Electronic Dance music, with all its genres and sub genres, is in many ways a labor of love. It is created, produced and promoted by those who believe in the power of music and its intrinsic ability to unite all of us. On April 15th, hundreds of believers congregated at NYC’s popular club, Pacha NYC  for the New York launch of Elektro Magazine’s first issue, and to pay homage to its hometown hero, Boris, on his birthday.

Well before any clubbers arrived I stood in the middle of the empty dance floor. The LED lights that wrap around the venue were already illuminated with the word “Believe,” and I was flushed with emotion… New Yorkers (cynical as we may appear to be) want to believe. The club began to fill with patrons greeted by the Elektro team. Hundred held copies of Elektro’s first issue and many donned Elektro branded sunglasses. Before the party really got started I caught up with Elektro’s Zev Norotsky to gain his perspective on the evening and the future of EDM in the US. Nightlife is Zev’s passion and Elektro is the current medium in which he hopes to promote our culture and music. Elektro aspires to be much more than a magazine; it will serve as the voice of a generation and culture that has often been overlooked. Within minutes of our conversation starting our voices began to get drowned out. Chants of “Boris” slowly filled the club and the believers started to turn their attention to the DJ booth.

Passion begets passion. Those who were around in the early days and defined “house music” unknowingly inspired a young Russian born, Brooklyn raised, Boris Inzhin, whom is now one of New York’s torch bearers of house musi,c and Pacha’s resident DJ. The clubs of the late ’80s and early ’90s like Red Zone and The World captured Boris’ imagination. What made those clubs special were the club kids and the DJs who played to them. Boris found inspiration from NY legend Junior Vaquez saying he “was one of the first that inspired me, his marathon sets at Sound Factory were legendary”.

Boris began to DJ in 1993 at a club called Tilt. He has played in nearly every venue in NYC including the same Sound Factory where Junior played. His residency at Crobar is highly regarded as one of the best in NYC’s history; it is where “Believe in Boris” was first uttered and has been likened to a “battle cry” for a whole new generation of house fans: Boris’ faithful. When asked directly about what inspires him now and why he continues to push the boundaries of house music his answer was simple and profound “if it wasn’t for my fans I wouldn’t be here. I do it for the music and I do it for them…” Boris believes in his fans as much as they believe in him!

Surrounded by his friends and partners Super-Promoter Rob Fernandez, Nervous Records’ Alan T, Cielo’s Benny Soto and Trust Us’ Jon Paul, Boris entered Pacha where hundreds of his loyal followers had been chanting his name for over an hour. Descending into the DJ booth, looking down at his fans, and looking across to see “Believe” emblazoned across shirts, on signs and on Pacha’s LED screens must have a powerful impact on a person. This is not lost on Boris. “[Belief] it’s a strong and powerful concept. They [the fans] trust you to no end. That’s why it’s been the brand, [Believe], its everything!”

As Boris mixed in his first song all anyone could hear was “BORIS, BORIS, BORIS.” All attention was on him, and for a moment nothing else existed. As the tribal beat began to crescendo,  the lyrics, “You’ve got to believe in something, why not believe in me,” were perfect. The bass hit so hard and deep I felt my chest decompress as if being punched in the gut (not that I’d know anything about that!). Boris’ ability to manipulate the decks and make use of every speaker and subwoofer in the INFINITE Audio Systems sonic ability is beyond mind blowing.

To add to Boris’ mystique was the curious music selection. Half of the tracks he played had never been heard by anyone except him. Then there were the house classics like Mark Fanciulli’s “The Tide” and Green Velvet’s “Flash.” Those who came were treated to his yet unreleased, “The Drums 2012.” The track is set to be released on April 24th, and I guarantee that those who listen to it will be back at Pacha with Boris in May at his “Believe in the Lights” party or find him wherever else he is playing. Boris’ faithful were still pouring into the club when I left shortly before 5:00am, with a smile on my face and a ringing in my ears that all club kids are used to.

Electronic dance music will always be greater than the sum of its parts. Our culture and music has come out of the shadows and into the light, and Saturday’s celebration was a testament to that. In Boris’ words, “We’re all in this together, whether it one sound or another, it’s all electronic music.”

Images By Andrew Rauner