Club Reports: CityWalk

With the prior Thursdays consisting of the BCS National Championship football game, New Years Eve and Christmas Eve, it had been a month since I was out to CityWalk on a Thursday night. I expected larger crowds considering somewhat warmer weather had returned to Orlando.

It never got very crowded at Red Coconut Club. What I thought was a great idea though was since there was no band, instead of the DJ operating from that booth way up high in the sky, they had him down on the stage behind the bar. DJ G-Clef (Celebrate Tonight) was up there playing a mix of mostly Hip hop and Top 40. I wanted to so bad ask him to play the 1-cent, 5-cent, 10-cent a-dollar song but there was no way to send requests up to him!

By far the most crowded club was Latin Quarter featuring DJ Leony (Sirius XM BPM). People just kept streaming in to his mostly Latin dance selections that also included some House songs. The dance floor stayed crowded.

It was 80's Night at The Groove with DJ Doc Wells (8TRAX). Because there was a private party rental earlier in the evening, the club was already crowded at 10pm and stayed that way to beyond midnight. Next week the very fun 80's band Switch joins clubbers at TG.

"Who would have guessed!" was the response of the manager of most of the CityWalk clubs as I exited Rising Star last night and commented to him that the place continued to amaze me with the crowds inside and the line to get in outside. The response was perfect because I certainly would have never anticpated either the popularity of this karaoke club. But nowhere else do karaoke volunteer singers get a backup band to play with them as well as a couple of go-go dancers to dance behind or beside them. All seats taken plus a line to get in. Who would have guessed!

This Weekend In Techno Town

TONIGHT
DJ Jimmy Joslin
Vixen - Downtown
Dance & House


FRIDAY NIGHT
DJ's Chad Andrew & Danny Waddell
Crooked Bayou - Downtown
House, Progressive House & Techno





SATURDAY NIGHT
DJ's Magic Mike & Jimmy Joslin
LevelZ - West Melbourne
House, Dance & Hip Hop





SUNDAY NIGHT
DJ Robbie Rivera (TOP 100 DJ)
Deko Lounge - University Ave (UCF area)
House

PI Update: Stage Pizza

A reader sent me this picture and it took me the longest time to figure out what it was. I just did not recognize what I was looking at. It looked so familiar yet I just couldn't place it. Duh! It was that area where Adventurers Club connects to Soundstage. And the reason I didn't recognize the view was because normally that view was blocked.....by the Stage Pizza booth. As reported by this Blog a few weeks ago, it was closing down. And indeed it did! See the December 23rd article for what that spot looked like with the pizza booth there.

Club Report: EPCOT New Years Eve

Here are a few internet pictures from New Years Eve at EPCOT. Yeah, it's not really a club but on NYE two of the pavilions become dance clubs of sort. Outside Italy local DJ Mark Sanchez (pictured above) spins House music.

At the same time over at China local DJ Dominick Morrison, formerly of Mannequins, spins Dance and House. (pictured left)

The lighting and pyrotechnics are supposed to be beyond belief. I may need to check this place out for NYE 2010/2011!

Big thanks to loyal readers Jorge & Marcie for forwarding the photos via e-mail.

Club Report: CityWalk New Years Eve

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Were you wondering whether many people would take up Universal's offer of $129.99 for New Years Eve? ($99.99 for AP holders) Thanks to loyal reader Bill, we have these photos to show that the answer was YES. The price included a dinner buffet that had filet mignon and crab legs, so it was more than just the party. An older crowd than what we usually see at CW. Looks like it was a fun night! Thanks again, Bill.

Club Report: Atlantic Dance Hall (Again!)

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I really, really intended to report on a couple new Saturday night venues for the Blog but once again I got "stuck" in Atlantic Dance Hall. The regular Saturday night DJ who I criticized last week actually did a really good job this time and the club was mobbed with partiers. Other than NYE, this was the largest crowd I've ever seen at ADH. I talked to several out-of-town people that ran in Saturday morning's Disney Half-Marathon so perhaps that explained the numbers. The freezing temps didn't deter anyone!

Manager Regina was getting down! Johnny from 8TRAX led the Cha Cha Slide.

Just a really good time. ADH is the only remaining Disney-run dance club on property and it's really getting more and more popular. The Boardwalk manager told me that ADH revenue in fiscal 2009 was +$300K over prior year. I bet fiscal 2010 will be higher as this continues to grow. The admission price is always right at ADH: FREE

PI Update: Snow at Pleasure Island

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It was 34F degrees at Pleasure Island this morning when I visited! Those attending the Disney half-marathon reported snow falling at EPCOT, later turning to sleet. Guests at PI today were bundled up hats, hoods, ear muffs, scarves, winter coats, etc. Uggs were popular. A bit of snow accumulation atop T-REX, lol.

Planet Hollywood On Location at DTD West Side is reportedly closing January 31st because there is a new (unknown) tenant for that space. With a gift shop in the PH Restaurant and one in the little building outside the restaurant, this will hardly be missed. While on the island, also got a close up shot of of that door removal area. If you click on the photo, you can see how really bad of a job this is.

Is this new? I sure never noticed this Disney ID Tag vending machine across from Magnetron. You can have your tag engraved with your name and other things for just $10. A chain is an extra $2. "REOPEN THE CLUBS" should be one of the more popular ones! Outside Paradiso 37 is a new menu board so that passersby get a better idea of what's cooking. A good idea. I've eaten there twice and really like the place.

A reader sent in the left photo to point out that the area where the RRBC sign used to hang has been blue-painted over to cover the prior paint scrapes and gouges from the sign. Hmmm...maybe the building isn't coming down as quickly as was rumored. Afterall, why paint it if you're about to demolish it? Finally, with the prior article showing a DTD parking lot sign for sale, I was wondering if all the signs were taken down. The answer is no. They're still up including this one from my vehicle's old home in Lot F.

Bring Pleasure Island Home With You

These signs are just some of the items currently available for purchase on eBay. This is your opportunity to turn your backyard or garage into a mini-Pleasure Island! Put in your bid now during the PLEASURE ISLAND GOING OUT OF BUSINESS SALE!

DJ Ferry Corsten Coming to Orlando

DJ Ferry Corsten (NL) is bringing his Once In A Blue Moon tour to Orlando on Thursday, February 18th at Roxy nightclub. He is a DJ that normally spins good-time Dance music rather than just long, drawn-out House sets. I missed his 2009 visit at Roxy but I've had the good fortune of seeing him when he played at Zinc Bar downtown three years ago and then at Pacha in NYC two years ago. With a Thursday night visit this time, it's much easier to stay out late if you can take off on Friday!

PI Update: Mannequins Door

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I've been meaning to get back out to PI to photograph the finished construction outside Mannequins. I haven't made it but fortunately one of our loyal readers e-mailed me the fourth picture in the progression above. I think they did kind of a crappy job; anyone can see there used to be a door up there. The point of removing it.....don't know.....yet.

Trance

Last Saturday I was listening to RadioDanz.com and they played a Trance song that about blew me away. Since I have no PI news to report today, I thought I'd share it with you. It's not uncommon to be asked to explain the difference between House and Dance and Trance. The answer is always difficult to put into words but this song by DJ John O'Callaghan (IRL) is a perfect example of Trance. It has the 3 major elements that (to me) define Trance perfection:

1) Female vocals: A lot of Trance is music-only with no vocals. Some trance songs have male vocals. But to me you can't have a perfect Trance song without the female singer. In this song Surreal, singer Jaren brings the necessary "haunting dreamlike" quality to the song. That's why it's called Trance. Her dreamy vocals begin around 1:40.

2) A Trance song must have a build-up. The build-up begins around 3:35.

3) Finally a trance song must have the crash-down. That's the part of various songs where the CO2 spraydown occurred at Mannequins. This occurs here around 4:31.

The video is nothing; this is all about the song. Crank it up! Hope you like it.

This Week In Techno Town

Don't forget that DJ Bob Sinclar (F) is performing Tuesday night at Club Firestone Live. DJ's Jimmy Joslin & Justin Faze (USA) open for Sinclar. House heads should not skip this!

This coming Thursday is the first Thursday of the month and that means it's the second edition of I Love House Music night at Roxy featuring DJ Mickey Bono (USA) of RadioDanz.com and Bliss Ultra Lounge. This is Dance music at its best!

Concert Report: Lady Gaga

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Lady Gaga's Monster Ball tour rolled into Orlando Sunday evening in front of a sold-out crowd at UCF Arena. The set was much more simplistic than what Britney brought with her last September however what Gaga lacked in props, she more than made up for in lighting effects. From blue to silver to black to red to white and so on, each song had its own color to go along with it. I didn't recognize her opening number but she moved directly into Just Dance right after it.

Many have compared her to an early Madonna and her songs and outfits certainly are reminders of that heritage. She even evoked images of Michael Jackson at his peak with the thrilleresque Monster song. Stretching out your arm and curving your fingers into a monster-clench is Gaga's new symbol that she urged the crowd to employ on numerous occasions last night!

She sang all the hits off The Fame album as well as a few off the new Fame Monster album. Songs included Poker Face, Love Game, Boys Boys Boys, Alejandro, Teeth and So Happy I Could Die.

She didn't wear anything particularly shocking but she looked damn good in everything she did wear.

Her rendition of Paparazzi included a Hidden Mickey, certainly appropriate in Orlando. There were two songs in the pre-planned encore beginning with the cute & short Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say) and the final song being her current hit Bad Romance.

Full house at UCF Arena. Most of the women in the crowd were dressed up for the occasion including quite a few in their own Lady Gaga renditions. It appeared everyone was pleased with the concert including these girls standing in front of me near the stage. Update: Orlando Sentinel has 78 pictures of fans in costume at: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/music/os-lady-gaga-fans-picture-gallery-010310,0,2474347.photogallery Some of the girls above are at 27/28.

Going gaga for Gaga

Back in the summer of 2008 I was in this goth club in Tampa called The Castle. It was a Thursday and they were running their famous Pop'n'Wave night of New Wave and Indie music videos. They were mostly obscure artists and bands and I don't recall any of them except for one. A song I had never heard of before called Just Dance by an artist I had never heard of before called Lady Gaga. Everyone in the club stopped what they were doing to stare at the video screens. This was going to be big.

Lady Gaga brings The Monster Ball Tour to Orlando's sold-out UCF Arena tonight on the University of Central Florida campus. I'll have photos posted sometime Monday morning.