Ahh...yes. We're spooky. After all, our tag line was always "The Darker Side Of The 70's and 80's" right? But what does that really mean? What does it mean to you? What do you think we're all about?
Just before we started Dark Sparkle back in June of 1999, Margo came up to me and discussed a new club that she was starting with a couple of partners. While short on specifics, the one thing that she knew she wanted to do was break away from the electro/techno/industrial hybrid that had become the standard of all "goth" clubs in town and do something a bit more old school. It was rare that you would hear anything but the same old same old no matter where you went. About the only thing to differentiate one club from another would be the venue. Maybe some of you remember, probably most of you don't. Eventually she asked me if I would like to be involved, with the promise that I would be able to play Marc Almond whenever I wanted...I was in.
With the addition of Tony Havoc, we had three distinctly different DJ's and no real set course for where we were going. We knew that we wanted to blend a little deathrock, a little glam, some elements of cabaret and just about everything else that influenced both our lives growing up and the artists and genres of music today. Mainly, we wanted to do something different.
Margo had worked on clubs of her own in the past such as Mass. Tony had done Catacombs amongst other countless projects. I had helped out in the latter days of a club named Bedlam and had been DJing regularly at a fetish club named Slick. We were all mainly from a deathrock/ethereal/gothic/industrial background as far as clubs were concerned, but here was our chance to play the music we loved. ALL of the music we loved. We were excited.
Opening night...we're driving in the car...
"So the darker side of the 70's and 80's...are we supposed to be playing KISS all night or something?"
"I don't know...we'll just play whatever. It'll all work out."
I'm not sure if we played any KISS that night, but we broke out the Bowie, T. Rex and Rolling Stones and mixed it with healthy doses of Bauhaus, Specimen and Siouxsie.
Big deal you say? Everyone does that right? Well...not in 1999 (and our dancefloor usually reflected it)!
I think it took a good 2 years before we graduated from being basically a lounge where people would drink and just hang out to being a full fledged dance club. Don't get me wrong, we were happy with that. It was freeing. Not having to worry about a dancefloor meant that we were really free to branch out and just play music we liked. There were no boundries. We really came into our own during that time and developed a sound...a mood. As a DJ there's almost always more satisfaction in having someone say "I can't believe you're playing this. I haven't heard this song in years" or "I've never heard this in a club before."
As time went on we started evolving. We lost some people along the way, we gained some people. Tony and I had always had a love of punk and big dumb metal. We played it. Margo had always loved big band and classic vocalists. She played them. Sometimes it worked, sometimes not...but who cared? Everyone was having fun.
Probably the biggest change in Dark Sparkle came when we started introducing more and more of the new wave/post punk/indie/whateverthefuckyouwannacallit elements into the club. Was it a calculated change? No. Nothing we did ever had a set plan. I grew up listening to KROQ in LA and watching Night Flight and countless other video programs on TV. A true child of the 80's, I started playing more and more of the forgotten classics (well at least in my mind) that no one EVER played out (yes that includes other 80's clubs of the time). We searched voraciously for new (old) music.
Now we had a problem. What were we? A goth club? An 80's club? A punk, rockabilly or psychobilly hangout? Seems you can never please everyone. We didn't want the 80's fans in dockers to take over and scare the rest of the kids away, but we also had no desire to live with the gothic/industrial tag for the rest of our lives. It was never what we set out to do anyway. We wanted to play what we liked and hoped that you would all come along for the ride. After all, no one I know listens to just one type of music. Do you?
Fuck scenes and genres. Here was a club where you could finally check your preconcieved notions and attitude at the door (or with Niki for $1).
So everything seems fine right? Well, we had one last hurdle...
"The Darker Side Of The 70's And 80's"
While initially a handy tool to let people know what they might expect at the club, it's now become the albatross around our neck.
For one thing, we're hardly dark all the time. We're too silly for that. We actually like to have fun and our playlist usually reflects it.
We also play music that ranges anywhere from the 20's to something released yesterday. It all depends on our mood and your requests. You know how we do it by now right? It's always still Dark Sparkle.
Wait a minute, you thought we only played old stuff? No, we play new music too (if you haven't noticed by now).
There came a time a few years ago when I remember asking Margo "What's the difference between playing a song that Iggy recorded in 1977 to one released last week?" It's all about the music...the sound...the feeling. It's about playing what we like. So yes, you'll hear a lot of older music at Dark Sparkle. Is it because we have to? No. It's because it's what we like. You'll also hear a lot of newer music at Dark Sparke. Why? Because it's what we like. Theres a lot of amazing music that's emerged in the last few years and we feel we shouldn't limit ourselves and you by not playing it. We have no desire to become stagnant and merely live in the past. We embrace our history, but live firmly in the present with our eyes (and ears) looking toward the future. Is it still the "darker" side? Well, yeah. Just look at us for fuck's sake! Look at our playlists!
With the launch of Dark Sparkle Radio in 2004 we received another new tool in getting the music we love out to the world. The radio station is listened to by people all over the globe and it's exciting to look at the stats and get a real time indication of what music people like and what they don't. We use the radio station as a launching pad for new music to play at the club as well, so tune in and let us know what you think!
In closing, it's cool to see how the club scene has changed in San Francisco. There's a lot more diversity now. We'd like to think that (if even just a little) we've maybe helped play a part in it. Though it's sad to see so many old clubs and venues go, we're happy (and suprised) that we're still here. Most of all we're happy that you still want us here. After all these years it's satisfying to feel that people finally get us. I'll never get tired however of seeing that shocked face every now and then that says "I can't believe they're playing this."
We've still got a few tricks up our sleeves.
Stick around...
P.S. We still won't play requests for VNV Nation.
