The Deviant Dispatch 2025 State of the Union

what's closing and what's popping off

Mar 04, 2025

Kesha from the press cycle of her first album AKA how I feel about the USA

Hi divas,

It’s Mo aka DJ Gay Panic, and this(!) is The Deviant Dispatch. I’m blogging from my corner of the NYC underground to bring you subcultural musings, scene updates, and queer shit. There will be typos.

The State of the Union is happening today (kinda). I’m sure it’s going to be shitty: Trump emphasizing how great he’s going to make the country by making it horrid for minorities. That's not why I’m here. I’m writing cuz in the two years that I took off from this newsletter, the churn of queer nightlife kept churning. Venues closed, parties started, and Charli XCX became so famous we named a summer after her album. So here’s a roundup of updates so we can move forward to the new year. Stay tuned for a more zoomed-out vibe report coming soon to an inbox near you. But for now, the news:

Paragon is Closing in April, unless they find a Investor

(this is only news if you’re the kind of queer that has never heard of Honcho Campout)

The culprit? Rising costs of running a nightclub. Insurance spiked post-pandemic, and after the industry accepted the narrative “everyone wants to go raving” post-lockdown, the talent fees also spiked. Add the fact that no one really drinks anymore + a liberal guest list policy, and you have no streams of income with rising costs. Clubs close all the time, but one as lively and central as Paragon is especially shocking "Our dream scenario would involve a benevolent investor stepping up and saving the venue so we could continue to run. But as of now we are also talking to potential buyers. Paragon is for sale," the owner said to Hell Gate.

All is not lost : there was a time when rumors swirled about Nowadays closing before the club announced it had signed a 10 year lease. Hopefully a literal angel investor will step in for Paragon before it’s too late. On a personal note, the club was never my fave, but after dancing there last Saturday to a epic set by Animalistic Beliefs I felt a pang of sadness. The DJ duo wouldn’t have been on my radar if they hadn’t played after local fave Soo Into It. The scene will miss the care that went into Paragon’s Lineups. Fortunately Rash and Bossa Nova are still going strong.

Charli XCX Became a Mainstream Pop Star, Promises Lou Reed Era

You don’t need this newsletter to tell you about Charli XCX’s album BRAT: just check out Brock Colyar’s profile in New York Magazine1. What’s more spicy is the future album that Charli is dropping hints about. She’s always been the kind of artist whose next album is a rejection of her last. Recently she’s gone on TikTok to emphasize her love of Clario (“February 2017” stans rise up) and tease a new direction. “What if I made a record with guitars…or strings.. or both” she mused before saying “Lou Reed era maybeee I dunno just saying!” with a smirk on her face.

I think she’s just crazy enough to do it. She and Lou Reed share a love for speak-speaking in their songs. Her fave producers A. G. Cook and Finn Keane have been flirting with rock music on albums like Britpop and Soft Rock. Her fiancé and often producer George Daniel’s claim to fame is the sometimes-rock band the 1975. Charli could also tap someone like past producer Oneohtrix Point Never for such a sound. Speaking of rock music….

BK rock club Brooklyn Made closed out of NOWHERE

I only went when my friend Shannon booked a packed halloween show there in 2023 but I loved the massive apartment above the club they let us use as a greenroom. Multiple roof decks! A Hot tub! Honestly cooler than the venue. No idea (yet) what happened but bands last Friday started posting that the venue would close rapidly and they needed to reschedule shows happening this week. Our Wicked Lady is next on the chopping block, with the owners trying to raise money to give them time to find an investor.

The New Rave of Choice is Zero Chill

The engine behind so much nightlife discourse at the end of last year was Zero Chill’s door policy: Women, alone or in groups, will get in, with or without tickets. Groups of all men will not get in, with or without tickets. Men on their own will not get in, with or without, etc. Mixed groups will be fine, but do mind that ratio. This prompted frustration from circuit gays, which then prompted mockery from everyone else. AFAB people started jokingly offering to be a token women for a price.

All of this would be irrelevant if the party wasn’t immaculate. When I went on NYE I was pleased to find a spacious warehouse with immersive real estate office theme, a satiric newspaper, and two separate DJ spaces. The larger room was (of course) for techno2, but instead of the smaller room being for house the DJs focused on electro. You can check out a sampling of the vibe below. For the full experience, imagine that you’re making airplanes with paper from a destroyed copy machine as you dance.

The New Afters of Choice is Tossd

There have only been 4 editions of Tossd so far, but the last one cemented it as the only afters that I would encourage non-party girls to attend. Tossed meets right at the intersection of a grimy afters and a party For The Music. Will Jack (one of the same organizers as Zero Chill) and Perfect Health organize a rager that goes from 5am-5pm, collecting vampires and early risers alike. The dancefloor is fully padded to add comfort to the concrete warehouse setting. Signs encourage people to do their drugs in the open and leave the two bathrooms for their intended purpose. There’s a bag of mandarin orange in the kitchenette area. Despite the debaucherous atmosphere, no one is falling out or being messy. It’s just hedonism chic at it’s finest. Plus the music is top notch, throwing techno, breakbeats, baile funk, dembow, house, and trance all in a modern blender. You can check out DJ Deadname’s set from the third tossed below.

There’s a trippy roller rink in Bushwick called Xanadu that doubles as a club

This place opened last year but is already making a splash as New York’s only year-round skating rink. There’s a y2k does 70s interior, a separate DJ setup in the bathroom for an extra nasty club experience3, a full bar, and a rink becomes a giant dancefloor for the likes of Kaytranada or The Frost Children. There’s a snack bar but be careful. The hot dogs are nice but I would avoid the chicken tenders (no a fryer onsite). The waivers you sign at the door are no joke. Roller skating is not for the faint of heart, and def not for someone who likes bumping ketamine. A recent event that I will not name had to repost someone’s GoFundMe as part of their party recap. Don’t worry, the person who broke their wrist had no hard feelings. What’s a fun night out without a bit of risk?

The Deviant Dispatch