When it comes to musical inspiration and radiant humans, we’re really lucky to have people like Shaun J. Wright. A poetic short film gives you some window into who he is – and the music will move you to a dance floor even when there’s no dance floor there.
Alinka reminds me of this, Shaun’s often musical partner. (Alinka is Russian-born but has lived in and I think of as deeply connected both to Chicago and Berlin.)
The film is by director Serge Garcia, and while it’s brief, there’s just a lot there. Plus, you know, with all the media outlets and Twitter suddenly talking in lofty terms about techno, let’s uh maybe not short-shrift house, right? (Yes, they’re connected, but yeah, if you beamed in from another planet in the last 72 hours you might think Chicago wasn’t even a place and house music wasn’t a thing.)
A Child Of House follows Shaun J. Wright as he takes us through his roots in vogueing/ballroom culture and house music. Set in the world of underground club culture, SUBTERRANEANS shares stories in dance music’s queer underground.
And it’s Pride Month – at a tough time for the planet when so many people who would be out with one another are isolated.
“My energy radiates as something more or different,” Shaun says about identifying as male but non-conforming, but having seen how his singing in Panorama Bar or his DJ sets or just sharing a room can be, maybe it’s genuinely true.
So in tough times, actually, it’s not just enough to take that in as a consumer from someone else. We had better find our own light, too, and let it overflow, because it’s needed.
I promised you more wishlist on Bandcamp, right? Well, go ahead and bookmark Twirl Recordings, which is a collaboration between Shaun and Alinka:
https://twirlchicago.bandcamp.com
That includes a fantastic selection of artists, but for an example of how these two share their musical friendship, here you go. These releases frankly deserve way more play – intense, raw, elegant all at once. And I know when people are dealing with s*** news and a s*** virus on top of it is when that journey to the deep is even more welcome.
Falling For You is just beautiful to begin with, and I adore that Virginia remix:
They’re putting out deep new wonders like this, too:
What’s amazing for me is that I can put these on and be back on that dancefloor. Everyone is worried about whether now is a time for dance music. Maybe now is a perfect time to test the power of those records to transport us.