Month: January 2024

Jan 26th in the 505

There are very few cities on this rave planet that can match what I seem to always experience here in the 505, and it’s almost impossible to explain. A feeling more than anything.

An understanding that there will be cities that go on for blocks that seem to never end, and then some have everything happening in one spot, all at once. Giving the people the chance to be a part of it together.

That’s exactly what’s happening tomorrow January 26th downtown as multiple clubs will be playing music from different parts of this culture we love so much. A culture constantly growing that wants only for us to grow with it.

To start, over at the El Rey Mezz we have the 505 Junglists crew doing more than just playing music and having fun; they are also developing a community of their own.

Through the combination of art, music, and creation they return with Rewind: A drum and bass experience with a lineup from their roster of versatile selectors that includes Matt Sensi, DNDY, Guy-L and Jayzo G MC.

This time is a bit special, though, as they have a very rare DnB set taking place by the maestro of New Mexico, the Rev, which is reason enough to go by.

Also included will be vendors like the NM Rave Cave, a cool spot committed to supplying the 505 with the best rave gear, and if you bring a blanket you will get $5 off entry, a great way of showing the charitable and generous side of what is a very wonderful gathering of the jungle crew every month.

If your style is more house another option just down the road at Effex nightclub is part three of a four-part series Mr. Afterhours Presents is currently right in the middle of, as they have turned the Effex lounge into a 360-degree House Sessions experience that continues to showcase the best DJs the 505 has to offer.

This edition will include a DJ just back from the Ship, also known as the Friendship, with Aaron Bliss playing alongside perhaps the most versatile DJ in New Mexico, Xblyssid.

The combination of the two is sure to create a one-of-a-kind night that will keep you warm as we slowly move away from these winter months and closer to the heat of the summer we love so much.

The commitment by all involved towards growing and building house music in New Mexico must not be overlooked as they are only gaining steam with every show. I know this one will be next level.

And finally, the show of the night, for me at least, takes place at Sister Bar just across the street from the other two as Adobe Disco celebrates five years of the best disco and house you will find here in the 505.

To celebrate they bring Chicago house mega legend Derrick Carter out for what we lovingly call Derrick does Disco, where he plays that beautiful Chicago disco sound that changed the world and saved so many of us foolish fools looking for something to believe in.

Derrick doesn’t just play house music, he also is it. A living, walking, representation of everything house is, when he plays it’s more like a musical lecture from a Ph.D. professor than anything.

He is teaching us house music, and as one of the people who will be on the dance floor this weekend, I can’t tell you how excited I am for this one. It is truly an honor to welcome Derrick back to NM, where Sister Bar will be jumping with music, laughter, and love all night long.

So please, go early, stay late, and whatever dancefloor you choose to bop on this Jan 26th, just promise me it’s exactly where your heart wants to be, and that’s enough for me.

See you on the dancefloor, dear friends.

Let’s see where it takes us this year.

I’d also like to add a special note acknowledging that the NM community lost a great person in Nicole/Nico Candeleria aka DJ Nicolatron, who was loved by many and will be missed dearly both this weekend and many more after. Please dance in honor of those we lost, as we have to cherish every moment we have together since we never know when it will be our last. RIP DJ Nicolatron. The dancefloor will not be the same without you.

House Proud

I haven’t always been the biggest fan of living here in the 505. I won’t ever deny that one. Born in San Diego, the son of a sailor, I viewed this desert wasteland as exactly that, a wasteland.

How could I find beauty in something I could never be? Such a foolish question for a young man to ask. Such an easy answer for an old man to give.

What I ultimately always come back to is the fact that if I don’t like it here, why have I stayed so long? Why did I marry a girl from here? Why am I raising my children here? Why have I committed so completely? And I suppose the answer is simple. Pride.

Pride in one’s surroundings. Pride in one’s people. Pride in one’s beginnings. Which is what I have learned to have for this, my city. Pride in the 505. Pride that can best be expressed through my connection with house.

It’s everywhere I turn. Out in the streets, in the clubs and bars, even some warehouses here and there. The music just carries on with the city. Interweaving itself into the parts of this place we seem to love so much.

But that’s the thing about house music. Just like the 505 and also like I, it has grown over the years. Changed. Evolved. Expanded. Which is why we have to do our part to keep it alive.

And how do we do that? By going to the show, of course.

House lovers have the chance to do that again on the dance floor this weekend as some of my favorite DJs in New Mexico are gathering for what they so affectionately call House Proud.

Started by House music masters Vettaluv and the Rev, House Proud welcomes local favorites to share their sound and style, and this time they have Davy jones and At_One joining them for a take over of the el Rey Mez to keep things bumping in the night.

Each one has proven themselves as true representatives of where house music lives and their pride shows in every track they play. I have no doubt they will carry that sound again the way only the 505 can do.

House music all night long for only $5. I don’t think there’s much more needed to be said than that.

Good people playing good sounds in a good vibe. It’s exactly what the 505 does to keep that spirit alive.

So go early, stay all night long, and remember to show your pride, for house and also for my dear love, the 505.

See you on the dancefloor.

Link to Event Page

Xkota 2.0

I feel it fair and honest to admit to you now that the DJs I favor are not the ones whose sound or even genre I like the most. In fact, I don’t even think it’s about style or songs played either. It’s something else, I suppose. A trait I see in them. A change. Can they evolve, and have they evolved since the last time I heard them?

Isn’t that the point of all of this? Can this change you? Will you let it? Do you have the power to change it as well? Not everybody can do that. But when you do find people who can evolve, it’s suddenly so inspiring.

Which is exactly why I feel the need to write something about a DJ here in New Mexico who I feel is evolving more and more with every song, every trip, and every chance she gets to play her techno. Xkota. The current techno queen of New Mexico.

Ever since her trip to Chicago I can sense the change in her. The drive is stronger. The passion is more obvious. The doubt is gone. Xkota knows her talent, and although that was never in question, I do feel those around her can see what’s happening right now, and how for this specific DJ, there appears to be no limit.

https://on.soundcloud.com/u4A58gaEqvuMpfp59

Fresh of her high energy performance playing at the electric playhouse alongside the one they call Sara Landry, Xkota is ready to take the reins on where techno in New Mexico goes next.

This weekend she will be bringing her own New Mexico techno sound to the el Rey mezzanine for a very intimate and exclusive night of music and magic as part of Mr Afterhours Presents commitment to the local scene here in New Mexico, and the djs who keep this culture going so well.

There’s really no comparison to what djs who are a part of any local scene actually contribute, since they are the ones out there the most. Supporting each other, playing the sound that constantly evolves, keeping the beat and the spirit alive.

All you can do is respect how much Mr Afterhours Presents is supporting the djs here in New Mexico with giving them a stage, and I’m very happy to see Xkota given a chance to show where she is with both her sound and evolution at this moment and this place.

Opening for her will be Atmoze, who’s playing a rare techno set, setting the stage for what will be yet another night of that vibe we love so much.

Tickets are only 13 bucks right now, and as always the sound system will be bumping, the visuals will be proper, and the el Rey will be hot and sweaty, a respectable environment for some techno on a cold winter night surrounded by friends on the dancefloor.

So please, go early, and you better stay late to hear every single moment of what we call Xkota 2.0.

See you at the techno show, dear friends.

Tickets to the Techno show