Black Fridays Return to Fort Lauderdale: "It Feels Like Home"

Sure everyone's bummed about the closing of venerable downtown Miami indie haunt Vagabond, but this bad news comes with a bit of a silver lining for those of us north of the Golden Glades Interchange. Popular darkwave night Black Fridays will be making a move back to the Fort Lauderdale place of its inception.

Event organizer Mike Linder (aka DJ Lindersmash, New Times Reader's Choice DJ of the Year in 2012 and 2013) relocated the Gothic-leaning shindig down to Miami about a year ago, leaving Fort Lauderdale black-wearing masses without a place to rub elbows on Friday nights. Don't worry Mike, we ain't mad at you. Fort Lauderdale is ready to welcome you back with open arms.

See also: Black Fridays Move to Miami; "Couldn't Find the Right Fit" in Fort Lauderdale

Black Fridays will make its return to Broward County on May 30, setting up shop at its original locale, at 109 S.W. Second Avenue -- formerly Green Room, now known as Stache.

"It feels like home, like taking a vacation while they renovate your house," said Linder to New Times about Black Fridays' homecoming to Fort Laudy and its revamped dwelling at Stache.

"I love the design and aesthetic of [Stache], it's really gorgeous inside," says Linder about the new setup at the new craft cocktail confines of stash. He says the hardest part of the transition back will be getting used to the new DJ booth setup on stage. "When it was Green Room, we used a converted Monster Energy drink cart on the floor as our DJ booth, it was shaky, but I like being accessible."

We asked Linder what kind of differences (if any) he noticed in Miami's crowds versus Fort Lauderdale's. "Ft. Laudy is a huge scene of partygoers and Miami was more of an artists and performers scene." He describes nights at the Vagabond consisting of "DJs, dancers, burlesquers, bartenders, and promoters," attending each other's parties for support. "It was great because it always kept you on top of your game," describes Linder. He laments that Fort Lauderdale doesn't have the same level of counter-culture right now, but he's optimistic about the future. "Fat Village is really starting to boom, I've seen, and I think that's going to bring more [counterculture] to the city."

As for any changes to Black Fridays' format, Linder tells us he is sticking to his guns. "Stache is keeping its happy hour, replete with burlesque dancers and a live band until 10:30 p.m. or so, then DJ Kaos and myself will take over the decks and transition to our music."

What kind of bangers will he be playing for opening night? "It's a trade secret," joked Linder. "Every night is kind of different and very organic." He tells us that he's sure to dish out some Black Friday staples followers have come to love, but that the set list and the direction of the night depends on the crowd and "their body language on the floor."

Black Fridays return Friday, May 30, at Bar Stache, 109 S.W. Second Ave., Fort Lauderdale. More info here.

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