A Fresh Mix

All too often, dance parties and DJs in Tulsa either carry on with the latest hits, an occasional retro theme, or an all too generic blend of house music. Occasionally, though, one of our cooler dance clubs will bring in a regional or touring DJ to freshen up the scene. On even rarer occasion, a local promoter steps up to throw a dance party with DJs that aren't common to the normal weekend dance crowd.

This Thursday night, promoter Chris Sker brings three diverse DJs in from out of town to set the local dance scene on its ear with HIPTRONIK, an evening of hip-hop and electronic music for a fresh mix of dance music. Video mixing on the big screen behind the DJ booth adds another dimension to the mash-ups while the beats stay heavy through Electric Circus' updated sound system.

The evening kicks off at 8pm with Squirt D, from Oklahoma City, who specializes in electro-house mixes. The night's set-up man is DJ Love, who holds down two residencies in Dallas: one a hip-hop gig and the other focusing on break-beat. Love keeps busy, not just as a DJ, but also as a producer and running his own record label, Stellar Music, which he founded in 1996 and has since become a full-on breakbeat and hip-hop label.

The night's headliner is DJ P, who is originally from Springfield, Mo., but considers Tulsa his hometown as he really broke into the DJ scene after moving here. Since leaving Tulsa, DJ P spent four years in Las Vegas as the resident DJ at the MGM Grand and a frequent fixture for parties at the Playboy Mansion. In turn, his reputation has spread, allowing him to tour nationally, with demand drawing him to clubs on both coasts, including hot-spots in New York, Los Angeles Portland, amongst other cities. More recently, DJ P was made an official member of the Rock Steady Crew, the long running hip-hop and dance crew, based out of the Bronx.

While DJ P and DJ Love keep their mixes fresh and incorporate plenty of new music, both are very much old-school in their approach. Neither DJ uses computers and digital mixing, each instead using turntables and vinyl, queuing the up the music and mixing tracks live and on the fly. This aspect alone adds to the showmanship of the evening, with both incorporating old-school scratching in their mixing and transitions.

According to Sker, the last time these DJs played together in Tulsa was just roughly two years ago, spinning for a successful party with a $10 cover. This week's show brings them back to Tulsa for HIPTRONIK and a full night of music, mixing and dancing for only a $5 cover, thanks to a sponsorship from Big Daddy's Glass Company. A portion of the proceeds will also be donated to Missy's Keys 4 Cabs, a non-profit organization that provides free cab rides for those who have had too much to drink, in order to reduce drunk driving and save lives.

If you're tired of the same old mixes and looking for a fresh take on Tulsa's dance club scene, HIPTRONIK offers a fresh mix of tunes with 3 visiting DJs. The mixing starts at 8p this Thursday night, January 20, and goes on until 2am at one of downtown's hottest dance clubs, Electric Circus.