Beating Back.

DJ Niro and Blue, The Misfit Are Making The Midweek Denton Nightlife Scene Fun Again.

Compared to the Dallas dance party scene, Denton can fall slightly on the boring side of things.

Granted: This is a pretty crazy thing to say considering that Denton is a college town and that its music seen has long been lauded. But with the exception of '90s night at Hailey's Club, '80s night at Rubber Gloves and the days of Big J at The Abbey Underground, anyone looking for the latest in hip-hop and dance music were kind of out of luck as far as regularly occurring parties went.

Until recently, of course. And, interestingly, it's a couple of Dallasites — DJ Niro and Blue, The Misfit and their new, weekly Beats and Booze nights on Tuesdays at Andy's — who are behind the change.

“I was always hounding [Blue] about doing a night in Denton — for like months,” says Niro about Beats and Booze's beginnings. “Finally, he randomly came up to me and said that Andy's had Tuesday nights free. So I said 'I'm down.' He's the guy who started it.”

Says Blue: “One of the bartenders [at Andy's] –a close friend — was like, 'Hey, we're looking for a DJ. Whatever you guys are wanting to do, we'll see how it turns out. We were trying to promote a hip-hop night because Denton doesn't have a hip-hop night.”

But both men recognized the need for a higher-energy event in the city. They envisioned a party event comparable to those seen in Dallas. And, for the past five weeks, their vision has come to fruition — and entertainingly at that. The formula is as follows: Blue gets the crowd hyped and Niro pumps out a selection of hip-hop, dance and popular favorites that reflects his 16 years behind the turntables.

As well as just filling a much-needed party void in Denton, one of the biggest draws to the event — other than the two men behind it and their proper sonic tastes — is the $1 well drinks and free cover. Naturally, this makes for a happy crowd. Hey, everyone loves affordability. Plus, to loosely quote one party goer, pretty much anyone can find some spare change to get drunk at this bash. In turn, the crowds have become consistent, the space regularly filled with dancers sweating out their problems for the day. Somehow, though, the vibe remains and intimate and relaxed one, too.

Credit the fantastic chemistry between Niro and Blue for that. At Booze and Beats, the two are careful to show appreciation for one another's craft, be it through Blue's shout outs to Niro or Niro's dropping of Blue's latest tracks to get the crowd really moving.

For now, the twosome seems pleased with the shape the event's been taking. At the moment, they say they have no long-term plans or visions beyond what's already going down. Instead, they're just living in the moment and accepting their success for what it is — while not taking it for granted.

“I don’t know if there's much respect for hip-hop [in Denton] because there's a growing alternative scene,” Blue says. “But the people that want hip-hop gravitate to us — because they need hip-hop.”

Photos by Ashley Gongora.