Local Love
I'm not sure if my exhortations here this column last year had anything to do with it, but it's nice to see the headlining DJ slots for the monthly Nitro parties at Circuit Night Club getting more of a local flavor to them. DJ Hugo got the nod back in October, Matthew Harvat programmed the beats just last month, and long-time Windy City favorite Teri Bristol is set to guide the 4th Annual Ice Ball at the end of this month. I love seeing powerhouse DJing names such as Rauhofer, Vasquez, and Moran come to town for Nitro, but there are plenty of Chicagoans who are just as worthy of steering this signature on-going event. Kudos to the powers that be at Circuit for showcasing local talent. Now it's up to the clubbers and party people in the city to come out and support their DJing homeboys and homegirls who get tapped for Nitro duty.

Homeless House in Boystown?
I routinely get folks complaining to me about how there really isn't a gay place "to dance" to house music in Boystown. These folks aren't talking about dance music of the pop & hip-hop remix variety or the progressive/tribal fare known as gay club music, but the type of straight-up house music that you can get down to on Mondays at Boom Boom Room @ Green Dolphin Street. Both Cocktail and Scarlet feature some of the top house DJs in the city - Serafini and Bain at the former, Psycho Bitch at the latter - but neither venue is truly a dancer-friendly environment (unless you are wearing a G-string). Hey folks, I don't know what to tell you. I'm just as frustrated by the lack of a true house music dance floor in Boystown, but Medusa's, Club LaRay, and Foxy's aren't coming back and the Frankie Knuckles Halsted Street DJ residency is a distant, and short-lived, memory. The current iterations of Berlin and Spin can kinda help scratch that house music itch, but dancing to "house music all night long!" you won't experience. At this point in time, if you're in Boystown and in dire need of the steady 4/4 beat of real house music, your closest and best outlet is the mostly straight Smart Bar on Clark Street, a long-time house haven. The line-up of DJs here really is impressive and some of those "straight" boys are prone to straying as both the lateness of the hour, and total number of beers they consume, grows. wink, wink

No Sea-Sickness Here
As you read this, I'll be walking around the city with a fresh tan thanks to a week just completed on an Atlantis Events Caribbean cruise. In conjunction with that cruise, the folks at Atlantis, with an assist from Silver Label, produced a 2-CD continuous mix. Called MOVE: Atlantis Dance 2009, it is an impressive effort mixed by London's DJ Wayne G. A follow-up to last year's impressive series debut by DJ Manny Lehman, this 2009 mix is even better in my estimation. Wayne G has expertly captured the diversity of music that is played at the various parties on the ship: Disc 1-Sunset with its cocktail sipping, T-Dance vibe; and Disc 2- Peak Hour simmering with energy and hard tribal heat.

The album includes several classics such as "Don't You Want My Love" by Rosabel featuring Debbie Jacobs; "Above The Clouds" and "Sexual," both by Amber; "Believe" by Murk; and "I Feel For You" by Bob Sinclar. Also found on the album are current floor-fillers "Looking For Men," another Rosabel track featuring Tamara Wallace; "Twisted" and "Automatic" by Ultra Naté; "Never" by Kristine W; and "Bleeding Love" sung not by Leona Lewis but by Jamie Knight. My fave track amidst this exceptional dance music compilation is the Twisted Dee Mix of "Chasing Cars" by Fawni. It is absolutely brilliant!

While yes, these mixes will surely serve as pleasant reminders to the 3,600 passengers who were on the cruise, MOVE: Atlantis Dance 2009 will also undoubtedly please legions of dance music fans that weren't on the ship. The album is available now via online retailers and will be in stores everywhere on February 17th.