One of the common criticisms of the Philadelphia LGBT nightlife scene is that due to the close location and similar bar styles, that the Gayborhood and its establishments present a homogeneous brand of gay lifestyle choices. Despite this often ignoring a number of great new events and parties, the fact stands that some Philadelphia queers look outside of 13th & Locust to fill most of their nights.

This vague but increasingly pervasive dissatisfaction has begun trickling down to the movers and shakers in Philly, and the last couple of years have seen some changes in what the LGBT community have to choose from. An ever growing cadre of alternative gay parties have been taking form, including The Welcoming Committee, Cutn Paste, Bi at Sundown, and Clubhaus, and others who set out to show some of the different colors in Philadelphia’s rainbow scene. One of the most successful and steadfast of these parties comes packed as a grittier dance party called NSFW, formed by Paul Blore & Marquise Lee.

Going into its third years of parties in multiple venues across the city, the motivation behind starting the event wasn’t just to get out of the Gayborhood. As social a couple as any other I have found in Philadelphia, the move to create an outside the box gay party started mostly just from Blore & Lee simply observing all of the different scenes queer Philadelphians can be found in.

“We love nights in the ‘hood just as much as we love nights in Fishtown, Spring Garden, South Philly or any other of Philly’s great neighboords,” Blore says. “We found that some of the best nights happened when we’d go someplace that wasn’t specifically queer-identified, and we’d wind up meeting queers anyway.”

The idea is simple enough: host a monthly LGBT dance party at a venue outside of the gayborhood. With the image and music veering closer to a grungy, alternative brand of gay party, it also doubles as a new vibe for gays that may have been seeking refuge in bars like The Barbary and Silk City for the type of night they were looking for. Whether the appeal to the patrons of the party is the location or the atmosphere isn’t clear, but luckily for Blore & Lee it has gained a solid following over the last 2 years.

Braving venues in multiple parts of the city, NSFW has inhabited some of the busiest but overlooked areas in the city, including the now shuttered Fluid in Queen’s Village, The Trestle Inn on Spring Garden, and Khyber Pass in Old City. While Trestle was a bit far for most and Khyber had the oft-dismissed Old City working against it, the current location at the Medusa Lounge near Rittenhouse commands both convenience and the perfect level of grittiness that the party aims for. It is an ever evolving event that proposes a new theme each month for its attendees but always presents a similar escape from the Gayborhood norm. Blore & Lee hope for this to be just one more element of the grander LGBT nightlife scene.

“We know that it’s not everybody’s cup of tea, and we’re not trying to be everything to everyone. We are not trying to have mass appeal. And to some people, our parties are only appealing part of the time,” Blore admits. “But we hope that for those seeking something different, both from within the Gayborhood and outside of it, that this is a chance for them to intermingle, to cross-pollinate and realize that their world of possibility for a night out (or, yes, even a hook-up) was a much bigger world than they were allowing themselves.”

Which isn’t to say that either Blore or Lee are anti-Gayborhood. In fact, Blore makes a point to repeatedly pledge his support to the 13th & Locust bars, simply stating that he doesn’t just want more parties outside of the gayborhood, he just wants more parties!

“There’s something to be said for the ‘safe space’ that the Gayborhood offers,” he says, “but there’s also something empowering about making a space your own. We love hitting up the Gayborhood as much as we love other scenes, and vice versa. If a party outside the ‘hood happens to be queer, great!”

Lee adds that sometimes even the most staunch Gayborhood goer is looking for something different, and that is when parties like NSFW come in. “Sometimes people just want something different for a change and other times they’re wanting something familiar. It’s pretty unpredictable – people are unpredictable—so we just try to keep it fun for ourselves. And since we’re not trying to make a living at this, we do what we can not to get stressed out.”

This month’s party is a perfect example of creating a party that keeps the scene fun for them, with a theme of Blackout. Rather than creating a theme where the goal is for people to dress up, they are playing on the sexual tension summer creates and hoping for something a little more risque.

When asked what Thursday will be like, Lee responds “People are definitely a little more keyed up in the summer – it’s not just the humidity you’re feeling. So at midnight, we’ll cut the lights at Medusa, and see where the night takes us. Typically we’re trying to inspire inspire people to dress up… but for this one we’re hoping to get them in the mood to take it off.”

And it’s this type of party that makes NSFW a welcome addition to queer nightlife. Outside of certain late night spots, you would be hard pressed to find a night like this in the Gayborhood. If variety is the spice of life, then the NSFW party is doing work to make Philly’s gay scene just a little spicier.

Next NSFW – Thursday, June 26 – link

Photo by: Alexander John Photography