Sublevel Records

The warehouse party was amazing. It was produced by DJ Doc Martin and was a showcase of sorts for his label, Sublevel Records.

As I drove through the dark, desolate streets of the warehouse district it felt like it was 1987. When I finally found the party, there were quite a few cars parked down the street. I was surprised to find Doc Martin in the street directing cars to park in legal spots and not to block the doors to the surrounding warehouses because some of the neighbours were working. When I parked and had a chance to chat with him I found out that a couple of his security guards were AWOL. He was a little stressed but seemed to be in good spirits - his lovely wife Lillia was the cashier and before she did a live P.A. around 3am, she greeted everyone with her cheerful smile.

The energy of expectancy permeated the warehouse as I walked in. It was still kinda mellow but that buzz in the air is something I've missed at so many events throughout the '90s. It's difficult to explain but it seems like everyone just knows they're going to have a lot of fun and they're just waiting for something to set it off.

I hung out with some other kids from San Francisco for a bit and then went outside to check on Doc. His security guys still hadn't shown up so I volunteered to watch the door and direct the parking so he could go inside and tend to other things. It was kinda cold but turned out to be a good thing for me to do as I've had lots of experience chatting to cops in front of parties like this. When a cruiser pulled up, I knew how to deal with them and no one got hassled. It was kind of fun greeting everyone as they arrived and as it got closer to midnight the steady flow of arrivals began to slow down enough for me to get back inside.

Getting The Groove On

When I got back to the dancefloor Sunshine from Dub Tribe was DJing. He had a mic plugged in and was doing live vocals over a tribal groove and really had the crowd going. I filmed a bit of it to share with you - check out the video below: