Redeye May 06 2004

The Pleazure Principal: On Thurs., April 29, the third time was the charm when French DJ Laurent Garnier finally made an appearance at the Crescent Room after two failed attempts within a year due to various immigration problems. And charmed was the crowd.

There were a couple of “purists” who bristled (while others whistled) when Garnier’s crisp, clanging, genre-bending set included rubbery retro acts like New Order, but for the most part, the club felt graced by Garnier’s energy-ramping early a.m. antics. DJ’s and producers galore came out: opening DJ Greg Adamson, Kai Alce, J-Luv, Jonathan Allyn, DK and Adam “Brad” Smith of Late Night Essentials, just to name a few.

There was a tinge of bittersweet to the proceedings, though, as it was announced that this would be the last event produced by Pleazure. The always-a-pleasure head honcho Jennifer Walker has decided to kick back after years spent pushing Atlanta nightlife forward. After what feels like a decade (actually eight years) of top-rate productions, Walker’s going to concentrate on brokering prime real estate. We wish her luck and extend our thanks for some memorable nights I can’t seem to clearly remember, so I know they were good.

Heard It Through the Grapevine: Did you know the Californian Zinfandel grape and the Italian Primitivo are genetic relations? The end products aren’t always evidence, as so much more goes into winemaking than just the grape, but there are some similarities. This little tidbit of knowledge is courtesy of a recent dine at Sotto Sotto. It’s a little measure of comfort that might entice you to delve further into unfamiliar wine lists than perhaps you felt previously capable. Don’t, however, get the idea that searching for a glass of “Primitivo Bianco” is any classier than drinking the suburban swill that is white Zinfandel.

World of Music: This week, you can get funked up in any manner of ways: On Thurs., May 6, Radio Om DJs Sharaab and Swivel present the Asian Massive percussive hypnotism of Karsh Kale at MJQ. On Fri., May 7, Venezuelan ensemble Los Amigos Invisibles diffuse salsa sass and acid jazz jitters through Latin house at Variety Playhouse, while New York originator Afrika Bambaataa delves into the freestyle roots of electro-fying hip-hop at The Mark. And Tues., May 11, Augusta-bred Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings lay down some of that brand-new old school, making like vintage JB’s at the Echo Lounge__.

Keep one RedEye open. And send all comments, questions, observations and invitations to redeye@creativeloafing.com.__