A nightclub in Manhattan. 530 West 27th Street, between 10th and 11th Avenue.

For quite a while, Twilo was New York City's largest dance club. It occupied a space formerly known as the Sound Factory, who had since moved out. Friday nights exposed New Yorkers and visitors to the highest profile house, techno, and trance DJs. Ken Ishii, Carl Cox, Darren Emerson, Paul van Dyk, Deep Dish, and Richie Hawtin played there many a time, while Sasha and John Digweed played every last Friday of the month for close to four years. Most of these nights cost $20 if you got yourself on the guestlist (for free), and they were always 18+.

Saturday nights were boys only parties. Junior Vasquez often kept the place open until sometime Sunday evening.

In 2000, Twilo opened up an additional Wednesday lounge. Hardfloor and Sandra Collins both played there.

Inside, Twilo wasn't that much to speak about visually. There was no fancy furniture or stained glass like Limelight. The walls were typically empty of posters, art, or graffiti. The main dancefloor's only variations were the stage, two bars, and two large blocks that served as tables for dancing, sitting, and holding drinks. There was a lighting rig mounted on the ceiling, all around a huge disco ball and its satellites. Upstairs, the music was quieter and there were tables and bouncy chairs.

The interior's decorative simplicity was nice, though, as it allowed visual artists to have free reign inside. My first time at the club was September 10, 1999, the first Far East Technology Party of which there have been four or five. Ken Ishii was the headliner, with Tsuyoshi Suzuki warming up the crowd before and a live PA from The Advent afterwards. A Seiko watch display was set up. Twilo's usual dancers came out during Ishii's set, accompanied by (doubtlessly annoying) computer animation projected in his face. He was joined on stage by two dancing Sony AIBO dogs and models wearing some very odd costumes: a Giger alien all in white and a Bib Fortuna-like getup with lasers for hands, among others that I missed.

At least two references to Twilo have been made in song titles.
• Killahertz's "West on 27th"
• Sasha's Twilo remix of Madonna's Ray of Light

Twilo was shut down in February of 2001. The city of New York cited several technical violations and suspended their cabaret license. This license was later revoked, and the club attempted to auction off much of its famous equipment, including its fantastic Phazon sound system, the humongous disco ball, and the large sign at the entrance warning patrons of undercover cops.

Why the police waited until the club was packed on a Saturday night to close instead of business hours is not all that big of a mystery.

In September of 2000, Twilo released a mixed compilation of house music named "Twilo Volume 1: Junior Vasquez", apparently planning to continue the series with their other residents. Unfortunately, with their closing, the series went no further.

Tracklisting (US version, European disc 1)
1. Pre Ymo - Indo (Junior Vasquez Remix)
2. Bobby Slate - Floating Higher
3. Donna De Lory - On & On (Junior Vasquez remix)
4. System F - Cry
5. Aurora - Hear You Calling
6. And-E & Mac Lane - Swallow It Down
7. DJ Darkzone - Watching You
8. Mind Trap - Hypnotism
9. Rank 1 - Airwave (Junior Vasquez remix)
10. Kult of Krameria - Egocentrik
11. The Columbian Drum Cartel - Paranoid
12. Mike Macaluso presents Tribal Mayhem - Shake
13. Progression - Surrender Now (tribal dub)
14. Dubtribe Sound System - Equitoreal

Disc 2
1. Shannon - Let the Music Play (Junior Vasquez remix)
2. World of Shoes - I Am Strong (Junior Vasquez remix)
3. Nomad - With You (Junior Vasquez remix)
4. Charlotte - Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (Junior Vasquez remix)
5. Karmadelic featuring Sandy B. - Nothingness (Junior Vasquez remix)
6. Kelis featuring Terrar - Good Stuff (Junior Vasquez remix)
7. Bryon Stingliy - Stick Together (Junior Vasquez remix)
8. DJ Mike Cruz - Movin' Up (Junior Vasquez edit)
9. Vernessa Mitchell - Higher (Junior Vasquez remix)
10. Ministers de-la-Funk featuring Jocelyn Brown - Believe (Junior Vasquez remix)

HOLY COW!

Twilo has re-opened! It is now known as Spirit.

I have been to Twilo once. It was my first "clubbing" night ever. I have lived in New York City all my life. And I finally visited Twilo two days before I moved to Chicago.

I always shied away from trance music. But my senior year roommate loved it, and I was slowly introduced to it by him. One day I get a call that he is coming in to see Digweed and Sasha at Twilo and that I am coming with him.

We got there at ten. We got in at eleven. We left at ten the next morning.

The scene on the line was filled with talk of all the undercover cops around, how it was being shut down soon and all (that sad time has finally come, by the way). Anyway we got in and I was hooked. I always talk about that night in the same way. For some reason, I was dry as a bone the whole night. I think I had one beer. And I absolutely loved it. I danced, I danced my face off, and I danced some more. Since that night I have been increasingly into the trance and club scene, which is quite alive here in Chicago.

I don't know if I would have been so hooked if my first club experience had not been at the hands of Diggers and Sasha. At Twilo no less. But in their skilled tutelage, I was given a view of how amazing this scene can be. I have experienced few nights that have compared to that first night, at Twilo, dancing my heart out, in awe of the music pumping through the incredible soundsystem and excited to have found a whole new world of music and people to explore.