From Kent Williams Sent Mon, Feb 8th 1999, 15:46
From Kent Williams Sent Mon, Feb 8th 1999, 15:46
Terrence Parker brought the funk to Iowa City last night. He played at Gabe's, which was at or over it's capacity of 300 souls. I could go on about scratches, spins, flares and the like, but they were just tools for Terrence -- ways to keeping the crowd moving with peak efficiency. What strikes me about the best DJ's I've seen spin is that what makes them the best is the way they can stamp their own personality on the simple act of playing records. Spinning becomes with them their part of a two way conversation with the people on the dance floor. When we opened the backstage door to let some air in, a roiling cloud of sweat-steam came out of the door. The floor and walls were slick with condensation, and TP had to wipe the sweat from the vinly with a towel. Out on the dance floor you could feel the concrete floor bouncing with the crowd. I worry sometimes about the dancefloor collapsing there and killing a bunch of old hippie alcoholics in the bar downstairs, but so far it's holding together. Terrence also distinguished himself as being officially one of the nicest guys in show biz, at least in how he interacted with the dozens of people who wanted to meet him. A constant theme was his praise for our local scene, and encouragement to keep it up. Now I don't presume to know someone after talking to him for a few hours, but TP seemed to me to bring with him a lot of love and respect for the music and the fans. The local talent also on the bill definitely seemed fired up by the size and enthusiasm of the crowd. Nate Unique started off the evening in his first Gabe's appearance. Nate is 17 years old, and actually was responsible for getting TP here, through an e-mail connection. Nate's set had a few rough spots -- first time mixing in the sonic battlefield and all, but as he said, he's got no where to go but up. Tristan Watkins put on a very smooth set of dubby minimal techno, with some very tasty tracks from the new monolake sneaking in. Tristan is one of the first local DJ's to make a name for himself here with his show on the U of Iowa college radio station KRUI. He is as experienced on the decks as Nate is green, and he was working the groove on three tables at once. He's been on the down low for the past 2 years or so, so it's great to see him playing out again. Itchy & Scratchy is the tag team moniker for the show's promoters, Vince and Richie. They play on 4 turntables with Vince spinning drum and bass and Richie scratching. They've been working on this routine for a few months, and they're really starting to gel. I think that a little scratching goes a long way with uptempo stuff like techstep -- the scratches can be a little like being sprayed with an Uzi if they're up too high in the mix. But last night they seemed to have the formula right. Josh Barnes from the Quad Cities played a live set from his computer to finish off the night. Josh is a scene mainstay going back a few years, and his new tracks are very tastey, loopey house stuff. One track in particular (which samples "Always" by Stevie Wonder) really stuck in my head as a nice piece of work that had the crowd going off. All I kept thinking all night was where else you going to see a show like this for $5?