Remember when you were a little kid and there just seemed to be absolutely nothing to do? You would walk around sighing, lamenting your existence because life was so damn dull. Remember what your mom, clearly oblivious to your utter unhappiness, used to give as “advice”? Let me refresh your memory—”Make your own fun!” Interestingly enough, Mom’s words are coming back to haunt all the indie rock kids, because kids are sick of moping (Chris Carraba eat your heart out). We just want to dance … and maybe do some lines.
Not willing to wait for another three weekends to pass before a decent band decides to drive through? Those with the motivation are flipping through their Case Logics, making playlists and getting on the decks—CD decks, that is. Either way, it’s catching on, and not just in your best friend’s bedroom.
Around D.C., numerous clubs have jumped on the wagon. Indie dance parties began to appear a few years ago at places such as the Metro Caf? and the Black Cat and took off from there. The indie rockers came, danced, got sweaty and made friends. Such popularity gave way to different dance theme nights that were incorporated into the regular rotation. What originated as Mousetrap, a Britpop dance party, soon spun off into the Crybaby Fest, where the Smiths and Cure duke it out on the turntables and scenesters get down on the checkered tile.
While the Crybaby Fest might bring out Smiths and/or Cure fanatics whose uncanny Morrissey and Robert Smith impressions could land them spots on American Idol, Mousetrap inevitably draws a larger crowd. Unlike the rest of the dance parties at the Black Cat, it is held in the larger upstairs room, which allows its participants a chance to climb onstage and dance in the spotlight. Mousetrap’s music varies from the Kinks to the Jam to Badly Drawn Boy to Ladytron. The huge room can get rather smoky at times and faceplants after slipping on the beer-covered floor are not uncommon. But at $5; it makes a great soundtrack to an evening.
Other variations on this theme include Bliss, an indie pop dance party and Dollhouse, an industrial goth dance party where the costumes are just as good as the music, both located at the Black Cat. Recent trial additions to the Black Cat’s dance party lineup are the self-explanatory Eighties Mayhem Night and Girl Friday, where a women’s collective spins all the records.
Don’t think your dancing shoes are just limited to the Black Cat. Red, located south of Dupont circle, hosts Spilt Milk, a dance party orchestrated by D.C.’s own Ian Svenonius (formerly of the Make Up). Though Red’s typical music is house, every other Tuesday Mr. Svenonius has been known to play indie rock and, on occasion, some old-school soul.
The Black Cat is located at 1811 14th St., N.W. Red can be found at 1802 Jefferson Pl., N.W.
