The Juice Box

Rating: 3.0 out of 5 bottles of water

by Alan Flippen, NY

Alegria. Packed to the rafters with hunky musclemen, bumping and grinding to the deep sexual groove of Abel, playing harder and darker than he ever does anywhere else. It’s an image that draws people from around the country to fly to New York for a party. But in New York, the image is quite different: of a repetitive, even boring party format that we’ve all been to too many times.

Another Alegria? Yawn. This was not just another Alegria.

You knew that as soon as you walked in the door and heard an unfamiliar, slightly trancy remix of “Someone to Hold.” As you looked around at the empty foyer and coatcheck. As you reached the dance floor, still only 3/4 full at 1:30 a.m., populated mainly by people with their shirts on drinking alcohol. A local crowd, for the most part. Very, very social. Not sexual at all. And unusually diverse, with more women than I’ve ever seen at an Alegria event (though still only about 5% of the total).

This was a European-style Alegria, with DJs Pagano, from London, and Chus & Ceballos, from Spain, right up there on stage where the go-go men usually perform. In Europe, the DJ is the star and the dancers face and interact with the DJ, not each other.

And indeed, this seemed to throw Pagano off his stride, because it was clear he was not getting the feedback from the audience that he was looking for. He would put on a record, face the crowd, dance and pump his arm in the air. The crowd would dance with each other and ignore him.

But the music was interesting: trance with a bite to it, new looks at old favorites, from “Show Me Love” to “Bad Romance.” As the room filled, Pagano gained confidence, and aside from a few horrible dropouts, his last couple of hours captured the crowd and raised the energy closer to what one expects from an Alegria. Still not sexual, but enjoyable and communal.

Pagano gave way at 5 a.m. to Chus & Ceballos, who took it to another level. Chus & Ceballos don’t play music hoping to see what engages the crowd. They come with a game plan, and the confidence that accompanies being true stars on the club circuit. This night’s game plan included some forays into classic New York house — I heard bits of “This Joy” and “Addicted to You” woven into their tapestry within the first couple of hours — but rested on their classic approach of being dark without being depressing, obnoxious or boring. These guys captivate. I’d go hear them anytime.

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Tags: Alegria, NY