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| Lindy: WCLX 9 |
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| on Wednesday, October 17, 2007 - 06:00 AM - 1181 Reads |
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The 9th Windy City Lindy Exchange started strong and had a weaker finish, but included incredible dances and experiences with great dancers and friends. An overall excellent weekend of dancing.
This year's Chicago Exchange was my 32nd Lindy Exchange. By Saturday night I was preparing to call it one of my all-time favorites. Very unfortunately, Sunday didn't go very well (mostly the music). Still this was a very inspiring and motivating weekend for me. After several years of feeling like my dancing has stagnated, I can finally evaluate my dancing as the best it has ever been. Part of this is invariably the exchange magic, where the surrounding vibe amplifies your enjoyment of the dancing. I also attribute some of my improved dance ability to a private I took with Bill Borgida a few months back. I love the confidence that comes with feeling yourself dancing well.
Read on for full review of the weekend...
Venues
Like last year, the venues at this event were excellent.
Iron Studios is a great find. One of the best late night venues I've seen in any city anywhere. Great floor, great size, great vibe. That said, I don't think it made for the best Friday evening venue. It's a little on the small side, and I like a more open, brighter venue with an entry way of some sort on the first night, so I can see my friends, and catch up without having to stand on the side of a dark room peeking through the dancers. (Yes, I'm mostly describing the Cloister Club, which I love as a Friday evening venue). At the same time, someone made a very excellent point about the dilemma faced by people arriving in the late evening from out of town. Often people get in and have to face the difficult choice of going to the evening dance for the last half hour or so, or waiting for the late night, etc, etc. Having it all in the same place for a Friday, does make some good sense in encouraging people to just show up.
Plumber's Union Hall is still the perfect Saturday evening venue.
Willowbrook is effectively the only option for Sunday evening.
Sunday late night was at the Galaxie, just like last year's Friday and Sunday nights. Since last year, the big main room has been finished, and looks gorgeous with art on the walls. Unfortunately, we danced in the large room this year and it made the vibe much different from when it was in the back room. It would be nice if the back room received a nicer floor and the late night was there with the main room was available for hanging out.
Music
I was overall unimpressed. Unfortunately these days I really only notice the music if it is incredible and palpably adding to my enjoyment of the dances, or if it is getting in the way of my desire to dance. Way too often during the weekend, I wanted to dance, but didn't feel in the music what I needed.
Rhythm Futur on Friday played some good music, but a lot of it was faster gypsy swing and not my thing.
I like the John Burnett Orchestra and I rarely feel like what they play keeps me off of the dance floor when I want to dance with someone...
Carl Sonny Leyland Trio on Sunday was supposed to be boogie woogie. I like boogie woogie, but I'm not sure that is what I was hearing. At the very least, there weren't many songs they played that I really wanted to dance to.
The DJs overall were good, though I don't have any especially positive DJ'd music memories. Lippy DJ'd a good all vinyl set, which always impresses me.
The only real issue I had from DJ'd music over the weekend was Sunday Late Night. Peter Strom started out, and he played all soul music, presumably as an advertisement for his upcoming Swing and Soul event in Atlanta. I have a lot of fun at Austin's monthly Soul Jams, but this was much different. It could have been that the venue wasn't giving a good vibe. It could have been that I was already in a bad dance mood from the earlier band at Willowbrook. It could have been that I was tired from a week of dancing and was looking for something different. It could have been that the soul music Peter played just isn't the type of soul music I like (he seemed to be playing more 60's stuff). It also could have been that I needed more variety, and that I just couldn't deal with the music being so monotonously similar. I thought it was soul-sucking.
Riley is a great DJ. He's played some of the best Exchange DJ'd music I've ever heard in both Portland and Chicago. One of his strengths is his transitions. Unfortunately, when you transition with something that is very over-played, instead of maintaining the energy it draws out the pain. Even what John played afterwards never got me into a nice Sunday late night groove. I love Sunday late nights, so it is always disappointing to end on such a poor note.
Hosting I stayed with Aimee out in the suburbs again this year. I've known Aimee longer than anyone else in Chicago. She's great. She didn't have the party house this year, only hosting a handful of us. The down side to this is that she is all the way out in the suburbs, she was very busy, and transportation was a little challenging at times.
Overall Dancing Level tough to say. With a few exceptions, everyone with whom I had enjoyable dances I already knew I enjoyed dancing with them. No real incredible stand-outs this year like Ann was last year.
Top 6 Ann, Jenna, Karrie, Lish, Sheila, Tessa (All from Chicago I might add)
Friends I got to see again (yes, I forget a whole bunch of people every time I do this, but I write what I remember off the top of my head after a crazy sleep deprived weekend, and I'll add to it if/when I remember more) Abby, Adeoye, Alex, Andrew, Andy, Anne, Austin, Carl, Catherine, Chris, Crissy, Dan, Dawn, Doug, Evin, Fred, Geoffrey, Gil, Gimi, Harry, Holly, John, Julee, Kristin, Lippy, Marie, Matt, Peter, Rich, Riley, Roxy, Russell, Shannon, Tom, Valerie, Debra, Frank, Leah, Lydia, Noel, Valentine, Johanna, JP, Nancy, Laura , Jeremy, Spider, Karyn, Sara & Joe.
Fun People I Met/Met Betterer Kathryn, Wendy, Jame, Michelle (Chicago), Amanda (Denver), Emily (STL), Amanda (Boston)
Hoped to see, but didn't (with relevant excuse) Abigail (moving to Boston), Toni (married), Jill (married), Matt (married), Andrea (married & out of town), Frances (dance break), Gary (Cleveland), Lisa (Germany), Emily (Indiana), Mike & Adrianne (Denver), Ruby (overseas), Erika (NYC)
Biggest Surprise Getting to see Janna and Jamie drop in unexpectedly at the Sunday afternoon dance (though I did chastise them for not planning ahead and letting a group of us take them to lunch)
Best Compliment Sheila with a seemingly shocked comment on how good my dancing has become.
Most Amusing Planning a secret operation with my wingman Russell, over Giardano's Pizza and beer. The fact that we were too preoccupied (or intoxicated) to later pursue, let alone accomplish, the mission is completely beside the point.
Most Positive Spending time with my good friends off of the dance floor. Friday night Russell picked me up from the airport & we got pizza before the dance. Saturday, I met up with Dan for food before the evening dance. Sunday afternoon I had lunch with Catherine & Alex.
Most Negative Transportation in general. In the future I need to remember to rent a car. The days when my expectations were sufficiently low that I could just go with the flow and do whatever those around me allow for are pretty much over. Most egregiously, I was stranded on Friday night. Aimee had to work and the Indiana kids never called or checked on me before leaving to make sure I had other arrangements. I could have made other arrangements, but I didn't realize I was without a ride until too late. Fortunately Jeremy was nice enough to go out of their way to give me a ride to Aimee's. There were also a few times that I would have elected to do something other than what I ended up doing if I'd had a car. Nothing huge, but probably worth the expense of a car in the future.
Most Disappointing I was really looking forward to dancing with Amanda from Boston since I don't think we have before, in spite of attending several of the same events. Unfortunately, we didn't dance until Sunday late night, which as I said was not the best night of dancing for me. Next time will be better...
Update from last year I made a point of apologizing to Harry about what happened two years ago. I'm glad I did this when I did because I only saw him out the first night.
Note: 11/13/07 - Updating with people's names as I remember them...
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