by RAF KATIGBAK

With Montreal crowds as fickle as ever, DJs and promoters are realizing that they've got to mix it up if they want to live it up. The new sound is no sound, which means switching styles, even if only for a few moments, to give the crowd a change of pace. Two of the most active crews on the scene, IDJ and Level 4, are joining forces at Juice (3603 St-Laurent) every Thursday for Fluid, a no-holds-barred night of musical eclecticism.

Subscribing to the "diversify or die" concept, the night will feature everything from house to booty to hip hop, breaks, drum & bass, techno and more. This week's special guests will be Montreal DMC champ Mana. Residents will feature a melding of the two crews, including Sarcastic, Galaksy and Axionfigga. A fin gets you in, make sure to check it out.

Eclectic sounds abound on Friday as a new weekly night gets going at the Green Room. Fondue is a surprise melting pot of sounds with DJ Gillileo and Andrew Rose.

On Saturday, IDJ hosts another Summer Breeze event where they celebrate five years of Kracked Knuckles crew activity in style. Two rooms and a trailer-load of DJs - T.O.'s Krusada and Mr. Brown meet Montreal's DJ Rue in the main room while Blackmarket and Kataleptik drop some live shit with DJs TNT, Junglist and Pythagore in the eclectic room. IDH residents will also be on hand, so c'mon down. Ten dollars at the door, location is hush-hush so call 401-6774 for details.

Heidi Brownstein Productions have recently been repping the female side of nightlife in a big way. They follow up their July 3 Women Behind Bars event at Stereobar with their weekly Femme Fridays, from 8 p.m. to midnight at Parking Pub, featuring a line-up of double-X-chromosomed talent. This week, catch DJ Misfit, and next week DJ Sylvie G.

Also this Friday, local artist collective and party people YPF (Young People's Foundation) come out of hibernation and show the world just what the heck they've been up to for the past six months. The group show (and artist book) will feature silkscreen prints, photos and drawings by YPF artists and also serves to launch the new gallery space at Lemon Lime (3697 St-Laurent, formerly Noize and then Meow).

Help support another Montreal group this Saturday - the legendary AfroFunk loft party (215A Murray) helps raise money to send a Montreal contingent to the Havana Hip Hop Festival. DJ Kobal and Static will be turning it out all night long. Eight bucks cover (five if you're rocking '70s gear).

Finally, catch local ghetto-tech producer Sebastian Prelar (signed to Holland's banging Djax Up Beats label) as he brings some Chicago-flavoured booty to next Tuesday's GhettoBlast night at Saphir. Work it!

What's a pirate always looking for, even though it's right behind him? Diskoakimbo@sympatico.ca

>> Music Listings