Thursday Club Spotlight: Electrik Mayhem at Koko Club
Electrik Mayhem
Koko Club
Last Seen: September 4, 2008
Notes and Photos by Crystal Akins
Recurring club night? First Thursdays
Better than: Koko Club before it was renovated.
A breath of fresh air from all those omnipresent hipster dance parties, the guys who throw Electrik Mayhem ask you to leave your attitude at the door while enjoying beats ranging from disco to electro-house in the newly renovated, non-pretentious Koko Club every first Thursday of the month.
The promoters: DJ Billy Jaz, Upturn, Braulio, and Al.G exhibited a deep and sincere interest in spinning music, but even more, it’s their shared love for music that keeps their subculture intact, according to the DJs.
“In a nutshell, we avoid the crowd that people try to be seen in. We spin for friends, not money, “ explained Braulio.
Braulio was right about playing for friends and not money; the crowd was pretty tame but definitely gained momentum around midnight when a surge of tourists (a part of some communal T-loin pub crawl) bum-rushed the party. Out of nowhere I found myself in a cloud of dancing Europeans, Fernet Branca shots, and an insane amount of flirting.
As for the décor, this bar is keepin’ it real with super simple seating (red plastic chairs and black couches lined the walls), a couple of wooden round tables, and most importantly – the bar. Question: what do we love about newly renovated bars? Answer: couches that aren’t soiled and riddled with miscellaneous stains. After you cram about 70 people and force them to stay within the confines of the turquoise walls, you can only imagine how intimate it gets.
“I like the smaller, quaint, everyone-knows-each-other type thing,” said Billy Jaz.
It’s nice to go to a bar that isn’t trying so hard; a theme I saw transcended into the four DJs and their objective. As for the DJ set-up, the promoters invite three guest DJs, and on this particular night DJs Alona, Rob Crush, and Lance DeSardi made an appearance while two resident DJs play, too.
One thing you won’t find, though, is the pool table that their neon sign so prominently displays. Billy Jaz briefly informed me that the bar, in its former days, was a seedy little spot with a pool table, jukebox, and Mexican gangsters. Despite the deceptive sign, this place has definitely transformed itself into another cozy neighborhood bar in the Tenderloin.
Overall, the night fared pretty well considering the stiff competition down the street.
Critic’s Notebook:
Personal Bias: Free beers!
Random Detail: The women’s bathroom feels like it’s in the middle of the dance floor.
By the Way: The 47-Van Ness takes you straight to the bar.
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