By Travis Holser; Photos by Frank Mullin
Revolve takes place every
other Thursday at the Cuban Revolution in Downtown Providence. The brainchild
of Tim O'Keefe, Mike Hoska and Gregor Mittersinker has gathered momentum with
ongoing blockbuster live performances by Triangle Forest, Joe Beats and Blak,
Channel Zero, and this Thursday, August 2nd, Mahi Mahi and DJ C.
Travis: Why did
you start the night, and why at a bar/restaurant and not a nightclub?
Tim: We have
been kicking the idea around for awhile, everybody disappeared after the Cozy
Lounge/Listening Party stopped, we all got wrapped up with other things, my
label Cozy Music and the production of
my new album has strayed my focus from starting a new night.
Mike: We kept
collaborating on different things, live performances and DJ gigs in Boston, track production
and studio work for Cozy Music and
really started to miss doing a night. We wanted to create a space where people would
go for the music, each of us is into different genres from underground electro
to obscure '80s disco and real love for music and diversity was our key
driver for starting Revolve.
Gregor: I also
started working in Cambridge,
and saw much more underground activity and a growing spectrum of musical
offerings. I started to DJ more and more at the Enormous Room and ZuZu's - and
felt there was a huge potential to start something in Providence that really celebrated the music. We
wanted to expose people to diversity and have cross pollination between the
genres. That's why we opted for the Cuban Revolution as the ideal venue. Ed
Morabito, the owner, is really supportive, and the place has the perfect size
and is really beautiful, they also serve food till 1 a.m., so you can listen
to the band/DJ and grab a bite. We also felt that hosting the night at a club
would not give us enough potential to showcase the diversity in music we were hoping for.
Travis: Congratulations
on offering diverse genres; you've had a pretty impressive lineup so far, and Mahi Mahi and DJ C should be great
shows coming up. How did you secure big local and regional acts to play at such
an eclectic setting?
Mike: It's easy
if you have a friend like Tim! It took us about three
days to secure the lineup after we confirmed that we where doing the night. All
of us have been involved in other nights before and knew all the artists and Tim's
label connections helped.
Tim: Some of
the acts are on my label and really liked the idea of playing at the Revolution; the venue has a great vibe and it fits a
great variety of different music. Setting up the night seemed easy. We are also
excited to plan the fall lineup; we are already planning our next flyer and
fall is typically a better season to do a night.
Gregor: We also
know a diversity of people in the city and it is fun to see them come together
at Revolve. What's also great about the night is that we are starting to see
more collaborations between the acts that play at our night. DJ Save One, who is a sick soul digger, is planning to play a live show in the fall
using beats and his turntables with a sampler and Ted James, who is on Cozy
Music, wants to play a minimal House DJ
set. Sensual Dan, who played at Revolve
with Erik and Channel Zero at Sound Session, will return DJing in the fall.
Travis: You
really offer a interesting diversity in sound, how do you find new acts and DJs to play and who decides what style of
music will be played?
Tim: It is much
easier to run a night with several people: One
can do the flyer and website, one can do PR, booking, equipment and we all can
jump in if someone is traveling or has another commitment. We all collaborate
on the booking part and it is typically the performers' decision what genre
they would like to showcase at the night. We book people that share our strong passion
for great music and that have a broad interest in different styles. We want our
night to be known for great variety and quality.
Mike: This also
happens naturally since we all collaborate and bring our own ideas into the
mix.
Revolve happens every first and third Thursday at the Cuban
Revolution in downtown Providence.
The music ranges from electro to eclectic and from boogie to soul with live
acts and DJ's from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. Mahi Mahi will make an appearance this
week and then DJC and DJ Flack
returning from their European tour will visit the funky place the first week of
August.
