Does Vegas need a solid electronic night or are there too many???

[shervinf]

What do u guys think?

ICE used to be the 1 solid venue that would bring in talent every saturday (sometimes good, sometimes not soo good, but always had somebody). Now its all spread out periodically between Jet, Tao, Moon, Empire, etc. But nobody is really stepping up and doing a proper weekly. Are the acts getting played out & too saturated? Do you guys think if somebody did it again, would it work? Would u support it? What would it take for it to work? Could a club like Ice, that is set up in all the right ways but isnt in a casino, compete at all these days? I'm curious on what everybody thinks about this.

[shervinf]

no responses? i guess it wouldnt work...

[detn8or]

Already on top of it...

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/las-vegas/320218-reson8-new-friday-night-weekly-w-frankie-bones.html

[greenie]

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.

[mfiorellino]

Very good posting. Personally I would love to see a club do what Club Ice did in the past. While I live in Miami I do go to Vegas at least a few times a year and it would be great have a solid EDM dance night that's reliable and that brings in talent. I guess it would have to most importantly win over the locals so that it gets a good crowd that will show up every week. Not only when someone like Tiesto performs. I don't know if someone from lets say Kansas that's in Vegas for a convention is going to care where Paul Van Dyk is spinning but hey you never know. The more the merrier.

[shervinf]

I think you are right in many ways as we have seen some great nights in Jets main room, and even Tao didnt do bad with the headliners they booked. But something is still missing. The dj cant play the dark underground tracks they would at Ice & get a reaction. They have to play the popular vocal house tracks to get the kind of reaction they otherwise would with a kickin basseline and mean synth in an underground location. My point is that a club that is in a casino will always be saturated with a more commercial crowd, which in turn changes the mood & what they dj plays. It definitely gets more busy, & there are definitely more girls, but the underground vibe just isnt there. I mean is it impossible to create this vibe in Vegas?

This kind of answers your question about why Ice would be half full and other clubs like Church, Ruby Skye, Avalon, etc are always busy in other cities. Its not because there arent enough people, and definitely not because the club wasnt good enough, its because there is wayyyyy too much competition here and people want to go see to all the other clubs on the strip...they are more popular, w more girls, & more hype. Even edm fans who come from out of town, usually end up going to pure, tao, jet, etc because thats where all the beautiful women go & thats what they want while they are in vegas.

I guess to make a night work, it would half to be in a casino at a hot spot, but it would never have the same feel as a club like Ice. The sound system, the dj booth, the lighting, they kryo, the perfect shaped room & acoustics, & the overall vibe that was created all together...it seems none of the casino clubs understand that or want to spend the money to have a night or room like that, because its just easier for them to play what everybody wants and make there money. Im sure we will see it happen someday soon, but Im very curious to see whats next and where.

[lalate]

What do u guys think?

ICE used to be the 1 solid venue that would bring in talent every saturday (sometimes good, sometimes not soo good, but always had somebody). Now its all spread out periodically between Jet, Tao, Moon, Empire, etc. But nobody is really stepping up and doing a proper weekly. Are the acts getting played out & too saturated? Do you guys think if somebody did it again, would it work? Would u support it? What would it take for it to work? Could a club like Ice, that is set up in all the right ways but isnt in a casino, compete at all these days? I'm curious on what everybody thinks about this.

The Vegaswood factor, that portion of Vegas nightlife business that is attributable to Southern Californa residents - moreso than previous TaoTrystJetMoonEmpire years - is at play in this question.

Without debating the benefits or negatives of the status quo, So Cal visitors more levitate to Vegas venues based upon the venue, less the music format, like they do at home. The demand more often is first for the name of the venue, and not for the dj or the inclusion or exclusion of certain genres of music. While there are series of successful, basically G.A. electronic music venues throughout the southland, more market saturation is for the vip nightlife of the named-venue.

That market segment additionally is populated by patrons that want certain treatment - vip - and stay away from other settings - GA.

So, that being said, to draw the So Cal crowd, a GA treatment would be bad choice for So Cal patrons, or anything that is GA-fauxVip or "light VIP" (basically an average venue with average bottle service).

But could a Vegas venue that carries ALL the trappings that a So Cal crowd wants at home and in Vegas succeed for So Cal residents if its only format is electronic?

Succeed? Sure.

Be the number one choice for So Cal residents cerca 2007 with no hiphop? No.

[greenie]

I guess to make a night work, it would half to be in a casino at a hot spot, but it would never have the same feel as a club like Ice. The sound system, the dj booth, the lighting, they kryo, the perfect shaped room & acoustics, & the overall vibe that was created all together...

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.