Loungin'

Cocktail parties swing into 'Happenin' Valley

Get rid of your poor, your starving, your tired old keg-in-the-corner parties because, as the good Reverend Horton Heat once sang, "It's martini time."

With the new millennium approaching and people looking back on the '90s and its "fashionable to be unfashionable" approach, many students are rediscovering a more stylish way of life that has been around for years: cocktail culture.

In the '40s and '50s, Frank Sinatra and his "Rat Pack" cohorts, such as Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr., epitomized the martini-in-hand swinging bachelor lifestyle.

But, as Frank aged and the loud guitars of rock n' roll replaced lounge crooners such as Mel Torme, cocktail culture was forced to go underground.

Yet ironically, with many of the Rat Packers dead and Sinatra ailing, the way of life that he helped popularize is enjoying a resurgence among students.

"It is such a great approach to life," said Chad Keller (senior-geography). "It's all about class."

Keller and his roommates have hosted several cocktail parties during their college years.

"It's a chance to dress up for the evening and try to pretend that you're not a broke college student," he said.

A cocktail party, though, unlike a typical college party, requires a definite protocol when being planned.

Mixed drinks such as martinis and rum and cokes replace the standard keg, and finger food such as vegetables or shrimp must be provided for the select number of guests that have received invitations.

And, like anything with a degree of class, there are unwritten rules and codes about throwing cocktail parties. One such rule is cocktail parties generally take place early in the evening, usually from 6 to 8 p.m.

"A cocktail party is like a preamble to something later in the evening," Keller said. "It's an intimate affair where you can enjoy yourself before going out later in the evening."

Whitney Vass (junior-media studies) said she enjoys the intimacy and planning of cocktail parties.

"There's a care that goes into the atmosphere of the party," she said. "It's not just about going out and getting wasted."

Vass, who is the host of a lounge show called "Jet-set Sounds in Hi-fi" on WKPS-FM (90.7), is also drawn to the music of the scene.

"The music is very relaxed and smooth," she said. "It reflects the style and sophistication of the whole culture."

It is not only students who are rediscovering this culture, but the record and movie industries as well.

Vass said the release of Capitol Records' Ultra Lounge compilations has aided in the increased popularity of the music and the return of the culture.

Also boosting cocktail culture's popularity is Hollywood's exploration of the scene in movies such as Swingers. The film's characters journey to such hallowed shrines of lounge culture as Las Vegas and the tiki bars of Hollywood.

Jason Gorman (graduate-mechanical engineering) said he knows the reason why the culture and music has surfaced again after so many years in the underground.

"I believe everything is cyclic," he said. "And people are always looking to discover (or rediscover) new things."