Top Fatback Moments Captured By Inferior Technology

Five years ago, seven friends came together at a tiny Eritrean restaurant to share their passion for funk, soul and disco music. Fatback was born out of the need for a good, old fashioned, family throw down. The energy, wild shenanigans and non-stop-sweat-fest quickly drew in more than just their friends. They expanded the party beyond the early days of Dahlak all the way to largest venue they could find, Liv.  Along the way they partnered with tons of other great DJs and acts like Trouble Funk and DC’s own House of Prayer Trombone Band. They had the privilege of playing some of DC’s most prestige venues like the 930 club and Hirschhorn museum. All the while they incorporated pork related costumes, videos, and of course the delicious meat itself into their gigs. And amazingly enough at each party, whether there were 50 people or 2500 in attendance, everyone was willing to check their skepticism at the door and get wild and weird for a couple hours.

So Feb 16th brings all this fun to a porky crescendo. Fatback is taking over all 3 floors of Liv nightclub, inviting some very special friends, and pulling out all their stops to create one last unforgettable night. Expect a crazy space filled with your best friends dancing their asses off to great jamz and weird surprises.

The tear-filled, bacon-infused nostalgia at Camp Fatback is at an all-time high. We’re ending our monthly party this Saturday. And to say we’re a little emotional about the whole thing would be an understatement. Regardless, we can’t wait to party with our die-hard dancers this weekend. Without y’all, this party wouldn’t have existed. Truth.

In that spirit, we’d like to countdown some of our fondest, most ridiculous, most FATBACK-y moments over the last 5 years. Now, these were all captured on the technology we had at the moment. Production value was thrown out the window, much like the monthly Fatback parties themselves: pretense was left at the door.

#5 – THE HOUSE OF SWEDEN ELEVATOR

In 2010, the Fatback crew was asked to DJ FotoWeek DC’s closing party. We jumped at the chance to bring a Fatback vibe to the Swedish Embassy. And, honestly, we had no idea how fun it would end up. The night began with photo gallery goers sipping wine and nibbling on hors d’oeuvres. Soon the vibe began to change. By 10pm,  a full on sweaty dance party started. By 11pm, a cadre of dancers had taken over the central elevator within the House of Sweden. By 11:15pm Mary J. Blige’s “Real Love” was the soundtrack to the elevator’s consistent ascent and descent.

#4 – GUEST DJ SHENANIGANS WITH ONIS

Over the years Fatback has had its fair share of guest DJs. But, Onis, the Mantastic Sexican, is Fatback’s all-time favorite of the guest DJs. Why, you ask? Well, for one thing, the man can mix some disco records – old disco to nu disco, the man is a metronome. For real. More over, his sartorial taste is impeccable. The guy wears a vest so well. But, the main reason Onis gets our pick for favorite Fatback guest DJ is evidenced with the above animated gif. I swear we made so much noise setting up these pictures and Onis never even once had a clue what was going on. He was completely out. Out cold. And, while we were waiting for the late night pizza to arrive, we needed something to occupy our time. Onis, thankfully, is coming back to DC for our last night to guest DJ once again. We couldn’t be more thrilled.

#3 – HIRSHHORN AFTER HOURS!

One of the life highlights for each Fatback DJ was getting the chance to part in the fall 2009 edition of Hirshhorn After Hours. To date, this was the biggest crowd we had ever DJed. In so many ways we had no idea if the vibe of the monthly party could be translated for a modern museum of art. On top of that, it had rained the entire day leading up to the event. Our expectations were managed. But, after a careful call to our regulars to bring umbrellas for a Mardis Gras-inspired musical communion with a local brass band marching through the rain and the night became this otherworldly, magical experience.

#2 – ELECTION NIGHT 2008

From the beginning,  BYT has always been a huge supporter of the Fatback vibe. The night of the 2008 election BYT asked the Fatback boys to DJ their election party. We saddled up in our eventual home, Liv Nightclub. The room was electric. You could feel something in the air that night. As the election returns started pouring in, California was finally called for Obama and the entire building erupted. People were using their entire bodies to make noise and shake. So much so that the entire building began to shake. Playing a record was nearly impossible. DJ KC pulled out his Aly-Us 12” vinyl single of “Follow Me”. It was, for us, the perfect track for the moment. But, the record kept skipping from the building’s reverberations. So, for the duration of the song (5 minutes), I held the turntable in the air, suspended so as not to feel the impact of the pandemonium. The video above took place about an hour later when we hit the streets, headed for the White House. We joined the rest of the city in a collective, city-wide hug fest.

#1 – OUTSTANDING

Each party – since the very beginning – has featured the song “Outstanding” by the Gap Band. The bouncers at Liv will come let us know there’s one track left for the night, s we cue up the 12” version of the track, which clocks in at about 6 minutes. Without this track at the end of the night, it wouldn’t feel like a Fatback. So, this video captures the scene at the end of a Fatback. After a long night of dancing, people are smiling, laughing, and dancing close. It’s beautiful.

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Croosh deets:

Fatback: The Last Bite

at Liv, 2001 U Street

10-3AM

$10 at the door