With all the Spider stuff gobbling up my life this past week, I almost forgot we had a big holiday weekend. Surprisingly, there wasn't a load of special events this year. No Club Rubber parties or other giant spectacles. And where the hell were the Strip fireworks Sunday? On the other hand, Tangerine at TI opened.
Tangerine is a clever little establishment that'll make waves. It's the only casino nightclub with a Strip-view patio, plus hourly burlesque shows. I swung by Friday for the grand-opening. It featured a smoking hot, albeit way-to-brief, burlesque performance by Carmen Electra. For the most part, I really liked what I saw. But, I didn't get to see too much because it was so bloody packed I couldn't breathe! I'm eager for a better look when I check out their local-flavored Wednesday party, Moonshine.
Friday also saw a preview of the upcoming weekly party at Moorea Beach at Mandalay Bay. I was pleasantly surprised by the intimate Moorea, neatly tucked away in Mandalay's pool area. The party, which has the working title Nude, should debut in a few weeks and offer up a nice alternative to the usual nocturnal goodies. Stay tuned here for more details.
I can't forget to mention the new Lust at House of Blues OBA Lounge. This weekly Friday affair is an old-school after-hours much in the vein of the much-missed Glo. Every week you can check out resident Scott Stubbs along with special guests. This week, catch him along with DJ Scotty Boy. OBA is one of the coolest little venues in town, so head out and throw some support. Doors open at 4 a.m.
Who hasn't heard the story from a couple weeks back about how Tommy Lee played a DJ set at Bellagio's Light that was so bad he was booed off? I'd heard the story but missed the ordeal. The reason is pretty simple: Tommy as DJ. But I had a driving-past-an-accident curiosity about his set Sunday at OPM inside the Forum Shops at Caesars.
I can sum it up in one sentence: "There's two hours of my life I'll never get back."
I've never been a fan of Mötley Crüe, always preferring real metal from Zeppelin or Sabbath, but at least I could say Tommy was a competent drummer. But I'll draw the line there. First off, I was under the impression that this was a DJ set. Not so, in fact some other kat was on the decks the whole time while Tommy was hitting sequencer buttons, seemingly at random. It was sloppy, unrehearsed and flat-out boring. But funny. Tommy jumped around like a glue-sniffing clown with a battery-operated marital aid shoved you know where.
OPM is a swinging little club with great atmosphere, but its awkward location above Chinois makes it easy for me to forget it's there. It's a real shame Tommy ruined it. If you were at the show, don't let it turn you off from OPM. It's a great venue. As for Tommy, he should go back to directing amateur porn.
Antonio Llapur walks softly and carries a big club. E-mail him at
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