Tech.Know.Theory? I think that I can write a thesis on that subject. Let alone bring a new wave of that sound to my new hometown of ALBUQUERQUE!
Let it be known that there is some amazing Techno DJ's here in New Mexico. My two favorites, J.Bowra and Myquil are the residents of Albuquerque's best and most well done monthly night, Tech.Know.Theory! They both play separate but similar styles of minimal, tech-house, and techno as one another. However, they a play a more commercial style of our mutually respected and respective sound, which suits them fine. I have always had my ear to the underground, which suits my trip. Dig? Get us all together in one night...forget about it! We are perfect reflections of everything TECHY! It is a dream team made to slay dancefloors. Which we did on the first week-end of June at the Sunshine Theatre in downtown Duke City.
I was there by 10pm after finishing my radio program. Bowra was just getting rolling with letting folks in the door and soundchecking the equipment. The crowd was mostly younger, so the bar portion of the venue was slightly empty, which remained that way most of the night. After quickly slamming two very strong margaritas, I was on the decks to rock an already filled dancefloor. I played two solid hours of all new tunes and promos for the crowd. The new Umek track, the latest from Adam Beyer. The usual suspects. My brand of relentless and slamming techno had the kids moving. One hell of a set! I had a fucking blast.
Then, Bowra and Myquill came on around midnight and totally slayed the place!!!! I went over to One Up for a quick cocktail and a firm hello to Dr. Teddy Spun. Then back to the venue to dig on more techno and hang with the peeps. It was one solid night. Can't wait for another Theory night!
12 June 2009
31 May 2009
Taos High
I spent that Friday morning and early afternoon doing necessary things like buying ice, booze, water, and juices, as well as enjoying a good Italian “country” lunch with a fine glass of Nero D’Avola to start the week-end out right. It had been raining all day in Albuquerque, but the Taos forecast said partly-cloudy with a small chance of showers. Plus, I had spoken with my pal Burger on the cell, who insisted that the weather was fine. Around 2pm, I split in the pouring rain. The rain was depressing, especially with all of the planning that had conspired in the month before the event. I wondered if the weather was gonna, dampen our event. Funny enough, the rain was gone the moment I made it to Santa Fe! Partly cloudy indeed. Just past Espanola, up in the Rio Grande gorge, I experienced a few light showers which really made me wonder again if the week-end would be a washout.
After a beautiful 2 hour trip, I was climbing Forest Road 440 up to the week-end destination in Pot Creek, deep within the Carson National Forest. The location was perfect! Sloped hills surrounding a natural valley, tons of shade trees, a huge bonfire area, and a nice open area where the stage was set up. Due to the possibility of rain, the speakers and DJ booth was enclosed within huge shade tents, making it possible to continue the music during the light rains which came and went all week-end. There were already quite a number of people there early, too.
I set up camp, opened up some Lagers, and proceeded to rage. Audio Buddha was supposed to be on by the time I arrived, but due to sound and PA issues, there was no music. I spoke with him for a bit, catching up on times and such while the crews furiously worked on getting the sound working. Once the sound was up, the “check” consisted of the same record over and over. It was this horrible house Michael Jackson Vs. Madonna mash up bullshit, which several of us ended up singing all week-end when we were drunk! In fact, all of us spent most of the week-end drunk and stoned, having a freakin’ wild time. Audio Buddha finally got his set flowing 2 hours late, but none the less enjoyable. He played some Acid House, some originals (I believe), and some damn funky tunes. The next day, his pure Acid House set over at the chill tent was one of the highlights of my Saturday!
Being the awesome host that he is, Dr. Spunyunrings (aka Teddy J) gave up his set in order to keep the music moving along closer to the time schedule. I was majorly disappointed that he didn’t play, but I totally understand…especially since him and Leah Love were the event coordinators and spent much of their time occupied making it the most amazing event that it could be!!!! I missed Teddy playing, but was cool with his decision. Bacon stepped up to the plate, just as the darkness came upon the first evening of the festival, taking us on an epic minimal techno journey through the evening. He set up the night nicely for where we were headed musically. Loved the tunes he played.
Dave Smooth took over around 9:30 starting out with some Prince before commanding the dancefloor with some powerful epic funky house and tech house.
Meanwhile, I was plowing through the ales and dank nugs, plus having skipped dinner, and was getting quite twisted. I realized around the time Dave was finishing up, that I was up to bat and needed to put on my gameface and get fucking with it. After chugging some tequila (thanks Justin) as well as procuring a bottle of water, I was ready. I played all new tunes, all new sounds, all dark techno…that was my trip that evening. It turned out that I played one of the best and most powerful sets that I have ever played in years, too. I had a blast. I just went with it and had a good time, as was the fashion….
This set things up nicely for everyone’s pal Adrack to take us into the Electro Breaks zone. And this he did. It was amazingly funky, acidic, and totally dope. I danced my ass off. Tattooine took over after that taking us into a deeper tech house and electro house zone. He definitely had the bass on that system humming throughout his wicked set. That set things up perfectly for Adem Joel. Deep, dark, bassy, and dubby. He took things into the late night/early morning with panache and brilliance.
At some point during the last part of Adem’s set, I crashed out in my tent. Of course, the music, the rising light from the oncoming morning, and the continuation of the party made my sleep interrupted frequently. I somehow missed Justin George’s set as well as Emily Skyrocker’s, much to my dismay. I love them both and was sad to miss their music.
By the time I got up, the music had shifted to Buddhalicious’ dome, where dubstep and breaks brought in the new day right. After chugging some Frappachino and inhaling some cereal, I toked a bit before checking out the morning. I caught some good bass music over at Buddhalicious’ stage, got higher, and talked with everyone I could. The vibe was total harmony filled with a vast mood for musical expression and diversified taste. I then got busy palnning with Dave Tattooine about getting another timeslot for Dave Smooth and me to do a tag-team set during the afternoon. We were penciled in for three, so I took to enjoying myself quite a bit more. I took a nice little hike over the ridge to this gorgeous meadow overlooking the forest. I made a nice lunch of peanut butter on wheat with banana. Then, I broke into my stash of Indian Pale Ale by early afternoon, drowning in its hoppy goodness. The smoke flowed as well. Music had begun again on the main stage, consisting of DJ’s who were not on the main roster, making for an enjoyable afternoon of excellent as well as unexpected music. At one point, the dubsteppers Mingus and Jai Riddim played a tag set, much to my enjoyment.
By this time, Mister Smooth had fallen asleep on a blanket right in front of the stage, causing many of us to take pictures and film his resting place. He held a Fosters Lager tightly in his fist, crumpled over in a mass of slumber. I wondered out loud if our afternoon tag-team set was off. Funny enough, when I nudged him a bit later to ask if we were still gonna play; he promptly got up ready for task as if he hadn’t been sleeping at all, going off to his Jeep to get his outboard DJ equipment.
Around this same time, my astronomer/physicist friend from Pittsburgh, who happened to be visiting Taos that week-end, showed up on site to hang out with us. Davin and his wife were probably taken aback a bit by our hedonistic party, but none the less fell right into the spirit of the times. After quite a few minutes of conversation and such, Dave and I went on and played our daytime set. We blasted the afternoon with some tight techno in a set we lovingly dubbed “the Mayan Techno Sunshine Rager”…in homage to our musicial choice of playing lots of Playa Del Carmen’s native techno God, Rick Pier O’Neil. One of my favorite times of the entire week-end, since Dave and I consider each other ‘kindred souls’. Davin and the Wife watched for a bit and then took a Carson Forest day hike. After our set, Dave went to eat and sleep, while I went straight for the wine and some dinner. My vegetarian bean salad was just the ticket along with some fine chilled German Vouvray. Davin and his Wife soon returned for their hike and we spent the next hour talking music, politics, internet radio, and such before they split for their Taos bed & breakfast site. It was great to see them and hang out. Glad they could make the trek up that steep hill!
At this point, my consciousness was starting to take on a new perceptive bizarre freakiness. Too much fun all day long! Though I hung out at my tent with some friends, the music was still quite audible and enjoyable.
Swingkid actually made me get up from my chair and check out his set, as well as dance a bit. Nice tight House music, which was perfect for it’s time in the early evening. I loved it! Then, my good pal Deja brought the nighttime energy to a peak. His breaky set was full of amazing acid lines, sub bass, and awesome mixing. He never fails to amaze me! I went back to camp during Anome’s set but still listened in as he flipped the script with some bass heavy dubby soulful tunes. Finally, the stress of the day called me into slumber around midnight. I needed the rest in my high and wasted state of mind. And to dream, I did for a bit.
I woke up with the music stopping at some point deep in the night and someone on the main stage microphone yelling…”Mingus? Mingus? You are up…” Then, up in the hills above my campsite, I heard him answer in a full forest yell…”I’ll be there in a sec…sorry…confused about set time”. I lay there half asleep and listened to his set progress from the beginning, digging the pyshcedlic sounds of his version of dubstep. About 30 minutes in, my friend Brian showed up at my tent with some wicked dank stinky nugs, waking me up, and demanding that I get “blazed” with him and his girl. How could I refuse? I opened up some ales for them, along with some energy drinks for myself, and raged into the sunrise. Mingus’ set was the highpoint of the music for me the entire week-end. At some point, he gave way musically to someone else, but I was too far into inner space at this point to notice who they were or what they played. I do know that after dawn was in full bloom, Blue Sunshine started his set of trance music. And by Trance, I mean full on EPIC trance…not necessarily “sunrise” style but none the less big and melodic. At some point, we blazed yet again, and talked into the morning about life, philosophy, and generational bliss. It was my most relaxed and enjoyable time of the entire festival. It was at this time that I knew I needed to get home for a Sunday full schedule.
After sipping some coffee and necking some vitamins, I broke down camp to call my time to a close. I had a pool party that afternoon to attend (sleep deprived, of course) and needed to drive the 2 hours back to Albuquerque to prepare (as well as get some shut-eye before hand). I said my goodbyes to my friends and colleagues, and drove down the mountain, out of the forest. As Brian Eno’s seminal album TAKING TIGER MOUNTAIN BY STRATEGY” played in my car, I came down the mountain and back into reality. What a fucking amazing week-end….
I will be back to Taos in July for another outdoor one of these amazing raging parties.
After a beautiful 2 hour trip, I was climbing Forest Road 440 up to the week-end destination in Pot Creek, deep within the Carson National Forest. The location was perfect! Sloped hills surrounding a natural valley, tons of shade trees, a huge bonfire area, and a nice open area where the stage was set up. Due to the possibility of rain, the speakers and DJ booth was enclosed within huge shade tents, making it possible to continue the music during the light rains which came and went all week-end. There were already quite a number of people there early, too.
I set up camp, opened up some Lagers, and proceeded to rage. Audio Buddha was supposed to be on by the time I arrived, but due to sound and PA issues, there was no music. I spoke with him for a bit, catching up on times and such while the crews furiously worked on getting the sound working. Once the sound was up, the “check” consisted of the same record over and over. It was this horrible house Michael Jackson Vs. Madonna mash up bullshit, which several of us ended up singing all week-end when we were drunk! In fact, all of us spent most of the week-end drunk and stoned, having a freakin’ wild time. Audio Buddha finally got his set flowing 2 hours late, but none the less enjoyable. He played some Acid House, some originals (I believe), and some damn funky tunes. The next day, his pure Acid House set over at the chill tent was one of the highlights of my Saturday!
Being the awesome host that he is, Dr. Spunyunrings (aka Teddy J) gave up his set in order to keep the music moving along closer to the time schedule. I was majorly disappointed that he didn’t play, but I totally understand…especially since him and Leah Love were the event coordinators and spent much of their time occupied making it the most amazing event that it could be!!!! I missed Teddy playing, but was cool with his decision. Bacon stepped up to the plate, just as the darkness came upon the first evening of the festival, taking us on an epic minimal techno journey through the evening. He set up the night nicely for where we were headed musically. Loved the tunes he played.
Dave Smooth took over around 9:30 starting out with some Prince before commanding the dancefloor with some powerful epic funky house and tech house.
Meanwhile, I was plowing through the ales and dank nugs, plus having skipped dinner, and was getting quite twisted. I realized around the time Dave was finishing up, that I was up to bat and needed to put on my gameface and get fucking with it. After chugging some tequila (thanks Justin) as well as procuring a bottle of water, I was ready. I played all new tunes, all new sounds, all dark techno…that was my trip that evening. It turned out that I played one of the best and most powerful sets that I have ever played in years, too. I had a blast. I just went with it and had a good time, as was the fashion….
This set things up nicely for everyone’s pal Adrack to take us into the Electro Breaks zone. And this he did. It was amazingly funky, acidic, and totally dope. I danced my ass off. Tattooine took over after that taking us into a deeper tech house and electro house zone. He definitely had the bass on that system humming throughout his wicked set. That set things up perfectly for Adem Joel. Deep, dark, bassy, and dubby. He took things into the late night/early morning with panache and brilliance.
At some point during the last part of Adem’s set, I crashed out in my tent. Of course, the music, the rising light from the oncoming morning, and the continuation of the party made my sleep interrupted frequently. I somehow missed Justin George’s set as well as Emily Skyrocker’s, much to my dismay. I love them both and was sad to miss their music.
By the time I got up, the music had shifted to Buddhalicious’ dome, where dubstep and breaks brought in the new day right. After chugging some Frappachino and inhaling some cereal, I toked a bit before checking out the morning. I caught some good bass music over at Buddhalicious’ stage, got higher, and talked with everyone I could. The vibe was total harmony filled with a vast mood for musical expression and diversified taste. I then got busy palnning with Dave Tattooine about getting another timeslot for Dave Smooth and me to do a tag-team set during the afternoon. We were penciled in for three, so I took to enjoying myself quite a bit more. I took a nice little hike over the ridge to this gorgeous meadow overlooking the forest. I made a nice lunch of peanut butter on wheat with banana. Then, I broke into my stash of Indian Pale Ale by early afternoon, drowning in its hoppy goodness. The smoke flowed as well. Music had begun again on the main stage, consisting of DJ’s who were not on the main roster, making for an enjoyable afternoon of excellent as well as unexpected music. At one point, the dubsteppers Mingus and Jai Riddim played a tag set, much to my enjoyment.
By this time, Mister Smooth had fallen asleep on a blanket right in front of the stage, causing many of us to take pictures and film his resting place. He held a Fosters Lager tightly in his fist, crumpled over in a mass of slumber. I wondered out loud if our afternoon tag-team set was off. Funny enough, when I nudged him a bit later to ask if we were still gonna play; he promptly got up ready for task as if he hadn’t been sleeping at all, going off to his Jeep to get his outboard DJ equipment.
Around this same time, my astronomer/physicist friend from Pittsburgh, who happened to be visiting Taos that week-end, showed up on site to hang out with us. Davin and his wife were probably taken aback a bit by our hedonistic party, but none the less fell right into the spirit of the times. After quite a few minutes of conversation and such, Dave and I went on and played our daytime set. We blasted the afternoon with some tight techno in a set we lovingly dubbed “the Mayan Techno Sunshine Rager”…in homage to our musicial choice of playing lots of Playa Del Carmen’s native techno God, Rick Pier O’Neil. One of my favorite times of the entire week-end, since Dave and I consider each other ‘kindred souls’. Davin and the Wife watched for a bit and then took a Carson Forest day hike. After our set, Dave went to eat and sleep, while I went straight for the wine and some dinner. My vegetarian bean salad was just the ticket along with some fine chilled German Vouvray. Davin and his Wife soon returned for their hike and we spent the next hour talking music, politics, internet radio, and such before they split for their Taos bed & breakfast site. It was great to see them and hang out. Glad they could make the trek up that steep hill!
At this point, my consciousness was starting to take on a new perceptive bizarre freakiness. Too much fun all day long! Though I hung out at my tent with some friends, the music was still quite audible and enjoyable.
Swingkid actually made me get up from my chair and check out his set, as well as dance a bit. Nice tight House music, which was perfect for it’s time in the early evening. I loved it! Then, my good pal Deja brought the nighttime energy to a peak. His breaky set was full of amazing acid lines, sub bass, and awesome mixing. He never fails to amaze me! I went back to camp during Anome’s set but still listened in as he flipped the script with some bass heavy dubby soulful tunes. Finally, the stress of the day called me into slumber around midnight. I needed the rest in my high and wasted state of mind. And to dream, I did for a bit.
I woke up with the music stopping at some point deep in the night and someone on the main stage microphone yelling…”Mingus? Mingus? You are up…” Then, up in the hills above my campsite, I heard him answer in a full forest yell…”I’ll be there in a sec…sorry…confused about set time”. I lay there half asleep and listened to his set progress from the beginning, digging the pyshcedlic sounds of his version of dubstep. About 30 minutes in, my friend Brian showed up at my tent with some wicked dank stinky nugs, waking me up, and demanding that I get “blazed” with him and his girl. How could I refuse? I opened up some ales for them, along with some energy drinks for myself, and raged into the sunrise. Mingus’ set was the highpoint of the music for me the entire week-end. At some point, he gave way musically to someone else, but I was too far into inner space at this point to notice who they were or what they played. I do know that after dawn was in full bloom, Blue Sunshine started his set of trance music. And by Trance, I mean full on EPIC trance…not necessarily “sunrise” style but none the less big and melodic. At some point, we blazed yet again, and talked into the morning about life, philosophy, and generational bliss. It was my most relaxed and enjoyable time of the entire festival. It was at this time that I knew I needed to get home for a Sunday full schedule.
After sipping some coffee and necking some vitamins, I broke down camp to call my time to a close. I had a pool party that afternoon to attend (sleep deprived, of course) and needed to drive the 2 hours back to Albuquerque to prepare (as well as get some shut-eye before hand). I said my goodbyes to my friends and colleagues, and drove down the mountain, out of the forest. As Brian Eno’s seminal album TAKING TIGER MOUNTAIN BY STRATEGY” played in my car, I came down the mountain and back into reality. What a fucking amazing week-end….
I will be back to Taos in July for another outdoor one of these amazing raging parties.
18 May 2009
Moving Towards Bliss
Looks like Summertime is in full effect here in New Mexico. Lots of sunshine, perfect temperatures, swimming pools, and barbecues. My favorite time of the year. And lots of outdoor events to play!
I have lots on my gig plate after taking a 3 month hiatus to work on label business and pedal my creative jets. I played last Friday night at Switch, which was quite a great time. The set up was outside on the patio, with a grill cooking burgers and hotdogs, hookahs emitting Fumara shisha smoke, colored lights blending with the night, and good electronic music flowing. A fat time indeed. Carlos B started things out right with some damn fine thumping House music. Digital Continuum, took things over around 10pm with some deep progressive house & Trance. By 11:30, Sketch pull out all of the Techno cards, flowing into full flight as the wind picked up and buzzes started to rage. By the time I hit the decks after midnight, the dancefloor was in full bloom. It's funny how some people in Albuquerque request "Minimal", but actually mean that they want Tech-House!!! No one here plays Minimal anymore...but there are a fair few Tech-House DJ's. I am NOT one of them. I play TECHNO. Uncompromisingly...even though I do also play House on my radioshow. When it comes to gigs, I am straight up peaktime dancefloor madness. Which I delivered at Switch (even with my reservations about the speakers and monitors). I love playing shit that freaks people the fuck out...it's great to watch them just melt on the floor and writhe to the madness. Switch was a great return to the gig decks for me as well as damn fine warm up for the next 3 months of full schedule.
This week-end is COOKIN' in Taos. 3 days of music, food, drink, and community up in the Taos Mountains with hundreds of the greatest people in New Mexico.
The week after is Tech-Know Theory, in downtown Albuquerque at Sunshine Theatre...always a decadent and packed out Saturday night of Techno brilliance.
I am playing my first big headlining gig in El Paso in June at Hush Underground. They have a large venue and the scene to support it. El Paso has probably the most amazing scene in the Southwest really, as witness and blogged recently by Pete Tong. Looking VERY forward to it.
Reviews to follow, along with suntans, sandals, lagers, and nugs.
I have lots on my gig plate after taking a 3 month hiatus to work on label business and pedal my creative jets. I played last Friday night at Switch, which was quite a great time. The set up was outside on the patio, with a grill cooking burgers and hotdogs, hookahs emitting Fumara shisha smoke, colored lights blending with the night, and good electronic music flowing. A fat time indeed. Carlos B started things out right with some damn fine thumping House music. Digital Continuum, took things over around 10pm with some deep progressive house & Trance. By 11:30, Sketch pull out all of the Techno cards, flowing into full flight as the wind picked up and buzzes started to rage. By the time I hit the decks after midnight, the dancefloor was in full bloom. It's funny how some people in Albuquerque request "Minimal", but actually mean that they want Tech-House!!! No one here plays Minimal anymore...but there are a fair few Tech-House DJ's. I am NOT one of them. I play TECHNO. Uncompromisingly...even though I do also play House on my radioshow. When it comes to gigs, I am straight up peaktime dancefloor madness. Which I delivered at Switch (even with my reservations about the speakers and monitors). I love playing shit that freaks people the fuck out...it's great to watch them just melt on the floor and writhe to the madness. Switch was a great return to the gig decks for me as well as damn fine warm up for the next 3 months of full schedule.
This week-end is COOKIN' in Taos. 3 days of music, food, drink, and community up in the Taos Mountains with hundreds of the greatest people in New Mexico.
The week after is Tech-Know Theory, in downtown Albuquerque at Sunshine Theatre...always a decadent and packed out Saturday night of Techno brilliance.
I am playing my first big headlining gig in El Paso in June at Hush Underground. They have a large venue and the scene to support it. El Paso has probably the most amazing scene in the Southwest really, as witness and blogged recently by Pete Tong. Looking VERY forward to it.
Reviews to follow, along with suntans, sandals, lagers, and nugs.
26 February 2009
The Thrill Of It All
It's been a very busy couple of months for me. And as usual, I have been neglecting this little blog in favor of working.
I took most of December and January off to work on new music in the studio as well as spend time with my family. It was a wonderful Christmas in Santa Fe, with lots of snow on the ground and wickedly cold temperatures. The Wife's family from Texas came to visit and we stayed in an amazing downtown hotel on the plaza. Good food, great wine, and excellent fireplace action every single day. The art gallery tours were fun as was the tequila tastings. It was easily one of the best Christmas' we have spent together.
I spent all of January catching up in the studio and dealing with release schedules for upcoming Mover Music tracks, as well as doing the radioshow. The radioshow has gone from strength to strength as it's listener base grows. It is hard preparing all week with all of the new tunes to play, sequencing what I am going to play, as well as downloading them, and getting a guest mix together. But I seem to pull it off every Saturday night like clockwork, somehow!
I spent the last week-end in January in Texas playing a gig for the Nocturning Minds folks as well as hanging with friends. I arrived on Friday the 30th and stayed with my good friends, Chuck & Michelle at their organic hippie compound in east Fort Worth. We settled in for a huge feast at my favorite Mexican restaurant, Benito's, soon after my arrival. To my surprise, a lot of my friends and fellow DJ's showed up to make it a 15-strong full table. It was great to see Craig Howell & Catfish as well as longtime friends Steve, Heather, Dena, Robert, Mary, Brandi, and Dana, as well as my Uncle Raymond. Margaritas and good food, Texas style! We spent a little time afterwards catching up at The Chatroom Bar next door, sipping beers and making plans. Craig and Catfish ended up back at Craig's for a DJ party that I was supposed to attend, but ended up missing due to my inebriated state! The rest of us settled back at Chuck & Michelle's place for a late night session of drinking and musical conversation. I finally crawled into bed in the "guest suite" (as I lovingly refer to it, since it is always at my dispose every time I visit the Metroplex) around 4 am...after many birthday toasts throughout the night. Did I fail to mention that the 31st was my birthday? Alas...
I awoke on the 31st with a cloudy head and the strong rays of Texas sunshine pounding through the curtains of the guest suite. I felt okay though a little worse for the wear. It was around 11 am, and though Chuck was up and about, Michelle was nursing a serious hangover. And what is better for a hangover than Shiner beer and Texas barbeque?!?!?!?! So, that is where we ended up. Even though I grew up primarily in Fort Worth, it is always a culinary adventure when I return to my hometown. I feel like Anthony Bourdain at times when I visit there. I always try to get Check and Michelle to take me on new food adventures. Now barbecue is a tough one, because so many of these places are well established and have been there before and since I left Texas in 2000. But I had honestly never heard of Sammie's before, even thought it is an old school Texas establishment. So we piled into my Toyota for Belknap & Beach Street. I have probably passed Sammie's hundreds upon hundreds of times in my many years in Texas...hell, I even lived right down the road from it on Yucca street back in the 90's! But there it was, a place I had never ventured for food in my hometown. Boy, was I in for a birthday surprise! The sauce was amazing, the meat cuts perfect, the sides delicious! The beer purports to be the 3rd coldest in Tarrant County according to their many displays, too. The food does us physical justice and the beer brought Michelle back to life. Of course, it also sent her into a new realm of enjoyment! For the rest of the day, we just partied like teenagers, despite the fact that I had a gig to make that night!!! I kept a modicum of sobriety boarding on buzzes, while we just took things to the logical next level. When in Fort Worth, do as the Funky Townees do!!! After lunch, and some relaxing by their pool in the beautiful 75 degree January sunshine, I was treated to a fun tour of their chicken farm and egg production business. Even though they are on the edge of the city, they are zoned for farming, which makes their many acres of backyard land perfect for goats and chickens. The goats are as sweet as can be and they have enough chickens to easily make good money selling the eggs to their many clients. And those eggs are amazing...they taste superb.
We made plans soon after a lazy afternoon in the Sun to meet up with my Uncle down at Fred's Cafe for more beer and catching up with friends. By this point, Michelle was her usual comedic self, full of beer and wit, which is why she is like a sister to me! I love it when she ties one on...she is a machine of jokes and smart ass behaviour. We sat out on the patio of Funky Fred's with a full house of rebel rousers. A shitty folk duo played barely tolerable off key crap which made them the butt of Michelle's many musings for the next few hours. We sipped the local Rahr microbrew and basked in the sun. I ran into many old friends there, a sort of 90's reunion. By the time we left Fred's, Michelle was almost staggering and ready for bed...at 5pm! Luckily, I was driving as well as eating good food, so I was good to go.
After dropping my hosts back at their badass abode, I had plan to play some music before my gig. My longtime best friend, Robert Kramer (bassist extraordinaire as well as one hell of an Ale connoisseur) and I had plans to play some music together in his home studio. He has this incredible Yamaha Studio drum set from the 80's that he always let's me use. It sounds fucking amazing...it was the original studio set at Planet Dallas Studio back in the day (a set I am quite familiar with from my days as a sessionist). We get together, drink some Lauganitas Ales, his wonderful Wife Mary makes some delicious Italian food...and then Robert and I get down on some poly-rhythms! Odd times, funk rhythms, and jazz runs for the next two hours. It was a fucking blast playing with the guy I learned to play with back in the 80's. We can shun playing for a year and get back together and instantly play like a tight machine. It was exhilarating and fantastic to play with him again. And it is only a matter of time before we do this again!
I had to split Robert & Mary's WAY too early to get back to Chuck & Michelle's to pick up my record case for my gig. We said our goodbyes, and I was soon back, and then soon on my way to Afterlife in Dallas. Now, this type of daily activity would ware out anyone my age easily (which took it's toll on me), but after some strong coffee and some good dank nugs, I was good to go again. I arrived at Afterlife just in time to catch some amazing music from my friends, High Maintenance. I have known Matt Pruitt since back in the mid 90's Dallas/Fort Worth rave scene, as well as was a regular patron at his record shop, Tech Sun for many years. It's good to see him really making it happen still as one of the freshest and top players in the Dallas scene. I ended up catching both of his sets with his partner, J Caprice. They rocked me. Afterlife is like this huge Texas-Koresh styled compound with many warehouse areas spread among the land...many different scenes converging, and the entire 1997 RAVE ethos in full effect. It was wild.
My first set started at around 1pm. I played a full on dancefloor set to a full crowd of revellers. Packed dancefloor and good tunes. By this time, I also had more dankness and good ale in me, which made the set all the more fun. I would have loved to stick around from the next DJ's set like I always do, but I was booked to tag in the main building right when I finished. After a quick joint goodbyes to Darren Afrika as well as the lighting techs and the next DJ, I was off running to the main room. I was able to get there in time to play again with my goood friends Joshua Kynd and Jello as THE HAS-BEENS. We played for the next two hours....amazing techno & tribal, 3x4. One of our best gigs together yet. We ended just as the 5 am time limit came upon us.
Everyone split for breakfast; me....I went straight back to Chuck & Michelles for sleep. I awoke at 10:30. Packing quickly, we sped off to a quick Whataburger breakfast before I took the long 9 hour haul home. The drive was total physical DEATH, but luckily road food, vitamins, and good music kept me going until my arrival back home at 9pm. AND it was Super Bowl Sunday, but in the scheme of things, I was really more worried about getting home and wondering if Chelsea FC had won today!
Until next time..............
I took most of December and January off to work on new music in the studio as well as spend time with my family. It was a wonderful Christmas in Santa Fe, with lots of snow on the ground and wickedly cold temperatures. The Wife's family from Texas came to visit and we stayed in an amazing downtown hotel on the plaza. Good food, great wine, and excellent fireplace action every single day. The art gallery tours were fun as was the tequila tastings. It was easily one of the best Christmas' we have spent together.
I spent all of January catching up in the studio and dealing with release schedules for upcoming Mover Music tracks, as well as doing the radioshow. The radioshow has gone from strength to strength as it's listener base grows. It is hard preparing all week with all of the new tunes to play, sequencing what I am going to play, as well as downloading them, and getting a guest mix together. But I seem to pull it off every Saturday night like clockwork, somehow!
I spent the last week-end in January in Texas playing a gig for the Nocturning Minds folks as well as hanging with friends. I arrived on Friday the 30th and stayed with my good friends, Chuck & Michelle at their organic hippie compound in east Fort Worth. We settled in for a huge feast at my favorite Mexican restaurant, Benito's, soon after my arrival. To my surprise, a lot of my friends and fellow DJ's showed up to make it a 15-strong full table. It was great to see Craig Howell & Catfish as well as longtime friends Steve, Heather, Dena, Robert, Mary, Brandi, and Dana, as well as my Uncle Raymond. Margaritas and good food, Texas style! We spent a little time afterwards catching up at The Chatroom Bar next door, sipping beers and making plans. Craig and Catfish ended up back at Craig's for a DJ party that I was supposed to attend, but ended up missing due to my inebriated state! The rest of us settled back at Chuck & Michelle's place for a late night session of drinking and musical conversation. I finally crawled into bed in the "guest suite" (as I lovingly refer to it, since it is always at my dispose every time I visit the Metroplex) around 4 am...after many birthday toasts throughout the night. Did I fail to mention that the 31st was my birthday? Alas...
I awoke on the 31st with a cloudy head and the strong rays of Texas sunshine pounding through the curtains of the guest suite. I felt okay though a little worse for the wear. It was around 11 am, and though Chuck was up and about, Michelle was nursing a serious hangover. And what is better for a hangover than Shiner beer and Texas barbeque?!?!?!?! So, that is where we ended up. Even though I grew up primarily in Fort Worth, it is always a culinary adventure when I return to my hometown. I feel like Anthony Bourdain at times when I visit there. I always try to get Check and Michelle to take me on new food adventures. Now barbecue is a tough one, because so many of these places are well established and have been there before and since I left Texas in 2000. But I had honestly never heard of Sammie's before, even thought it is an old school Texas establishment. So we piled into my Toyota for Belknap & Beach Street. I have probably passed Sammie's hundreds upon hundreds of times in my many years in Texas...hell, I even lived right down the road from it on Yucca street back in the 90's! But there it was, a place I had never ventured for food in my hometown. Boy, was I in for a birthday surprise! The sauce was amazing, the meat cuts perfect, the sides delicious! The beer purports to be the 3rd coldest in Tarrant County according to their many displays, too. The food does us physical justice and the beer brought Michelle back to life. Of course, it also sent her into a new realm of enjoyment! For the rest of the day, we just partied like teenagers, despite the fact that I had a gig to make that night!!! I kept a modicum of sobriety boarding on buzzes, while we just took things to the logical next level. When in Fort Worth, do as the Funky Townees do!!! After lunch, and some relaxing by their pool in the beautiful 75 degree January sunshine, I was treated to a fun tour of their chicken farm and egg production business. Even though they are on the edge of the city, they are zoned for farming, which makes their many acres of backyard land perfect for goats and chickens. The goats are as sweet as can be and they have enough chickens to easily make good money selling the eggs to their many clients. And those eggs are amazing...they taste superb.
We made plans soon after a lazy afternoon in the Sun to meet up with my Uncle down at Fred's Cafe for more beer and catching up with friends. By this point, Michelle was her usual comedic self, full of beer and wit, which is why she is like a sister to me! I love it when she ties one on...she is a machine of jokes and smart ass behaviour. We sat out on the patio of Funky Fred's with a full house of rebel rousers. A shitty folk duo played barely tolerable off key crap which made them the butt of Michelle's many musings for the next few hours. We sipped the local Rahr microbrew and basked in the sun. I ran into many old friends there, a sort of 90's reunion. By the time we left Fred's, Michelle was almost staggering and ready for bed...at 5pm! Luckily, I was driving as well as eating good food, so I was good to go.
After dropping my hosts back at their badass abode, I had plan to play some music before my gig. My longtime best friend, Robert Kramer (bassist extraordinaire as well as one hell of an Ale connoisseur) and I had plans to play some music together in his home studio. He has this incredible Yamaha Studio drum set from the 80's that he always let's me use. It sounds fucking amazing...it was the original studio set at Planet Dallas Studio back in the day (a set I am quite familiar with from my days as a sessionist). We get together, drink some Lauganitas Ales, his wonderful Wife Mary makes some delicious Italian food...and then Robert and I get down on some poly-rhythms! Odd times, funk rhythms, and jazz runs for the next two hours. It was a fucking blast playing with the guy I learned to play with back in the 80's. We can shun playing for a year and get back together and instantly play like a tight machine. It was exhilarating and fantastic to play with him again. And it is only a matter of time before we do this again!
I had to split Robert & Mary's WAY too early to get back to Chuck & Michelle's to pick up my record case for my gig. We said our goodbyes, and I was soon back, and then soon on my way to Afterlife in Dallas. Now, this type of daily activity would ware out anyone my age easily (which took it's toll on me), but after some strong coffee and some good dank nugs, I was good to go again. I arrived at Afterlife just in time to catch some amazing music from my friends, High Maintenance. I have known Matt Pruitt since back in the mid 90's Dallas/Fort Worth rave scene, as well as was a regular patron at his record shop, Tech Sun for many years. It's good to see him really making it happen still as one of the freshest and top players in the Dallas scene. I ended up catching both of his sets with his partner, J Caprice. They rocked me. Afterlife is like this huge Texas-Koresh styled compound with many warehouse areas spread among the land...many different scenes converging, and the entire 1997 RAVE ethos in full effect. It was wild.
My first set started at around 1pm. I played a full on dancefloor set to a full crowd of revellers. Packed dancefloor and good tunes. By this time, I also had more dankness and good ale in me, which made the set all the more fun. I would have loved to stick around from the next DJ's set like I always do, but I was booked to tag in the main building right when I finished. After a quick joint goodbyes to Darren Afrika as well as the lighting techs and the next DJ, I was off running to the main room. I was able to get there in time to play again with my goood friends Joshua Kynd and Jello as THE HAS-BEENS. We played for the next two hours....amazing techno & tribal, 3x4. One of our best gigs together yet. We ended just as the 5 am time limit came upon us.
Everyone split for breakfast; me....I went straight back to Chuck & Michelles for sleep. I awoke at 10:30. Packing quickly, we sped off to a quick Whataburger breakfast before I took the long 9 hour haul home. The drive was total physical DEATH, but luckily road food, vitamins, and good music kept me going until my arrival back home at 9pm. AND it was Super Bowl Sunday, but in the scheme of things, I was really more worried about getting home and wondering if Chelsea FC had won today!
Until next time..............
11 January 2009
Slovenski Tehno!!!!!
I have had the humbling and amazing opportunity to be connected to the Slovenian Techno scene for the last 4 years. After the previous four years of HERO WORSHIP (writing reviews about them, praising them, sending them e-mails), I was finally given the keys to the proverbial castle, by being added to the advance promo pool of several Slovenian labels in 2004. And as a DJ, I have fronted their music here in the States ever since, featuring them on playlists, on music blogs, at gigs, and on my radioshow. For me, supporting their music is a given, since I am already a huge fan. It also gave me the incredible advantage of sounding different than any other DJ in the US.
It seems 2009 is destined to become the YEAR OF SLOVENSKI TEHNO. Their scene has always had amazing music and great support globally. In my gut, I know that their music is fast becoming the vanguard of forward thinking modern Techno. I saw this trend building in 2008, and in the last 2 months, the new releases from 2009 that I have previewed makes this a cold hard fact.
So look out for these names, and mark my words...Umek, Tomy DeClerque, Valentino Kanzyani, F.Sonik, Alexander Madness, Andrew Technique, and Ian F are setting the pace for original modern unique sounding Techno in 2009.
Here are a few examples:
It seems 2009 is destined to become the YEAR OF SLOVENSKI TEHNO. Their scene has always had amazing music and great support globally. In my gut, I know that their music is fast becoming the vanguard of forward thinking modern Techno. I saw this trend building in 2008, and in the last 2 months, the new releases from 2009 that I have previewed makes this a cold hard fact.
So look out for these names, and mark my words...Umek, Tomy DeClerque, Valentino Kanzyani, F.Sonik, Alexander Madness, Andrew Technique, and Ian F are setting the pace for original modern unique sounding Techno in 2009.
Here are a few examples:
03 December 2008
Planet Earth Rock-n-Roll Orchestra
Those who know me well, know that I have been an unabashed Jefferson Airplane fanatic since my teenage years. I mean all the way...Takes Off through Long John Silver! And it is also no huge surprise that I am deeply into Jorma Kaukonen, Hot Tuna, 70's Jefferson Starship (screw their 80's pop incarnation, though), and especially solo Paul Kantner material as well! I spend a lot of time listening and relistening to the different albums, incarnations, and material from these fine musicians in spurts...usually every couple of months. It is a pleasure of which I wholly admit guilt-free!
Lately, it's been all about P.E.R.R.O. for me...The Planet Earth Rock-n-Roll Orchestra. There once was a time in rock and roll musical history when alliances were formed, ideas were forged democratically, and equality among peers made for perfect studio settings. And in this brief time, Paul Kantner assembled an amazing studio group conglomeration that took root in Wally Heider's San Francisco studio...when schedules didn't conflict and attitudes were free & easy. It all started to come together as a group mind in late 1969, when an amazingly diverse group of famous musicians all made the time to hang out, compose music, and get high together with frequency. The musicians involved were all quite successful in their own right, while having the common situation of all being from different West Coast bands: Kantner, Kaukonen, Jack Cassidy, Grace Slick, David Crosby, Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Graham Nash, Neil Young, Michael Shrieve, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Joni Mitchell, David Freiberg, Harvey Brooks, Joey Covington, Phil Sawyer. This group of social upstarts made some of the most unique studio recordings together from 1970 until late 1973.
Starting with Paul Kantner's highly under-rated Sci-Fi Rock concept album, Blows Against The Empire, they made records in different incarnations together under the record company guise of "solo" albums. Blows was a Robert Heinlein influenced counter-culture inspired album of epic proportions that was primarily "written" by Slick & Kantner. And it was even nominated for a Hugo Award in 1970! As the conceptual narrative unfolds, guitar solos come from nowhere, rhythms shift unexpectedly, and folk songs merge with psychedelic manifestos. It's a beautiful mess of styles, idealism, and jamming. Highly recommended!
The second of these PERRO albums is David Crosby's first solo record, If I Could Only Remember My Name. Their combined creative nature and natural musical interplay forged an intelligent and progressive compositional body of tunes. Folky guitars mixed with polyrhythms, wild rambling improvisational soloing, 4 part harmonies, and studio experimentation. It is psychedelic, beautiful, and powerful music. Crosby's album soared with amazing guitar interplay as well as his beautifully haunting vocal work. It is a perfect accompaniment with a damn good bottle of wine, some fine herb, and a fireplace on a cold winter night. Highly recommended!
The PERRO crew continued to play on each other's albums culminating in the brilliant Mickey Hart solo album, Rolling Thunder in 1973. By that time, their ranks had swelled with members of Big Brother & The Holding Company, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Tower Of Power, Country Joe & The Fish, Sly & The Family Stone, and The Sons Of Champlin. Mickey's album has the power, the spontaneity, and brilliance that the supergroup always brought to the studio.
Not to mention some amazing group compositions. I was first introduced to it in 1986 during a powerful psychedelic experience...in a Westover Hill-top mansion at dawn as a raging lightning storm pelted the huge glass windows with small hail, tree debris, and sideways rain. It was the perfect setting for having one's mind blown by the combination of weather and musical incantations. Of course...highly recommended!
PERRO were a brain-trust of brilliant West Coast musicians with like minded goals and friendship to harness their collective creative pulse. By 1974, career paths and schedules conflicted such Utopian musical gatherings as they faded into their own musical orbits. It was a beautiful time when record companies didn't intervene into the creative process and musicians were able to create virtually anything music that they could imagine. In 1983, Kantner once again resurrected the PERRO name for his album Planet Earth Rock-n-Roll Orchestra, bringing in those who could make it from the original line-up, along with some new recruits from his Starship. He even dedicated the tune Mountain Song to some absent friends: "to David C, Jerry G, Graham N, Grace S, David F, Billy K and Mickey H and to one summer when all of our schedules almost didn't conflict."
Lately, it's been all about P.E.R.R.O. for me...The Planet Earth Rock-n-Roll Orchestra. There once was a time in rock and roll musical history when alliances were formed, ideas were forged democratically, and equality among peers made for perfect studio settings. And in this brief time, Paul Kantner assembled an amazing studio group conglomeration that took root in Wally Heider's San Francisco studio...when schedules didn't conflict and attitudes were free & easy. It all started to come together as a group mind in late 1969, when an amazingly diverse group of famous musicians all made the time to hang out, compose music, and get high together with frequency. The musicians involved were all quite successful in their own right, while having the common situation of all being from different West Coast bands: Kantner, Kaukonen, Jack Cassidy, Grace Slick, David Crosby, Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Graham Nash, Neil Young, Michael Shrieve, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Joni Mitchell, David Freiberg, Harvey Brooks, Joey Covington, Phil Sawyer. This group of social upstarts made some of the most unique studio recordings together from 1970 until late 1973.
Starting with Paul Kantner's highly under-rated Sci-Fi Rock concept album, Blows Against The Empire, they made records in different incarnations together under the record company guise of "solo" albums. Blows was a Robert Heinlein influenced counter-culture inspired album of epic proportions that was primarily "written" by Slick & Kantner. And it was even nominated for a Hugo Award in 1970! As the conceptual narrative unfolds, guitar solos come from nowhere, rhythms shift unexpectedly, and folk songs merge with psychedelic manifestos. It's a beautiful mess of styles, idealism, and jamming. Highly recommended!
The second of these PERRO albums is David Crosby's first solo record, If I Could Only Remember My Name. Their combined creative nature and natural musical interplay forged an intelligent and progressive compositional body of tunes. Folky guitars mixed with polyrhythms, wild rambling improvisational soloing, 4 part harmonies, and studio experimentation. It is psychedelic, beautiful, and powerful music. Crosby's album soared with amazing guitar interplay as well as his beautifully haunting vocal work. It is a perfect accompaniment with a damn good bottle of wine, some fine herb, and a fireplace on a cold winter night. Highly recommended!
The PERRO crew continued to play on each other's albums culminating in the brilliant Mickey Hart solo album, Rolling Thunder in 1973. By that time, their ranks had swelled with members of Big Brother & The Holding Company, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Tower Of Power, Country Joe & The Fish, Sly & The Family Stone, and The Sons Of Champlin. Mickey's album has the power, the spontaneity, and brilliance that the supergroup always brought to the studio.
Not to mention some amazing group compositions. I was first introduced to it in 1986 during a powerful psychedelic experience...in a Westover Hill-top mansion at dawn as a raging lightning storm pelted the huge glass windows with small hail, tree debris, and sideways rain. It was the perfect setting for having one's mind blown by the combination of weather and musical incantations. Of course...highly recommended!
PERRO were a brain-trust of brilliant West Coast musicians with like minded goals and friendship to harness their collective creative pulse. By 1974, career paths and schedules conflicted such Utopian musical gatherings as they faded into their own musical orbits. It was a beautiful time when record companies didn't intervene into the creative process and musicians were able to create virtually anything music that they could imagine. In 1983, Kantner once again resurrected the PERRO name for his album Planet Earth Rock-n-Roll Orchestra, bringing in those who could make it from the original line-up, along with some new recruits from his Starship. He even dedicated the tune Mountain Song to some absent friends: "to David C, Jerry G, Graham N, Grace S, David F, Billy K and Mickey H and to one summer when all of our schedules almost didn't conflict."
24 November 2008
The Jam
My 6 year old daughter was recently going through my CD collection for new music to listen to (as she does every so often), and inadvertently discovered The Jam. She was jamming in her room much to my delight, digging the tunes like they were some new hip Disney boy band.
I found it especially joyful that she liked the first couple of albums, in their punk-mod glory. Her discovery has made me really spark a renewed interest in Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton, & Rick Buckler. I've been listening to the albums in the car as much as possible, rediscovering the beauty, timelessness and joy of their sound.
I found it especially joyful that she liked the first couple of albums, in their punk-mod glory. Her discovery has made me really spark a renewed interest in Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton, & Rick Buckler. I've been listening to the albums in the car as much as possible, rediscovering the beauty, timelessness and joy of their sound.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
