The Juice Box

A beautiful weekend here in the City by the Bay and too many events to even consider attending them all. However, I was able to take in Nasty, a fundraiser for the AIDS Emergency Fund at the Powerhouse and Moto Blanco at HOM. On top of all the events, Juicy and partner decided to become parents and have adopted a wonderful 1+ year old Dachshund Chihuahua mix we named Ginger. I am sure you will see some of her in the future here. Special thanks to guest reviews from Ray Chalom and Leif Wauters for the events they attended. See below for reviews of those events.

NASTY

Rating: 4 out of 5 Bottles of Water

by Jim Hauck

Nasty, held at the Powerhouse Bar, was not a dance party, but I took a rare opportunity to pull on some gear and head South of Market to check out this fundraiser for the AIDS Emergency Fund. The event was pretty busy by the start at 10PM and with free shots being handed out by many organizations, the event got off to a fun and silly pace. It is great to see someone like the Original Fag Hag herself, Suzan Revah, put together an event for such a worthy cause and do her part to raise money. Suzan is really an icon in San Francisco, and there is hardly event to be missed if she can make it. She publishes a party list, similar to the Juice Box concept, with a deeper reach to a variety of bar events, drag shows, performances and more, called the Cruise Director Alert, however she does not do many reviews of events (maybe The Juice Box can tempt her to review for us). The event was fun, full of silliness, a crowd of hot men, and too much drinking. Certainly 4 bottles of fun, if nothing more than to dilute the alcohol levels. Great job Suzan and team!

Wunderland

Rating: 3 out of 5 Bottles of Water

by Ray Chalom

When Wunderland opened earlier in the year, there was excitement among dancing devotees who were forced to bounce between various locations in hopes of a good successful weekly party. At the time, Wunderland answered a question I often asked: How is it the epicenter of gay life does not have a dedicated gay club?

For the first month, it appeared San Francisco FINALLY had the great weekly dance party it deserved. The first few weeks were huge with attendees varying between guys who were just curious and those who were truly excited to have a place to go every Saturday night. By month two, attendance began to decline as regular monthly parties like Industry drew big names and the backbone of the San Francisco dance scene were drawn back to their comfort zone and away from 181 Eddy Street.

This past Saturday was the first time Wunderland was held at 520 4th Street at the Glas Kat (at 4th, between Bryant & Brannan) and from the get go the experience was positive. The move from the Tenderloin away from the vagrants and homeless is a good one. The vibe on the street is positive with the sexy crowd drawn by Orson and the bar next door. The copious amount of free parking within a block of the club is also a positive change.

The interior of the venue is another positive change. You enter at the second floor of the club, really an over sized balcony, and into the lounge area which is clean, well lit and furnished with sleek white coaches providing plenty of seating. Accessing the first floor via two wide staircases on either side of the floor will lead you onto the dance floor or into a hallway with the first floor rest rooms.

The large dance floor is flanked with two smaller elevated VIP sections, a bar and a large stage area. Right outside the dance floor is the main entrance with another bar and an innovative smoking room so smokers don’t need to leave the club. The bathrooms were easy to access and large though a bit dirty and messy as the evening wore on.

The party. Walking into the club felt like walking into a friend’s party. Everywhere I looked I found familiar faces and someone I needed to say hello to. As Mike Russell warmed the crowd up with his beats, I stayed upstairs for the first hour to sip on the strong cocktails and to chat with friends. As the effects of the libations set in Paulo took over and the crowd took to the dance floor in droves. With the dancers gyrating up on the stage and the very hot crowd shirtless everywhere you turned there was a smile. Paulo turned it out the entire night and the crowd never got tired of moving. Though the club never filled up it was busy enough and back to the way Wunderland was when it first opened.

I left with friends before the lights flipped on and headed across the street with friends for a little sustenance and to discuss the night. The general consensus is positive. Location aside the space is more inviting, has a much better flow and a friendly staff. I hope 520 4th Street has better karma than 181 Eddy does and this party kicks off a spat of successful Saturday nights with street fair season right around corner.

H.O.M.

Rating: 2 out of 5 Bottles of Water

by Leif Wauters

It’s amazing what effect the absence of 1,000 Lifecycle riders (and their lovers and supporters) can have on this town. At least, that’s what I think contributed to Sunday’s return of Moto Blanco at H.O.M. being so lack-luster.

After they’re last time here I learned to arrive a little later. My day had been busy and I didn’t want to bounce around the front room too long before the main event opened in the back. But when Jim and I arrived around 7:30 the front room was still extremely sparse. Even by the time the beautifully appointed back room was opened to us, there hadn’t been much more build up. With a very light crowd I can only speculate that Moto Blanco were trying to compensate by playing a heavier set, but it didn’t really work for me and my friends. Yeah, we bounced around a bit, but the high-energy, happy sound you expect from this UK duo was missing. It felt more like a night at the End Up, except with rough mixing and average mash-ups. Although I heard that well after we left the music turned more towards their traditional sound, by then I was mashing up my pillow.

I like Infusion Lounge. I feel like I’m in a set from a BLADE movie, waiting for well-dressed vampires to get into a sword fight, but does the stylish decor really mean they can charge EIGHT DOLLARS for a meager bottle of water? I mean come on. So they were having the bazaar 2 for 1 drink specials for 5 out of every 30 minutes. Does that mean they’re allowed to pick our pockets on the water? Pretty sad, really, and it’s gonna bite them hard if they keep it up. There are options in this town (more every day) and little things like this make a huge difference.

I’m hoping this light turn-out doesn’t bite Luke and Jamie’s swank, monthly venture long-term. As it keeps going, though, can someone send the UK a memo saying only happy music is allowed to leave their country. No grumpy tunes. I can hear that anytime, thanks.