The Phoenix Landing -- Drum n Bass and Wine Reviews

2/22/2004 04:26:01 PM:

Finally had a chance to check out a DnB night at a different city. It was Direct Drive (link ) in NYC, at a venue called "Rare", which has a door that looks like it leads to a meat freezer. It was refreshing to see a grass roots night other than Elements. It has a very similar feel, as most people seem to know each other, the place is small, and there is much intermingling between the DJs and the crowd. The stereo system is big, but the room is a bit too large for it, so it was only truly impressive at the very front of the dancefloor, where I spent most of my time. The room was also exceptionally dark; it was nearly impossible to see faces, which detracted from the experience a little bit. The DJs on tap were masterful, and their track selection was impeccable. They would hit the audince with a barrage of hard beats for a few minutes, but then chill it down and let the people take a breather. There was an MC for most of the night, and for a change I found him to actually improve the show. He wasn't talking excessively, and the things he said like "Welcome to all the out of town people" made me feel more at home. He was also amazingly good at the predicting the music and the DJs and steering his performance to match the beats. At times it seemed he was more in charge of the performance.
If you are in NYC, I highly recommend checking them out.

-pavel.