A few Friday nights back, I traded my denim jacket concert uniform for a black tank top to follow Moon Boots to the club for a DJ set, and boy am I glad I did.
Moon Boots, aka Pete Dougherty, is a long time friend of The Danger!Sound, dating back to when Ray would do photo shoots for Pete’s former band, Hey Champ. We were able to take Pete and another DJ pal of his, the opener for his Independent show, Richard, aka Panic Bomber, to one of our favorite spots for dinner in the city, Izakaya Kou, just across the street from the Fillmore.
I’m sure we looked every bit the part of the affable crew of scruffy, creative-looking types we are, deep in conversation about shared concerts and the music business. A carafe of sake, a pitcher of Sapporo, and all the gyoza and sashimi our hearts could desire later, we were in a Lyft to the venue, 1015 Folsom, nicely drunk and ready to watch Pete do his thing (and dance the night away).
We piled into the small green room on 1015’s 3rd floor, where, lit by the solitary lights from the vanity, and spurred on by the case of Coronas they generously provided to us, the shenanigans continued, joined by another of Pete’s buddies, the impeccably dressed and sweet Nick, aka N2N.
We found ourselves finally overlooking the main floor, watching the opener finish up, Pete bouncing excitedly to my right asking “What should I start with? Should I ease ‘em into it?” He sounded like a kid in a candy shop, and I was reminded how incredible it is to find yourself around people living their passions, soaking in their creative energy. Next thing I knew, he had bounded down the stairs, and Richard, Nick and I slid our way through the grooving club-goers to claim our spot front and center of the stage.
The rest is a blur backed by a series of masterfully crafted and organized tracks. Coming off of Pete’s set at the Independent with his live band, I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I can genuinely say he provided a rollicking, energetic soundtrack to an amazing night for the entire audience. Backed by his pounding beats, the infectious energy never dimmed, the emphatic dancing never wavered, and the drunk girls who somehow found their way onstage through the opener just kept having a better time, judging everyone who was not on as elevated and holy a podium as they. I fell over backwards and the whole thing was captured on camera. I digress.
I woke up the next morning and realized I had successfully stayed out ’til 2AM, and ENJOYED it, all because of our good buddy Pete. He made us get out there, live a little, and shake all that boogie out of our systems. After all, isn’t that the mark of a successful DJ these days? They give our dark worlds a magical, futuristic sheen from the time they step to the podium, and we can only thank them for embracing and creating one of the futures of modern music.