The Four Residents of Nightlife

An excerpt from the upcoming book Seize the Night.

All nightlife patrons are not created equal.

I am not talking about differences in race, income, social status or gender. I am not referring to the reasons they might go out or the things they might like to do or the places they might like to go. The personal preferences of one patron and another is a natural and normal expression of individuality. I am talking here about basic patterns of behavior that separate one person from another and directly influence that person’s nightlife experience and the experience of the people around him or her. In my experience I have found that there are four types of residents in the nightlife space; operators, natives, amateurs and fanatics.

Operators: make the nightlife machine work. They are the people who offer the services and experiences that patrons come to enjoy. Operators exist on many levels and perform a wide variety of functions. Everyone from the owner of a venue, to the manager, bartender, DJ, musician, hostess, waitress, security guard, dancer, sound technician and promoter are one level or another “operating” in nightlife. For many of them it is a passion. For all of them it is a business. Whenever you go out and enjoy a good party at a well run venue, with no fights, good service and a positive atmosphere, you have the operators to thank from the top of the food chain all the way down the line.

Natives: see nightlife as their natural habitat. They are the people who have spent time in the clubs and maintain a harmonious relationship with nightlife. These are the people who go out to on a regular basis for a variety of different reasons and experiences; lounging with friends one night, listening to new music on another night, meeting clients for drinks and then dancing with friends at the end of the week. Some of them might know operators and use those relationships to get the inside track on the latest and greatest. All of them know the spots that best suit their personalities. The most important aspect about a native is the sense of balance. These people can drink, dance, and date several nights out of the week without sacrificing their health or their ability to work and without leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.

Amateurs: are relatively new to the nightlife experience. Circumstances like age, previous lifestyle or simply being new to an urban environment have limited their exposure to clubs and the things that go on inside. New amateurs haven’t been to many venues. They don’t know what to expect when they get there. They don’t know what they can handle. They don’t know how to react in different situations and they haven’t integrated nightlife into the rest of their life. Old amateurs only go out to the clubs on rare occasions, but they go out on these same occasions every year. Although they have been exposed to nightlife on their birthday, New Year’s Eve and possibly Halloween, their relationship with nightlife is tenuous at best. Many of them still are unsure of what goes on in nightlife, many of them consume too much when they do go and many of them suffer in one way or another as a result of that over consumption. While some new amateurs evolve into natives, old amateurs shy away from repeated exposure to nightlife because of the pain associated with their over consumption.

Fanatics: combine two distinct qualities. First, they have considerable exposure to nightlife. They know where to go, they know what to do, they know what they can and can’t handle. Second they consistently strive to go beyond the limits of what they can handle with little regard for the consequences. These are the people who leave their homes at the start of the night with the mantra “Tonight, we are going to get fucked up!” The volume of liquor they can drink is an indicator of their status. They see fights and police altercations as struggles for respect and freedom. The destruction of property and the disruption of people’s lives are inconsequential and blackouts, hangovers and strained relationships are the cost of doing business. In the mind of the fanatic, if you’re not going to go too far, you shouldn’t bother going.

So where do you fit in?

Everyone who goes out fits into one or more categories. It might not be easy at first glance to figure out where you fit in. As I said before, it’s not based on age, standard of living, gender, race or social background. It is a pattern of behavior and a frame of reference that guides your actions when you are out. Some patrons enhance the night, some patrons cause problems. You know who you are. The question is, are you the nightlife resident that you really want to be?

Have fun.

G

Can Music Save the Clubs?

By Gamal Hennessy

Less disposable cash, more lost jobs and more concern about the economy has created a unique situation in nightlife. Patrons want to go out more to forget about real life for a while, but they have less money to spend. Venues have to fight with each other for fewer dollars. How can clubs differentiate themselves, attract a steady audience and do it without raising prices? The answer might lie with the musicians.

There is no doubt that the recession will alter the music scene in New York City. The question is how it will change. One music writer for Lucid Culture sees the number of clubs shrinking and with it, the number of venues that bands can play. They predict that large venues, very small venues and niche venues will survive while remote, middle of the road and tourist venues will die off. The writer sees a rise in non traditional performance venues, more acoustic, jazz and ethnic performances and a decrease in cover charges as venues attempt to entice patrons into the bar. One possible outcome that the blog doesn’t mention is the rise of musicians of various types as a way to help venues thrive.

As competition gets tighter and venues have to do more to differentiate themselves in the market, could this be a chance for music to become more influential? If a certain venue can become known for having certain kinds of music or musicians could that keep the crowds coming and keep the doors open? Could the clubs, DJ’s and the bands help each other to survive?

Rockwood Music Hall is consistently packed (probably because it’s just a little bigger than my apartment) with people coming to hear independent music. Santos Party House has thrived recently because of Q-Tip’s spinning and venues like APT and Cielo have become staples in nightlife partially because of the music that they play.

Every club can sell bottles or offer ‘specialty’ drinks. Branding might have to come from a different aesthetic. Music could be the thing to set venues apart and set us all free.

Have fun.
Gamal
http://www.newyorknightsonline.com/

More Bars are Better Than More Taxes

By Gamal Hennessy

Governor Paterson recently announced a plan to balance the New York State budget that includes higher taxes and fewer services across the board. The plan has been met with attacks from all sides. Unemployment is rising and the constant barrage of Wall Street failures has sucked faith out of the market. If the Governor is looking for an alternative to his current plan, he might consider how much money can be generated by improving the SLA.

Businesses can’t sell liquor in New York State without a license from the State Liquor Authority (SLA). The process that an applicant has to go through is very involved. The application itself is dozens of pages long and the review process is detrimental to the nightlife industry and the state.

According to the liquor control law, the SLA is supposed to review a properly filed application within 30 days. Experts say that this has never been the case. In previous years, the turnaround time for an application was 2-3 months. Current estimates are that it takes 4-8 months for an application to be reviewed.

There is a school of thought that sees a strong stream of revenue coming into the state if the licenses under review are processed as soon as possible. According to unofficial estimates there are currently close to 2,400. While all of these licenses are not for bars or clubs (on premises licenses) even if only half the licenses resulted in new bars, the economic affect on the city could be dramatic.

If 1,200 open licenses translated into open venues, New York could experience direct and indirect benefits. If you assume each bar employs a manager, a bartender and a server, then 1,200 bars would lead to 3,600 jobs. Keep in mind that a New York bar with 3 employees is an extremely low estimate that doesn’t take into account security, bar backs, DJ’s, hostesses, or multiple people in each position. The actual number of new jobs could be as high as 7-10 thousand. To place this in perspective, Mayor Bloomberg recently had a press conference where he publicized the fact that more than 4,000 jobs would be created from the 17 on location TV productions lined up for 2009. Approval of outstanding SLA licenses could lead to twice as many new jobs.

There is also a potential for secondary job creation. Bars have to be constructed, maintained and serviced. This creates work for construction crews, lawyers, accountants and hospitality vendors. An influx of 1,000 bars would also lead to commerce associated with nightlife. Despite the way nightlife is depicted in music videos, people don’t just magically appear on the dance floor. They go out and buy clothing and beauty services before they go out. They take cabs and public transportation to and from the venue. They eat in restaurants before and after they go out. The ripple effect in terms of jobs in New York can be substantial if the venues are allowed to open.

There could also be a positive effect on local investment. As investors take their money out of the stock and bond markets and look for places to put it, nightlife can be an attractive option. A significant portion of the owners, managers and promoters in nightlife come from the finance, investment and real estate industries. But those investors are not willing to tie up money in a business that might require them to wait a half a year or more after the construction of the business to actually be able to open for business. The current waiting cycle of the SLA creates a chilling effect on nightlife investment that ultimately deprives the state of millions in revenue.

Of course, a sudden influx of venues would alarm certain groups and the frenzy of competition would prove chaotic initially. But the patrons would weed out the poorly run establishments and they will close. And the community boards, police and other advocacy groups will continue to make their displeasure known if and when a venue goes too far. But in this economic climate it might be better for the state to promote viable businesses in New York by allowing them to open, rather than drive them out of the state with increased taxes.

I am not advocating wholesale approval of all licenses. I am not implying that the SLA should abdicate its authority by rubber stamping every applicant. I do think that the Governor can realize his economic goals with less hardship to the citizens of New York if he takes a responsible look at the SLA review process and takes steps to overhaul it.

Have fun.
Gamal