All Good Funk Alliance: Gettin’ Down with the Jacks of All Trades

Rusty Belicek and Frank Cueto of All Good Funk Alliance

Two-and-a-half years in the making, Jacks of All Trades is awesome news for those who pledge allegiance to the groove. Masters of groove, the All Good Funk Alliance prove without a doubt that today’s kings of soulful organic/electronic funk are based right here in DC. Frank Cueto and Rusty Belicek’s all new 13-track follow-up to… read more »

UNKNOWN PLEASURES: Classic Dance Vibes at One of the Coolest Bars in DC

Unknown Pleasures

If you’re in search of a party off the beaten track, “Unknown Pleasures” just might be for you. The brainchild of local deejay/producer/promoter Chris Price who hails from Newport News, “Unknown Pleasures” is a tribute to the legendary ‘70s/’80s New York underground Loft and Paradise Garage era dance parties. With the next installment of Unknown… read more »

Feliz Cumpleaños, Maracuyeah! Un Año, Baby!

DJ

DJ rAt’s megawatt smile is as stunning as DJ Mafe’s mirth is contagious. Both are encyclopedic in their musical knowledge and tastes, and generous in their praise of the artists they love, but most of all one is struck by their passion for parties as vehicles for expanding friendships and nurturing community. And in just… read more »

We Have Liftoff: Sunday Morning Airplay’s Long Awaited Launch

Photo by Jon Horvath

Fort Knox, KY may hold our country’s gold reserves, but Fort Knox Recordings does DC proud as one of America’s most respected musical mother lodes.   Never content to stick to one genre, the group re-imagines itself regularly to create new, exciting sounds. From this powerhouse has come spy-inspired drum ‘n’ bass (Thunderball) and funky dance… read more »

To ESL With Love: Maria “Jpeg” Izaurralde’s Valentine to the Eighteenth Street Lounge

ESL: The Photo Book. phot courtesy of Maria Izaurralde

MARIA “JPEG” IZAURRALDE’S VALENTINE TO THE EIGHTEENTH STREET LOUNGE When the world-renowned Eighteenth Street Lounge opened in 1995, “it felt like we were putting all of our chips on one number,” says Thievery Corporation’s Eric Hilton in his foreword to ESL: The Photo Book. Little did the young co-founders – Hilton, Farid Nouri and Yama… read more »

Roberto Gonzalez: Glow’s Resident DJ Spins Love and Light

DJ_RobertoG

Born in Arlington to Salvadorean parents who met in the US, Gonzalez grew up listening to his dad’s rock (Eagles, Aerosmith) and his mom’s Spanish music (merengue, cumbia). While attending Centreville High, his younger brother Javier started deejaying hip-hop. When Roberto got hooked on electronic dance music at the legendary Zei Club in DC, he… read more »

Jason Kidd Launches Area 955:DC’s First All-Dance Music Channel

Photo by Derrick Brazier

A 24-hour party has arrived for DC’s 24 hour party-people: Area 955 on WPGC’s HD2, DC’s first all dance music radio channel. The brainchild of WPGC’s program director Jason Kidd, Area 955 is a commercial-free international blend of pop and hip-hop flavored trance and house dance tracks. Kidd interned at Baltimore’s B104 WBSB-FM (Z104.3) as… read more »

Bringing Rhythm & Culture to DC: DJ Thomas Blondet

DJ Thomas Blondet, Courtesy of Maria “JPEG” Isaurralde

“Always smooth,” says house scene veteran Charles Gore about the set he just danced to by Thomas Blondet at the Eighteenth Street Lounge.  Gore has followed Blondet since the days of Club Red because “He’s one of those guys who does it just right.” “I always knew Tom was going to make it because he… read more »

The House Built by Chris Burns: He’s Got the Love

DJ_CBurns

U Street Music Hall is thick with vibes: sensual, soulful, playful, energetic. The Red Fridays crowd — young through middle-aged, racially and sexually diverse house heads — exudes unbridled joy in the eclectic disco-flavored groove emanating from a gyrating disc jockey with surfer dude hair. Fans bump fists with DJ Chris Burns and he grins… read more »

NUMBERNIN6, THERE IS A DOCTOR IN DA HOUSE

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Only one medical student in the world can boast over five million YouTube plays for a remix. That distinction belongs to Nishant Parikh, better known as NumberNin6, whose 2008 re-envisioning of The Prodigy’s “Breathe” is an international dubstep phenomenon. On Tap tracked down NumberNin6 (pronounced “Number Nine”) in Richmond, where he defies the laws of… read more »