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ON THE ROAD 2009 (THE D:FUSE BLOG)

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January 24, 2009
McAllen Texas at Wonderland

Texas has really got to go on a diet. I mean..come on. I board the Houston-to-McAllen leg of my flight and I’m amazed at how portly everyone is. The plane is only ¾ full but I’m seriously worried the plane is so weighed down with the lard-i-ness that we won’t get any lift on takeoff. Maybe it sounds mean of me but come on -do we really have to load up so much on the fries and sodas? I’m not talking about people here on the “chubby” tip. I’m talking an 80% obese rate on the plane. I’m sure there are exceptions but this many people can’t seriously have a gland problem!

So with a few creaks and shudders the plane successfully achieves altitude and suddenly it hits me. Is this the same promoter that booked me at that amazing show 3 years ago? Is20this the same guy that had me play on a Thursday night where the place was packed and filled with those border-type Texas honeys shakin’ their groove thing till I shut the place down? As I exit the plane and descend to baggage claim his grin confirms it. The infamous Drew of Energetik productions is back in McAllen after a 2 year break and ready to do some damage. Sweet!

We grab my luggage and head straight to the venue for sound check. It’s on a street called South Man (17th St.) where loads of bars are popping up to make it a like a mini 6th Street. The event is in an old theater called Cin El Rey and when I walk in I’m quite impressed. The place is beautiful with a plush surroundings and a big stage. Tonight’s event is called Wonderland and they’ve decorated the entire place. I do my sound check, forgo my usual workout so we can go eat at a legendary Mexican food place called Costa Messa. Here’s the deal- don’t go eat amazing authentic Mexican food before a show. I’m so hungry after my travels and the food is so good that there might as well be a bulldozer there shoveling it in for me. I eat so much that I have a distinct “waddle” as I’m walking out. I figure I’ll pass out for an hour or two and recover nicely from my food coma after the show. No such luck. I walk into my hotel room and sadly discover that it is 10pm. I have just enough time to shower, go through my se t, and get back to the venue. Thank god for red bull and whiskey. I’m definitely going to wear a looser fitting shirt and I’m seriously gonna have remember to keep the ol’ gut on “sucked in” mode.

I arrive at the venue at 11:30 to see the place in full swing. The sound system is sounding crisp and local DJ Fern Arguello is throwing down a really good set of big room house to a full dance floor. I look around the room and I’m quickly reminded of how HOT Texas border chicks are. A special shout out to Bianca….rawr. There are beautiful women everywhere and overall the entire crowd is a really good mix of young clubbers, older sophisticated types, and everyone in between. The lighting and lasers look great and I’m impressed with how much work they’ve put in to this event.

I get on the decks and do my thing. I start with some funky progressive with an electro edge and move my way into a more melodic trancey sound. All the while banging in the drum and jumping up and down like a madman. The crowd is a little reserved at first but continues to warm up as the set continues. Our Obama track “This is Our time” (free download at djdfuse.com) really breaks the ice and as I move the music more melodic the place really responds. I end my set with the house lights full up and the place is still screaming for an encore. I have to say I’m impressed!!!!

I spend the next 20 minutes s igning autographs (now you people are gonna make me blush) and head straight over to an afterhours club. I jump on the decks and play a set of straight-up club hits. It’s getting late for these people and they need some party music. It gets people off their chairs for a bit and I’ve got a sneaky lil’ whiskey and coke in my hand... life is good.

I finish my set and stumble back to my room. I’ve got a 10:30am flight and I’m looking at a cool 3 hours of sleep. That’s waaaaaay more than I got last Saturday so I do a little prayer thanking the gods. McAllen, TX – you guys did a Texas boy proud!!! A big thank you to all that came out to the show and supported the scene. Ya’ll really brought the energy and I had a great time spinning some beats and banging the drum. Promoters like Drew don’t come around often and he deserves you patronage. Those of you who didn’t come out. Shame on you!

Until next time...

D:Fuse

January 17, 2009
The Bricktop, Lincoln, NB

I arrived at the club to do sound check and found a really vibey atmosphere. The club is in an old building with 30 foot ceilings, wood floors, and brick walls. The dance floor was a good size and there were lots of places to sit and lounge. Organic Productions promoter Joe Laccheri (DJ Palindroseff) and his partners are throwing tonight's bash and they are confident in a good crowd. He tells me it's a real heat wave hitting the city this time of year. Just a few days ago it was O degrees. Today it's 30. I thank God for the warmth. They take good care of helping with everything needed to get my drum set up and I'm off to the hotel.

I get checked into the hotel, get a quick workout in, order some room service, go through my set, and get picked up at 10:00 to head to the club. There is already a good crowd. I look around the room and can immediately tell there is good energy. People are talking with one another, ordering shots, dancing in place at their tables and by the bar. DJ PalindroSEFF (Joe) is doing a good job warming up the night. He's playing a proggy style of techno with just enough vocals and hooks to get the floor comfortably full. The sound system sounds good and I'm excited to see an old stand-out from the old days of clubbing- a fog machine!!!!! I'm telling you these things are underrated! And no- I'm not talking about a hazer. Hazers are for pussies.

What I'm talking are those old school blasters that smell like some sort of sweet sugar mixed with chemicals, they make you cough a bit and undoubtedly set off the smoke alarm when you use too much. I love fog machines. One of my first “real” club gigs was at a club that had the F1000 fog machine. The F1000 was to fog machines what the Techniques 1200 was to turntables: a beast of a machine that never let you down. The club I spun at was called Abratto's in downtown Austin on 5th street. The good news was that loads of people that went to the club were generally high on really good pills. The bad news was that they were mostly frat boys and sorority girls from Texas State that liked underground music but mostly liked hip-hop. It was always my mission to play as little hip-hop as I had too, and the secret to that was good funky breaks, house, spot-on lighting (we operated the lighting ourselves while djing) and the F100. Whenever the floor looked a little thin or a breakdown seemed a little too long on a track I was playing I blasted that F100. It had the ability to blanket the floor in such a dense fog so fast that people couldn't help but to cheer and stay there on the floor. It also didn't hurt that people couldn't see 3 inches in front of them so they couldn't possibly navigate off the floor and to the bar. You know how it feels when a club opens those liquid cryo cooling systems? You hear this loud hissing sound and you're bathed in cold smoke and everyone's screaming. Well the F100 almost gives the same reaction and is a hell of a lot cheaper to operate. These things are tanks. Every time I walk into a club and I smell the scent of a fog machine. It brings me back to my first few years of clubbing and DJing and instantly puts me in a great mood. All hail the F100…ALL HAIL THE F100!!!!

Now where was I? Oh yeah, Lincoln, NB. I get introduced around the room . It's very cool to be able to meet everyone at the club and it really looks like a close-knit group of people. It reminded me of my days in Austin, where you'd walk into the Caucus Club and know everyone there and be excited that you'd have the next few hours to party together and dance.

I jump on the decks and take the vibe from the proggy techno thing and into the funky progressive realm. The floor and the club steadily fill until the entire place is packed and going crazy. The DJ booth is extremely small, cramped and above the crowd where they can only see my head but luckily they've mounted a camera in the booth and have it airing on all of the video screens. The crowd really responds to the drumming thing and as I increase the energy of the music and move it more into a melodic vibe the place really gets going. The floor is packed, people are screaming and I have a great time for 2 hours throwing some records down and banging the drum. Unfortunately I have to cut the music at 1am because of early drinking hours here but play one more encore with the lights full up and the crowd dancing like crazy. Song of the night: Dinka “Meaningful Story” (Jaytech Remix). I wish I could keep playing, I've honestly had more fun tonight that on any show I've done in the last 2 months but I'm thankful that I'm heading home early. I've got a 7am flight meaning I'll get 3 hours of sleep if I'm lucky.

Getting sleep was the plan but promoter keeps nudging me, “There's a really good after party tonight,” he says. “Just come by and say hello and hang for a few minutes- after that I'll run you to the hotel- no big deal.” I keep talking about having to get a little sleep, early flight, tired, blah blah blah but after 10 minutes Joe's reasoning and a couple of shots I break like a porcelain doll. We get to the after party which is well stocked with vodka, cranberry, a basement and DJ booth. Damn! That 7am flight is gonna hurt… Downstairs Che Garcia (who gave me an original grafitti art painting of my name spelled- thanks for that!) is throwing down some solid beats and from what I hear he's known locally for forming an after-hour duo known at the Burrito Boys. They show up to the after-party with $40 bag of burritos from Taco Bell and wear giant sombreros. While they spin they give out free burritos during their set. I happen to think this is one of the funniest and most brilliant things I've ever heard at an after party (besides Lance Cashion dressing up in Darby's old wedding dress and vacuuming the floor with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth at a legendary Austin afterparty of old). I will be stealing this “Burrito Brothers” idea soon. I'm telling you right now. I will be blatantly stealing this. Period. I will. I'm such a fucker...

Anyway, hat's off to Organic Productions and the Bricktop for such a great time and to all the great people I had a chance to hang with. But how dare you!!!!! No sleep and straight to the airport. That 7am flight was ROUGH!!!!