Raising the bar

It's 12:30 a.m. Saturday night -- technically Sunday morning -- and two stories above Fremont Street, hipsters with back-combed hair, skinny jeans and an air of ironic disaffection gather around the bar and tables inside Brass Lounge for the debut of a new weekly party, "Tarnished." From behind a raised platform, DJ Mezzi spins a slamming mix of house, electro and indie dance music. Though a few kids are shaking their groove things on the tiny dance floor abutting the DJ platform, most of the lounge's 75 to 100 patrons are scattered in corners or on the patio overlooking the tourist action below, drinking, smoking, chatting, flirting, whatever. Some hips shake, some heads bob, but for the most part, "Tarnished" is your typical Fremont Street hipster hoedown: Despite unbeatable music, there's a lot of posing but not a lot of fun.

One of the promoters and DJs of this new event, Jesse Alonzo, aka DJ ABOM, probably had higher expectations in mind before he and his fellow mix masters -- including headliner act L.A. Riots -- settled in behind their laptops and turntables: The barely 21-year-old party-thrower desperately wants people to dance, drink and get loose. Alonzo is relatively new to the Las Vegas indie party scene, moving to the valley a little more than a year ago, after spending two years traveling the country doing revamps for American Apparel stores.

"I stopped here and met a bunch of people who are into the whole scene," Alonzo says. "They wanted to do something that would be more dancey, and I said, 'Hey, I'm up for DJing.' And I threw a party at my house. It was three weeks after I moved here. I was amazed at how many people showed up. It was crazy. That was kind-of my first DJ gig, the first time putting myself out there."

Alonzo got into DJing on a whim. He was always a fan of electronic music, but it wasn't until the Los Angeles native decided to plug his laptop into the audio input in the American Apparel van and mix music for his co-workers that Alonzo even tried his hand at DJing. "I really loved DJs," he says. "I loved their style -- I wanted to take it and make it my own."

With his new scene friends that helped make that first house party such a success, Alonzo formed PAF -- Punk as Fuck -- as a brand to promote the types of parties he perceived Vegas was lacking.

"I want to make the scene grow, make it bigger," he says. "I want to bring the Los Angeles vibe here. You have to bring culture here in an innovative way, because people don't pay attention."

In April, PAF launched a monthly party at Café Ba Ba Reeba at the Fashion Show mall, "Never Be Alone." Alonzo says the inaugural event -- an 18-over affair -- was a success, drawing 400 to 500 people and lasting until after 4 a.m. Unlike some DJ residencies at bars and restaurants, PAF takes over the entire venue after its diners clear out, maximizing the party atmosphere. The next installment of "Never Be Alone," on May 10, will feature headlining DJ Roccanova, but the minimum age has been kicked up to 21, a result of some "issues" Alonzo was reluctant to reveal.

PAF's newest endeavor is taking place in the Canyon Club, the Four Queens venue perhaps best known for its rock shows. On May 23, Alonzo and company are bringing New York DJ crew Designer Drugs to headline an 18-over party there that will also feature ABOM and fellow PAFers Bone Machine and Le Frenk. Based on the mediocre response to "Tarnished" -- it ultimately drew 130 people -- it remains to be seen what Alonzo and his crew will do to truly set apart their parties from the rest of the indie party scene.

"We're flying out DJs from Chicago and New York -- big DJs," says Alonzo. "We're telling the scene what to listen to. PAF is going in a total different direction. We just want to bring out banging DJs -- strictly dance, strictly drink -- real parties. Not like going to see a band, but actually dancing, having some fun, getting crazy, like walking into a tornado and then coming out all fucked up."

Pj Perez » pjperezvegas@gmail.com

NEWS AND NOTES

The Vegoose is cooked! The verdict is in and the long-weekend Halloween music fest will not be happening this year. Chalk it up to heavy competition on the American festival circuit and mediocre ticket sales for its 2006 and 2007 events. ... Jet is getting ballsy. Starting May 15, the Mirage megaclub will be open on Thursday, arguably the most popular weeknight in local nightlife. If that wasn't competitive enough, it now faces a challenger on Mondays in the form of Lava Lounge, at Trader Vic's. On May 12, the newly imagined space inside Planet Hollywood's Miracle Mile Shops kicks off its free Monday ultralounge promo, "Hot Lava" (grand opening: May 26), promising real house music to boot. We shall see. ... "Teatro Afterhours" is no longer holding weekly parties. The promo, held in the former Krave Lounge, went on hiatus three weeks ago -- "It wasn't doing what it needed to do," says promoter Pedi Amiri -- and will soon reemerge as a monthly party. For updates, check www.myspace.com/teatrovegas. ... UNLV's Liberace Jazz Quartet scored top honors at the 46th Annual Reno Jazz Festival, competing against 17 top university combos from the western states. ... Sean Kingston and DJ Matthew Sullivan perform a free concert at 10 p.m. May 14 at Empire Ballroom. Get tickets at www.samsungsoundcheck.com; must be 21. ... On June 21, Gnarls Barkley, Thievery Corporation and Bebel Gilberto will take the stage at Mandalay Bay Beach. Tickets are $75. ... The "livetronica" of Cultra Lounge has relocated to the Aruba's Thunderbird Lounge every Tuesday. Meanwhile singer-songwriter showcase "Resodence" has moved to first and third Thursdays (DJ XMS's "Tech-Funk Thursdays" fills in the gaps). Events get underway at 10 p.m.; there's no cover, but you must be 21. ... Escape the Fate have officially welcomed singer Craig Mabbit -- formerly of Phoenix, Ariz., band Blessthefall -- into the ranks, and begun work on a second album slated for a fall release. ... Which noteworthy DJs are visiting the clubs this week? Texas-cum-L.A. prog man D:Fuse spins May 10 at Empire Ballroom's afterhours party; Miami's Roccanova headlines May 10 at Cafe Ba Ba Reeba's "Never Be Alone" (see above article); on May 11, electroclash king Larry Tee visits Playboy Club's "Sunday After Dark"; May 13 sees San Fran mash-up DJ Solomon and Chicago house legend Frankie Knuckles (see page 36) playing different rooms at Moon; and tech-trance DJ Deadmau5 returns to May 14 for Body English's "Godskitchen."

News and Notes is compiled by "Poizen" Ivy Hover. Send items of lurid gossip and shameless self-promotion to ihover@lvcitylife.com.