The Family You Choose

#2 in an ongoing series from Junk Drawer contributor RW about his experience working at The Beachland Tavern in Cleveland, OH.

A jam band is playing in the ballroom. This means there are more blonde dreadlocks, hula hoops  and Cat in the Hat hats than usual at the Beachland tonight.

I'm working the door, checking ID's, making sure people can find the bathrooms and the bar, though not in that order. I wish I was working the Tavern though.

Night Sweats is headlining there (We have two venues, the intimate tavern and the ballroom). And I was hoping to get a look at  Bobbypins debut performance. They are the opener and consist of two regulars here at the club and one of our bartenders, Lyndsey. Actually both bands have staff members in them. Jeff, a manager here plays bass in Night Sweats.

 

No surprise really, club workers in bands. Terry and Melanie (a bartender and a manager) are thinking of forming a band simply because they are some of the few employees who aren't already in one. Of course, they're visual artists, so they're pretty darn close.

It's nice to see everyone supporting each other. Jeff supporting Lyndsey by inviting her band to open for his, the kitchen crew coming out after the kitchen closes to yell “Yes!!” at his band's every screaming punk riff.

A music club can become a bit of a family for the people working there – yes it's a fucked-up dysfunctional family, but what family isn't? The advantage, here at the Beachland at least, is that most every family member is connected by a love of music.

Night Sweats is singing a song called “Piss,” and everyone here feels like they are just where they belong.

What I Might Do - Take 3

Most of the time, simplicity rules.  As a debut single this is very, very impressive deep house with a real soulful feel.  

Granted, this is not my go-to genre of music.  I can't call myself a scholar or even a devout student.  But I like what I like and this is my blog so I am sharing it.  

Still, I almost would not have discovered this track due to poor visual choices. 

The first video for it was just meh.  Released over a year ago, if this video below had been my introduction to the track I might not have heard the whole song.   The video actually subdues the bounce which is too bad because it looked expensive to shoot.  

Maybe skip it and keep reading and come back to it at the end and you will see what I mean. 



Then in October of this year they released the next video below for the club edit.  The methodology, as astutely observed by one Youtube commenter, was "ass, ass everywhere".  

Again - it looks expensive but if this had been my introduction I honestly might have watched it to the end for the exquisite as..um...shots of Tel Aviv.  

But I still would have been unmoved by the music. This video keeps the viewer outside of the fun.  This video says - this song is not really for you.  

So again, maybe skip this video for now and come back to it if you want at the end. 



Thankfully, whoever is working with Ben Pearce believes in this track and they kept making videos for it.  THIS video below is the one I just saw yesterday and I have now listened to it ten times.  

The video makes you feel like you could be part of this party.  It doesn't look expensive - heck, a lot of it is out of focus - but it does look like a lot of fun and that is what I look for in a dance track. 

WATCH THIS ONE FIRST: 


If I am going get freaky, I want to know that other people are going to go there with me, right?  

Seriously, if this doesn't move something in your body you might want to reach for the oil can because you iz rusted. 

So thanks for going back to the drawing board for multiple takes, Ben Pearce. I want to come to your next party.  If you want to invite the surfer girls too that is okay by me.  Just don't forget to invite your friends Sophia Disgrace, Remi Black and that guy in the pink shirt that looks like my brother-in-law. Those are my people.