When the Grand Emporium changed in 2004 from a dingy blues bar to a sleek, upscale club, music purists cried foul. The club scenesters rushed to it, attracted to the weekend DJs' oomph-oomph beats. Then, next thing we knew, the place started attracting a gay-heavy crowd. Thankfully, this mix of gay and straight has flourished at the Emporium, and the odds of finding a willing hookup partner are pretty damned good. The straight guys, dragged there by their gay friends, gravitate to the flocks of chicks who are just there to dance, and the same-sexers have a field day. It's a utopia of luv, a microcosm of a Blue State dream -- all springing from the rubble of the blues.
