New York City is calling, and Bermuda, it seems, is answering.

Attitudes, the newest addition to Bermuda's nightclub scene, is beginning to find its niche with the Island's so-called "progressive'' crowd, which, with its generally youthful outlook and alternative style of dress, has been clamouring through its doors since it first opened up in June.

Unlike the elder statesmen of the Island's nightclub scene, Attitudes offers Bermudians a Manhattan "dive'' atmosphere, full as it is of very basic club props in a stark and mostly black setting.

The music, too, is on the trendy side at Attitudes, as are the murals, which have been splashed on the walls in bright fluorescent paint and highlighted by blacklights.

In a back area of the club, moreover, a few tables and chairs have been scattered for purposes of rest and conversation. The full-length bar, meanwhile, is as simple as the dance floor, which is located in the middle of the club and in constant use by its energy-charged patrons.

Although Bermuda has taken a while to tune in to the dance-club movement that has ripped through the United States and Europe, Attitudes' apparent success reflects a growing tendency among Bermudians to accept the spreading scene.

Local DJs, including Shy K, Fuzzy and Valentino, rotate nights in the Attitudes booth, playing their different styles of music to enthusiastic club rats.

Valentino, for example, runs the Monday night "party,'' playing the progressive house music that has dominated the warehouses and underground scene in New York City of late. Known as Sean Tear when he isn't at his turntables, he also contributes with Shy K on Wednesdays, when Attitudes comes alive to more hardcore, trance and Euro-flavoured sounds.

"I'm constantly,'' Valentino says, "ordering new records to keep the vibe fresh. The crowd is my first priority and I want to keep them happy.'' Thursday, consequently, constitutes Carribean night, when calypso and reggae is played, while Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, less regimented nights, are reserved for the house DJ, Mark Bartley, who is also known as Fuzzy.

On the nights that Fuzzy is in charge, the music at Attitudes is a little more conventional, somewhat more Top 40.

On the whole, though, the attitude at Attitudes means unconventionality, a desire to give Bermudians a taste of local nightlife that they can't find anywhere else.

"We want,'' DJ Valentino explained in a recent interview, "to give people a place they can go where they don't have to obey dress codes, pay high prices and listen to Top 40 music all night.'' "Attitudes,'' he added, "is an atmosphere for creative people, a place where they can come out and have a good time. We want people to let loose and feel free. That's an atmosphere that other clubs just can't offer.'' But Attitudes, as many patrons might already have noticed, isn't totally finished yet. Among other things, a plan is in the works by its management to open a "games and chill-out room'' in the front area, where people will eventually be able to talk and relax amid a series of proposed television monitors.

"We are also trying,'' Valentino told Taste, "to attract crowds by holding theme parties.'' Two weeks ago, consequently, Attitudes hosted a well-received hat party for its patrons, while yesterday saw its masquerade ball.

"By changing things and keeping things different, we will keep our customers happy,'' the DJ said with confidence. "Bermudians are sick of the same old scene, where each Saturday night feels the same. At least there is something different now.'' Indeed there is. Although Attitudes has only been open for a few weeks, the club is generating a lot of buzz among its youthful clientele, and attracting a lot of attention with music that was virtually unheard of in Bermuda until now.

It only remains to be seen if Attitudes can keep those dance crowds coming, or truly emulate its New York counterparts, which have the life span of a fruit fly, by burning out too fast.