When I first went to one of Siam's weekly events, what struck me most was the reaction of the staff members--they had this look of shock and apprehension, like they were thinking, "Who in the fuck are all of these people?" as the booze flowed off the shelves. The place definitely isn't set up to be some swanky nightclub. There's a small dance floor with some cheesy lighting effects, empty banquet rooms off to the side, and stenciled Budweiser mirrors decorating the walls. The crowd is completely oblivious, though, to how unhip the place might look--people come for the music. Internationally respected artists like the East Coast Boogiemen and DJ Heather have even popped in to see what was up there.
I recently sat down with YESIAM (Fridays at Siam) promoter Chris Field to gain a little insight into his parties. Does he plan on throwing other events at maybe the airport lounge, or how about a used-car lot? "I want people to know that when they walk through the door, there are no pretenses," explains Field. Though house music was fundamentally built on the intention of accepting all sexual, gender, racial, and economic backgrounds, too many of those who get involved with it treat house music and parties like they're privileged information for a select few--I call bullshit on that. "As a collective, this is about having an avenue for people to get together, even if they're not specifically into house music," says Field. "There is no social hierarchy; it's about being yourself--and that's a great feeling."
Aside from the lovey-dovey ideals, Field has been using the night as a serious vehicle to showcase some of Seattle's most devoted house DJs and producers--such as Jacob London, Philip Eno, Mat Anderson, and Carlos Mendoza--in order to help catalyze growing respect for Seattle in the scope of the global electronic community. Future artists slated to play include Roam Recordings' Chad Mitchell and Viva/Amenti's Rick Preston.
YESIAM exemplifies the beauty of the dance party in that it doesn't necessarily have to fixate around one facet (i.e., the DJ, dancers, or venue) to open up the world of house music to a wider scope of enthusiasts. NICOLAE WHITE
YESIAM w/Carlos Mendoza, Chris Field, Ian Priestley, and Nate Darden on sax, Fri Feb 21 at Siam on Lake Union, 1880 Fairview Ave E, 323-8101, 9 pm-2 am, 21+, $3 before 11 pm, $5 after.nicolae@thestranger.com
