Posted on: Friday, September 6, 2002
The Night Stuff
Fridays afford good beat, lots of dance space at World Cafˇ
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| The dance floor gets hopping at the World Cafˇ. I-94 FM's "Naughty Night Show" goes on from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. Fridays.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser |
For the full two hours of his weekly World Café live broadcast, I-94 FM deejay/emcee Big Teeze waxed rhapsodic that his station's party was the place to be. The words "biggest party on the rock" were dropped like club chum between songs familiar to the station's Top 40 hip-hop and R&B listeners. Listening in my car on the way to the club, I expected an evil parking mess and a door queue as lengthy as Longs Drugs on a Sunday morning. Neither was in evidence when we showed up shortly after midnight.
I-94 FM's weekend-launching club night at World Café (called Surf Into Summer Fridays when we showed up, but since last Friday, dubbed "I-94's Naughty Night Show" and emceed by Tati & Marko) never really filled the cavernous interiors of the club that night. And that was too bad. Selections from the station's broadcast mix — overplayed in stomach-turning quantities during the day — seemed newly energized when blended with a large dance floor, a crisp sound setup and an enthusiastic crowd ready to dance. With enough space to do whatever they wanted on the dance floor, the youngish crowd often indulged.
Highlights of our first half-hour? A chunky female in a too-tight mini grinding her ample backside into her equally chunky partner's front side while he pretended to spank her was kind of fun to watch. A trio of males in backward baseball caps doing some tandem break dancing before showing off some impressive solo moves was entertaining.
Overall, Teeze and DJ K-Smooth's play list was tight and well-programmed, keeping the mood and body count on the dance floor consistent throughout the night. The duo's occasional sprinkling of smartly chosen older hits (from Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Missy Elliot, among others) within the mix was welcome, if not as adventurous as it could've been.
Our drinks were inexpensive and punchy. Bar service was gracious but spotty. My initial request for a gin martini was apologetically nixed by a bartender ("We don't have martini glasses"), as was my follow-up request for a vodka gimlet ("What's in that?"). A pushy and unnecessary bathroom attendant insisting that my girlfriend give her "a dollar" for proffering a paper towel from the only visible stack in the room also was just wrong.
We ended our morning relaxing in World's third-level lounge, where a solo DJ spun hip-hop and house grooves off a two-turntable setup. Most of the handful of people in the lounge pressed their noses up against the only-somewhat-soundproof glass to check out the main floor gathering below.
"Saturday nights are actually more happening at World's, but sometimes I just like chilling out, and having some space," said Kayla Martinez, 20, explaining the cafe's Friday lure. "I can dance with my friends and talk story."
Anything else?
"Um, there aren't as many over-eager guys on Fridays."
Know a night spot or recurring club event we should be checking out? Reach Derek Paiva at 525-8005 or dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.
WHAT: I-94's Naughty Night Show (formerly Surf Into Summer Fridays)
WHERE: World Café, 1130 N. Nimitz Highway, 599-4450
WHEN: 10 p.m.-4 a.m. Fridays (live broadcast 10 p.m.-midnight)
COVER: $5
UNDER 21 OK?: Yes
AGE OF CROWD: 18 to late 20s
DRESS CODE: No athletic wear, slippers or tank tops (on males)
ATTIRE WE SAW: Mostly casual on both sexes. On women: camisoles, tube tops, halters, jeans, pants. On men: sweaters, tees, aloha shirts, loose jeans, cargo pants, skull and baseball caps, visors
OUR ARRIVAL/DEPARTURE: 12:30 a.m./2:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning
WHAT WE DRANK: Blended B-52, whiskey sour ($9.50)
HOW CROWDED WAS IT?: About 350
QUEUE?: No
SAMPLE MUSIC: Main floor: "Welcome To Atlanta" (Jermaine Dupri feat. Ludacris), "You Can Do It" (Ice Cube); third-level lounge: "Play" (Jennifer Lopez), "Hot In Herre" (Nelly)
DANCING?: Yes
OVERHEARD LINE OF THE NIGHT: "I don't understand the big freakin' deal with Dave Matthews." — A female patron to a friend, glancing briefly at a video monitor tuned to a VH-1 video.
