The club legend is always right...

[Guest myles hie]

What would that 3rd option be? Retired old folks listening to Lawrence Welk cover bands?

Actually, another 3rd option is alive and well in Miami: Latin salsa clubs.

But seriously, what other option between VIP douchebags and college kids do you think there is?

Something like this....cheap booze, good friends, good music and food if i get hungry=)

Shameless plug!

Cereal though, my question about a 3rd option was part seirous, part rhetorical and part my trying to be funny. So you can take your pick

[Guest coach]

Um... is that a cartoon of a white black guy on the top flyer?

So, what is your target market with this event?

[V. Barbarino]

You have to ask yourself this, what is going to replace EDM and big djs in sobe and miami? The market keeps going down hill yet only I have put out a prediction of where it's going. No new genres of music are being invented, hip hop sales are in a huge decline, house, trance, techno etc, don't work just look at cameo they play open format and aren't making money. Karu is done, Noc is done, so man up, and say where this market is going, because to me, there is only 1 reasonable choice and that is live bands.

[Guest pod]

If there was a forum in 1982 when disco was on it's decline, I'm sure someone was saying the same thing. Then along came house. Happens in rock too. Like when Zep stopped touring and so forth, along comes the Sex Pistols. There's people out there innovating in rock (certainly not your beloved Blowfish, but I'll stop ragging on them), just as there's people out there innovating in dance music.

You've said so many a time that you don't go out much anymore, and when you do, you've gone to open format events, rather than a dance event like OG or what-have-you. People are changing it up in the dance scene.

[Guest myles hie]

Um... is that a cartoon of a white black guy on the top flyer?

So, what is your target market with this event?

lol, Klansmans and your garden variety racists obviously.

I honestly, even though its a cool graphic, i wanted the drink specials bigger and no "DJ" or music style referenced. But eh, whatyagonnado?

[Guest talknightlife]

why cant the euro clubs work hand in hand w/ the live bands...

+1, exactly! I want it all.

[Guest pod]

You're dealing with two different mindsets and two different crowds. Like it or not, rock people are elitists too. Do you think they want to share floor space with the perceived "euro trash?" Most of the rock people I know constantly berate that point.

And conversely, do the Euro Trash (Eurrrro Trash!) want to share floor space with the rock contingent? Hell no.

It's hard enough getting trance and house people to agree on the same thing. The best we can hope for is a variety of venues, not variety within the venue.

A good example would be you can get your dance fix at Space, and your rock band fix at Studio A. Walk 50 feet east.

Maybe I should throw a rock event as my next party. Anyone got any money for KMFDM?

[Guest eroc0411]

Hmm from now i wanna be called Nostradamus. I too can predict the future... I predict that eventually Mansion and cameo will close down... Throw nocturnal in there too. Point is what r u predicting V. MAN??? that eventually things will change??? gee thanks! u got lotto numbers for me too????

[Guest pod]

Still gonna call ya B1FF.

[Guest coach]

lol, Klansmans and your garden variety racists obviously.

I honestly, even though its a cool graphic, i wanted the drink specials bigger and no "DJ" or music style referenced. But eh, whatyagonnado?

Fire your graphics guy?

Actually, I apologize for being unclear. Those were 2 totally unrelated questions. The first was just humorous curiosity. The second is a serious question about what you think the alternative is, regarding your original statement of wanting a 3rd alternative to VIP/College, as well as, what demographic you are going for with this event.

[Guest talknightlife]

The second is a serious question about what you think the alternative is, regarding your original statement of wanting a 3rd alternative to VIP/College, as well as, what demographic you are going for with this event.

Isn't it obvious? Do people in here even LIVE in Miami?

Wynwood indie art rockers.

I've had a lot of great times at Space, Cameo/(Crobar), and Mansion. But seriously guys, Miami is a pretty interesting town if you look beyond that. Even just a little.

Bug report: Signatures are there in the posting preview but then not there when I'm reading the thread.

[Guest myles hie]

Fire your graphics guy?

Actually, I apologize for being unclear. Those were 2 totally unrelated questions. The first was just humorous curiosity. The second is a serious question about what you think the alternative is, regarding your original statement of wanting a 3rd alternative to VIP/College, as well as, what demographic you are going for with this event.

hahaha right? Extenuating circumstances leaves him be for now.

A third option i guess would be the ideal audience, or an "up for it crowd" of people who are into the music and into having a good time as well. A synergy of the two.

The taget demographic (and i'm not trying to be a smartass) was anybody with in the North Broward area who likes cheap drinks and doesn't want to drive to downtown Ft Laud, or Boca. Simple as that. I'm not trying to bash them over the head or alienate anyone with branding the night a "house night" or "breaks night" or "DnB night" or whatever. My experiance is that most people will tolerate, even if they don't care for the music being played, and if you give them other things ie. cheap booze or food they will be happy. You create a fun atmosphere and people will let thier guard down and most of the time will walk away having a good time and come back. Taking it back to square one is how im looking it.

[Guest coach]

Isn't it obvious? Do people in here even LIVE in Miami?

Wynwood indie art rockers.

I've had a lot of great times at Space, Cameo/(Crobar), and Mansion. But seriously guys, Miami is a pretty interesting town if you look beyond that. Even just a little.

Bug report: Signatures are there in the posting preview but then not there when I'm reading the thread.

Again, sorry for being unclear, it was a Socratic question.

Now, if you are being serious with your third option, I know that you know that I spend a lot of time in Wynwood, so I'm guessing your question is either rhetorical or not directed at me. My question to you is, why the heck don't I ever see you at 2nd Saturday?

[Guest pod]

And living on Wynwood's northern doorstep, I see it all the time. Miami does have a burgeoning arts scene, with live music even. Certainly not Coach's "whining honkies on stage". If they booked a whining honkey, it'd be for the irony value. You know those art kids, they do a lot of things for the irony.

What Barbarino is espousing here is that you'll see Mansion and Cameo booking honkey acts essentially. That dog won't hunt.

My take is that the live scene is here in some respects, but yeah, you gotta look for it.

[Guest talknightlife]

My question to you is, why the heck don't I ever see you at 2nd Saturday?

Fear for my life. Ask me some time about our first and last CoolJunkie biz trip expedition to PS-14 and I/O one time with Sarah, our original founder. Also, I walk everywhere. Burn calories, not gasoline.

I'm always happy to catch up with the hipsters when they congregate at the Standard Hotel. Very interesting people, but Wynwood is not a neighborhood that I'm into, especially at night.

People need to blend more.

[Guest pod]

During the art events, it's not so horrid. Carpool and travel in a group. Park at my apt if you want. Coach, I promise to wake up from my hangover and come out. Next one is October 13th, right?

I think the reason there's not a lot of blending coming beachside from the indie art kids is because, well, the Beach isn't art-friendly at the moment. Those people left South Beach for specific reasons, which I don't think I have to get into. They took their art and music with them and are setting up shop in Wynwood, the Design District, and in the little commerical spaces next to my apt. 2 art galleries of a sort and a bar.

[Guest talknightlife]

Carpool and travel in a group. Park at my apt if you want. Coach, I promise to wake up from my hangover and come out. Next one is October 13th, right?

This gallery walk looks very cool I'm very interested. I'm SO over DJ worship. My roadster doesn't do "carpools" though and my wife and I only have the one two-seater car. Those MAM events are a lot of fun too. Coach, I really admire that you're still plugging at it trying to publicize stuff like that. There is so much to life that's over the horizon of so many people, it's sad. MINGLE!

I dug up the story from CoolJunkie's heyday before Club Planet gobbled us up and stuck that SEO spam at the bottom of every page. This makes me think of Karu & Y:

Sarah and I were just at a friend's business after a meeting a few minutes ago. I won't identify the business because I'm sure he wouldn't want it named in this posting, but it's downtown at the edge of the design district.

We're sitting there waiting for something and we see this lady walking down the street. Down the center line of a street in a two-lane commercial area. Completely butt naked. Not a stitch on her.

So after her there is a procession of three or four police cars, it looked like a parade. This crazy junkie flailing her arms and wiggling and prancing naked down the road and a bunch of police cruisers rolling along behind her like it's the OJ Simpson chase or something. Maybe 20 or 30 bystanders watching the whole thing. I was waiting for somebody to start throwing Mardi Gras beads.

They ended up restraining her in the middle of the street. I counted seven police cars swarmed around her, with her in the middle of the road handcuffed, legs bound because she was flailing around resisting arrest. I don't know if they were waiting for medics to come and Baker Act her or what, we took off.

Real live junkies man. Miami could really use fewer of those and more junkies of cool.

Pod, I'd like to hear more about the beach not being 'art-friendly'. Do you have another mouth in which to place your other foot? The last time that I went to a PAC event I met the COOLEST woman waiting at the bus stop in front of the art center and I had more fun talking to her on the bus than I did at the event, or than I've ever had at any night club, ever. And I have had some good times at some night clubs. They just tend to be filled with pretty vapid, vacuous people who you only want to be around for one night.

[Guest pod]

I live in what the press calls the Design District, and I live just north of what the press calls the Wynwood Arts district. I see more art events there now, then I do beachside. What little art scene exists in South Florida at the moment is moving in a big way to these two neighborhoods. Craig Robins is planning a monster gallery on the corner of 39th and Biscayne, even. Then there's Museum Park which is east of the Entertainment District. The art scene, I predict, will be a very Biscayne Corridor affair.

I don't deny that there's more to life than living in nightclubs. I tend to spend a lot of time in them because it's my job and I enjoy the fringe benefits, some would say a little too much. I have easy access to alcohol and dirty girls.

I have no issues with the art walks and galleries and such. A lot of the time, such events have conflicted with my schedule of keeping this site running. But I think the fact that such events are happening in the area is a good indication of things.

People are getting me wrong here. I have no problem with South Beach. Sure, I rail against the petty, vapid bullshit that rules the roost from South Pointe to 23rd Street, but I guess if you're gonna do it, might as well do it there. They need a place to congregate and party, too. I have no issues with live bands either. If Hootie showed up in Miami, I'd go if a publication needed photos and agreed to pay for them (fair market value...magazines have their head up their ass with that) and agree to my terms. As much as Barbarino is claiming to be the voice of reason in this argument, he's going on what people tell him. Even though he's retired from going out to clubs, I still invite him out to events that I think would interest him. He'd be surprised to see that house music still is a draw, and done right will make money.

Bring on the live music, bring on the DJs, bring on the art walks. Miami's a tough nut to crack no matter what you're doing. Good luck.

[Guest coach]

Pod, the next one is October 13th. I'll drop you a text when we are on the way.

Tech/Talk, we've seen just as bad on SoBe, believe me. One time Annette saw a homeless man beating a homeless woman in the middle of Collins. She called the cops, of course. Neither here nor there, though. We all pick our own level of grit tolerance. And Wynwood is definitely grittier than South Beach.

As far as promoting these events, I kinda gave up a year ago. I got a few people to go to various things, the rest are just missing out. I only mention it because you brought it up, and you seem like someone who might actually be interested.

Not that I am downplaying the clubs, at all. We still hit those up with regularity, but to me, variety is the spice of life, and you don't get much spicier than Miami.

[Guest talknightlife]

As far as promoting these events, I kinda gave up a year ago. I got a few people to go to various things, the rest are just missing out. I only mention it because you brought it up, and you seem like someone who might actually be interested.

Museums and art galleries and performing arts centers are included in my definition of "nightlife". No matter what online venue I choose to hang out in, that stuff interests me at least as much as club kids and DJ worship. The EDM party looks like it's kind of petering out, and I'm thinking about moving on to a new venue where there's more arts/foodie/etc input and less raver input.

[Guest pod]

Trick is getting those people to input on a diversified community. I've noticed one thing that's epidemic in South Florida is the lack of inter-community respect in regards to people's choices in entertainment. Rock kids think dance music fans are homos, dance music fans think rock fans are rednecks, and the art crowd says 'fuck both of yous', and the hip-hop crowd will just plain kill you if you step out of line.

I prefer going to dance music events since it's what I love to shoot the most. The crowd and I get along the best, and that's my niche. Concerts are fun too, but I finish shooting a concert in about an hour (3-song limit...). I learned something at an art exhibit (oh my god, yes I went to an art exhibit tonight) and the featured photographer said "If you're not shooting what you love, just forget about it..."

But I'm rambling. I think for any sort of vibrant scene, everyone needs to at least tolerate other's choices. I don't begrudge anyone who goes to bed at 2 AM on a Saturday after going to a PAC event, I just want them not to begrudge me on the fact that sometimes I'll take it easy, wake up at 2 AM and trundle on down to my neighborhood mega-club. And go home at 10 AM. I've got a body of work that suggests a fair number of other people do too.

I think there's enough room online and offline, for everyone to do what they want to do for fun. And at the end of the day, isn't that why we go out at night?

[Guest talknightlife]

Trick is getting those people to input on a diversified community.

Isn't that the function of an online nightlife community?