Club Reports: Freeport, Bahamas

My favorite clubs Sultan's Tent and Tipsy Turtle are long gone but there is still night life for tourists in Freeport. The newest is Club Cove located in the Isle of Capri Casino in Lucaya. Friday nights features hits of the 70's, 80's & 90's while Saturday nights is more 70's Disco. As you can see, no cover charge.

The Prop Club is located on the beach behind the Our Lucaya Radisson resort and is set in an aircraft hanger themed building. A casual restaurant by day, they feature Bahamian or Caribbean bands and a DJ after 10pm. A lot of top 40 and hip hop mixed with afro-centric Caribbean sounds.

Freeport, Bahamas does carry a bad enough rep that several cruise lines and even AirTran refer to it by the island name (Grand Bahama Island) rather than the city name Freeport. But the last really big negative event was the closure of the sprawling Crowne Plaza Resort (formerly Bahamas Princess Resort) first by labor strife and then by back-to-back hurricanes. Those events took place a long time ago now so strides are slowly being made to improve the place. I can tell you that Grand Bahama offers several advantages over Nassau. For one, it's cheaper to get to because it's off shore of West Palm Beach rather than south of Miami. Flights are cheaper and there even a daily ferry service for less than $50 return which lets you visit just for the day or in a combination ferry/hotel package. (www.discoverycruiseline.com) Where Nassau is urban and congested, GBI is suburban or rural. I think a 2 night stay is the most you'd want to do and if nightlife is on your list, make sure those 2 nights are Friday/Saturday.

Club Report: HOB & DJ Deadmau5

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I've called those in their 20's the hip hop generation because it seems that's all they listen to. I've had my doubts about techno surviving much longer in the face of the radio domination of hip hop. But those doubts were pretty much quashed last night when an impossibly crowded House of Blues at Downtown Disney West Side hosted DJ Deadmau5 (CDN). Nearly everyone in attendance was under 30 yet I've never seen more glow sticks, glow bracelets, glow necklaces and glow pacifiers in one place since the late 90's! Dancing pretty much had to be done in place facing one direction with little opportunity for turning around. If you weren't on the main floor before this began you weren't getting there.

I personally like House music with vocals but very few of Deadmau5' selections fit that. This was mostly Hard House. But WOW, he put it together. The lighting towers on the stage were awesome and really added to the experience. It was a good hour into the set before I even recognized a song (Daft Punk's Harder Better Faster Stronger) but he also played at least 3 of his own hits and those songs generated the most cheering.

The Mouse moves on to Fort Lauderdale and Miami tonight and tomorrow night. If you're down that way, this is really a worthwhile DJ experience! If gimmicks like a mouse head brings younger fans to techno/house, so be it.

DJ Paul van Dyk Coming To Tampa

Well he's not coming to Orlando but he's coming close! The #5 DJ in the world (per that DJMag poll) is Paul van Dyk (D) and he's coming to The Ritz in Ybor City/Tampa on Friday, November 27th. Go to the IWantTickets website for pricing.

Deadmau5 vs Mickey Mouse

Which Mouse can you expect to see in Downtown Disney this week? Well it won't be the one with a tail. Canadian DJ Deadmau5 (pronounced Dead Mouse) plays House of Blues this Thursday night. He's the only DJ that performs wearing a mouse head.......that I'm aware of! It's all techno, baby!! Coming off 2008/2009 Dance hits Move For Me, I Remember and Ghosts'n'Stuff. I'll give a report on Friday.

Rockin' At 40,000

With the holiday season coming again, many of you may be planning travel. Do you ever select your airline based on in-flight entertainment? Many airlines have upgraded their options. International flights now just about always have seatback video with tremendous entertainment options. Domestically the airlines have been slow overall to upgrade and it seems that it's the low fare carriers that have done the most. Song, a unit of Delta and Ted, a unit of United really created the competition in this category but unfortunately both have been absorbed back into their mother airlines. But if you're looking for good music domestically, keep in mind that JetBlue, AirTran and United all offer XM Satellite Radio options. On my recent trip to MSP on the merged Northwest/Delta they did not have that but their regular audio offerings included a channel called Delta's Party In the Sky. Songs in the September rotation included Dave Aude' dance remixes of Lovegame and Love Struck, David Guetta's Love Takes Over and BEP's Boom Boom Pow, among others. Great channel. Happy travels!

PI Update

A new store called Little Missmatched is coming to DTD West Side and is to be located in the spot vacated by Starabilias. The store carries trendy (but mismatched) things for girls. What's intriguing about this news is that it was rumored that the Harley Davidson store on Pleasure Island was moving into that spot. So maybe Harley isn't moving after all. So bring on that Harley Davidson Cafe into the Mannequins building! At least use that space for something! Update: Little Missmatched is now open.

Sources says construction crews have been at work inside Comedy Warehouse, apparently dismantling the stage. They have also been painting. Hmmm. You don't normally paint things that are going to be demolished. So this could be sign that something is coming.

The famous DJ booth is back in place on the stage at Motion.

Clubs on Ships vs Clubs on Land

Furthering that discussion that was taking place over in the Comments section of last Friday's entry, we have to wonder why Disney feels it's ok to have an Adults Only nightclub section on their new cruise ship yet doesn't feel it's ok to have an Adults Only nightclub section on Pleasure Island. PI was closed under the theory that they needed to be more family friendly. They felt that night clubs were inconsistent with that. OK, then how is it that their newest ship is going to have The District, an Adults Only zone of lounges and clubs? Isn't THAT inconsistent?

Swedish Invasion!

We've long had Volvo and Saab around here. IKEA moved into Orlando a couple years ago and H&M moved in a couple weeks ago. Electrolux has come on strong in the past year. In the music world we've long had ABBA and more recently Ace of Base. The Swedish House Mafia of Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso churns out dance hits. Axwell remixes are famous. Eric Prydz played Tabu a year ago.

Well the #1 Dance song in America last week was from another Swede: Agnes. Expect to see a lot more of her in the coming years. (Who IS that annoying woman in the bathroom with Agnes? Call Security!)

Reminder: Orlando Club List

Orlandoclublist.blogspot.com has been redesigned and now has club listings based on your favorite clubs at Pleasure Island. Check it out!

Club Report: Halloween at The Groove

Well I imagine night clubs everywhere were pretty crowded for Halloween last night. Such was the case with The Groove at CityWalk. As with last year, only about 25% of the patrons were in costume but it didn't matter with the level of craziness on the dance floor. The costume of choice for many was the naughty school girl look The ones near me acted like they needed to be paddled! Universal (& Disney) never take advantage of Daylight Savings Time ending as it did early this morning in North America. At 2am they closed. Most downtown venues take advantage of this because at 2am it's suddenly 1am again and they can continue to serve.


HOB Service Industry Night

Here's the DJ lineup for November for those of you attending Sunday Night SIN at HOB:

11/01: DJ Sandy & DJ James Anthony & Dave Awesome
11/08: DJ Sandy & DJ Shaolin
11/15: DJ Sandy & DJ Ben Ross
11/22: DJ Sandy & DJ Richie Rich
11/29: DJ Sandy

Richie Rich has promised us House when he plays at HOB. My expectation based on past experience is James Anthony will be Hip Hop. And Ben Ross....if this is the Ben Ross from Deutschland, then it ought to be techno. JUST ADDED: DJ Shaolin (House,Breaks,Electro)

DJ Big Lou At Private Party

Attended a private Halloween party at a friend's house last night over in the Conway area of Orlando. The house was for sale and thus devoid of any furniture which made it easy for them to have a bar set up in the living room and a large dance floor in the dining room. And over near the kitchen was DJ Big Lou complete with speakers, special lighting effects and fog machine. What made this whole thing impressive was that four hours at this party was like club-hopping on Pleasure Island. The first couple hours was all Hip Hop as if I was in BET Soundstage. I was resigned to hear that all night but all of a sudden I was transported to Motion with a number of current Promo Only mixes of current hits. That was followed by close to an hour of House/Techno Mannequins music. It was great! When he finally pulled us out of Mannequins there was even a visit to 8TRAX for some Disco. Thankfully there were no visits to Rock'n'Roll Beach Club or Wild Horse Saloon! But as 1am approached he was headed back to Soundstage so I was headed home.

I don't normally advertise on this Blog but I've got to say that if you ever have a need for a DJ give Big Lou a call at (1)(407) 844-8540. I believe he also spins at Roxy.

Club Report: Atlantic Dance Hall

Remember last week when I reported how busy it was at Atlantic Dance for a Thursday night? Well it was dead last night.....perhaps 20 people in the entire club. DJ Talie kept the music moving but there just wasn't anyone there to move to the music. You're sure to remember Talie from Motion! (See January 1st article for her Motion pic) She was the only female DJ on the Pleasure Island staff. She next spins at ADH on Friday, November 6th. Fridays are always better!

Meanwhile over at CityWalk, 80's Night at The Groove was really crowded as was Hoochie Mama Night at Latin Quarter. Halloween Horror Nights was packed....just 2 more nights remaining if you're considering going.

Flag Counter

Dang! I stuck that Flag Counter on the website this past July and -> the 3-month mark just passed. As of Monday evening, there were 6,525 new visitors to this site. It's not supposed to double-count you but I know that it does in certain circumstances. Nonetheless, I thought maybe 4 of you actually read this site and I've been surprised to learn THOUSANDS of people read this site. Readers come from 49 states and a number of other countries. That's the love of a place called Pleasure Island. That's the hope of so many that Disney will rethink plans and reopen something on the island. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the latest rumors, bleak as they may be!
Update: The 49 states includes DC so there are 2 states missing: Idaho & New Mexico. If you know anyone in those states, tell them to visit the Save PI blog so that we can see if those states post.

Trick or Treat: Halloween Options

Downtown



There are so many clubs downtown that it's impossible to list everything. If you're in costume you're going to be welcome pretty much anywhere. Bliss Ultra Lounge is having its Haunted Mansion Party featuring House music from DJ Mickey Bono. Church Street Bars has their Halloween Party and your $10 admission gets you not only into Antigua but also into the triple-stacked Chillers, Beer Belly Brewery and Lattitudes. Wall Street Plaza is having their Plazaween IX. Admission here is also $10 and you get all the clubs along Wall Street. I rarely mention Wall Street clubs because I've rarely found techno and only 2 of their clubs feature DJ's. But they are advertising DJ Digital at Slingapours, DJ Larry at One Eyed Jacks and DJ Flint on the main stage for Saturday night. Finally, Tabu advertises itself as having downtown's largest costume contest with their Vampire Ball. DJ's Richie Rich and Jay Mac will be spinning Club Remixes, Urban Beats and Classic Hip Hop.

Around Town


Away from downtown Blue Martini inside the Mall at Millenia will be having costume contests Thursday, Friday AND Saturday nights beginning at 7:30pm. Shakers Lounge on SR436 in Casselberry is having a Halloween Bash & Costume Party both Friday and Saturday nights. This venue is located where Calico Jacks used to be. No cover. There is also Bar Louie over on Sand Lake Road which is featuring the band Switch beginning at 9pm on Saturday night for their 80's Fright Night.

Universal

There is really nothing formal planned at CityWalk nightclubs. I recall last year that about 25% of patrons had costumes on and it was crazy nonetheless, especially for a Friday. That was also the night I discovered DJ Leony playing House sets in Latin Quarter and I learned that somehow I could survive without Mannequins. With Halloween on a Saturday night this year, it should be really crazy in all the clubs! Besides DJ Leony at LQ, look for DJ AJ in The Groove and DJ Doc at Red Coconut Club.

Disney

Pleasure Island clubs will be dark for Halloween this year. Mannequins, 8TRAX, Motion and Soundstage will all be closed. They are being refurbished for your future enjoyment. Not. Trick or Treat! (However, if you've got no life, feel free to stop by for Celebrate Tonight with shows at 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm, 7:30 pm, 8:30 pm, 9:30 pm, 10:30 pm, 11:30 pm.)

Rix Lounge in Disney's Coronado Springs Resort will be having their Black & Orange Ball on Friday night though. Wear black and orange or wear a costume. Admission is $15 at the door and $10 in advance. Not aware of anything special going on at Atlantic Dance but I'm sure some will be dressed up.

Those are the main ones I'm aware of. Readers, feel free to add in the Comments section.

Who Is The #1 DJ In The World For 2009?

There are a number of different polls but DJ Mag is one of the big ones. For 2 years running DJMag readers and pollsters have voted Armin van Buuren (NL) as the #1 DJ. For 2008 he was followed by Tiësto (NL) at #2, Paul van Dyke (D) at #3, Above & Beyond (GB) at #4 and David Guetta (F) at #5. But the polls are closed for 2009 and the new #1 will be announced this Wednesday night at Ministry of Sound in London. Are you attending? My money is on David Guetta for #1 following his incredible year. Here's his new House song On The Dance Floor that once again mixes hip hop/rap into a House beat. (BTW, DJ#91 in the Top 100 is Steve Lawler (GB) and he plays tomorrow night (Tuesday) at Firestone.)
Wednesday Update: Well the votes are in and Armin van Buuren repeats for the 3rd year in a row as the #1 DJ in the world. Tiësto remains at #2 while David Guetta moved up to #3, Above & Beyond to #4 and Paul van Dyke was #5. Visit DJMag.com for the entire Top 100.

Breaking News: Mannequins Stairways to be Removed

The WDWMagic website is reporting that Disney filed a permit with Orange County last week to remove the outdoor staircases from the parking lot side of Mannequins. These stairs connect the 2nd and 3rd floors with the ground and were connected to upper floor emergency exits. Back in the day when PI was packed every night, the stairs were often used as the entrance to the club because there was extra space outside for queuing. In fact, during the final Thursday night of Mannequins existence, entrance was directly to the 2nd floor using these outside stairs. There is no indication the entire club is coming down however the removal of upstairs emergency exits effectively means the upper floors can no longer be used were anything to reopen inside.
Monday Update: Disney has also pulled a permit pertaining to the "light bridge" that connects the former PI Live booth over to the PI Live bar. You'll recall the prior rumor about the booth being taken down so that Sosa Cigars can have an upstairs smokers patio. Perhaps this is the first step towards those renovations. In this photo (left), we believe that green tower that runs over the main entrance near the Hub is what is being referred to.

Live Band Coming to Groove 80's Night

Management at The Groove is going to do an experiment to see if they can increase crowd size for their Thursday 80's Night. Crowds have been decent of late but clearly they are down with this being the tourist off-season. On Thursday, November 19th they will be bringing in a live-band to The Groove stage. I think this may be a first. The locally-famous 80's band Switch is going to be appearing live for two sets beginning at 9pm. DJ Doc (from 8TRAX) will be playing between sets as well as after the band concludes. Sources say that if successful, they may bring in an 80's band monthly. The desire is to bring in a different demographic (band followers) while keeping current customers (DJ music-oriented customers). Thanks to reader Ken Sellers for alerting us to this! These are two very different demographics. Will be quite interesting to see how things mesh. IMO, if they really want to expand demographics, they should add late-70's Disco to the existing 80's format and bring in the rest of the homeless 8TRAX crowd. In other clubs around town that toss in a 70's hit from time-to-time, there are always cheers from the crowd when Village People, Bee Gees, KC, etc. gets played!

November Concert Reminders!

One of the hottest "new" DJ's on the scene in 2009 has been Deadmau5 (CDN). Controversial within the DJ industry and famous for wearing his mouse head while performing, his teamwork with Kaskade has nonetheless propelled him to the forefront. He swings through Orlando on Thursday, November 12th at House of Blues in Lake Buena Vista. Tickets are $25 if purchased at the HOB box office and more if purchased at Ticketmaster.

A reminder that Mannequins' DJ Dave Cannalte (USA) is teaming up with former partner DJ Kimball Collins (USA) for the 20-yr reunion of AAHZ night at Tabu. The event is on Thanksgiving Eve, Wednesday, November 25th. If you're not working on Thursday, you should plan to be there Wednesday night. Advance tickets are just $12 (cash only) if purchased at Drop Shop dj store located at 2422 E. Robinson Street near Orlando Executive Airport. You can also purchase them at Wantickets.com with a nominal service fee. Expect a sell-out for this event!

And don't forget DJ David Guetta (F) on Tuesday, December 1st at Roxy!

Club Report: Atlantic Dance Hall

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Please excuse the quality of some of the photos; my camera is either going bad or my photographer was drunk! I've reported on Atlantic Dance Hall several times in the past but only for Friday or Saturday nights. Last night I decided to check it out to see what Thursdays are like. Well, it was surprisingly crowded! Since the club is not advertised, a lot of it has to do with how many people are staying at the adjacent hotels and in particular whether there are any large conventions or meetings going on. After all, it's the only remaining Disney-run club at Disney World. I learned something else last night. I've mentioned on here that Fridays are really good because of DJ Tony. Well, he was on duty Thursday night this week and won't be there Friday night. Turns out you can't really count on any specific DJ on any specific night. He says there are 6-7 DJ's on the roster for ADH and he's not always scheduled for the same night. Oh well. All the DJ's play requests and the club format is very much like Motion...only larger....and nicer. All at Disney prices. FRIDAY NIGHT UPDATE: There must be some conventions in town because the club was packed. DJ Doc from 8TRAX was on-duty and DJ Peapod from Mannequins even dropped by too!

Feature DJ: Baby Anne

PHOTOS BY BRIAN STORY
Damn, she's still cute as a button! It's hard to believe she's been spinning techno Breaks
since the early 90's. Back in those days Baby Anne hung around with other Orlando DJ's such as Icey and Kimball Collins as Orlando was techno-central back then. She was there to support Icey last week when he appeared at Firestone as pictured above.

Her new album is called I Heart Bass; (afterall her nickname is Bass Queen) and we're not referring to the fish! We haven't seen much of her locally this year since her Tuesday night performances at Red Coconut Club ended but she does perform all over the country. This Saturday she is performing at College Park Yoga in Orlando for their Vampire Yoga night. Update: Per Calvin at CPY, this event is open to the public but it's not a party; its 2 hours of yoga practice while Baby Anne plays! 10pm-Midnight. But next Friday, October 30th Baby Anne will be spinning at Tera Nova in Jacksonville on US1 at Baymeadows. Admission is $10.