greenie

The two biggest things that stick out for me: How exactly does the accusation of racism come into play here? Are you suggesting that you got a bad table because of your skin color? The first thing you mentioned in this thread was the "racist staff," so in my opinion that's the first thing you need to back up. While I sympathize with Tryst losing one of your reservations... that $80 tip to the host might is a complete insult. Going to one of the hottest clubs in Vegas on Saturday night with a party of 19 and you tip EIGHTY BUCKS to the host? I'm amazed they didn't seat you INSIDE the waterfall. Once or twice a year I take a group of 15+ to big club on a big night and I always put $300-400 to the host. No question. Regarding that lost reservation despite confirmation... who did you confirm with? A named host who would be at Tryst that night, or the Wynn concierge (or similar)? Massive difference here. I'm also curious why you showed up an hour before opening. If you had tables reserved, why on earth would you do that?

Robbie Rivera and Tall Paul will be at Empire on Feb 3rd for an early (11p) gig.

Just about anywhere you go on Friday or Saturday is going to be a killer party... Tao, Jet, Tryst, Pure, Body English, Moon... hard to definitively say that any single one of them will be the BEST. If you haven't been to any of these places before and/or don't have specific musical preferences, then with a big group I typically recommend a bigger, multi-room club. If you're going out two nights, assuming that you want to make your second night the "big" one out, then perhaps consider doing Tryst or BE on Friday for a more intimate, single-room club scene (but still one hell of a party) followed by Tao or Jet on Saturday.

One tiny bit of bad news for that weekend, two of the best local Electro DJs, Chris Garcia and Faarsheed, will not be in town... they're going to be down at Nikki Beach in Cabo. (where fortunately, a few of us will be!)

Well it's taken us over a year to get everything figured out, but I think we've finally got it nailed down. Requirements For Being A "True" Part Of the Hip-Hop Scene by Mr. Freeze, Rock Steady Crew 1. Former drug dealer, pimp, and/or gangster 2. Former artist no longer paid to cut songs, spin records and/or dance 3. Former resident of NYC, now living in suburbia 4. Pour spellng and grammer bad 5. Only aware of music busting dance moves that are 20-30 years old 6. Name last mentioned in public during an MTV/VH1 reality show 7. No familiarity with the words "insecure" and "hyopcrite"

I think I've got it all figured out now. See new thread.

Freeze: still waiting to videos, photos, web links, anything to back up a single claim you've made about OPM or any place else in this thread. Still waiting to hear your explanation of how you can give credit to the VH1 Hip-Hop Honors for being "real" while OPM and any other club is "fake." Still waiting for you to prove yourself by actions and not words. Masterweb: I'm trying to picture 20 women squeezing into that booth of yours (both levels, I assume). I could give a shit whether or not that's "hip-hop," it sounds like a great sight to behold!

that's because you're not used to looking at their faces

I remember a number of years back when Ra was flying high, the national DJs would come and play their hardest shit, the crowds ate it up and it would be packed wall-to-wall. And of course there have been a few nights at Empire where the headliner bangs out something really hard, the room is packed and goes apeshit. Or better yet, times like Mem Day '06 when Faarsheed followed up Tiesto, and just went nuts with a heavy, slamming progressive set that put people throught he roof. But of course that's after-hours, on a huge weekend. Your point about the out-of-towners coming in and being attracted to primarily hip-hop spots like Tao is certainly a strong one, but at the same time that's why I ask about the local community. While the Strip is a resort town, the local population is definitely big enough that it could support a "darker" EDM night... provided there's enough locals that will support it regularly. I've only been to LA and SF clubs sparingly over the years, so I can't comment there... but what I find interesting is that with Denver clubs, the DJs typically play whatever they really want to go with. The crowds show up no matter what. Last time Sasha was in town, it was the darkest, most driving shit I've ever heard him put out. No question most of the crowd that night had no idea to expect; talking to a lot of people before and after, I'd say at least a third of them didn't even know the name "Sasha" prior to heading down. I'd still like to think there's a happy medium in here somewhere... maybe Vegas isn't ready to enjoy a hugely successful EDM weekly, but there's no question it can do it monthly. Bi-weekly would be too odd, at least at the same club, as even locals would lose track of whether it's an "off" week or not. Perhaps the dream would be to have an independent promoter who figures out a way to have a big EDM event twice a month... promote them independently of course, but it would be a good indicator of whether Vegas is ready for more than once-a-month (or less) major EDM DJs rocking out earlier in the evening.

Let me guess: it's "true hip-hop" when VH1 honors the drug dealers, gang members and hookers, yet OPM is a "fake" spot because you claim that's they're crowd? Educate me here Freeze. Would you consider any of these guys "hip-hop?" Tupac (gang member) Notorious B.I.G. (drug dealer) Eazy-E (drug dealer) Ice-T (drug dealer, gang member, pimp) Ol' Dirty Bastard (armed robbery, attempted murder) Raekwon (drug dealer) Becuse they all received VH1 "Hip-Hop" honors just like you...

Incredible post E... spot-on, honest and informative. People need to realize that Vegas is only going to keep growing as a top nightlife destination... and that's going to mean more and more and more demand for the top spots on big weekends. Sure there will be more and more places opening up... but there will always be one spot that's always considered the absolute best for any given day/night... and for the foreseeable future, when you're talking about a pool party you're talking about Rehab. Not just the top pool party in Vegas, arguably it's the top pool party in the country and easily one of the tops in the world. Be ready to pay if you want to play on Memorial Day. That's what I say.

I can't personally verify that Rehab opening date, but I can personally guarantee you that I've never known epope to be wrong, not in the loop and/or share inaccurate info...

On Friday, Reson8 is bringing in John B from the UK. He's been a big breaks/DnB guy in the past, but I hear he's jumped on the electro bandwagon lately (who hasn't?). Otherwise head to the house room at Jet for some solid local talent. Afterhours hit either Drai's or Empire. As mentioned above, Saturday finds JP at Empire. Supposedly he's lined up for a 12-hour set, 10p-10a. For local DJs, Jet and Drai's. Sunday night head to the Parlor at Body English.

This statement from a guy who can't tell enough people about being recognized by VH1 for his contribution to hip-hop. It's one thing to babble on and on that Slide is the only hip-hop scene anywhere in Vegas, or that nobody other than P is a "real" DJ (despite the "millions of people on this earth" that disagree with you). But the fact is that OPM does *incredible* business, and on their slowest night of the week they still outdraw your one and only event. That's the truth, Ruth.

Great question sherv... I've been trying to thinnk about this one for a bit. I think Vegas could definitely use more electronic nights in the main rooms of clubs on the Strip, and I think the crowds would be positive. Main reason I believe this is that in my experience, a significant amount of the visitors heading to the mega-clubs right now really aren't that picky about what music is played in what room. They just want to go out, unwind and dance -- after all, a significant chunk of the out-of-towners in any club on any given night are far from being nightlife regulars wherever they come from. People are always asking me what club(s) they "must" check out when they go to Vegas; this includes a lot of people that have gone before, often many times. They want to know what's new, what's hot, what is a unique experience. They want to know where on what night. What time these places get going. How hard it is to get in. Whether or not they should get bottles. Yet people RARELY ask a single question about the music. Just look at almost every first-timer that comes to this board to ask about Vegas clubbing. I'd say 9 times out of 10 they make no mention of their musical preference. I think it would all boil down to whether or not how much the resort and club ownership is willing to promote the night. If it's treated equally to other nights, it'll do well; Rain, Tangerine and 54 continue to do solid business on off nights, and I'd argue that a higher percentage of their clientelle has no idea what kind of music they'll get. In other words, it's all about marketing and awareness. If the resort and/or club owners are willing to get behind a regular EDM, it could succeed. But if the night is treated like a stepchild out of the gate, it won't go anywhere. Ask the average resort concierge on a Tuesday afternoon for nightclub recommendations, everyone will be quick to tell you Pure. But how many will know about Temple Tuesdays? Given Vegas' reputation as a nightlife mecca, it's still hard to fathom the incredible small footprint that house music has in the clubs. I look at what we have here in Denver -- is two "mega" clubs in The Church and Vinyl that each pack in the crowds for a worldwide EDM headliner on a weekly basis (Thurs and Sat respectively). Even the smaller clubs and lounges out here do fairly well to book touring house DJs. Then I look back at the number of times I'd walk in to Ice and the place would be only 60-70% full for a big, big name. One final thing I'll toss in here is that I think EDM is coming around to being a lot more accessible and enjoyable to the average person who just wants to hit a club and dance. More and more DJs and producers are coming into the scene having grown up (and continue) listening to the widest variety of music, and this is reflected in what they play and create. There's an increasing number of tracks popular in both mainstream and househead clubs that have been influenced heavily by hip-hop and rock. Even the most skeptical who claim to hate electronic music can't help but dance and smile when they hear Pink Floyd, Yes, and the Police remixed as a house track.

When in February are you heading out? The house room at Jet generally pumps out a lot of electro these days, and you'll hear a fair amount at Drai's and the Parlor in Body English. Empire will depend on the DJs that are booked any given night. Within the last few trips I've heard a few electro tracks in the lounge at Tao and on IT Wednesday at Tabu, but not enough to say it was predominant. And I don't recall ever hearing electro on the roof at Pure or the deck at Tangerine. For breaks, the Reson8 events on Fridays at the Icehouse (not to be confused with the old club Ice) have definitely booked DJs that can throw down some serious breaks (e.g. Frankie Bones), but I haven't been to one of these events yet. I'm sure Deton8tor will chime in here. To try and find some off-strip, local scenes with breaks and other styles you might want to check out www.eternalbeats.net

Not a rumor. Ice closed down the weekend before Halloween. The Ice name is now being used to promote "prime time" (11p-3a) events at Empire.

Followed the URL. Page features a looping flash intro with the words "coming soon" below it. No other links or options.

Seriously, a tape? Let me guess: having that on DVD and/or your computer would be wack? So you can back of everything you say. Really? How about posting some video of the "only real hip-hop" that goes down at Slide Sundays? How about that website of yours? You've apparently got video coming out your ass, but you choose to feature not one but TWO video clips of you on on Solid Gold as a background dancer to Irene Cara. Yeah that whole "Flashdance" thing, that was true hip-hop, b-boy style, keeping it real!

Reading through a lot of the posts at eternalbeats, it seems like there's a lot of negativity pointed at the major clubs... people complaining about paying $20-30 for cover, having to be 21, being "lame and corporate" etc.

Aside from the promo posts that grow like weeds (and stay around forever as stickies), part of the trouble is trying to shoehorn every comment/opinion/experience into one giant thread. There's enough opinion and feedback on each individual spot (at least the 10-12 most popular, most asked-about spots) to warrant their own threads. Alternatively, how about a thread that focuses on seasons or quarters? One complain I heard (still hear) via PM about the "2006 review" thread is few people are interested in reading about what a club was like in January when it's late October. Better yet, petition the CP mods to create a "Reviews Only" sub-forum. I'd like to think that would meet with more success than the lame duck that is the "promotions" sub-forum.

A Vegas club where the female staff has fake boobs barely contained by corsets? I am SO there.

You've got a "tape" of that? Man, you're even more stuck in the 80s than I thought! So glad to see we've returned to the "old days" of the CP Vegas board.

Perhaps what might work best is a sub-form with a title/subject of Club Reviews/Opinions. That way there's a central, easy location with a single thread on each venue that can be updated over time. Might at least cut down on some of the generic questions asked by noobs... if nothing else would give us a referral point...

Being someone that's only in town once a month I've only made it by a few of your events, but seriously man... mad mad mad props for everything you do for the local scene. Not only do you pick up the local jocks but you've really got a great finger on the pulse of things in picking up guys like Frankie Bones to stop in... I can't tell you how much I wish we had someone working as hard as you back in my home territory. Keep on keeping on and I hope the crowds start showing up to reward your efforts, whether local or just visiting... it's the grassroots that are always the base of the scene... great work my man!