Clublife section: Metro Weekly magazine, Washington, DC newspaper

Cracking Up

Shea Van Horn may have slowed down ever so slightly, yet he's still D.C.'s leading multi-club promoter and DJ

Published on May 2, 2013, 3:58am

''I can't imagine being 53 and working until 4 in the morning every weekend night,'' sighs Shea Van Horn, ''but I can't imagine myself not having some type of creative outlet.'' As it turns out, the 43-year-old has slowed down slightly in the past year or two, dropping a couple parties and reducing the frequency of others. But he's still the same-old Shea, the leading multi-club promoter and DJ on the gay D.C. nightlife scene. He still throws, with Matt ...[more]

The Sweet Smell of Ba'Naka

Named after an alcohol-based breath spray, Ba'Naka is a regular spritzing drag queen about town

Published on April 25, 2013, 2:14am

{Ba'Naka and friends (Photo by Julian Vankim)} Dustin Michael Schaad developed his drag alter ego Ba'Naka early. ''The first time was at a high school party,'' explains Schaad, who grew up mostly in Bradenton, Fla. ''After a long night of cheap beer and nachos, my friends and I decided to get dressed up in drag and go to the local Walmart at 3 in the morning. Apparently I was a mess, and my girlfriend said, 'Ew, honey, you need some ...[more]

Keen on Keenan

Keenan Orr is one of D.C.'s most versatile DJs, playing every week at hip straight bars as well as Cobalt

Published on April 11, 2013, 7:43am

''I would get bored, I think, with circuit parties [and] eight-minute-long songs,'' says Keenan Orr. ''I think the closest to a circuit party I'm going to do is Town.'' Orr, who has spun a few Sunday night WTF parties at Town, will make his debut as a Saturday night ''circuit'' DJ upstairs next month, tag-teaming with Town's resident DJ Wess. But even if he never DJs a circuit party, or even Town again after May 18, chances are he'll still ...[more]

Montreal Magic

Alain Jackinsky makes his D.C. debut this Saturday as the headliner of Cherry weekend

Published on April 4, 2013, 1:07am

''Definitely Peter. You can say that's my biggest influence,'' Alain Jackinsky says, referring to the legendary DJ Peter Rauhofer. ''I've been influenced by him since I was a kid.'' That might come as a surprise to people who know the 32-year-old Jackinsky only through his regular collaborations with DJ Paulo, including last year's club hit ''Chicky Boom.'' Actually, it comes as a surprise to Paulo himself. ''I thought I was! Get out!'' Paulo retorts playfully, overhearing Jackinsky's answer. Metro Weekly ...[more]

Cherry Blossoms

The Cherry Fund's annual party returns next weekend for more tribal beats

Published on March 28, 2013, 2:12am

''I went to great lengths to try and recruit a drum troupe,'' James Decker says. Turns out, the co-chair of the Cherry Fund didn't have to search far at all to find an organization to perform at this year's Cherry dance music party. Popular local marching band D.C.'s Different Drummers will do the honors, performing about 12:30 a.m. in between DJ sets at Town Danceboutique on Saturday, April 6. The DCDD performance is just one aspect to this year's ''Tribal: ...[more]

Multisensory Music

Kidd Madonny, known as one-half of club design/décor duo RKM, promises ''the wow factor'' for his stint at Town

Published on March 28, 2013, 2:10am

You wouldn't expect a former performance and visual artist -- and before that, a go-go dancer -- to go quietly into the DJ booth, would you? ''People know me for the craziness, and I still wanted to keep those elements, like the wow factor,'' Kidd Madonny says. So when Madonny works as DJ, he's almost as likely to twirl sparklers and jump around as spin music on turntables, all while wearing sexy, sequined costumes, maybe even a mask. Chances are ...[more]

Bear Beats

Popular votes over the next two months determine the next resident DJ at Town's Bear Happy Hour

Published on March 21, 2013, 7:07am

If you notice different music, or a different style of music, at Town's Bear Happy Hour this Friday, that's all part of the plan. In fact, BHH will feature a different DJ every Friday from now until Capital Pride weekend. Charger Stone of DC Bear Crue has organized a crowdsourced DJ competition in which 10 contestants he's selected will spin a full night's set, with each announced only a week in advance of his gig. Partygoers will vote by text ...[more]

Extreme Celebration

Ric Sena dedicates the March edition of Alegria to veteran DJ Abel

Published on March 14, 2013, 4:11am

Next week, Abel Aguilera, the celebrated gay circuit veteran known as DJ Abel, will turn fifty. So naturally Ric Sena is throwing him a big party. ''Usually every year I do a different theme,'' says Sena, the man behind New York City's popular circuit party Alegria. But for this year's Alegria, pegged to Black Party weekend and known as Alegria Xtreme, Sena is forgoing a sexy, more traditional, military or red-light district theme and making sure partygoers appreciate the milestone ...[more]

Mixtape Master

Over the past decade Matt Bailer has become one of D.C.'s most prolific DJs, spinning in a wide range of venues

Published on March 14, 2013, 4:08am

''Coffee is my vice,'' laughs Matt Bailer. ''I literally drink coffee when I'm DJ-ing at Nellie's. It's kind of the running joke around there.'' Bailer, who spins at Nellie's every Friday night, also guzzles the occasional 5-hour Energy, but never Red Bull: ''I actually get Red Bull hangovers, that's what a lightweight I am.'' And over that past decade the 35-year-old has become one of D.C.'s most prolific DJs, busy every weekend and several nights a week, at venues as ...[more]

Dancing Bears

Matt Bearracuda brings his hit San Francisco party back to Cobalt for a second time

Published on March 7, 2013, 1:54am

''[It] was pretty much just bears in bars,'' Matt Bearracuda says of the bear scene in San Francisco. ''It was a little too conservative and a bit boring for me.'' A native of the Bay Area, Bearracuda figured San Francisco could use a monthly bear dance party, ''where people are actually having a good time rather than sitting in the corner, drinking a beer [and] nobody smiling.'' The resulting party, Bearracuda, was such a hit, Matt adopted it as his ...[more]

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