Discover The Society

If you've attended a party thrown by the mysterious group known simply as the Society, you're obviously in the know.

If you haven't, don't worry. I wasn't in the know, either.

This rakishly named group hosts invite-only parties several times a year at such chic nightspots as Solera and the former Infinity Lounge.

Secrecy is a Society watchword. Those on the invite list don't get the party location until 48 hours beforehand. One organizer said he doesn't even tell his wife where the party is going to be.

The Society threw its most recent party on Saturday at the Lounge, and it lived up to the hype.

The idea behind the Society is an old-style social club -- if a social club were made up of really hot people drinking, carousing and listening to chest-thumping club music. The group's name plays on the stuffy high-society soirées we see in movies. These parties are anything but stuffy.

The crowd ranges in age from mid 20s to late 30s. The people are diverse and always well-dressed. Many have outgrown the wild and crazy club scene and are looking for something more intimate and more exclusive.

Travis Granger, 37, is one of the Society's creators. He's promoted concerts and events in the nightlife scene before, but wanted to give people who gave up on the club scene a reason to come out again.

"We wanted to try to make people feel like they're a part of something," Granger said.

The first Society party took place in December 2007, in what is now Bradstreet inside the Graves 601 Hotel.

Starting a buzz on Facebook

In the weeks leading up to the Society's latest party, Granger and his partners barraged Facebook and Twitter with messages touting the mysterious party.

By Thursday, 455 people had RSVP'd on the Society's Facebook page. Those people -- and a couple hundred more who had responded via e-mail -- received a message stating the place (The Lounge), the time (10 p.m.), the fee ($8) and the attire ("Fashionably responsible"). The Society called the party "LAX to MSP," an allusion to Lady Sha, the Iranian-born, L.A.-based DJ they were flying in to provide the night's music.

Before the party began, the Lounge's owner, Brian Bell, told me he still didn't know much about the group, but found the concept "totally cool."

An hour after the doors opened the club was already filling up. Bell had given the Society the Lounge's front room for its private party, but it clearly wasn't big enough for the surprising turnout. Apparently, word is spreading fast about the group.

The party ended up being the Society's most successful yet, with almost 400 people packing into the Lounge. Maybe it was a little too packed, some said. Granger said he typically wants to max out at about 200 guests in order to keep the party truly "exclusive."

He's aimed the parties at young professionals and familiar faces in the Twin Cities music and arts scene. Marriage therapist Harry Ford called the party "kinda hot." I also bumped into Twin Cities rap star Muja Messiah, who spoke with a little more color when assessing the night.

"The Society parties are popping!" he yelled out over the music.

So the question remains: How do you get into one of these parties? While I promised the Society I wouldn't blow up their invite-only policy, here's a hint on how to get "in the know." First, you could dig around on Facebook, which seems to have worked for a lot of people (me included). Or just check out the Society's website (thesocietyevents.net), which features a great cool-finding blog where the newest trends in clothing, music and art are exalted.

Granger said to look for the next Society party in June. Of course, you won't see any fliers or ads promoting it around town. So finding it is up to you. Good luck.

thorgen@startribune.com • 612-673-7909