Like alchemists attempt to melt metals into gold, disc jockeys Shaun Slaughter and Jon Droll fuse music into a beat-matched sonic quilt of mad style. Music, art and fashion mix it up on the dance floor at Old Ironsides — 10th and S streets — every first Saturday of the month at Vicious Dance Disaster. The flier promises “an over the top dance party filled with electropunk, neo-disco, sugary pop gems, new wave, ghettobass anthems and everything in between.”

The “everything in between” part is what Slaughter and his cohorts have been stirring together for almost four years. In 2000, Slaughter started the Indie-rock Britpop-laden night Lipstick at Old Ironsides, setting the mood and building a following. Out of this came the fearsome duo of Vicious Dance Disaster at Old Ironsides late in 2003 and Fuck Fridays, which kick-started last Friday at The Townhouse.

“Each night is completely different,” Slaughter said. “Vicious evolved from larger scenes into a crazy oddball dance night. It’s insane. People dress up artistically and reflect the music, which reflects them.”Dressing up also makes admission to Vicious only $1. Themed costumes are highly encouraged and might be photographed for Slaughter’s Web site — www.clublipstick.net.

I arrived at last month’s Vicious Dance Disaster at 10:30 p.m. and found street parking right away. Once inside, the buzz was strong. The bar was full. People were dancing. By midnight, there was a s long line outside. The maximum occupancy was only relieved by groups of sidewalk smokers.

After a couple drinks for motivation ($6 can get you a premium shot of whiskey and a Pabst Blue Ribbon draught), I moved into the dance area and the night rolled from there. DJs Slaughter and Droll tag-teamed the mixer all night, taking breaks to bust a move and work the crowd on the dance floor, returning to the grandstand in sweaty customized T-shirts.

“Wearable art” designer Olivia Coelho was selling these silk-screened tees and sweatshirts with Vicious logos printed over cheesy pop icons like N ‘Sync. The idea is to feature a new artist every month, premiering limited-edition works of functional inexpensive art exclusively for Vicious Dance Disaster.

“They are just paintings that I scanned,” Coelho said. “I wanted to get away from the elitism and theory of art. I want to sell a piece of art for $5. I see people graduating from college selling paintings for $2,000 and it’s laughable. There’s a time and a place to make money.”

Coelho is a young artist who cleverly manipulates multiple media. Coelho is part of an online art collective at www.vicevintage.com, and one day hopes to open a store featuring her own merchandise.

In the meantime, the relationship between graphic design and textiles flows naturally along with the Sacramento nightlife. After organizing Sell Out/Buy Out, an art gallery event and profitable commercial gimmick, Coelho’s affordable and accessible fashion/art caught DJ Slaughter’s eye. So, he invited her to be a guest artist for Vicious last month. Coelho sold out, but on her own terms.

“I think it’s great bringing all these multi-faceted people together,” Coelho said. “Now there are kids walking around in my clothes, I’m associated with the nightlife, and I had a great time.”

Aric Hondel is another cultural force in the midtown revival and shares Coelho’s enthusiasm. Hondel owns and runs Flat Spot on 28th and G streets, a space devoted to skateboarding and underground street culture that also functions as an art gallery. Coelho’s handbags and shirts are on display and for sale at Flat Spot. Hondel attended Vicious to check out the vibe.

“The scene has changed for the better,” Hondel said. “I like the DJs and how they mix (music) up with fresh new stuff. They’re good at what they do, but they might need a bigger place now with all the advertising.”

Slaughter has created a post-rave cultural exhibition devoted to music, dance, fashion, art, design and commerce within the local community. He insists that Vicious not perpetuate “tired themes” like new wave or electro-clash, and for good reason. In the past, different scenes rarely commingled, especially when it came to music. Fast-forward to 2004 and the Vicious crowd: everyone gets along and boogies down. Or do they?

Old Ironsides security officer “Doug” left me with the impression that the crowd is always mellow and causes no problems. No sooner were we finished talking, than I walked outside and saw multiple fights break out on the street. Within five minutes, the sidewalk was flooded with sheepish spectators, six police cars overwhelmed S Street, and I made my exit.

Slaughter’s reaction to the scuffling was casual and aloof. As a native of the area, he believes Sacramento is a major metropolitan destination, and that bad things randomly happen. The real reward was drawing club-goers to Vicious from Los Angeles and San Francisco, cities that originally inspired him to create the scene that is now flourishing.

“I always felt like, why isn’t there a more mixed club? Finally, there is a huge mixed crowd. This is a small city with a small pool of really creative people. We’re not a Top 40 club and I’m turning a profit. I’m waiting for some competition,” said Slaughter, who DJs, promotes and provides graphic design for his venture full time.

“We’re working with a clean slate and I think that people are getting exposed,” Slaughter said. “Fuck Fridays will be a venue to break new music and cutting edge bands needing a place to play. People are trying to do something different and the turn-out has been amazing.”