This week there were two things we just couldn’t get enough of—go-go boys and Wendy Ho (check out even more Ho on p. 16). And we’re not complaining! At Tuned In Tuesdays at The Ritz, Scott Nevins introduced the “guest Ho.” She turned it out as usual, explaining, “The Ho’s not ‘cause I’m Asian.” But the real surprise was lesbian folk singer parody Leybia Rogers singing about how her tampon smells like freedom and how she wants Katie Holmes to be her girlfriend. If you’ve ever had to sit through an Indigo Girls concert or a bad open mic night, you’ll totally be in on the joke.
On Friday night Ho hosted another event, “Thank Cock It’s Friday” at Piano’s in the East Village where she introduced some other hos, Whore’s Mascara and hetero raunch-meister Cock Lorge. Wendy regaled the crowd with several of her filthy original songs, including one that warned against attempting anal sex, set to the tune of “I Love the Nightlife.” And then Whore’s Mascara took the stage for a theatrical and energetic three-song set. We spotted Whore’s boys Lonni and Chaz later at Eastern Bloc, along with seemingly the entire gay East Village. The guys crowded in to drink and ogle the go-gos.
Go-go Boy Tip #1: beware of leaning down too far for a tip. We learned that watching one naughty patron encouraging one of the cutie go-gos at Rush to move his ass down farther if he really wanted that ten dollar bill in his underwear. However, when the poor babe bent down just far enough, he fell off the bar and ass first into the ice bucket. Let’s just say he really earned his cold, hard cash…
Go-go Boy Tip #2: if you get patrons really drunk you’ll look even better. The cute crop of go-go boys definitely makes Campus Thursdays the place to be—and most of them did manage to stay on the bar. All that eye-candy was on hand as the night celebrated Madonna’s Hard Candy with lots of performances and treats including CD giveaways. DJ Seth Gold served up some aural sugar (along with visuals by Billy W), and we’re guilty of sipping way too many delish $3 Long Island Teas before midnight, which probably explains why we tipped the go-gos even more than usual.
It seemed like there were more paparazzi than patrons at the fifth anniversary for Rated X: The Panty Party at Don Hill’s on Saturday night. Of course, there was plenty to photograph, with the (you guessed it) hot go-go dancers, well-dressed scenester crowd, more than one hot drag queen and Peppermint’s notorious—if female-heavy—hot body contest. Michael Formika Jones served as rowdy co-host. Co-founder Michael T turned out a hot performance on stage while fellow co-founder Theo kept the music pumping all night. After five years, this scene shows no signs of slowing down.
Definitely not slowing down is g lounge, where we found ourselves twice last week. First at Franco DiLuzio and Mark Lander’s Gorgeous party where special guest DJ JonJon Battles pumped the crowd, including designer Andrew Christian, with his set of hot pop and retro favorites while DJ Lina was on hiatus (from her soon-to-be two-year residency!). We returned Sunday for the always-cute Küte party hosted by Joey Israel, Matty Maggiacomo and Wellington De Silva (who appeared as his alter ego Veronika, a.k.a. Miss Brazil). DJ Xavier spun his magic to a mega-packed house that included porn studs Tony Serrano and Arpad Miklos, as well as a roomful of beautiful men and sultry dancers including our favorite hottie Dan and virgin go-go boy Christian (we all remember our first time!).
Also Sunday was Keith Haring Party of Life at Pacha, a well-attended affair, raising money for the AIDS Walk while paying tribute to Haring (who would have turned 50 that day). The artist’s friend Junior Vasquez spun a pulse-pounding set along with Louie Vega; revelers got so hot and sweaty that the blasts of cool air were a welcome relief. Haring T-shirts and hoodies abounded (and not just the freebies they handed out at the door), while a continuous slide show displayed his work and vintage photographs. The artist’s family took to the dance floor en masse, and his former lover Juan Rivera was in attendance as well. A familiar (and massive!) blonde bob signaled the arrival of Lady Bunny, who cleared the floor during a frenzied dance to “Vertigo/Relight My Fire.” We could almost see Keith himself dancing along in the crowd like a radiant baby.
Rounding out our week, we hit up the prerequisite Hiro. While there was no sign of Wendy Ho, we did see plenty of hot go-go boys. And our week was complete! N
Going To Candyland
Madonna gives the gays their fix with a lip-smacking good show at the Roseland
By Brian Moylan
 When Madonna announced that she would be doing an intimate promotional show for her new album Hard Candy, many assumed she would do a scaled-down concert of a few songs with maybe a backup dancer or two. But remember, her royal Madge-esty doesn’t do anything half-assed.
No, there was nothing small-scale about the crowd lined up early to see the show or the buzz on W 52nd St last Wednesday night. After stopping by the Verizon Wireless production bus (the mobile studio where Madonna, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland worked on their tracks) we caught a glimpse of the Material Girl rehearsing on the live feed on the bus’ video monitors. It looked like the crowd was in for a sweet treat!
After braving the long line to get inside, the crowd was totally amped for the show and grooving to the candy-themed set by the DJ. One fan who got in line at 6pm the previous day said the long wait was totally worth it to get in. He added that everyone was lined up behind the venue and when Madonna left after rehearsal she lowered her window to wave at everyone as she slowly drove by.
When the lights finally went off, the crowd erupted and the on-stage DJ booth revolved around to reveal Madonna perched on a throne in bedazzled track pants and a long black coat over a black top. As she pranced around the stage with a coterie of dancers and spun her silver scepter it was obvious that this was going to be a night of full-on production numbers from this seasoned performer.
We could barely hear the words to “Candy Shop” over the crowd’s cheers and it was hard to see the stage over the sea of digital cameras and cell phones raised overhead to capture an electronic image of the event. Please, girls, put that shit down. With Madonna, the real thing is always better.
She didn’t disappoint playing the guitar on “Miles Away” (she almost didn’t look at her fingers!) but the real showstopper was when Justin Timberlake appeared on stage for a full-scale number of “4 Minutes” that really saved the world. As if that weren’t enough, she dedicated the next song to all the fans (read: gay boys) fanatical enough to sleep out overnight for tickets. She then played a guitar-based version of “Hung Up” that blew the roof off. If that isn’t on her inevitable tour to promote Hard Candy you should ask for a refund for your $700 ticket.
The simulcast of the show on MSN and Verizon Wireless ended after that, but the crowd was treated to Madge jumping up and down (at nearly 50!) while singing “Give It to Me” before ending the night with her new signature piece “Music.” With just six songs in 30 minutes the one-named mainstay continues to show everyone that she is the master of putting on a great show.
On a high from the concert, many of the fans streamed right across the street for DJ Peter Rauhofer’s afterparty at Touch. The mostly gay crowd kept the dance floor packed and cheering with nearly every track that Rauhofer laid down. There was a rumor Mrs. Ritchie was in the house, but it turned out to be false. And as we learned, she only shows up if she’s going to do it right!
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