Scream Velvet

Live Review

Mar 14

House god Green Velvet came in for a landing at Big Night Live on Saturday, 11 March 2023.

Deeper Purpose purposed deeper in the opening slot.

Welcome to Big Night Live. Ever been? It’s a shiny dancehall located in downtown Boston, part of the sprawling and raucous TD Garden block.

The venue bills itself as a “premier luxury music hall” that “gives guests exclusive access to their favorite artists spanning all genres of music.” In the evening glow, surrounded by the swank interior, it’s easy to feel like you’ve just leveled-up as a human being. Getting your swerve on doesn’t hurt the vibes either.

Of course, most of the schlubs that walk through the door are the normal folks priced out of bottle service and booty girls. But if you’re just coming for the music, Big Night Live has the “supersonic sound system” (what the hell could that possibly mean? ‘Supersonic’ denotes a speed greater than sound…) and dancefloor to delight.

Not all the acts on the calendar are winners. But any venue that draws house legend Green Velvet is a good venue. Good music combined with a professional staff and solid digs makes for a Great Night Live. Just don’t bring any bags larger than 10x9”. Yeah, it’s that kind of place.

Deeper Purpose

Deeper Purpose’s Spring Tour started in February. A bit early. Possibly daylight savings related. The London-based DJ brought some international credentials to the opening set, which kicked off not too long after the 10:30 PM doors

If you’re drawing up a list of top-10 world capitals for house music, London would have to make the list. Boston wouldn’t even rate, so it’s nice to have house guests.

Deeper Purpose spun a tight set that was danceable, but seemed more precisely designed to raise the energy of the room for the main act. He didn’t pull out all the tricks that DJs do when they want to put an exclamation point on the night. Instead, through a steady gurgling, burbling set of sticky beats, backed by magic mushroom visuals, Deeper Purpose teed up the crowd to be knocked off later by Green Velvet. Pro stuff, what.

Green Velvet

Local Chicago favorite on the electronic music scene in the 90s, Green Velvet has graduated into a globetrotting house DJ par excellence. If you were waiting for “Percolator” to drop early Sunday morning (he took the stage a little after midnight), it never did, and who cares? The man could spin for days without revving up his calling card track.

Not many DJ acts have the kind of longevity that Green Velvet can boast. His sound calls back to the early days of house, but feels as fresh as ever. There is a purity and transcendence to his music, pared down to the essentials, that captures the crowd’s attention without resorting to empty flash.

Green Velvet is, above all, a people mover. A master of the DJ art of sound, silence, deferral, postponement, and sweet cathartic release. The 40-foot pixeltron wall and exploding clouds of confetti don’t hurt the experience either.

If you’re a music fan who’s never done the dancehall thing, you have to try it. Losing yourself in the beat is an experience worth having. The late hours, lasers, and glossy visuals create a special moment. But good god damn, when the last spin is spun, and the lights come up, doesn’t it just feel like you were injected with a thousand milligrams of buzzkill?

As the staff herded the crowd out the door like smashed kittens at half-past three in the morning, a bemused bouncer exhorted the masses: “It’s Sunday, go to church!” Not bloody likely.