Whether your taste is old-school minimalist techno by way of Detroit or bass-driven, glitch-laden tunes that have gained popularity recently, there's something for everybody to love on this weekend's Dance Card: Christian Martin headlines a two-day benefit for Scott Christensen at NORAD, Daniel Bell's at Satori, Michal Menert at Cervantes', DJ Irene's at the Church and much more. Keep reading to get the full rundown.
See also: Denver dance community rallies to raise funds for promoter Scott Christensen this weekend
CHRISTIAN MARTIN @ NORAD | SAT & SUN, 10/20-10/21
There are a lot of reasons to be happy that Christian Martin started attending the legendary full-moon desert parties thrown by Moontribe in Southern California in 1995 -- one of which manifested itself here in Denver this past July: Martin turned his younger brother, the illustrious Justin Martin, on to electronic music as he was discovering it.
In 2000, the elder Martin moved to San Francisco (after immersing himself in the New York, London and Los Angeles scenes), and in 2003, he decided to resurrect some of the energy he remembered from the Moontribe massives by creating dirtybird soundsystem with Justin, Worthy and Claude VonStroke.
With such high-profile company, you know that the sets Martin spins have to be something special, and they are: His tech-house selections tend toward driving mechanical rhythms and carefully layered melodies, and he builds and holds tension at just the right moments during his sets, releasing the energy when the time is right. He'll join Ardalan at a benefit for Flatline Productions promoter Scott Christensen at NORAD on Saturday, October 20.
Keep reading for more on the weekend's best dance music.
Daniel Bell -- also known as DBX -- will be the very special guest at Satori tonight, all the way from Berlin (by way of Detroit); Tresor, Logistic, 7th City, Elevate, Klang, Andrew Kevins, Greg Eversoul and Dr. Jak L. Turbo will also be in the mix. (9 p.m., 21+, $10-$15, free with costume)
Michal Menert headlines Cervantes' tonight for all the dub-leaning fans out there; ill-esha, Mikey Thunder and DJ Also Starring will open things up for the impresario. (8 p.m., all ages, $20-$25)
Hard house diva DJ Irene will take over the Church tonight for a Votes and Hoes party -- dress as a politician, a secretary or your favorite political scandal. Ston3, Robo, Hello Audio, DJ Snipez and DJ Goldengraham will support. (9 p.m., 18+, $5-$15)
Baauer, Dodger and Fury take over the main floor at Beta tonight, bringing the bass; in the Beatport Lounge, Dani Lehman, Hilary Warner and Chris Mitchell will appear, courtesy of P.U.N.C.H.I.S.'s underground techno flavorings. (9 p.m., 18+, $5-$15)
Beta's superb sound system hosts Pleasurekraft with Cognition + T-Rav on Saturday night, a hard-hitting lineup of tech-house and anthem-slinging favorites. (9 p.m., 18+, $10)
The Blend at the Meadowlark brings a hip-hop artist into the mix on Saturday night; catch Zak Damundo and Bones with a night of the best classic hip-hop hits around. (9 p.m., 21+, $5-$10)
Emote and Make Mistakes team up on Saturday night to bring you a night of local talent at the Would Shop II: The Missing Link, David Last, Attentat, John Templeton and Steofan will provide the tunes for a night of high-energy fun. RSVP to [email protected] for venue information. (10 p.m., 21+, $5-$10)
Funky Buddha hosts some heavyweight house talent on Saturday night -- Rescue, Uriah West and Jack Roldan. (9 p.m., 21+, no cover)
L/E/D couldn't have found a better home than Lumonics this Saturday night; the space will host Future Flash, Brian Vance, Soapbox, Dubokle, Albatr055, Beat Bud-E and Dagan for an out-of-this-world experience. (9 p.m., $10)
Looking for some bass on Saturday night? Vinyl hosts Bass Life featuring Heroes X Villains, Haywyre, the Digital Connection and Seth Abrumz bringing their stylings to the venue. (9 p.m., 18+, $5-$20)
Sunday at Norad, you'll find Pnut, Angel Castro, Devious D, Brian Bellas, Josh Manke, Danny Marin, Smyl:e, Steve Mangleson, Dr. Turbo, Marshall Monica, Joe Recon and more to be announced -- including encore sets from Christian Martin and Ardalan. (3 p.m., 21+, no cover)
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