Gig and Mixes: ANE × Fascination

Jan 15, 2024

I’ve been going to the Fascination parties for a little over a year, and they have become a center of my queer community’s social calendar. Red lights, loud beats, strong drinks, and an ever-increasing wide spectrum of queerness and gender expression. I know the resident DJ Colby Drasher from earlier Cambridge clubbing days, and one night we chatted between his sets about the need to build strong local community from the ground up. I pitched him on my DJing Fascination and maybe doing some sort of Furry takeover event in the vein of their Pup and Rope takeover events. The Fascination crew came back to me and said, well Anthro New England is the same week as our January party, why don’t we do a collaboration between Fascination and Anthro New England?

Thus was kickstarted a very busy several weeks of coordination and planning, spearheaded by ANE Charity lead and dear friend Floebean. He took my vague dreams (“ears for sale! demos! a cooling-off area!”) and turned them into a fully-produced party with vendors, fursuit gogo dancers, live rope tie-ups, and an incredibly warm and loving atmosphere. I just had to show up and play music.

I played two blocks, 10-11 and 12-1, switching off with Colby. I kept the first block a little slower and smoother, saving the harder/faster stuff for the 12am block. There’s not much to add except that it was the gig of a lifetime. For me it was a bit of a blur – it’s hard to be at the party when you’re playing the party! Everything went off without a hitch and I have heard more than once that it was the best Fascination party ever. There’s already a lot of buzzing that we want to do something like this again, and soon. I can’t wait!