The Juice Box

Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles of water

by Jim Hauck

The closing party of any weekend is something I go to with a mixture of emotions.  Following the main event of the outdoor morning party, people generally go home, freshen up and somewhere in the time from the end of one to the beginning of the next, some will drop out and decide to call it a day.  So the closing party is usually a time to see the folks who either don’t want to end, or made a full weekend journey out of the event.  It is also a time to share love with those you care about, hold on to someone special and just enjoy the company of your friends, old and new.

I won’t go into details about the club set up at Jerry’s Nightclub, because nothing really changed from the night before, other than the large balloons were gone and were replaced by stretched fabric across the club.  The vibe was a great improvement from the minimal approach in the past year, and I applaud the production team for the extra effort to make this space more fun to be at.

When we arrived Luke Johnstone was kicking down a very fun, very bouncy and energetic set of music – stuff I think Luke does best.  In fact, it was wonderful to look up in the booth and see Luke bouncing around with his hands in the air while spinning.  That energy coming from the DJ is amazing and is the best way to invigorate me to dance more and enjoy myself. And clearly that energy equated to many hands in the air sing along moments from the crowd. Luke dropped in many high energy tracks, perfect for an event following a full day of dancing and when you need just a little more energy to get yourself moving.  There was one song that was a clip from Grease, that I felt was held on to a bit long, but really, that was the only thing I could call out as a problem.  Otherwise, an appropriate set of music to spend out the last hours in the river with your friends.

So a wrap up to another amazing weekend in the river and the end of another Sundance.  Cheers to all for a wonderful weekend.

Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles of water

by Jim Hauck

The main event of the Sundance weekend is the T-dance, held on the private estate that is home to other such events as Sunday Furry Sunday. The space is almost perfect for this type of event.  Secluded off the main road, a pool, a hot tub, a huge grassy area, and just enough sun and shade to meet the needs of all.

Once again, Gus and his production team custom built a wooden dance floor that sprawled out across the open lawn, in bright day-glow orange and green colors.  Very bright, very fun!  The gates were a bit late to open, and it appeared that Ericka Jayne was still rehearsing on the stage as the crowd started streaming in.  There was no music yet, and it took a bit longer for everything to be ready and the music to start, causing the party to be almost an hour delayed to start.  The delay did not seem to phase those of us that were early arrivals and we went about being social, saying hello and catching up with friends before the music came on.

Phil B, the master of the t-dance, kicked things into gear once all was cleared and began a nice steady climb into a set of fun and easy to dance to music.  Plenty of vocals with standards and classics and a few more interesting mixes as well, including If You Could Read My Mind, Let the Sunshine, Love Takes Over, Brokeback Mountain and so many more.  Phil’s music started bringing the crowds to the floor and through the day it was pleasantly packed and loads of fun.  The weather provided a perfectly blue sky and loads of sunshine, a welcome sign for those of us living in the coldest summer in San Francisco since 1971.

The first performance of the day was Alexis Jordan, with a deep sultry sexy voice. She came on singing an acapella version of Umbrella and then went into a series of tunes including her hit Happiness.  She is a small girl, but packs a punch of sound and I expect that this 18 year old will be showing us her stuff for some time to come. The second performance, later in the day was Ericka Jayne, and while she was flanked by an entire set of dancers, she personally looked a little beat on the stage and my personal take was that her costuming and act were a little heavy for a daytime party.  Additionally, the screaming of who wants a t-shirt over the music once the performance was over was a bit annoying, and not something I personally like to see happen over any DJ’s music set.  So, the winning performance in my review goes to Alexis.

The crowd was full of familiar faces this weekend and the Past Curfew party buses brought a good number of people up to the event.  However it seemed attendance was slightly down, which I am guessing has to do with economics of the times.  Either way, the crowd had fun, was very social and lively, and full of lots of eye candy.  This is still a gem of an outdoor party, one of the best around, and with the right amount of sun and blue skies the perfect retreat for a weekend of great dancing. Thank you to the team of Gus Presents who work so hard to bring this party back for a second year of revival and what I hope is a long term fit on the circuit and dance calendar!

Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles of water

by Jim Hauck

Heading out for the evening of dancing at the former Club Fab now known as Jerry’s Club, my expectations of what was to come were mixed.

I was pleasantly greeted and quickly accessed the club which had some nice changes. A Hollywood/Sci-Fi theme was in place with a variety of props from hanging planets, to asteroids, to a 9 foot replica of an Alien. Additionally several full size silver mannequins decorated around as well. A new truss hung across the dance floor with about a dozen moving light fixtures and a series of speakers around the stage. Three laser units, a multiple-spectrum, a green and a red-green star field all added to the visual distractions. I was told the lights and sound were brought in for this weekend. Gone was the old stage facade, leaving an open stage making the place feel larger. Also gone where the old musty curtains along the stage front and that combined with what looked like a fresh paint job seemed to kill the usual musty smell of the club. Great improvements.

As I entered the club there was a fruit table that was well stocked, and I was excited to hear Blaine Soileau putting down a nice warm up set of music that included the new mix of Baker Street with Peyton (my pick for one of the next hot songs of the season). Blaine played an appropriately chunky set of vocals and beats mixing in All the Lovers, Stars, Alejandro, Funky Town, If You Could Read My Mind, Acapella, and so many more songs to sing along to, while also driving a fun journey getting darker and sexier as the night progressed. The music was entertaining and very fun and possibly one of the better sets I have heard from Blaine.

The crowd was slow to arrive and a little sparse early in the evening, but grew and it was full of a variety of characters and familiar faces. My favorite was the women dressed in her Burning Man best, who eventually adopted a prop Bee whom she danced with all night, including an entire stage show with the bee. You can’t script stuff like this if you try. It did however get to a point where it was a bit much. There was also the crazier sets of characters including one who chose to get undressed on the sidelines for his “new friend” and do some lap dancing. Yes, special times. Throw in the fire alarm going off periodically through the night (although it did fit into the beat and music a few times) and you get an evening of interesting fun and hijinx that makes you giggle and creates those very special memories.

Overall a fun night, a fun crowd (if not a very special crowd) and a good time dancing. I left about 2AM to save my energy for the main event and to give my leg muscles a bit of a break from the non stop dancing I had been doing.