Bedat & Co. and Tourneau party

The only reason we went to the Bedat & Co./Tourneau party last night was because Gilles was playing. And I think the only reason he was playing was because he was in town for the Cielo gig the previous night.

We walked into the large building on 57th Street, a large ominous ticking sound surrounded us. No, we weren't dying, this is Tourneau's go at sound branding, because the ticking reminds you that they are a timepiece behemoth. Or something like that.

Walking into a massive corporate atrium with 40+ feet ceilings, I noticed that the tiny sound coming from the corner of the space was none other than Gilles Peterson "spinning". A thin crowd (any crowd would seem thin in this kind of space) resplendent with jewels and cocktail wear ignored him as we tried to devise ways of introducing ourselves.

Soon a little speech was made and the entertainment started, none other than the brilliant Raven O Master of Ceremonies from The Box. I didn't know that Raven O and his gang ventured out of their lair, but apparently they do for a price. The burlesque and cabaret so brilliant at The Box was out of place and strange in this large atrium and low stage, and the suited crowd looked at each other out of the corner of their eyes and shifted uncomfortably in their shiny shoes. Peep shows, stripping and expletives were apparently not what they were expecting. Where as the vaudeville delights have the perfect milieu in the one hundred year old theater on Chrystie Street, in this situation it was just inappropriate and embarassing. You can take all that is cool but reappropriating it for your brand takes some thought and consideration. And sometimes, that reappropriation just doesn't work. Tourneau should consider hiring these guys next time.