Occasionally, we have a night so stacked that we can’t decide where to go. Normally, this tends to happen overseas, so this was a welcome rarity for a night out in Houston. We chugged an energy drink, put on our most comfy dancing shoes, and headed out into the great (warehouse district) beyond.
First Stop – DEFUNKT X Cactus Bath Hurricane Relief Benefit
We arrived at this party a little after 1030pm, ready to start our night. Before we even walked in the door, we ran into familiar faces and the sweet sounds of DnB softly echoing from the interior. This last minute addition to our Friday night, was by far the surprise of the weekend.
When we walked into this newly occupied venue (by the Fifth World Collective), we were greeted with art installations peppered throughout the space. We grabbed a cup of at the illuminated bar, and skipped off to the dance floor. The music was awesome and artfully mixed, but we couldn’t help but be delightfully distracted by the rest of the installations. The dancefloor and DJ booth were transformed into the flagship piece of the night – a 3D cladding over the booth and a giant geometric head that were used as a screen for some creative constant visuals. Color us impressed.
Outside, there was an open painting mural wall, and a mini art market with some impressive live painting. This just topped off this awesome vibe that we were just swimming in at this point. If we hadn’t already made plans to make it to the next event, we probably wouldn’t have left. Kudos to the DEFUNKT team for pulling this event off last minute in this super cool space.
Stop #2 – Kinda Super Disco | Moon Boots | Harvey Relief Event
The last time we saw Moon Boots was at Spring Awakening in Chicago, tucked away at one of the side stages. We had a great time there, and had high hopes to ride that wave again. We got to The Secret Group as Josh Dupont and James Reed were still on the decks. We always enjoy their sets, either as a standalone, or as an opener. We rounded up friends, grabbed more beverages, and worked our way to the front of the dance floor.
Like the name would presume, Moon Boots (aka Pete Dougherty) is one bouncy dude, with his curly bangs flopping around enthusiastically. We couldn’t help but catch some of this contagious energy, both from his music, and from his direct energy. Plus, his tracks are just SO GOOD, it’s almost a crime to not dance to it – you can’t help getting surrounded by his warm and groovy soundscape. Paired with a beautiful venue, a sweet balcony view of downtown, and running into loads of old friends, we had a fucking blast. When we left shortly before closing (2:45 maybe?), we were so tired from dancing, our legs felt like giant jelly poles, wobbling furiously towards our Lyft.
P.S.: if you haven’t checked out Moon Boot’s new album, First Landing, DO IT. So good.
Stop #3 – Techno Club Showcase at WAYS HTX
Somewhere around 3something AM, our very nervous driver helped us locate the venue, tucked away in a large group of very empty and dark warehouses. We skipped of to the door, only to find that the cover was cash only, as we’d apparently tipped away our last dollar. After a quick sprint to an ATM, we hopped inside.
We’ve been to the physical location of Techno Club in New Orleans, and had a freaking blast. With a dance floor barely bigger than our living room, we were blown away by the packed dance floor, friendly staff, and awesome music. Although this was a totally different venue, we rode that same vibe there. There was a great diverse crowd for an afterhours spot so far from the beaten path. The DJs were on point, and the techno was dark and booming. We needed this, as this was a little slice of underground heaven that we missed.
We danced the best we could with our jelly legs, until we got to the point that we simply couldn’t wobble anymore, which was somewhere a little before sunrise. We wobbled off to a car, and rode off into the dawn.
Stay tuned for an album of our adventures to follow!
Journalist/blogger since 2009 and music lover since 1980. Bex now travels the world and writes and takes photos of dance events, creates art in various media, sings quietly to her cat in the shower, and occasionally builds something that tends to involve a blowtorch. She can usually be seen hiding behind some sort of camera rig.
