BLK SPACE

Originally a video production and office space for Occupied VR (makers of virtual and mixed reality experiences for multiple platforms and viewing spaces) BLK Space founders Timur Musabay, Matthew Butterworth, and Ryan Reid removed all the production equipment and converted this second floor loft into an after hours space during the second year of the pandemic.

In Toronto, pandemic restrictions lasted for almost two years beginning in March of 2020 and a question that remained on everyone’s minds was: What if life after dark was reduced to almost zero, and venues and clubs disappeared? This fear did indeed become a reality. Many bars, restaurants, live music venues, and nightclubs struggled through the pandemic and in many cases shut down entirely … CON’T BELOW

EVENT COORDINATION

GRAPHIC DESIGN

VIDEO EDITING

PROPER PEOPLE 2 promo video. Design, titles, and editing by Andrew Gavin Hicks

We were running out of precious shared and collective spaces where people could gather and dance. During a brief relaxing of “gathering rule”s we approached the BLK Space with an idea called PROPER PEOPLE: an invite only, private event of 100-120 people. We engaged in several conversations with our community members and the consensus was for everyone to feel safe in sharing the same space. All those who entered had to be double-vaxed at the time of the event and because it was also an economically desperate time, we kept the price of entry low.

After several more events we found that our community never returned to clubs as we once knew them when they reopened and preferred to stay within this underground scene. Additionally, many felt they got more value for their money where not only entry is affordable but so are the price of drinks. To this day BLK Space continues as community hub for locals only, and it proves that grassroots venues like these are the foundation from which the underground music community will be rebuilt.

Above is a snapshot of a livestream co-produced with BLK Space Studios on March 20th, 2021 on TWITCH. You can listen to the full 3 hour mix at the Soundclound (Below).  Although hosting live events were put on hold during the pandemic, live-streaming provided an opportunity to connect with our loyal followers.  Platforms like TWITCH however are no substitute for in-person interactions,  but they can create intimate connections, increase accessibility, and encourage artists to conceive of new visual and sonic innovations.

PROPER PEOPLE promo video. Design, titles, and editing by Andrew Gavin Hicks.

July 22 marked marks the very first appearance of Greg Wilson onto Canadian shores. Greg began DJing in 1975 and is regarded as one of the most important figures on the UK dance scene. He was a pioneer of mixing in the UK and in 1983 he became the first ‘dance music’ specialist hired for a regular weekly session at Manchester’s now legendary Haçienda club. Greg was instrumental in breaking the new electronic, post-disco records coming out of New York, a sound he has dubbed ‘Electro-Funk.