San Francisco LGBTQ+ Nightlife
Nightlife party ‘Hell’a Tight’ enters new era at SF Oasis
The long-running LGBTQ+ drag show and dance party by Lindsay Slowhands begins a new chapter after officially winding down at Underground SF.
I remember attending my first Hell’a Tight in 2015: A dirty dive in Lower Haight felt like an improbable draw for the San Francisco LGBTQ+ community that often amassed in Castro and SoMa, but who else to bring them there? Lindsay Slowhands.
The party formula was simple: bubblegum pop, drag, and dancing, which on its own sounds a little too uncomplicated. But add in Slowhands and you’ve got amazing drag and a curated list of 90s and 2000s favorites that’s always on point. The cramped, damp room at Underground SF I think fueled a younger crowd to go, too, making for many sweaty, muscled bodies squishing together for a night of dance and joyful mayhem.
Slowhands announced the end of Hell’a Tight in a bittersweet post on Instagram several months ago; and to the untrained eye, the party was over. “After 12 years of confetti, silly string, sweaty bodies and re-powdering, I’m ready to focus on the new opportunities that await us,” Slowhands wrote in September. She then hosted The Final Hell’a Tight! at Underground SF in December.
Not long after though, she announced her latest event: another Hell’a Tight-flavored party at SF Oasis. These sibling soirées have been ongoing at the SoMa club for some time now, owing in large part to Slowhands’ tight relationship with the late club owner Heklina, who helped Lindsay get her start in local LGBTQ+ nightlife. The main difference from the Haight bashes are the tributes: Kim Petras, Madonna, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Taylor Swift are all idols we worship in theme events titled “Hell’a Tight Presents.”
Is it still bubblegum pop and amazing drag? Yes, but it’s not the same party, Slowhands said on a recent phone call with The Bold Italic. “It’s not that cramped, sweaty, take-your-clothes-off kind of vibe,” she told me. “It’s bigger drag shows, bigger productions; shows that Heklina gave me the opportunity to be a part of.”
And I agree with her that while it is the same music to me and honestly the same crowd, the general feeling has changed. I went to a jam-packed Taylor Swift tribute in August last year with similar young sweaty bodies and custom couture; Slowhands sews many performance numbers herself.
The crowd at SF Oasis definitely kept their clothes on for more of the evening.
I am a longtime fan of both Slowhands and D’Arcy Drollinger, who owns and operates SF Oasis. It is a joyous pairing for these two to put on this party, one which Drollinger trusts Slowhands to creatively manage.
“They have faith in me just to drop a night in my hands, and I get to just run with it,” Slowhands told me. “It gives me more power, and I like that.”
This current iteration of Slowhands’ legacy has no end date planned. “It’s over at Underground,” Slowhands said. “So I’m interested to see how many regulars will be coming out because the monthly party isn’t there anymore.” Me too, although something tells me this party will go on thriving.
The next “Hell’a Tight Presents” at SF Oasis is a Britney tribute on Feb. 23. I hope Lindsay throws some deserved shade on Justin Timberlake.
Read my profiles of Lindsay Slowhands and D’Arcy Drollinger
Saul Sugarman is editor in chief of The Bold Italic.
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