Archive for April, 2009

The first gig of the last weekend of the tour. We were beyond hysteria, totally deluded and most of our day to day manners had gone. Yet still… one track into the set and with a Corona in hand, Chris battled on.

Exhausted after three days in the big apple, Chris and the crew set sail for Philadelphia. The 125 Lounge turned out to be a randomly wonderful night, but was followed by Chris' darkest day of the tour. Fatigue had kicked in. Strangely enough, with the help of in-laws and Macca, he pulled through to smash Detroit's Nove Lounge floor to pieces. Arguably one of top gigs of the tour. Next stop: D.C.

Three days spent cruising round the city with
Michael Weiss. We hit Sirius XM and the Pulse 87, met a shed-load of awesome people, drank dirty martini’s and experienced a rammed Cielo.
Good times!

It's not our policy to cut and paste press releases, but in this instance, we thought we'd better get it totally bang on. So from the news team at BE AT TV here you go:

"THE ONLY DESTINATION YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THIS SUMMER: BE AT TV TAKES CLUBBING TO A NEW LEVEL OF INTERACTIVITY

Web TV channel Be At TV has established itself as the only website worth knowing about for virtual and vicarious clubbing, FREE and direct to your living room. This month sees b@ introducing user-generated content ahead of the festival season.

Now members can upload and share their own films, music and photos, creating a platform where up and coming acts can broadcast themselves to the community. As well as watching exclusive sets either live on demand, viewers can download podcasts from their favourite DJ’s – like Sasha, Deadmau5 and Annie Mac – and ‘live chat’ with music fans in 15 different countries.

For armchair clubbers who don’t (or can’t afford to) get out as much anymore, the site is the way to keep up with the latest in electronic music and enjoy the ultimate people watching….without having to physically be there.

'The best thing about Be At TV is that you will always be one step ahead with the music you are listening to. b@ gives fans the music we are playing unedited, uninterrupted and with all the interaction between the clubbers and the DJ on the night' says featured DJ Pete Tong.

There’s plenty for the die-hard clubbing set too: through b@’s unique video-tagging technology, members can personalise content when they have been there; creating mini-movies of their clubbing experiences to share with their friends via twitter, facebook or myspace.

Be At TV founder Ray Smith comments: 'As massive electronic music fans ourselves, we founded Be At TV to create one platform that would connect generation 2.0 clubbers with venues and DJ's all over the world. b@ is not just clubbing on demand but an interactive community where members can re-live and share their experiences.'

b@ will really come into its own this summer; broadcasting from every major event such as the Ibiza opening parties, Creamfields, Love Parade, Exit Festival, Queensday and Global Gathering. Four camera angles including inside the DJ box as well as a ‘clubber’s confessional’ booth give a 360 degree clubbing experience and all the festival atmosphere, without the mud.

Sign up now at www.be-at.tv"

We did… and we like it a lot. Here's the Mau5 in action.

So I’m just say here, chilling out in San Antonio, Texas, after a very hectic weekend of gigs. it all started off when we left San Diego, having chilled out with the promoter there, Tim Ortiz (thanks again for the hospitality Tim, can’t wait to get back), we jumped in the car and drove across the desert on route 8, with a few wrong turns, bags of dorito’s, bottled water, and tired lazy ‘long journey humor’, we ate up the 374miles in just under 6 hours. Now a few people warned us we would find the journey quite boring, but I found it anything but. Some of the scenery was stunning, and it was very refreshing seeing America from a car and not a plane. It was completely worthwhile. So that night I played the Cream Stereo lounge in Scottsdale. Firstly, I made the mistake of insisting I drive all the way to Scottsdale from San Diego, and as a result felt pretty lousy when I got to the club, but as soon as I walked in, I was raring for the night ahead, and the result was a great relaxed and fun vibe, so I had a great time. The perfect Wednesday! Next stop, Sacramento.

Now I was a little unfortunate at this gig. I arrived under an under cast sky in the afternoon, but by the time of the gig in the evening, the rain had started coming down, the streets were heavily waterlogged, and it was not great weather to be going out in. My hotel was about 20 steps away from the club, and I got soaked in that time. As a result the club was maybe only 50-60% full, but thank you to all who turned up. You were pretty hardcore. We got given more drinks that night than we could handle, and as a result, Sebastian from Rising Music ended up ridiculously drunk! Poor boy!

So onto the Friday @ Rich’s in Houston, Texas. This gig was sick. The club was packed, and the crowd were well up for it, and it was my turn to get a bit effected by the alcohol. I can’t wait to return! We then hopped on the plane to Dallas to play at the Lizard Lounge. Really cool old skool venue. Was a bit concerned how my music was going to down cos the music was really really pumping when I came in, but I brought it down, and the crowd lapped it up. Thank you! In both Dallas and Houston we were put up in the ZaZa hotel’s. I recommend this place to anyone. Great balance of classic and chic. Going off on one here a bit, but both Sebastian and I were very impressed.
So the last gig brought me to here, San Antonio, where I played an outdoor event at Dolce. Now for me as a DJ, this was a lot of fun. The police complained 3 times about the noise, eventually resulting in the party getting cut slightly short. They never did say if they liked the music or not! Props to the crazy people who decided (completely unprovoked by me of course) to jump into the very cold pool to dance. You made the party

So now I am here, chilling out on my off day before heading to NYC for my album launch party with Laidback Luke @ Cielo. I loved this club the last time I played so I cannot wait to get back and do it all again.
Just to end on a debatable question (and I’m just asking the question here remember), after having spent the past 5 hours listening to the new digital download releases / top selling records etc, it has really made me think quite hard about the direction many producers / labels seem to be choosing with their releases. Is the current trend of bringing old / classic / and not so classic records up to 2009, blocking the way for creative music and ideas?

So after a heavy few days in Edmonton, we headed down to Calgary for my show at Snatch.
I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t some nerves kicking about – the
idea of streaming a set live on the net is hardly old-skool thinking.
Luckily and with the support from Thomas back in France, we got the
Awdio sound check nailed and headed back to the hotel.

The Hotel Arts -
a lovely establishment with what looked like a raw-food restaurant,
shed loads of interesting pictures, all circulating an out-door pool
and lounge area… just don’t forget if you want to get from your heated
seat to the boiling pool you’ve got to jump through half a meter of
SNOW! Anyway, we managed a quick gym session then it was time to eat -
probably the most efficient sushi place I’ve ever been to. In, well fed
and out again in less than 30mins, not exactly a relaxing experience,
but this worked perfectly for us!

Next stop – Snatch! As we entered the venue, it was clear the crowd
were from all walks of life: The house kids at the front already going
mental, the Hip-Hop guys who’d got their nights mixed up, and then a
few Britney lovers realizing they’d have to ‘pound’ a few shots to get
up to speed. So up I went, Corona number one for the night in hand, and
had a great time! The set went out and all worked accordingly…happy
days!

Venue no.2 that’s confirmed with Awdio – Nine Lounge Detroit! See you soon!

Chris

After the massive clubland success of Hardwell & Rehab‘s remix of Chris’s last single ‘If You Knew‘, the duo return with this thumping original ‘Blue Magic’. Simplistic techno with a massively catchy lead hook you in and keep you there. René Amesz’s mix takes things deeper with René‘s clas
sic sleazy beats
. The final mix comes from Chuckie & Silvio Ecomo who turn in a nasty, low slung remix perfect for those dirty, late night moments. Positive feedback and support comes from everyone from Armin Van Buuren to Seb Leger and back again, with Meat Katie quoting the Rene Amesz remix as “excellent!”

Here’s a couple of clips:

Original

Rene Amesz

If you’re keen – head to Beatport for a full legal download.

  So this US tour so far has really had some extreme high's and low's.The highs being the great shows I've had so far, and the time spent with all the great people in San Fran, Miami and Canada. The lows though, frustratingly, have been annoying at best.

First off, I got to San Francisco, and don't ask me how it happened, but I had a bag of electronics stolen from my laptop bag. In it was my duet apogee soundcard, microphone, then 3 USB keys with files, and software licenses on them.  In other words without these keys, I can't run my software. This has put me in a buggers muddle, as I can't now complete my March podcast as planned (we're working on a solution!). Over and above that, I can't write until I sort all my replacement license keys. I just want to add, all the software companies have been amazing to me. Most turned round a replacement license for me within 24 hours, some quicker than that.

Unfortunately, the company ilok, who manufacture and supply the USB key which holds the licenses, have been very poor. I ordered a replacement key with express next day delivery, and there was a problem with the order due to me asking for the key to be sent to my hotel, not my cardholder address. It has been over a week now since I emailed them back to resolve the problem. Still nothing back. It's a shame I have to use a company like this, as I think their customer service is terrible.

Anyway, enough of my rant. I get to California on Saturday, so I will look to get some new equipment so I can get podcasting once again! We have the first live show with Awdio tonight when I play in Calgary. Hoping for a smooth experience!

On a lighter note, here's a snippet of last night and some photos Seb's put together: