greenie

Airlines change their fares every Tuesday/Wednesday, so that's usually the best time to look on a weekly basis. Just keep checking every week and once you see a good price for the days you want, grab it. To make things easiest, use a service that searches everything at once -- the airline sites, the travel sites, you name it -- my favorite is sidestep.com. Hotel rates may go through the roof for a weekend like Mem Day, but I guarantee you'll be able to find good airfare no matter what. Even flying in from Vida's Ass.

Another big benefit that Empire has over Drai's is ease of access. It doesn't cost an arm and a leg to get in on most nights, you don't need to wait forever, and the door staff is a lot more accommodating. I'll admit that much of the soft spot that I hold for Drai's comes from having gone there for so long and having met so many great friends... and that for a while, it was the only consistently solid afterhours.

So the other night (OK, morning) my buddy and I take a long taxi ride home through the snow and ice after a great Felix gig and afterparty. Nowhere else left to go, but far too wired to sleep, we flip on the tube, the opening credits for some movie are flitting by, and there it is... Produced by Victor Drai Jeez. Even in my humdrum Colorado life I can't escape reminders of what I'd be doing were I in Vegas at the time...

And I keep telling ya, the more you people keep dangling that carrot in front of me, the more likely I am to just pack up shop and finally move out there...

Bill, do you know who was spinning? Over Halloween they had Mazzola and Aurelius and the two of them were laying it down thick with some great transitions.

Drai's, Empire, ICE, Foundation.

I think you're taking previous comments out of context. Most people on this board, myself included, have heaped loads of praise on Tao, largely due to its decor, layout and staff. Some of us have expressed our opinion that their music is strictly average, but we nevertheless agree that Tao's business won't suffer one bit. With Tryst, although they've brought in Victor Drai, I don't think they're going to be able (nor want) to avoid having a slightly older crowd than other premier clubs in town. An older crowd, especially at the Wynn, is more interested in scenery and less likely to flinch at dropping $500 (or more) per bottle of Goose. Everything else that Wynn is doing is the BTB approach -- Better Than Bellagio -- so it only makes sense that they'd like to pursue the type of audience that is attracted to Light. Comparatively, clubs like BE, OPM and ICE tend to be more focused on music because they're atracting crowds that are more interested in the social scene and the dance floor than they are in lush surroundings. For their first year, BE paid out the ear for DJ AM because they knew he would help make a huge draw to the club -- yes, that's a big "celebrity" thing, but he's gotten to that level because he plays music that really gets people going on the dance floor. OPM has built a reputation and huge crowds largely because of the quality of their music, and they continue to move down that path by hiring residents that people across the country are aware of. ICE is the biggest example of a club whose crowd considers music at the top; their total through the door is entirely related to who's on the decks. Their biggest priority is promoting an evening around a DJ such as Oakenfold or Tiesto, compared to a joint like Pure, who runs their promotions around celebrities like Wilmer Valderrama. Long story short, for Tryst to survive they will need to put on a cosmetic appearance that is like no other in town... without forgetting that they need to promote it properly, especially to locals. This was ultimate downfall of La Bete, where most locals I know were less turned off by the weak music there than they were by the poor treatment and service they received, even on slow nights.

Here we go with talk of "sources" again.

If that's related to Pacha Ibiza, yeah, Freeze knows just how to connect with the crowd.

bet. Aside from NYE and the first weekend of march madness, I haven't picked out another weekend in late Jan or early/mid Feb to come on down to Vegas. I've been in LV on NFL playoff weekends the past three years, but haven't been around on Super Bowl weekend. I know that's a massive weekend in general (some say the biggest weekend of the year), but how is SB weekend in terms of nightlife? I'm sure clubs will be throwing big-deal celebrity parties and whatnot, but I tend to enjoy myself a bit more when it's a good vibe that the locals/regulars really get behind socially -- as compared to the vibe that locals/regulars are all stuck behind working. (and for what it's worth, the main reason I'm out on that Madness weekend is more because I'm doing it to hang with a lot of old friends, all of whom are heavy college ball junkies... doubt that any of them will still be hanging with me at 6am, but who knows)

The main dancefloor VIP at Tao is pretty well done, and I like their setup for these tables better than the BE setup. At Tao the easiest way I can think to describe it is imagine that a little less than half of the dance floor is raised just a smidge (i dunno, 2-3 feet) above the other half -- and that's all VIP. I like that it makes you feel like you're on the dance floor, rather than on the edge of it. Note that Tao does have tables that are on the edge of the floor as well. However, for a separated VIP area I think BE wins out. You still feel entirely integrated into the club, rather than separated. Feels a bit more social, and in my experience the result is that upper VIP at BE feels like a big community rather than separate little tables that happen to be next to each other. Tao's upper VIP is very nice, but unless you get one of the tables right on the railing you're somewhat isolated from the rest of the club. To be fair, a lot of people really dig that approach. Overall I'd say at BE there's no such thing as a bad table, but at Tao there are a bunch of locations I wouldn't want to wind up in. Only way to tell what you like better is to do it up yourself. Grab a table on the floor at Tao and rock out with your cock out...

So if Slide is Sunday night, just how did P rip it on Saturday?

bwaahahahahaaa Props to the mapmaker. Love the Serato Store!

Hey, it's nice to be back. Have been on the road for the past 5 weeks -- spent two weeks in Bryce and Moab following Halloween, then two weeks of business travel followed by the family turkey thing. I'll say it again, just because it's fresh in my brain after writing up my whole review of my Halloween week -- I really think Tao is an amazing club that anyone with moderate clubbing experience needs to check out. Even if you're not nuts about the music, the whole place is really incredible. With regards to music, perhaps some day we'll see a club in town willing to let out the reins a little bit more on some hip-hop DJs... it's shame that there's really only one club (OPM) that embraces this. Tabu does a great job of letting DJ P loose on Sundays, but he's clearly chained down by the mainstream on Fridays at 54. Some of the guys that play the hip-hop "bedroom" (thanks Ed) at Foundation do a pretty solid job as well. But there's really no spot you can hit, other than OPM, that has no problem getting away from the radio dial. I realize that such is the life of a DJ that wants to make a living, especially in a town with corporate-owned nightclubs that need to draw the average touron versus a dedicated clubber... but given the size and growth of the scene in Vegas, it just surprises me that something else hasn't sprung for hip-hop just yet. For as much as EDM has died down in overall popularity in town, it seems to me that the places that do cater to that music allow the DJs a lot more freedom. I mean, thankfully I've never been subjected to that Crazy Frog crap or anything like it at a club in Vegas... but almost everywhere you go, you can't avoid hearing album cuts from Usher. (which granted, I'll take over shit Euro Pop any day)

For reference purposes, my reviews/recaps of Halloween weekend at Tao, OPM, Drai's, Empire, Body English and Foundation Room can be found in the following thread: http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?p=2875516 (it was so long I figured it was better created as a new one)

After climbing out of the cave that I spent November in, review/comments of the long and definitely epic Halloweenie Greenie 2005. Thanks as always to Bill @ Mecca, MasterWeb @ OPM and LA Late for your friendship and assistance. You guys all went the extra mile. Thanks also to a few others on the board (who tend to stay below the radar with hookups), the weekend would not have been quite as incredible without your help. Thursday: 12a-4a, Tao My first time here. Without question the most visually spectacular club in town. Packed without making people squeeze by each other shoulder-shoulder, and enough room on the dance floor. Excellent layout, great sound system, professional staff from door to bar, overall just a really fantastic club that truly has an identity all its own. Really love how the club incorporates the go-go dancers in with the crowd (on smaller, shorter platforms) and I will never, ever forget the bathtub. Only down side for me was the music. Main room was stricly mainstream hip-hop and pseudo-mash, but it didn't seem that DJ Vice was putting much effort at all into original track selection nor even mixing from one song to the next other than basic crossfades. Downstairs the house room the music was a bit too euro/poppy for my tastes, it seemed to clash with the lounge/hang out vibe that is the intention of the room. Friday 11p-3a, OPM As always some of the best hip-hop you're gonna hear in any upscale club, anywhere on the planet. As the night moves on the music always gets better and better with creative mixes, unique track selection and beats that tend to scare away the mainstream lovers... in other words, some good shit. This was Fatman Scoop's first night and after easing into his work, he and MasterWeb began to groove off each other to lay down some mean tunes. My boys and I grabbed a table and a few bottles, and big ups to MasterWeb for spotting us early and moving us to a solid table on the floor... always a huge bonus to guarantee room for dancing, especially when you invite a few ladies to join you behind the rope. Professional and courteous staff as always. Only downside of the night was that the crowd was not the normal OPM Friday group; normally by 1AM the dance floor is absoultely hopping and grinding, but overall tonight people were a lot more chill, and the lines outside weren't anywhere near the length they normally are. Still, we had a killer time hanging out with our neighboring tables, dancing with tons of ladies, and just digging the music. Friday 4a-8a, Drai's After a quick recharge back at the hotel, over to what continues to be the best true afterhours in town. Typical mob scene inside the Barbary Coast surrounding Drai's elevator and stairs with a few hundred people all trying to find a way in; took a little longer than normal to get the attention of one of the door staff. Once inside the crowd level of the club was perfect, each of the rooms was full of a great, diverse crowd and the vibe was excellent straight past 8am. It was Fetish night for the staff, so the ladies were all quite resplendent in their leather and chains (although the black wigs made it tough to recognize them). Chris Aurelius and Joey Mazzola were really feeding off the crowd and were playing some excellent, excellent house and progressive; I don't understand how anyone can claim to like EDM but not like the music at Drai's. Only downside was the notion that someone was dosing, for a little while the bars were serving everything with lids. Then again, that's seen by many as an upside... Saturday 3a-6a?, Empire My first time at the spruced-up ballroom didn't disappoint. Nice, huge room and a really awesome crowd of people and costumes turned out. Great staff and quick service. Boris put out the best EDM set I've heard in Vegas in a long, long time, and the sound system is great. No doubt that Empire will continue to kick ass when they get the big names in town, but I'm curious to know how well they can pack the room when they only have the locals. Downside was the initial promotion of $50 pre-sales, or more accurately the folks who paid that much only to see others getting in for less. A lot of confusion from people who didn't realize the clocks were getting set back, either... but can't blame Empire for that. Don't quite remember what time I pulled out of there, I think around 6. Was far too exhausted from only having a few hours' sleep on Saturday morning and doing all of the Vegoose concerts from noon until 3am. Sunday 12a-6a, Body English The best overall night of the trip began with hanging out at the lounge and checking out all of the costumes in line; the crowd definitely went all-out, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that the number of ladies in eye-popping outfits led to an evening that would rival a night at the Playboy Mansion. Probably helped that Jenna Jameson and Jenny McCarthy were hosting the night -- and particularly their costume contest. EVERY table, upstairs and down, was filled with people in costume, I don't recall seeing a single person in VIP (other than staff) that wasn't dressed up. Kudos to BE management for their flexibility regarding how many people you could have as part of your table, and props to the door staff for keeping mental track of who was VIP and who wasn't. DJ Vice was on the decks but I'll venture to say he did a much better set than he did at Tao. To be honest the night flew by and I wasn't paying as much attention to the music as I normally do. I do recall he didn't mash as much as DJ AM used to in his BE gigs, and big props to whatever DJ finished the night, recognizinig that the dance floor was responding well to dancehall tracks and going with it. Downside? It was such an incredible night the hours went by way too fast. Monday 11p-5a??, Foundation, Tao, Tangerine, Paradise I have to admit my memories of Monday night are very... umm... spotty. I think I was just too drained and although Monday's libations kept me going all night just put me over the edge. Despite sleeping all damn day Monday my body was still wrecked from the entire weekend -- nightlife is draining enough, but rocking out at Sam Boyd for Vegoose all day Sat/Sun (plus the midnight Randolph show at the Joint on Sat) just killed me. Anyway, I remember most of my stretch at Foundation room -- once agian, there's no question in my mind that this is the place to be on Mondays -- with a killer crowd of locals all costumed up. Solid music throughout (except for the 80s/whatever room, but that's just not my taste) and thanks to the folks who shared their tables with me simply because they loved my costume. Don't recall leaving Foudnation nor heading to Tao; I know it was before 2pm, because that's when my buddies called me from Foundation trying to find me. All I know is that I've got two pictures of me in the lounge at Tao with an Uma Thurman wannabe. I recall being ridiculously packed in to Tangerine, so much so you could barely move your arms, and jumping up and down in front the booth and Jazzy Jeff. Zero memory of being at Paradise, but an old friend confirmed I was there via email and I've got a credit card receipt from 5am. Downside of course is pushing myself too hard and not remembering anything as a result. Tuesday 12a-4a, Pure After regaining conciousness around 4pm on Tuesday, and spending about 2 hours trying to figure out what the hell happened on Monday night, the last thing on my mind was another late night, especially as I was now flying solo. But after eating one of the best meals of my life at Bouchon and catching Second City Scritpless (all improv, and hilarious), I was entirely energized. As usual Pure Tuesdays was a madhouse out front, but one glimpse at the VIP crowd and the general line screamed two words at me: sausage fest. Hit up two of the lounge bars in Caesar's and met three lovely gals who wanted to go in but didn't like the line (and were denied in flirting with the door staff)... thankfully God made guestlists, so in we went. The main room and surrounding area was packed to the gills, and there was barely room to move on the dance floor. The music was similar to Tao on Thursday; the same mainstream tracks and unoriginal work from (DJ Icey, i think), but just like Tao the crowd didn't really care. The floor was already shoulder-to-shoulder when the DJ dropped "Golddigger" which led to a big rush onto the floor... I squeezed out with one of the gals to go upstairs. Faarsheed was spinning on the deck and putting out some really solid tracks, but best of all was his outstanding mixing -- some really fantastic transitions and teasers. Popped back downstairs once or twice just to see if Icey had stepped up a notch (it hadn't), so I spent the bulk of the night dancing on the roof... and I've got to say, for anyone that loves EDM, there's something pretty incredible about dancing on the deck surrounded by the lights of the strip. Only downside of the night was the massively-male crowd, bad enough to the point where if a gal really started to tear it up (either upstairs or down), it would take all of a minute before a pack of guys would encircle her... not trying to dance along, just kind of standing and staring. Weird. So there it is, in all its ugly glory... this was my third birthday/Halloween weekend in Vegas and by far the best ever. 2004 in Los Angeles was incredible, but getting from place to place just blows compared to the convenience of the Strip. Quite an unbelievable time and a year from now there's no question I'm gonna do it all again. Even if it includes the part where I black out throughout the course of an evening. Can't wait for New Years!

Just to back up the other two, on Friday or Saturday nights you're not going to anything better musically than OPM, if hip-hop is your game. Sundays at Tabu are solid for hip-hop, but no dice otherwise. One other solid option for Friday is Rumjungle. Not quite a nightclub and not quite a lounge, they're strictly hip-hop/R&B and there is a lot of eye candy there. Personally I'm not a huge fan of the place, but I have a lot of friends that love it, and when I've gone I've always had a good time. Then again, I can have a good time wherever I go... I'd recommend you hit up Tao, as it's really a unique club and the main room is a great place to hang, even if the music is a bit mainstream it'll at least fit the general hip-hop/R&B mold you're looking for. Body English is certainly a great option but you'd probably have an easier time getting into Tao. As for Pure, personally I wouldn't bother on Friday; the crowds are insane, and the overall vibe of the main room doesn't even compare to Tao. Pure is a great club only if you're going to embrace the whole thing; the deck is really incredible, but I know more than a few people who just can't deal with house/EDM music at all and thus can't spend more than 10 minutes at a time up there. There are of course other clubs in town that will be playing hip-hop/R&B on Fridays but none that many here would quickly recommend (e.g. Rain).

FWIW read somewhere that based on flight reservations and hotel bookings, Vegas is the biggest travel destination in the world for Halloween this year.

Not only is that great to see, but I think that's the proper way to get established with a regular public -- both locals and frequent travelers. For $30 I will unquestionably get myself a pre-sale ticket and come check out Empire -- I am always excited to check out a new event, particularly withsomeone like Boris on the decks. Right on!

No doubt that there is room for two (regular) afterhours clubs in town... it's just that it seems odd the new kid on the block is going with a $50 cover right off the bat regardless of who's on the decks. As DV wrote, Drai's popularity has more to do with their regular crowd and a long history of service to the afterhours crowd, one which in my experience cares less about the name on the marquee and more about the scene itself. Drai's needs only the most minimal amount of promotion and can charge what they want simply because the crowd is willing to bear it. Don't get me wrong, I love that Empire is going after this market and I'd love nothing more than to see it succeed... but given the large capacity and lack of rep for the event, it just seems like $50 cover is motivated more by greed than it is by a desire to establish itself on the scene.

Sorry, but I don't care how you slice it. $50 door for a 3am start at a club with no rep or anticipation? Maybe it's just me, but I'm not hearing a big buzz about Late Night Empire yet... who knows, maybe the grand opening goes off this weekend and warrants the cover. It's the venue and the crowd that makes the draw; a big-name/draw DJ by himself isn't going to do it alone, not with a huge cover attached. Boris kills it, I've seen him in both NYC and LV and he doesn't disappoint. But his last time through LV I paid mmmmaybe $20 at most. Mind you, I'll probably wind up lining up at Empire and shelling out. But it's still steep. With women getting in free but guys paying $50... well, let's just say even through whatever colored glasses I'm wearing at the time, I'm still going to take one hell of a close look at who's lining up to get in.

$50 pre-sale for a late night event? That's pretty damn steep, especially when local ladies ("in costume," whatever) get in free...

MW -- if you're not spinning on Fridays, are you still gonna be in the house? Specifically wondering if you'll be around on the 28th when I stop by OPM. Would be great to catch up with you again, and I've got a little something from Colorado I'll be bringing ya. (unfortunately, it's not a young hip-hop loving ski bunny)

Pan-Asian/Fusion etc Chinois in the Forum Shops, China Grill in Mandalay and Red 8 at Wynn have all served me well. Nobu (Hard Rock) is also tasty, but I think a bit expensive for what you get. And I can't speak for the Vegas location, but I've eaten at Tao in NYC and the food was great... the atmosphere/vibe even better. Steakhouse What do you mean by "upscale?" Do you want upscale-traditional or upscale-modern? If you're willing to shed the cash, for the modern/hip approach, my personal favorite is N9NE in the Palms... aside from damn damn damn good steaks, the wine list is outstanding and the staff is exceptional. If you want a more traditional atmosphere, for all the same reasons go to Prime in Bellagio. Morton's is a solid choice, but why go somewhere that exists in every other city? Finally, if you want to step down one level in price but still have a great meal, hit up Lawry's (off-strip to the east) or drop another level in price and go to the steakhouse in (don't laugh) Circus Circus. Seriously. I think that restaurant is one of the biggest reasons C-C is able to stay in business.

List updated, added Tao's Masquerade Ball hosted by Dennis Rodman. Fatman Scoop is one of OPM's new residents, in another post MasterWeb said he's along with Kid Capri is going to take over Friday nights once a month... but I haven't yet seen an announcement/confirmation that they're having a costume gig on a particular night.