DJ Windows 98 (Win Butler of Arcade Fire)
Barboza, Seattle, WA
08.07.14
Win Butler of Arcade Fire, aka DJ Windows 98, played a gig at Barboza Thursday night. The event was quietly promoted, and with a maximum capacity of 200, this show seemed more like a private dance party with Butler and crew. While opener Sam Spiegel, of N.A.S.A., gave the gift of dance to the dark mass downstairs, Butler wandered around the room, donning a couple of different masks that he randomly traded out. His height gave him away.
He stood silently with the crowd to enjoy Spiegel’s handiwork, and periodically stopped at the bar for refreshments, which plenty of patrons were happy to assist him with. As I danced around in my tiny plot of floor space, it was unsettling to turn around and see his tall, masked frame staring over me to the stage. I felt suddenly obligated to dance more, as if I had to prove how much I was enjoying the show. It will be a very gray day when my enjoyment is matched by my dancing skills, because those will never improve. The surrounding crowd was very genial and respectful of his space, and Butler generally floated around without much interruption.
Spiegel played until 11:30, at which point DJ Windows 98 took over at a table located by the dance floor wall. However, he had a masked decoy set up at the stage table, and attention was humorously misdirected for a solid few minutes. Butler played an interesting, tribal-inspired mix, complete with drums, before going into a hilarious mash-up of Kanye’s I Am A God and Carly Simon’s You’re So Vain. The crowd laughed uncontrollably as the tracks switched from Kanye to Carly, clapping and throwing their arms in approval. Even Butler couldn’t contain his chuckles. This show, which may or may not ever have a sequel around here, was one for my own personal record book. For a $15 ticket, the memories were a steal.
Review by T. Monte
Photos by Sunny Martini
DJ Windows 98
