Article by Christian Pandtle

Saturday, June 14th represented a big moment for U Street Music Hall and co-owners Will Eastman and Tittsworth. After working for years to establish a no glitz, party-ready and music focused establishment in the traditionally stuffy DC environment, the Union BBQ at Union Market made perfect sense and would be the first time that Eastman, Tittsworth & Co attempted to take their carefully constructed vibes out of the club and into the sun. This time they brought the party to the people instead of the other way around. Chock full of local culinary and musical talent, the Union BBQ was a DC born collaborative effort that sought to unify, if only for a day, distinct branches of DC culture that unfortunately rarely interact. That being said, these abstract adulation’s are really just a semi-sophisticated way of saying that Saturday was a goddamn good party.

Morning Mixes

Wanting to make the most of a beautiful day, I arrived at Union Market shortly after the gates opened. I expected to be met by a throng of party-people, mingling and munching on the local fare and enjoying the varied sorts of DC Brau which were flowing for relatively low prices. Instead, I was met with a nearly empty courtyard, save for a few confused looking girls trying admirably to get into the tunes of DJ Sabo. While they shuffled stiffly, I was drawn in by the brilliant marketing tactics (I.e. a cute blonde lady smiling at me) of local restaurant the Brixton. After enjoying a quick lamb pita, I took advantage of the lack of crowds to get a grip on the BBQ’s organization. The event was divided in two, with an inside and outside section. Luckily, both inside and outside served booze, but food stands could only be found outside, arranged in a neat ring surrounding a rather large “dancefloor” (concrete area) and an even larger stage with all the lights and do-hickeys that modern dance fans expect out of a $40 ticket. All the Moombahton DJs and more energetic sets would take place here.

Whereas the outside was hot and hype, the inside was cool and subdued. Resembling a warehouse, the inside section of the Union BBQ was spacious and dark, with fairly darkly tinted windows, rusted metal columns, and wooden pylons stacked in corners. When I arrived, DJ Lisa Frank was playing to a large room packed with air and not much else. Unfortunately for her, at this point in the day there was more staff than party-people in the room. Regardless, a lack of an audience didn’t stop her from playing warm up house tracks to warm the room up (though flicking off a nearly empty room isn’t the classiest way to end a set). After Lisa, U Hall resident Steven Faith took the stage to play a half hour set of deep house tunes to get a now (slightly) growing crowd warmed up. I hung in the front during all of this, enjoying a beer and leaning against a pillar quietly grooving out to a set that got progressively harder. As Steve’s set progressed, I started noticing more and more of U Hall regulars showing up, the people you see at nearly every show and know that they are involved in the club / scene somehow, but are never quite sure how. Regardless, it was like there was a “that guy” convention or something, a confusing occurrence until I saw Will Eastman get ready to take the stage.

Cool and confident, with a  “I love what I’m doing” sort of smile, Eastman played a half hour set typifying the upbeat and harmonic sound of his Blisspop crew. Anyone who has been going to U Hall’s Saturday night Bliss parties put on by Eastman and crew would instantly recognize the sound he played: harmonic chords, big bass, and the occasional soaring vocal hook that got a now noticeable and growing crowd dancing. Eastman’s experience behind the decks was in full display as he was able to draw and maintain a far larger crowd than any of his predecessors, thereby succeeding in setting the inside mood for the rest of the day.

Later, Eastman handed off the decks to Sam “the man” Burns. Sam played an upbeat and tropical set, full of tech-house shuffles and big vocal chants that got the still small crowd moving. I happened to standing near Sam’s wife and ~12 year old son, both of whom got into the swing of things with the sort of dance moves that can only come from being in the same family as an established house DJ. Their dances moves were what I imagine I would have seen in a Chicago club twenty years; the kid was even breakdancing! Knowing that I couldn’t keep up with their moves and feeling in need of a little sun, I headed outside to check out the courtyard. As I headed out, I noticed Eastman hanging out on the stairs. He recognized me from inside, then approached me and I introduced myself. After a brief discussion of the shirt I was wearing (Amtrac, not Alvin Risk as he guessed), he agreed to a brief “interview” “backstage” (i.e. me sputtering out questions I came up with on the spot in a quiet storage locker area).

Eastman’s Thoughts 

I began by making the observation that the BBQ was a big moment for U Hall and asked how moving from the club to the outside came about and what it meant to him. He answered that it was a big deal not only in terms of being a large event with many moving parts, but also that it represented a legitimization of what he and the rest of the U Hall crew have been trying for years to build. Being able to take the vibes they have created out of their comfort zone of the club and into a larger scale, medium festival environment indicates that there is an established audience that wants more from UHall, which Eastman said is a rewarding, if somewhat bewildering experience.

While he was certainly stressed about the potential of such a move failing to attract the sort of audience that a big-time U Hall show does, when I spoke with him he seemed very pleased with the turnout so far, a turnout that only became a turn up as the day went on (har har har). I then asked him about how the Union BBQ came to be. He said that the U Hall leadership had been thinking of planning a sort of festival for a while , and after playing a set at Union Market last year Eastman became convinced that it would be the best place to make their idea a reality. So, through engagement with the DC community, they slowly began to plan and organize the Union BBQ. Eastman stressed that Saturday’s party was born out a deep cooperation with the DC community. They really wanted to create something that represented what the, at times, underexposed DC music and culinary community is all about: Having a good time in a comfortable space being surrounded by good people.

Eastman and pals really just wanted to give back to the community that has given so much while also pushing it forward. This devotion to local energy is exemplified in Eastman’s answers to my questions about his Blisspop Crew. He stressed the fact that Blisspop is all about what’s new locally, trying to bring up local artists who would otherwise be overlooked in a city that is better known for congressional disputes and crack smoking mayors that it is for sublime house music. By providing a collaborative space for local artists to ferment their talents, Eastman is doing more than just putting the DC house music scene on the map; he’s actively pushing it forward. This commitment to improving the local scene was fully evident when I brought up the relatively new club Flash, which opened a few mere blocks from U Hall and is seen by some as a direct competitor. Eastman didn’t see it this way at all, quite the contrary actually. He was legitimately thrilled that another house focused club could not only open, but also survive and thrive, as such success is indicative that the audience in DC is hungry, and wants more. Relating to me the he has been putting on shows in DC since ’98, Eastman said that he was incredibly pleased that the potential even exists for places like Flash and U Hall to coexist, as it is indicative of the leaps and bounds that DC has taken over the last few year. All in all Eastman seemed to be an incredibly nice and genuine dude that cares for the well-being of the scene above all else, which is probably how he’s come to be a leaders of the DC house scene.

After wrapping up with Eastman, I headed inside and took in some more of Sam the Man’s set. He kept the mood nice and cool, giving the newly arrived party-people a chance to get in the swing of things. I hung out for a while and observed the apparent growing love that people have for house music. Now, by this point in the day I had over imbibed a bit. Feeling woozy and sun drained, I decided to take a break from the party and headed out the festival into Union Market proper. Sitting and drinking coffee, I watched the bizarre interactions between bourgeious families enjoy brunch and half drunk party-people try to buy cheap water. While this people watching was enjoyable for a while, I was eventually drawn back to the show by the booming bass and airhorn samples that could only mean someone new was taking the outside stage.

The Turn Up

Sure enough, as I rounded the corner I saw DC’s own Gent & Jawns take the stage. Unless you’ve been living under a rock at the edge of the galaxy for the last few years, you’ve doubtlessly heard G&J’s anthemic trap banger, “Turn Up.” The sort of high energy, explosive trap tunes that have made G&J (relatively) famous were on full display as they took the outside stage and got what was now a sizable crowd moving. They really got the show into full swing, playing Bro Safari’s “The Drop” followed by their own CoCo followed by god only knows what. Eventually they were able to drop Flosstradamus and the legendary Waka Flaka Flame’s TTU (Too Turnt Up). True to it’s name, the track was 2 turnt 4 me; I headed back inside to check out the house tunes.

I walked in to Chicago’s own Orchard Lounge slaying a now sizable crowd with upbeat disco tunes. Made up of husband and wife Spencer and Bethany Lokken, Orchard Lounge played an eclectic 90-minute house set that touched upon nearly every sub-genre that I can think of. The couple went back to back, with Spencer beginning the set with a mix of shuffly disco and bright tech house that brought the people and kept them. Bethany would then take over and play some harder tunes, at some points playing tracks heavily influence by the UK-Jackin sound, which is blowing up at the moment. Their set got deeper and harder, with Disco giving way to Chicago house which then gave way to thumpy, hard-stepping goodness. By using both vinyl and digital mixing technology, Orchard Lounge were able to expertly craft a mood that kept the day going full stream.

Following Orchard Lounge, I headed back outside to check out what was going on with the Moombahton Massive stage only to be bombarded with the tunes of Tittsworth. Playing that hard moombah sound, Tittsworth played a blistering hour long set that sent the now warmed up crowd into full swing. Plenty of local love was shown, with Tittsworth getting on the mic to call out notably party ready individuals. Tittsworth’s set led into a refreshingly different, dance hall inspired set from Max Glazer. This was really one of the more interesting times of the day, for an hour it felt like northeast DC had been transported to Jamaica, with all the booty shaking to go with it. Max spun a bevy of classic and newer dance hall tracks, with a lot of Major Lazer and remixes of old school reggaeton tracks.

After Max played the revolution sounds, it was back inside to catch Viceroy. Although he looked like a fucking clown (seriously, check out the pictures from U Hall’s Flickr), Viceroy played a great set of #summervibes. Melodic and flashy house supplanted the oddly-industrial sounds of Animal Collective, to much acclaim from a rowdy crowd. Beginning with his own remix of Nelly’s classic summer jam, Ride with Me, Viceroy led the crowd up and down through waves of bright house tunes that delighted an ever growing crowd.

Kaytranda was the real treat though. A hot up-and-comer with lots of support, Kaytranda has been fast rising in the rank of electronic music with a slew of original productions and high-profile remixes. Moreover, his set of hard hitting house did not disappoint, displaying the hunger and drive that has propelled him up in the scene. His inside set was packed, with many people taking advantage of the time between Nadastrom and Jamie XX’s set. Unfortunately, I couldn’t catch much of Nadastrom’s set since I was busy practicing Gonzo journalism inside, but to quote my friend Dylan: “It was dope”.

Jamie XX closed out the night in typical moody fashion, with a set that defied and categorization. Jamie XX is a different kind of artist, a fact that was fully on display as he played a set that was not too hard, not too soft, but just right to cap off what was a great day. My memory at this point is a bit fuzzy, but I can specifically remember a moments where it seemed as if everyone was grooving at exactly the same pace, which is both a rarity and a moment to remember. This was a big day for U Street Music Hall, and when you’re all-day event is capped off with a masterful DJ set by Jamie XX, I think that everyone turned out alright. Hopefully we’ll be seeing, hearing, and tasting another Union BBQ this time next year.