Location: 216
Back to top
|
REVIEW
DJ Boy George, party without drugs
Posted 08:16pm (Mla time) May 10, 2005
By Pocholo Concepcion
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A2-2 of the May 11, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
SATURDAY night. For several hours I felt completely out of place at the NBC Tent of the Fort Bonifacio Global City, pacing back and forth and resolutely keeping boredom at bay while dance music slapped my chest and eardrums.
It was 10 p.m. and I was munching peanuts and sipping bottled water, deliberately avoiding the long list of booze at the bar. But this event was taxing my patience-and imperiling a vow to stay clean and sober.
I was there to catch a glimpse of George O' Dowd, more recognizable of course as Boy George of Culture Club fame. In the '80s, George shared the limelight with the rest of England's New Wave superstars that arose from the punk rock explosion on both sides of the Atlantic.
Now hear this: George is now a club DJ and, last Saturday, he was playing records with another jock named DJ Marc Vedo.
Friendly tip
Earlier, an old friend had briefed me on what to expect: "Forget the fact that Boy George was hooked on heroin; that was a long time ago. He's gone straight since and gained a reputation as a good DJ who's played at parties hosted by Prince Charles and Versace."
Old Friend walked in two hours after I had grown tired of watching a slow parade of kids in their 20s, most of them backslapping and engaging in small talk, others making a beeline for drinks, generally itching to put their dancing feet to work.
An hour past midnight, DJ Marc Vedo materialized on stage and started manning the sound decks. By this time, an older crowd had arrived: models in bare backs and minis, socialites, impresarios, radio station and club owners, record company executives, rock stars and others normally referred to as the "beautiful people."
Watching beautiful people provided an amusing distraction, and I almost missed out on the fact that Vedo had started doing great mixes. The secret to being a good DJ is having the skill to mix in a very recognizable song when the crowd least expects it.
In Vedo's hands, Michael Jackson's "Beat It," Jefferson Airplane's "Somebody To Love," Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing," Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," and Prince's "Sign o' the Times" came on seamlessly in the mix.
I inched closer to the stage for a better look at the dancing crowd. I could count with my fingers those who were really letting their hair down; the rest were content nodding their heads or swaying their butts for a few seconds before stopping and looking at each other. Either they were timid... or just waiting for George.
Gentlemanly
And boy, was I tempted to go home. He didn't show up till 3 a.m.
When he finally did, the crowd erupted in cheers. The former cross-dressing singer of the hits "Karma Chameleon," "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me" and "Love is Love," among others, looked rather gentlemanly in a black fedora and suit over a printed shirt.
Everyone was naturally waiting to see what he would put in the mix. I half-expected it would be one from the '80s. I was not disappointed. Soon enough, the bopping synthesizer grooves in Depeche Mode's "Just Can't Get Enough" was heard amid shouts of "Yeooow ...whoa!!!"
At that instant, I was reviving the moves I remembered doing at Where Else, On, Lost Horizon and other "discos" of a half-forgotten era. I must confess that the last time I tried entering dance clubs four years ago, I felt like an oddball, not knowing how to respond to a stranger girl strung out on ecstasy and hugging me like a long-lost friend.
Saturday night, Boy George seemed to me like a long-lost friend egging me to party-without the drugs.
http://news.inq7.net/entertainment/index.php?index=1&story_id=36578
_________________ TITS
|
|