by JACK OATMON

When someone’s organizing a party, or any cultural event, there’s a mad pile of thinking, cahooting and general creativity that goes on behind the backs of us commoners, so that what’s in our scrutiny is of a high quality. You might not immediately notice how many LCDs are painting the walls or whether the ceilings are faux-industrial stainless steel or drop tiling, but your night is subtly affected. Little pleases me more than catching some badass, progressive musical acts that are accompanied by a context-relevant, ass-kickin’ visual exhibition. In your journeys this week, whatever epiphanous peaks or inebriated troughs you grace, it would probably benefit your grey matter to check out some of the highly interactive acts planned out for the seventh edition of Elektra. The five-day digital arts festival gears up Tuesday, May 9, and boasts plenty of free and/or affordable events. Check out the baffling-but-fun Web site (www.elektra7.ca), then go out and get your brains arted.

Okay, back to the madness. Tonight, Thursday, May 4, is the launch of the first thing to really challenge my entrenched Mix/Overdose Thursday-night routine. For four bucks and change, you can see Axel Klein, Omni, Prae and X-Cube scorching Café de Lima with some pretty neat electro and tech-house. Word is there’ll be some giveaways and surprises for the first edition.

I can’t help but mention Tiga’s gig at the next ILoveNeon, this Saturday. It promises to be the first sizeable party at the SAT in a little while. Best-DJ-name-in-the-city medal winner Thomas Von Party opens the show. Clean, clean, clean. If you look forward on the SAT’s programming, you might notice a few more noteworthy parties in the coming couple of weeks. Keep your eyes peeled.

If you’re wondering what to do Saturday afternoon, go down to Berri Square and silently ponder as to why our generation’s civil struggle is more preoccupied with 99-cent pizza and wicked indoor than it is with Darfur and softwood. Guaranteed to start whenever I find the keys to my goddamn car. Did you see them, dude?

Peer Pressure’s draggin’ back, from their trip to Ottawa, some of the Disorganized Crew again. Fun to be had at Vinyl on Saturday, May 6.

For those who really, really need beats bang-bangin’ their noggin all day long, the Atlantis day club opens on Sunday, May 7 at 6246 St-Laurent. They’ve got some trance and house lined up for the afternoon. Now you can be at a nightclub 24 hours a day. All the time. All the time. Bzzzzzzzzzzt.

I got a copy of Mylo’s album Destroy Rock and Roll a few weeks ago, and I’ve decided that sampled-out, grinding beats with Bootsy-style bass licks is where house music is going, or damn well should be going. It just makes you want to drink cold white wine and do the Watootsie in your shiny black loafers. Shake, shake, shake.

HOW THE HECK DO YOU SPELL “WATOOTSIE?’ jack.oatmon@gmail.com

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