greenie

OPM, no question about it.

Oh, I see. Doesn't matter that Theodore (et al) use Serato. Doesn't matter that Theodore (et al) only do so for "lame crowds." Let me guess: you're responsible for the growth of hypocrisy too, aren't ya?

For that night I doubt PVD would go on before 1am. Last few times I've been to TGIF, Glaude hasn't even gone on before that time. I don't rightly remember what time Tiesto went on for Memorial Day, but I'm pretty sure it was closer to 2am. I don't wear a watch and didn't carry my phone that night, and didn't really care about what time it was. If you're getting in late then bottles would be the only way to avoid the line. Given the date and the headliner, I'd say you're probably looking at a 2-bottle minimum. They'll surely be selling tickets in advance, so the question is whether it's worth spending 1.5 hours in line (assuming you get there around 11:30) or spending $700+ on bottle service. If your party is small (2-3 people) then I'd recommend talking up VIP hosts to see who can get you in the door with basic line passes. You might be able to swing that for $150 per person, provided you can guarantee you're there by midnight. In any event oughtta be a great weekend for trance lovers with Tiesto bringing his stage show to town the next night.

BE on promoting a Halloween costume part on Sunday (30th), and ICE is doing the same on Saturday for Sasha's gig. For Hallow's Eve itself, I haven't seen any hardcore promotion from anyone yet but I'd bet that Foundation will be a pretty solid party.

From everything I've seen, every major room capable of holding a band over Halloween weekend is being filled up with the "Vegoose At Night" midnight shows. Seems like every few days they announce another few bands on the Vegoose ticket and another VIP concert. Two local promoters (not associated with Vegoose) have mentioned to me that in their eyes a lot of businesses are still waiting to see what kind of crowd will really be flooding the town that weekend.

I've made at least 2 trips out every October for the past 9 years, and I can say without a doubt that I'm finding better deals from the hotels this year than ever before. This is not a matter of me being any better at searching for them, as I'm including the rates and included benefits (e.g. dining credits, show tickets, 2-for-1 spa visits) that you get offered if you simply call them directly. And for all the effect that fuel cost may have on drivers, the cost of flights to Vegas has remained at the same level it's been at for a few years... considering that flights to other parts of the country have gone up, this suggests to me that the airlines have seen a dip in Vegas bookings as well. Recession? Nah. Just simple economics. Nothing can continue flying at an incredible height without an occasional drop.

Jazzy Jeff, Rob Swift, and Jazzy Jay all use Serato Scratch. Even Grand Wizard Theodore is now using it. But I guess they're all fake loads of shit as well.

If your "mid-november" means the 23rd, then Keoki is playing ICE that night. Otherwise for places on the Strip, follow DV's advice, go to Tangerine and follow it up with Drai's. No matter what you wind up doing, I think everyone here would agree you're better off Wednesday night than Tuesday. Get yourself a weekly once you get to town and look through the club listings, there's a good chance you'll be able to find someone throwing down a solid trance/prog-trance set off the Strip. (I assume Pleasuredome at RA ground to halt once again?)

I'm right there with the folks who value music, DJ and sound quality above everything else. There's something to be said for a great crowd, but I'll take a lame crowd at ICE any day if a great DJ is working. Decor? About the only thing it does for me is provide a good conversation starter. Thing is, shitty decor does the same thing.

Here's what I'd like to see from Tao (or any class joint): giving the hosts that work with them the ability to provide basic VIP treatment (read: line passes) for small parties of 1-2 guys without asking us to spend $300+ each. Case in point: I've only gone to Pure once and don't see myself going back again. I went on my own on a Friday night in July, and had a fantastic time... once I got in, that is. Arrived around 10:15p and didn't get in until about 12:30a. Would have been happy to reserve a VIP pass in advance for $100+ but of all the hosts that I spoke to, they all echoed the same thing: that even with bottle reservations, you'd still likely wind up waiting an hour outside. And in reality, as great as Pure was that night it hasn't come close to any of the epic nights I've had at BE, OPM, ICE, Tangerine and Drai's, where even for the most in-demand, special occasions I don't think I've ever spent more than $75 to get in the door without waiting. (and that sort of expense has been rare, rare, rare) Obviously I'm not a hooked-up local nor someone with enough clout to work a deal at Pure... but there's been no other place in town the last few years that I've had so much trouble getting into. Hell, I've had better experiences getting into Light. You'd think that any club in LV would be interested in making things easier for people like me: well dressed, well groomed, and club-experienced singles willing to make a reservation with a host and drop proper cash just to get in the door. Not to mention someone who wouldn't once complain about $10 cocktails. Guess I'm just naive. If we're talking about a small, intimate, upscale and massively-in-demand club then I wouldn't raise a stink about not accommodating the smaller fish like me. But Pure was hardly this kind of place, in fact with the exception of demand it's entirely the opposite: gigantic, bombastic, and full of people who would barely know the difference between Pure and 54. And it's in Las Vegas. All this said, I'm definitely looking forward to hitting up Tao in early October. That is, provided I don't need to wait two hours or spend $150 by myself to avoid the wait.

How about some comments on the music/DJs they're featuring?

True true, you guys took great care of my boy Andrew and I in June. Didn't forget about you, but I was keeping my list short, and limited to the folks above have taken care of me many times in the past year.

Hey gang. Pardon my interruption of standard CP forum pimping and jibberjabber, but after a very rough couple of months I just wanted to give a shout to the regulars who i've gotten to know over the past year on this board. Special thanks to those of you who PMed, emailed and/or called to make sure I was still alive, and later shared your wishes and sympathies. It definitely means a lot to this forlorn Colorado clubber. And additional thanks to the following folks for making my LV visits so special that I've had great memories to look back on... and certain good times to look forward to: Bill & Mecca DJ MasterWeb & OPM LA[asterisks]Late Kristin Sandra Collen Donna Can't wait to catch up and reconnect with the rest of you that bumped into me earlier this year... even those of you I may not consciously remember!

Unless hell (read: Vegas) froze over within the last two months (which given recent weather patterns, nothing surprises me) if you're around on the 9th and 10th, there's no question where you should be those nights: BE and Foundation, respectively. Of course, I've basically spent the last two months in an isolation tank...

Coming down from Colorado for a good stretch, Oct 27th to Nov 1st (gotta make up for lost time, and it's my birthday), and will dragging a bunch of CO buds with me for the Vegoose portion. But since that weekend won't be the "usual" Halloween weekend in Vegas, dontchaknow I really need step up and top my biggest LV Greeniethon... who's up for the challenge? HalloweenieGreenie-thon 2005: FriNight: Drai's SaturDay: Vegoose SaturNight: Sasha @ ICE, Drai's SunDay: Vegoose SunNight: BE ...and then maybe a power nap before Hallow's Eve on MonNight!

Well, was it the Italian place or was it Emeril's? They're directly across from one another. Emeril's is mostly a seafood place, brightly lit and casual. The other is called Fiamma's, is dimly lit with dark brown and orange tones, dark and orange in color and the menu is structured along the lines of a three-course Italian meal. My experience has been that Emeril's is overpriced and fair, while Fiamma's (where I ate last weekend) was outstanding. Fine if your experience was different... but if you're gonna post a review, especially a negative one, the least you can do is remember the name of the place. And I'm dying to know... who conned you into committing to 2 bottles at Tabu?

For Thurs-Mon, clubs on/near the strip with at least one room that is all EDM... Ice Drai's Seven You will not go wrong at any of these. Hit ICE until 3 or 4 then follow up with Drai's or Seven. On Friday nights, Seven hosts "Lust" which tends a bit more towards progressive. Tangerine Pure While not necessarily geared towards straight-up house heads, each of these do house on the deck that won't disappoint... at least not musically. Tangerine is a bit small and crowded (tough to dance), and Pure can be a headache to get into. Foundation Room on monday night has a great house room, this past weekend it had the best progressive trance I've heard from local DJs in a long, long time. MIX has some great progressive trance, but I've never been there past midnight and have heard that the music does change as the night goes on. I strongly recommend it as an early stop. Teatro any night but Friday is predminantly house, but the DJs will toss in some random stuff here and there. La Bete has been predmoninantly electronic... but all reports say they're styll trying to figure themselves out. Their crowd is a bit older, it's not a great place for dancing and my experience there the music was pretty weak house.

Overall: Prices in better clubs/lounges: good to fair Prices in general bars and restaurants: expensive Bartenders and service: mixed bag I think that in better nightclubs and lounges, the $8-9 range is a very fair amount to charge given that you typically get something like Goose, Saphhire or Maker's. However, paying that same amount at basic casino/resort bars is a crock -- especially when you are often getting plastic-bottle well crap for the same price. Playing video poker/whatever gets you around this, but it's not the most social thing to do. And it really burns me that when you sit down to eat, the majority of restaurants gouge you for the same drink prices. There are exceptions, such as Isla which has amazingly low prices on good tequila, but paying $8 for a bloody mary at brunch is a joke. $4 for a small bottle of water is an insult, especially at a place where bartenders won't pour you a water from the gun. OK, I can understand that a club needs to make money off the rollers drinking nothing but water, but when someone orders a few rounds of drinks at $8 a pop then asks for a water, would it be so bad to toss them the bottle for a buck? Speaking personally, I don't want my drinks to be overly strong. If my mission is to get plowed, I do it in the room for a hell of a lot less money. Then I'll just do shots when I go out -- and when you can get a Jagerbomb for $9-10 at most places in Vegas, no complaints there. As for bartenders who pay attention and like to provide good service... speaking as a former bartender, I think Vegas is a mixed bag. I always tip well and return to the same bartenders. In return I'd expect at least a minimal acknolwedgment of doing so ("thank you" or a simple wave or nod seems pretty rare for Vegas bartenders in clubs/lounges), better still would be rewarding the better tipper by always picking them first out of the crowd. For the most part I tend to get better service from cocktail waitresses anywhere in Vegas -- whether in clubs or lounges or casinos, they seem to respond better to good tips. Again, I'm not looking for drink strength, just prompt service for what I ordered..

just back in from the same weekend, will post my report later tonight... to quickly respond to a few things: - DJ AM hits it so well at BE is that he pays a LOT of attention to the crowd. This past Sunday night he played a lot less mash-up; a few times he would start sneaking in some rock/pop loops in without much response, but the smallest old-school hip-hop samples would get the floor bumping harder. Bill and I both commented throughout the night that he was playing a lot of great tracks we haven't heard in a long, long time. - MasterWeb: first off, you are the man, Saturday night was mind-blowing (literally). Not sure if I thanked you properly before I left, as I don't quite remember leaving. Anyway... second thing, I'd never expect or desire you to mash anything at OPM, but man it would be priceless just to see the reaction from that room. - Zarjoe & Twised8: did I meet you and your lady at Drai's on Saturday? I remember being there... but don't remember walking in nor walking out (nor leaving OPM, I gotta work on these memory drops) but I've got this vague memory of meeting a CP poster and his girl at Drai's and talking about heading to Seven... if we did meet and I freaked you out (always possible when I'm in that state), man I gotta apologize... - Alison: you left your number on my voicemail but it was broken up. You said you lurk on this board, so please shoot me a PM or text. - To anyone else I may have run into: I found quite a cryptic scribble on a quarter-piece of paper in my pocket that was not my handwriting: 1033 (in one person's hand) Mayo Ketchup Avocado for BLT (ingredients in another person's hand) Ah, yes. I do love the mystery messages.

Word! Seriously, this is the exact thing that keeps me coming back again and again and again and again and again. Lists and VIP and plans are great and all, but I don't know of a single place that is as easily reachable and affordable that allows you to just leave your hotel room and find a damn good time without too much effort. If you can't find what you're looking for in this town, you got to be not only blind but deaf and dumb as well. Even then, so long as you've got a few bucks there's still a good time to be had...

Majority of my visits to Tangerine have been on Wednesdays and during the winter/spring months, so it's been packed but not unbearable in the way that I've been hearing about on weekends since Memorial Day. I've also done a lot of bottles there with friends, so that certainly minimizes the effect that the crowd has had on me. I'll agree with DarkVixen, it's a good place to check out but I don't think it's an amazing place. Typically I've gone because of the local crowd on Wednesdays, and again, because friends have invited me in on their tables.

It's Vegas. There is no single "best" preparty spot. Again, it all depends on what kind of scene you want -- crowd, music, location, and vibe -- as well as what you want to get out of it, e.g. a cocktail or two versus shot-slamming versus a handful of brews. (see lalate's buddies checking into Paris) One night I'll say that Mix is my #1 preparty spot, because I'm interested in a relaxing start to the evening with great views. Another night I'll vote for Casa Fuente because it's the best place to enjoy a fine cigar and a scotch. Another night I'll vote for Mix because I want a dark room with cozy couches. Another night I'll vote for Shadow because of the dancers. And still another night it might be Isla for tequila and appetizers. It all comes down to what you're looking for.

So I go and read the 944 interview and a number of other articles about DJ AM. Not once do I see a single place where he lays any claim to being a remix master nor any kind of producer. In fact, it's as plain as day in the 944 interview that he says straight up he's nothing more than a party DJ who loves to spin records that gets the crowds dancing. So exactly what is the problem here?

In town Sat-Tues.