Tipping the scales in the Year of the Snake

>> >> Goon Productions' Chinese New Year party puts a fresh, new face on Montreal's Asian party scene

by RUPERT BOTTENBERG

Lounging around the back room of the New Dynasty restaurant on Clark in Chinatown, I'm kicking off a round-table talk with the Goon party-production posse by inquiring about the symbolism of the snake in Chinese culture. It's the Year of the Snake, after all, and Goon are celebrating with a blowout party at Studio this weekend.

The answers vary. Goon head Romero suggests craftiness, Jensen of twin-brother DJ team Double Chin is convinced it's about honour. Chops, whose exact function remains unclear, believes that the snake rules 'cuz he's "slick."

One thing that's said of the snake the world 'round is that he periodically sheds his skin. He evolves, refines, improves and presents his new face to the world. Appropriate, then, that the party they're throwing for the Year of the Snake should represent precisely that, at least as far as the Asian party scene in Montreal is concerned.

Young blood infusion

Chinese New Year parties are nothing new in town. "It's the one event," says established Asian-scene DJ, Da Baron, "for the real Asian community to really get together. You celebrate it once a year and that's where you see all your friends, all the people that really matter. It's the one party you really want to go to."

Rennie & Co., the staid, respectable, longstanding face of that scene, have been celebrating it for 14 years. A competent job was guaranteed, but for the rambunctious kids in the Goon crew, itself an offshoot of Rennie & Co., it never really felt right.

"In the past," says Goon partner/booty DJ Goldenchild, "Asian parties tended to be uptight--all looks. People were shy about doing what they wanted to. There used to be very few of us, people who didn't care for that snobby, high-society thing. We're telling people, go ahead. Dance the way you want, dress the way you want. You don't have to come in wearing black pants, white shirt, black blazer--all preppie and stuff. Just come in and do what you want." "A key element for us is the next generation," explains Romero. He'd know, because he's been promoting parties for over a decade now. With Goon, he's assumed the role not so much of kingpin, but a cross between crabby triad boss and exasperated babysitter--with a lot of proud uncle thrown in.

"It's why we've got up-and-comers like DJ Spryte. His immediate peers, that's the next set of people that will be going out to parties. Da Baron and I, we represent the older school. Goldenchild, Dmuss, Cue, Chops, these are the people that are going out now. Spryte, he's the next wave--so we're always one step ahead of the game. We have the old, the new and the upcoming. That's what's going to maintain us."

Who let the lions out!

Not only are young people finding a voice in the scene, but more than ever, different Asian cultures are sharing dancefloor space. It's important to note that the Goon squad hail from Chinese, Taiwanese, Filipino and Vietnamese families, as well as mixes thereof--plus some bonus Guyana styles on Romero's part. "Relationships between different cultures are very intermixed," says Goldenchild. "There's less tension here than anywhere else in North America." "As far as Asians are concerned," says Da Baron, "there's Indians, there's Chinese, there's Filipinos--we call ourselves Asians because we like to include all races, not just our own particular cultures. That's happening everywhere, but more so in Montreal."

Goon recognize that behind the flash and fury of a good party lies a certain responsibility to those communities. The goal, more than ever with this party, is stepping forward without losing sight of the past. "We always try to incorporate the traditional with the new," says Romero. "We do a traditional Chinese lion every year because, would you believe it, many Asian kids have never seen one."

"It's kind of unavoidable," Da Baron says of the cultural dilution so common on these shores. "You benefit from other cultures, but you also need to keep what's yours and carry it over to the next generation. I'm speaking especially from a DJ's standpoint--every year we see a new wave of clubbers and partiers. We like to carry over that message, because otherwise, somewhere along the line, it gets lost."

Then again, tradition at its healthiest is flexible, adjusting to changes in time and place. "It's not traditional to drink champagne at Chinese New Year's," says Romero. "That's a North American thing, but we're giving away champagne at the party as well as having the lion dance. There's also the food aspect. We'll have hors d'oeuvres, but they'll be sushi."

Beats from the East

As for the music, on the other hand, don't count on any old-fashioned pipas and erhus plucked for weepy melodies. This jam is gonna rock harder than the Boxer Revolution. "We've got Da Baron here," says a proud Romero, "who's been DJing longer than these younger guys. He's the old school, mixing all different styles, R&B and hip hop, techno and house. Then you've got Goldenchild, who plays booty, and Lil' Dmuss. Lil' Dmuss, by the way, is the illegitimate son of Chaka Demus. With a name like that, you can guess what he likes to play. 'Lau, that's a half-hour of reggae, stop it already!'" "He has a chance to bring reggae and dancehall to Asians," says Goldenchild, "with whom it hasn't been that popular in past years. Now they're getting into it. We find people coming to the DJ booth and asking for reggae more often, and that's a shock."

"It's about exposure," shrugs Lil' Dmuss. "The more they hear it, the more they want it." By the way, everyone, the party doubles as Dmuss' birthday bash. Wish him well.

Also on deck for the decks are DJs Cue, Froggle Rock, Absolute, Midas, J-Rockwell, Mystik and Infamous. Jay Soul, that wacky Chops and the Double Chin twins will be hostin' and toastin'. Then there's the acts. All-Asian b-boy crews Red Mask Breakers and Tactical Crew will be buffing the dancefloor to a high-gloss shine--with their heads--and R&B singers Sincere will be melting the ladies' hearts.

Then there's the rappers. There's Lexicon, who's got a vocabulary to match his tag. Keep an eye peeled for his indie debut EP The Emporium. There's also I 99--"18- to 20-year-old guys," says Goldenchild, "who've just started to rap. They produce their own beats in their basement--real homegrown stuff. They support us, so we support them. You don't see Asians getting a lot of coverage in the hip hop scene, so we'd like to give them a chance to shine, be it professionally or just for fun."

Forbidden City it's not

"Music is really just the medium to get everybody together," says Da Baron. "It's like when you eat. Everyone sits at a table, eats the same thing, and that's the form of communication. Music is our form, and the message is, 'Hey, everybody should have a good time, that's what it's all about.' It's not about who you are and where you're from, it's about being here tonight and enjoying the music. Doesn't really matter what type--we try to play what the people want as much as possible--except commercial dance-music cheese."

This is really where the snake's new skin shines through. Romero has a long history of cross-cultural events, giving equal time to white, black, Indian and Asian DJs--and by extension their respective massives. "After this party," he says, "we're doing a showdown. Last year's was one of the busiest nights at Polly Esther's--over 2,000 people. It was old-school DJs versus new-school. This year, it's on March 3--which falls exactly on Chops' birthday--and it's gonna be Limetime vs. Goon. Limetime are Indian promoters and DJs, and their crowd. So it's them and our oriental DJs coming together. A clash, but a friendly one. We're friends with those guys, we all work together. They're the leaders in their scene, and when it comes down to the real Asian partygoers, it's Goon all the way. That's the 18 to 21 right there."

For this New Year's party, Goon are throwing the doors wide open. "A lot of non-Asians are apprehensive about coming to an Asian party. They worry that they won't feel like they belong, that they'll be ostracized. But, hell, you go to school together, you ride the bus together, why not go to the same parties? What's the big diff? Just come and see what it's all about. It's not like there's a bunch of guys with nunchucks, waiting to bash you over the head. "It's pan-Asian, but with this event we're welcoming everyone. All this myth about a closed society, practicing kung-fu underground in an abandoned sewer because white people can't be allowed to learn the style, that's all nonsense. That's all over with. Look, it's a rich culture, there's a lot to see and experience. We want everybody to come and get a taste." :

Goon's Chinese New Year Party happens at Le Studio on Saturday, Jan. 27, 10pm. Tickets $10 in advance at Vibes and Sports Fever, higher at the door. Further details at www.goontribe.com