Market Days Memories
Many observers, for a variety of reasons, thought that this year's Market Days was the best and most successful ever. Thanks in part to weather that was hot and sunny but not oppressively humid, the crowds were huge on both days with exceptional eye candy for all to see. Big kudos to Special Events Management for getting Taylor Dayne as the entertainment headliner: she put on a great show Sunday night for the amazing mass of folks who filled the Roscoe - Halsted intersection.

Other weekend observations by my peeps and me: Award for "Best Scantily Clad Lads In Front of Their Booth/Business" is shared by Steamworks, Roscoe's, Cocktail, and ChicagoPride.com The new performance stage at the Buckingham intersection offered an interesting "Chicago's Got Talent"-esque presentation throughout the weekend Some of the girlfriends of the handsome straight DJs spinning at Minibar got a chuckle when their boyfriends got hit on by the boiz while some of the fish got a little pissy and possessive The live DJ set-up in front KAFKA wine co. was definitely missed The general level of sloppy drunkenness thankfully seemed to be down this year. Less visible puking! It was so nice to have a big party event in the city: the "Space Disco" party at Crobar with Rosabel. Big ups to Box Boy Rich for putting on this party and a special mention to DJs Ted Eiel and Ron G. who both had the Mezzanine Lounge rocking.

Where's Julie McCoy?
Considering that just about every song from my youth has been retrofitted for today's dance floor, it should come as no surprise that "The Love Boat" theme song has also received recent 4/4 treatment. What is somewhat surprising is that this track is not nearly as campy as one might imagine and features some pretty good remixes by the likes of Craig C and Funky Junction. This new millennium edition of "The Love Boat" is a collaborative effort between the "pro-nude, anti-war dance activists" The Dazzle Dancers and the British pop duo I Like Electric. Released on the Peace Bisquit label (with recent successes by Ultra Naté, Jody Watley and Cazwell), "The Love Boat" should be sailing through club speakers and iPod earphones throughout the rest of the summer.

Boxers or Briefs?
The Groove Line gang headed to the far northside for the August edition of Jackhammer's Underwear Party. While we had a good time and definitely got our collective groove thang on (thanks to DJ Oskar who was spinning in his skivvies), this party is no where near the level it could and should be and has far too many fully-clothed folks dancing and prancing around the club. I'm sure Jackhammer management will continue to transform this monthly party (it's held every third Saturday of the month) with more in-club inducements and hopefully the Chicago boiz will stop being so prude, wear some clean undies, and check their clothes. There is a time and place for hedonism and an underwear party is it. We'll be back for the September edition (on the 15th ) to continue our "boxers or briefs" evaluation.

JES: By Herself
Dubbed the "Queen of Rocktronica," Jes is the woman sporting the beautifully familiar voice that's soared on trance tracks over the years by Tiësto, Gabriel & Dresden, and Motorcycle. She's now turned her attention to her solo career and is back on the scene with a 14 track long-player called DISCONNECT (Black Hole / Ultra Records). Jes wrote all the songs on the CD and presents a truly unique melding of rock and electronica. While tracks such as "Disconnect" and "Want My Love" deviate from Jes' trance roots with a stronger rock vibe, the first singles scheduled for release ("Heaven" and "Ghost") will surely appeal to the denizens of dance clubs the world over. Dance vocalists are often not given their due for a variety of reasons; DISCONNECT thankfully should ensure that Jes is given hers.