- Rizumu has been throwing underground parties in Philadelphia for the last 15 years. Though it's a Philly institution, the intimate events carry out the storied legacy of Midwest rave, existing within a network of no-nonsense parties that include Ohio's Midwest Fresh, Pittsburgh's Hot Mass and Detroit's No Way Back. Their most common venue is 52hz, a former martial arts studio on the second floor of an aging commercial block in West Philadelphia. The floors are wooden, the room is dark and the water is free. The room is full of pillars, so the stage and bar can easily be (and often are) reconfigured. The four-corner soundsystem is kept under 100db, a volume that allows you to lose yourself on the floor, or escape to one of clusters of couches for easy conversation. The events are BYOB, its organizers more focused on bringing DJs they love than bar profits.
Last Friday, Rizumu threw one of its Drumsong parties, an event dedicated to "deep music for dancing—no malarkey," according to flyers. Recent guests include Steve O'Sullivan, Stefan Goldmann and Titonton Duvante. March's guest was Binh, the Berlin DJ behind the label Time Passages.
Nights at 52hz get started slow, with a fair share of punters turning up after bars stop serving alcohol (Pennsylvania's "blue laws" prohibit serving drinks after 2 AM). Drumsong dealt with the late crowd by kicking off at 11 PM with a roots dub set from Heights. By the time I wandered in, CarDona was warming up the floor with some dubby tracks while wearing a Slayer shirt.
Attention to detail is what makes good parties great, and Rizumu has the small touches down. When Binh stepped up for his all-vinyl set, clip lights illuminated the permanent record crates. Some red hues made it easy to navigate through the otherwise dark room or find a corner to dance in unbothered. Signs throughout the venue made it clear no sexism or racism would be tolerated, and the party, which takes place in a mixed neighborhood, was among the more diverse I've attended.
In 2015, Binh told RA's Matt Unicomb, "Packages arrive at my flat every day. It gets really crazy. I buy a lot of blind stuff. Sometimes I'm lucky, sometimes I'm not." This method means his sets are full of obscure 12-inches that this reviewer couldn't identify. I did manage to pick out some Detroit-rooted records, such as Scan 7's "Black Moon Rising" and the Ghetto Brothers "Bass Manoeuvres," while the Berlin DJ eyed the crowd to ensure his selections were going over well (they were).
Rizumu resident Sean Thomas is something of a local legend. His dedicated following showed up on the floor just before his 5 AM set, another vinyl-only affair. It's easy to see why Thomas is so well-respected. He stitched together records by the likes of Genius Of Time and Herbert with long, preternaturally tight mixes. With all the right elements in place—the ideal space, the up-for-it crowd, the killer resident DJ—Rizumu feels like a cherished secret.