A Taste of Heaven
Sometimes, New York can play host to extreme happenings. Last Thursday, it played MC to a blizzard.
Bellowing winds were accompanied by snow swirling from every direction, accumulating faster than my windshield wipers could sweep it away. The city was silent and still. The streets were practically bare. Only a fool or a zealot would venture out on a night like this.
As snow crunched underneath my tires, this zealot cautiously navigated the car down Sullivan Street. I began to wonder what I was doing risking life, limbs and car by going out in a snowstorm. Then I remembered the answer was streaming through my speakers. House music was the reason why I chose to travel in the snow globe that had become New York City.
If heaven, the Garden of Eden, and the fountain of youth could all be found on Earth, they would all exist simultaneously on the hardwood floor of a house club. House music is a euphonious excursion to the essence of the soul. It is as infectious as vampirism. Once you submit to the music, you’re hooked for life.
Held at the Sullivan Room, Libation is a spiritual awakening that begins the moment you walk through the entrance.
“I wanted to do an event that truly reflected who I am musically and creatively,” said Manchildblack, one of the co-creators of Libation. “I was a huge fan of Ian Friday as a DJ and producer and thought he should have a residency.”
When Manchildblack and Friday met to work on music, they discovered they shared a similar taste in music and vision for what would make for a great party. Libation became that vision.
Libation has elevated the NYC underground party scene with a sound Friday and Manchildblack calls Global Soul. It’s rooted in rhythms from the African Diaspora and includes influences from Brazil, the Caribbean, South and Central America.
“There are so many sub-genres of House and Global Soul is one of them, but I think there is a real fascination right now with African influenced music,” Manchildblack said. “You have ‘FELA! The Musical’ on Broadway as well as a very strong house music scene in South Africa. Libation, as well as Manchildblack, Ian Friday and Afro Mosaic Soul are all a part of that same movement.”
The connections are the other component that make Libation’s bi-weekly sessions so special. At every party, dozens of multi-hued souls partake in consenting collisions as sweaty bodies make acquaintances on the dance floor. Along with the aural story Friday spins, resident artist Concep takes to the stage and creates a live art installation capturing the spirit of every party. Dance collective Afro Mosaic Soul are the party’s host and scorch the dance floor with their dazzling footwork, graceful acrobatics and lofting. If a patron isn’t dancing, they can observe and enjoy all the ingredients that create this soulful gumbo.
“I’d like to think we bring good music, good vibes and good times,” Manchildblack said. For the devoted who attend each session, he’s right. Libation is as refreshing to the soul as a cold glass of lemonade is to the taste buds on a hot summer day.
F.A.M.E NYC Magazine 2010
