some friends who enjoyed house and trance music as much as I did. Life was good.
Fast forward to today... The marriage didn't last. And I'm not sad about that. We both grew apart and had different priorities in life. We remained friends after the divorce and even still dance together on occasion. I certainly don't wish a divorce on anyone, but it was probably the best thing to happen to me since that move across country. I now live in a new apartment in downtown. I teach dance, travel extensively and compete on a regular basis. I shoot photos for some of the best clubs in the world and have a resume that includes photo shoots of 5 of the top 10 DJs in the world. I've shot photos in LA, Boston, Chicago, New York, Austin, SF and many other cities. I work for the AARP, the largest lobbying organization and one of the most powerful in Washington, DC. And later this summer I'm moving into a brand-new apartment right next to the ballpark. Dan and Matt still live in the city and even more of my friends are moving to town this summer.
It's crazy to think that in that short period of time I've changed so much. But it happens. When people come to a crossroad in their life, they can keep going down that one road or they can make a sharp turn. I made that sharp turn several months after I arrived in DC and I couldn't be happier with the journey.
The photo above of Lily and I was taken recently in NYC in the meatpacking district. We were trying different things to create an image to promote our teaching and weekly dance, Tempo at Muse Lounge.Labels: Clubs, DC, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Photography, Random, Trance
The Magical Bouncing Kaskade
I'm sure some of you are reading this and wondering, what in the world is a magical bouncing Kaskade? Well, it's pretty simple really. Kaskade is one of the top house music DJs in the world who hails from San Francisco. His style and skills on the turn tables make him a magical artist in the electronic music world. And when Mr. Kaskade, a.k.a Ryan Raddon, gets going behind the decks of a major nightclub, he bounces.
This is great for the hoards of dance music aficionado's who were packing the dance floor of FUR Nightclub last Saturday night. But not so great if you're a
photographer trying to capture the perfect shot in low light. Seriously, it seems as though every single week is a new challenge facing me in these clubs. Two weeks ago it was the incredible dying flash. This week it's trying to get Mr. Kaskade to appear without the crazy blur surrounding his head. Needless to say, I found a few ways to make this work in my
latest nightlife gallery.
To be perfectly honest, aside from the bouncing, shooting Kaskade is always a joy. His style is so perfectly suited for a live performance because he has such energy during his sets. Though I can recall from my first time shooting Kaskade at the
Electro-Techno-Disco Popsicle show in SF, he didn't bounce quite like he does today. Either way, both times I've had the opportunity to shoot photos of this world-class DJ, I've walked away with something I would gladly display on my walls. The 3 photos you see here are my favorites and will probably grace my walls one day in the near future.
Labels: Clubs, Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Techno, Trance
The Terrace Ringleader: Cedric Gervais
I've been shooting nightlife photos for over 4 years now. I've been in big clubs, little clubs, well designed clubs and holes in the wall. I feel like I've seen it all when it comes to the nocturnal experience. But never before (luckily) have I ever experienced serious technical difficulties while shooting...until this past weekend.
On Saturday, May 2nd, Club Glow and FUR Nightclub
hosted Space resident Cedric Gervais from Miami. Gervais is one of these DJs that's easy to hate on. He's French, looks incredibly cool in sunglasses, is resident DJ at one of the top clubs in the world, has hit dance records, has worked with several major rock stars, and is followed by a clique of unnaturally good looking female fans known as "The Gervettes."
There is, however, more to the Marseilles native than meets the eye or the ear. Recent years have seen the Miami DJ/Producer catapult into the ranks of electronic music stardom. His snowballing success and rock star persona is as intriguing as it is evident. In a time when its normal to speculate about the artistic validity of artists that have "the look," Cedric boldly accepts that he's a product and demonstrates that he's got the substance to back up the style. Just ask Deep Dish or Lenny Kravitz what they think of him and his music.
So you can understand how frustrated I was when the first few shots I took of opening DJ Sultan failed to produce a decent image. Were my settings off? Did I get bumped while taking the shot? What was going on here??? That's when I realized my camera wasn't focusing. I looked at the front and noticed my light meter wasn't firing upon focus. When I removed my flash, it worked. All I could think was, am I going crazy here??? Did I mistakenly turn it off somewhere?
Long story short, the external flash batteries had died. The external flash has a meter that typically fires for auto-focus. Because the batteries were dying a slow and painful death, I was able to manually focus a few shots while still using the flash. But then after about 20 minutes into Gervais set, the entire flash was dead in the water. So I went back to my roots and took what I could using the stock flash on the camera.
Sometimes it's good to just turn your flash off if you're trying to capture lighting effects without much attention on your subject. So I think overall I was able to capture some pretty decent shots considering. But man is it frustrating when you're in a DJ booth with a world-class DJ, trying to do your job and suddenly your equipment fails. Ugh!
The good news is, I now have back-ups. I also have
a decent set of pictures from the night and a lesson learned. And if you're wondering, Gervais put on a great show. His set was ripe with hard-hitting electro and progressive house that I could feel in my bones hours after I left the show. Just another night on the DC nightlife beat.
Labels: Entertainment, House, Music, Nightlife, Trance
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
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
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
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
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.
