8 OctOber 30 - NOvember 5, 2025 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents What’s Popping? An old party drug is having a resurgence among the Dallas club scene. BY ALYSSA FIELDS T he music is good. The people are hot. The lasers are strobing. And there isn’t one tense sphincter muscle in the room, because the strange banana- meets-sharpie scent wafting through the air at your favorite club isn’t floating from a nearby fruity Febreze dispenser. It’s pop- pers, or alkyl nitrites, or, if the feds are ask- ing, leather cleaner. Poppers, which first arrived in the Amer- ican club scene in the ’70s from London, are vasodilators, meaning they rapidly expand blood vessels when inhaled. Originally for- mulated to treat chest pain, the tiny bottles, about the size of a bottle of nail polish, emerged as an assistance to chemsex, or the intentional use of chemicals to enhance or prolong sexual activities, particularly with gay men. A volatile liquid, it quickly evapo- rates when the bottle is opened, releasing a gas that creates a 20-second instant high, followed by a two-minute head rush and ap- proximately 5 minutes of total body relax- ation. Give it to the gays to know how to have a good time. It didn’t take long to figure out that the tranquilizing properties are really good for the bedroom activities that exercise the tubular muscle systems, like the anus or vagina. As they say, “two hits and anything fits.” In 1990, the Crime Control Act banned all three variants of volatile alkylates. Sort of. Technically, poppers manufactured for “commercial purposes other than for human consumption” are legal. So as long as the word “cleaner” is in fine print somewhere on the bottle, it’s fair game, for now at least. Poppers, The Newest Old Party Drug Brat Summer undeniably reinvigorated club culture. Troye Sivan’s infectious 2023 “Rush” track was a not-so-subtle nod to a well-known poppers brand. Meanwhile, ‘80s club forebearer Madonna sniffed them on a TikTok Livestream. And for those who are budget-constrained and fearful of $90 little baggies and the potential diseases that come with snorting off a dingy club toilet seat, poppers are often an alternative for a party pick-me-up. “Poppers are definitely having a new hey- day. In recent years, they’ve been showing up more and more on dancefloors, just like in the ‘70s and ‘80s,” says Adam Zmith, au- thor of Deep Sniff: A History of Poppers and Queer Futures. “It’s a cheap and cheeky little hit that suits a lot of people, whether they’re partying or having sex or just being silly with friends.” There’s a very real chance you’ve caught a whiff of poppers at Dallas nightclubs these days, as Zmith says poppers aren’t relegated to spaces meant just for homosexual men now. But don’t worry, you’re not likely to catch a high simply from smelling them in the air. And if you do use them, don’t go too crazy with them, before you ruin it for ev- eryone. “Poppers have definitely crossed over and out of gay male culture, and they’re giv- ing pleasure to all sorts of people now, which could be why the [Federal Drug Administra- tion] has been raiding and shutting down poppers manufacturers in the USA this year.” Zmith is right. The feds are after the girls (and the gays) who just want to have fun. In March, the FDA raided Double Scorpio, a poppers brand based in Austin. They shut down for good. It’s not the only distributor of poppers that has been closed following a government probe, either. And there might be more to come under the guidance of Sec- retary of Health and Human Services, Rob- ert F. Kennedy Jr. “One hundred percent of the people who died — the first thousand who had AIDS, were people who were addicted to pop- pers,” Kennedy said in 2023. Kennedy is wrong, as there’s no evidence that directly links the two. However, the FDA has long discouraged the use of alkylates. Which is fair, as they’re not exactly good for you, but there are downsides to almost any adult fun. Are Poppers Bad For You? They Can Be The eternal secret to life is living in modera- tion. Much like anything — legal fun like al- cohol included — recreational substances can be dangerous if not handled with care. “Too much of anything can be danger- ous,” says Dr. Carlton Thomas, a board-cer- tified gastroenterologist and co-host of the Butt Honestly podcast, which is dedicated to, you guessed it, butt stuff. “But there are definitely situations where you should avoid them, and if you have cardiac condi- tions or visual problems or overall, you’re not a very healthy person, definitely avoid [poppers].” Poppers can cause nausea, fainting and a wicked headache for anyone who takes them, which is why Thomas personally doesn’t. But in rare cases, they can also cause lasting blind spots, strokes and occasionally death. Most side effects are only experi- enced in conjunction with other substances or in people with pre-existing medical con- ditions, such as heart problems. “If you take erectile dysfunction meds like Cialis and Viagra, those already dilate smooth muscle,” said Carlton. “You can have a dramatic drop in blood pressure if you are hitting poppers and you’re on those. We don’t recommend mixing those, which is a bummer because that’s all chem- sex is.” Carlton says there are people who get ad- dicted to poppers, and that when the liquid splashes upon opening, it can cause nasty chemical burns. Also, ingesting it by mouth instead of inhaling can be fatal, so handle it with acute caution. “Poppers are not regulated,” he says. “They’re not FDA approved. There have been no real studies on them. We don’t really know how they affect everybody. There have been people who’ve been found dead in bed with only a bottle of poppers next to them.” We’re not here to tell you to try poppers, but we’re not here to fear-monger either. There are lots of people who take poppers who are just fine. Use your best judgment, and if you have a pre-existing heart condi- tion, you probably shouldn’t be snorting anything anyway. Besides, Carlton says there’s a much worse new trend on the chemsex scene: ethyl chloride. Though commonly associ- ated with poppers, ethyl chloride is a much more potent, much more addictive and much more dangerous inhalant. The chemi- cal is huffed with a rag and can cause sudden sniffing death, central nervous system dam- age, suffocation and delirium. Carlton does not recommend the use of ethyl chloride in any capacity. If you are looking to try poppers, they sell them at local sex shops. But you’ll have to know the magic password to get them be- cause it’s illegal to sell poppers. It is not ille- gal to sell VCR cleaner, though. ▼ FILM MAYBE THEY’RE PROJECTING AS PART OF ITS $10 MILLION REVIVAL, DENTON’S FINE ARTS THEATRE WILL BE ONE OF THE ONLY PLACES IN NORTH TEXAS WITH A 70MM FILM PROJECTOR. BY AUSTIN ZOOK W hen Denton’s Fine Arts Theatre reopens its doors in Spring of 2026, it will instantly become one of the most exciting places in Dallas- Fort Worth to see a movie. This is partly because there has been a paucity of truly independent movie theaters north of Dallas in recent years. The area is dominated by chains, and some locations are excellent, but none of them have the feel of an authentic local experience. Furthermore, the Fine Arts Theatre an- nounced today that in addition to standard digital and 35mm film screenings, it will have the capability to screen 70mm film prints. This will make it one of the few theaters in Texas – and certainly one of the only independent theaters – equipped to do so. Not even the Texas Theatre is able to screen 70mm yet (though they do program a robust selection of 35mm prints). Over the past couple of years, major event films like Oppenheimer and Sinners have popularized premium large format (PLF) viewing experiences. Basically, this is any type of screening you can attend that offers you more than standard digital projection. Even within the framework of PLFs, 70mm is special. It allows for a significantly improved picture quality, creating a more immersive viewing experience for audi- ences. The colors are richer, the images more compelling. Film prints have a texture when screened that sets them apart from digital projection, and 70mm is the crème de la crème of film projection. Jason Reimer, co-owner of Aviation Cin- emas, which operates the Texas Theatre and will also manage the Fine Arts Theatre, says in a press release, “Sure, you can watch many of these movies at home, but there’s no bragging rights in that.” Film screenings are an enhanced view- ing experience, and you get to make a big deal about them when you go to parties. It really does sound cool to say you watched something in 70mm, even if the person you’re telling has no idea what that means. After lying dormant for decades, the Fine Arts Theatre, being resurrected with this type of screening experience in mind, ▼ Culture Adobe Stock Poppers are having a moment in clubs again.
