Photo by Greg Wood
Jack Jin and Coco Yu find a moment of peace at Level 10.
Photo by Greg Wood
Members of the Level 10 Dance Crew give the stage a spin at the Bearden club.
Photo by Greg Wood
Jack Jin and Coco Yu find a moment of peace at Level 10.
Photo by Greg Wood
Level 10 Dance Crew leader Brad Williams, right, takes a break with Joannie Miller.
Photo by Greg Wood
Nick and Sasha Combs soak up the Level 10 ambience.
KNOXVILLE — Popping, locking. Freezes, power moves.
Sounds like terms from a violent videogame, but they're actually components of breakdancing, which Knoxvillians now have the pleasure of enjoying on a weekly basis.
Every Friday night the Level 10 Dance Crew - whose members range from 23-40 years old and from mothers to computer scientists - entertains with contorting, thrashing and frantic movements to the beats of DJ Wigs.
"The owners are trying to do something different here," says Mad Max, the doorman at Level 10. Months ago club owner David Butler suggested the breakdancing idea to a mutual friend of Brad Williams (the man in charge of the dance crew), who then turned to Williams.
"We've all known each other for years," Williams says of the crew. "We used to dance together at the Boiler Room and Fiction." Williams says it was easy for him to "call on the troops" and assemble what is now the Level 10 Dance Crew.
The Bearden-area club, which is relatively new to the nightlife scene, is striving to be a dancer's haven. Williams says of the venue, "this is becoming Knoxville's breakdancing place."
It lacks a specific time period, not looking modern but not trying to cash in on any one retro look, either. The small stage is a checkerboard pattern. The sign reads "Level 10" in an '80s videogame font. The flat screens display something looking like a Windows 95 screen saver with pink, green, orange and yellow patterns morphing. And part of the venue is decorated with posters of Janis Joplin, the Beatles and other acts from the '60s and '70s.
Williams, 25, who is both a fitness instructor and a full-time, walking, talking encyclopedia of breakdancing, explains the art form stemmed from people dancing to DJs. There's a specific part of most dance songs referred to as "the break," which DJs will sample and loop. It's typically a faster 4/4 time beat focused heavily on rhythm.
From this, genres of music (such as "break" music) have evolved, being the prominent genre for breakdancing. Williams says that anymore it's also done to hip-hop, house and electronic music.
After Williams compiled the crew and set up a weekly gig at Level 10, the club's owners built a stage in the corner specifically for their breakdancing, thus preventing breakers from sliding around on customers' spilled drinks.
Williams, who has been dancing in local clubs since he was 18 and has danced in clubs all over the country, explains that Level 10 is one of the only places he's been that encourages dancing. Most clubs, he says, are about showing off your money, dressing nicely and ordering expensive drinks, which is not conducive to dancing.
The show comes together slowly, with DJ Wigs turning on the smoke machines and kicking off some beats. He focuses on hip-hop music, starting with old-school tunes and working his way forward. Other electronic sounds make their way into the mix.
The breakers head to the stage several at a time and start playing off each other, building momentum. Before you know it they've jumped right into power moves like head spins, are popping up and locking into poses, and are wildly rocking their footwork. It's a whirlwind of well-orchestrated flying limbs. Usually one dancer will take center stage while others stand around, and when they finish someone else jumps in.
On a recent Friday night, seven of the 10 dancers were present - six men and one woman. A modest crowd of about 20 watched for a good 15 minutes or so before several audience members began breakdancing in front of the stage. The dance crew often intermingled with the crowd, stepping down off the stage and starting a large dancing circle.
Anyone is allowed to dance on the stage and fortunately everyone was polite about it, not attempting to steal the show from the dance crew. But only a few were brave enough to show off their skills on the main stage.
In fact, the amount of audience talent alone is shocking, echoing Williams's statements of Level 10 gaining a dancer following.
The excitement of the crew and the willing participation of the crowd begs the question what about rolling around on the floor, spinning on your head and landing in contorted positions is fun for the breakers, and why wouldn't one choose another more conventional style of dance.
Williams explained that in breakdancing, your feet hit the ground on the downbeat and you pop up on the upbeat. "It's similar to running," he points out. "It gives off endorphins the same way running does," accomplishing "runner's high."
"There's no rush if your feet are (always) on the ground," (like in other styles of dance). Endorphins naturally kill pain, making it easier to do head stands or land on your shoulders. "It's like being high on painkillers," he adds. "That's science."
Science takes place every Friday night at Level 10 at 11 p.m.
© 2010, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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