7.17.2004Plexi's Last Dance :: Filter 14Filter 14 probably closing Such heartbreaking news...to hear that beloved Filter 14 will be closing on July 20th. So this Friday was the last dance for Plexi - the last Plexi party ever at Filter 14! After 3 years & 3 months of Plexi parties, it's a bitter pill to swallow. The loss of something more than a club, but a home for music heads and clubbers in the post-Twilo era. More so than Centro-Fly, more so than Arc - Filter 14 is the club closing that affects my clubbing sensibilities the most. Filter 14 was a haven of quality music with a no-frills atmosphere of drunkenness and camaraderie. The many nights of Plexi. A group of us started with an idea, inspired by our nights at Twilo and wanting to create that same energy and music elsewhere. We landed at ReBar on Eight Avenue for a couple months and after they closed for renovations we found Filter 14. It was a dark, bare-boned space but we saw lots of potential. From a promoter's perspective, there really is no place like it. We had a great sound system, an honest owner & great staff that were actually fun to work with, and an anything goes ethos as long as we were still having fun. I've seen boobs & more, I've seen licking, I've seen things I can't even speak of in the downstairs bathroom. I've had many "meetings" with fellow cohorts in "my office" downstairs and I've shared many a dance with you on the dance-floor occasionally stealing a peak up at my favorite lighting guy. One of my most poignant memories is Trendroid's debut party which was scheduled for 9-13-2001 but of course we couldn't go on because of what had just transpired two days before. Drs. Matt & Pankaj were actually working at St Vincent's then and the overall trauma made it impossible on so many levels. After much debate we went on with it two weeks later and it was a special night for friends to come together and grieve, mourn, listen to music and most of all just to be together. Uniquely for a dance club, Filter was that kind of place. On another memorable night in March 2004 [Although not a Plexi party], days after the war in Iraq broke out, Kats Imai played the original version of John Lennon, "Imagine" and it captivate the entire club in show-stopping fashion; people from outside pured into the main room to stop, listen and reflect. It was a magical moment where anything seemed possible. People are still talking about that night. We've also tasted at Filter 14 with treats from piñatas and birthday cakes, and lots of champagne. Even crudités and peanuts when the mood would strike. I've celebrated my 27th, 28th and 29th birthday there. Now, I'm a little distraught about where to host the big 3-0?!? Plexi parties with Tribe Trix on visuals, Kageki on lights, Jordanna & Sandra at the door, Hattie the manager, Jason & Alison on bar duties, Tommy the owner presiding over it all and a rotating cast of DJs that were the very best of New York City. That's what Plexi was about, its mission was to showcase the abundance of NYC-based DJs and talent. We tried to follow the maxim, if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. After all, Filter 14 is quintessential New York. Thanks to Matt Licata (112 Crew) & Gaby Dershin (Astro&Glyde) for making this last Plexi night special. Matt owns that room, more so than any of his 112 cohorts. His big sound in the small room is all encompassing and does the sound system justice. We'll miss him, as much as he'll miss playing that room. And although Gaby may not have played at Filter 14 quite as often, the sentiment was overflowing with a remix / sampling of Madonna [from Like a Prayer] "feels like home..." That's what Filter 14 is...it feels like home...  posted on 12:20 PM |