After a brief Christmas celebration in Tokyo, I was on my way to the yearly Australia tour. In fact, it’s my sixth tour as I did easter as well the first two years - Can’t get enough of it! The weather was a bit weird as we came in, but the second day it was back in full swing and we had a great chill to prepare for the maddest NYE ever. The night started with an agency dinner in the harbour with Jack McCord, Kissy Sell Out, ATFC, Mogwai and the agents that had arranged our tours. For once I could watch the fireworks from the harbour which was cool. Gradually people left the dinner to start their sets (all clubs were on the same strip or near). About ten minutes before the countdown, one of the agents came and asked me if I could fill in for Kissy Sell Out as he needed to ‘get his head together’. Fair enough, I never say no to a bit of a throwdown so I went in and played for 40 minutes at Cargo. Great venue that I loved doing last year even though it wasn’t as decked out as it was then.
Cargo, Sydney (standing in for Kissy Sell Out) December 31, 2007
Bellatrax - I Can’t Help Myself (Laidback Luke)
John Dahlbäck - Blink (Dim Chris)
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Club Mix)
Daft Punk - Da Funk (Wheelan & Di Scala)
Amy Whinehouse - Rehab (Soulcast)
Lorraine - Saved (Armstrong & Redroche)
M&S - Higher & Higher 2008 (Chocolate Puma)
Onwards to Hed Kandi. At Arthouse and the first of my official NYE shows. The crew was in place, Jordana, Rob, Matt, Dan L, Nic and Jack, the place was rammed and the resident played old school Kandi anthems so it was a breeze getting into the right vibe from the go. The promoter, Paul Strange is a hero who keeps house alive in Sydney and it was good to see him shouting on stage all through the set with fellow Scot, Matt. After my set, Nic Kat did a PA of his Chris Kaeser’s collaboration ‘Scream’ and our track ‘I Believe In Love’ that went down incredbly well. The girls in front row couldn’t get enough of him - well done rock star!!!
Hed Kandi @ Arthouse, Sydney December 31, 2007
Ian Carey Project - Get Shaky (SB)
Sterling Void - It’s Alright (Chris Lake)
Robbie Rivera - One Eye Shut (SB)
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
Chris Montana - Porto Hustle
M&S - No No No
Dirty South - Let It Go
Yves Laroche - Zookey (Africanism Allstars)
Emanuel, McCall - Gotta Get Through (Smax & Gold)
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Club Mix)
Hooked vs MJ Cole - Watertight
Armand Van Helden - Je T’aime
Morillo - Dancin’ (Fuzzy Hair)
Booty Luv - Some Kinda Rush
Amy Whinehouse - Rehab (Soulcast)
Lorraine - Saved (Armstrong & Redroche)
StoneBridge - You Don’t Know (Club Mix)
Robin S - Show Me Love (SB & Gold)
Daft Punk - Da Funk (Wheelan & Di Scala)
As the second show was a bit away from this place, we decided to go there straight after the show to catch a bit of Frankie Knuckles. As we came there, security was like a festival and we were shown into a dressing room with my name on it. Luckily, there were loads of drinks there so we didn’t complain. The crew in place was Matt from Aberdeen, Dom, Ben the agent, Nic and his assistant. We felt Frankie was on fire through the door and he was playing Freemasons mixes exclusively. This was until Dom popped in from the outside and told that it in fact was Freemasons playing. These guys were ridiculously tight and it was a solid sound bed of 128 grooves with various anthemic bits on top. As I came in to start my set, I saw the MacBook with Ableton running - ah, that figures. Still, it’s cool to see funky DJs embracing this technology as it’s usually serious men checking their e-mail on stage (or as Beatport’s vision is, downloading new tunes during the set). This time Nic went on before me with his PA and went down as well here even though this crowd was massive - 4500+ and quite shall we say refreshened. I decided to toughen things up as it was 5.45 in the morning and managed to keep at least 60% of the crowd until 7.40 AM. Great vibe and very well organised! At the end it was only me and Matt left from the crew and because of my long flight to Perth, there was no sleep for me.
Fuzzy Wildlife @ Hordern Pavillion, Sydney December 31, 2007
Ali Payami - Bad Habit
Armand Van Helden - Je T’aime
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Club Mix)
Sweet Delight - Millionaire (Wawa)
Public Domain - I Feel Love (Wheelan & Di Scala)
M&S - Stay Around (Murasca)
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
TV Rock - The Others (Laidback Luke)
DJ Antoine - This Time (Klaas)
Tatoe Tease - 32 Steps (Splashfunk)
Steve Mac & Mark Brown - Bells of Brighton
Samim - Heater (Vandalism)
Soulmaniax - What Is What
Robin S - Show Me Love (SB & Gold)
Emanuel, McCall - Gotta Get Through (Smax & Gold)
T2 - Heartbroken (Wawa)
StoneBridge - You Don’t Know (Club Mix)
Solitaire - You Got The Love (MW Kidology)
StoneBridge - Put ‘Em High
5 hours later I touched down in Perth and the first person I meet in Dave Lee (Joey Negro) by the baggage claim. We were on the same line up so we had a bit of a catch up on the way. Joey played a really good set with a mix of proper house, disco re-edits and dubs and the crown really loved his sound even though it would have been perfect with a bit of sunshine. Perth is warm, very warm with or without sunshine and this afternoon we approached 38 degrees in the shade. Shouldn’t complain though as Sweden is enjoying -5 at the moment. As I went on, the sky started to shift into pink and purple and gradually, the outdoor venue turned into a club, which was amazing. In the end there was proper lazer action and a great vibe. I had to go and crash so I couldn’t stay until the end, but one hero did including the after party: Jack McCord, officially the las man standing!
Hed Kandi @ Leederville Hotel, Perth January 1, 2008
Hooked vs MJ Cole - Watertight
Sound Conducterz - Hold Your Head Up (SB)
Yves Laroche - Zookey (Africanism Allstars)
M&S - No No No
Dirty South - Let It Go
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
Armand Van Helden - Je T’aime
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Club Mix)
John Dahlbäck - Blink (Dim Chris)
Daft Punk - Da Funk (Wheelan & Di Scala)
Amy Whinehouse - Rehab (Soulcast)
T2 - Heartbroken (Wawa)
StoneBridge - SOS
Bob Sinclar - Everybody Movin’ (ET & KM)
Emanuel, McCall - Gotta Get Through (Smax & Gold)
Sterling Void - It’s Alright (Chris Lake)
StoneBridge - You Don’t Know (Club Mix)
Robin S - Show Me Love (SB & Gold)
The next day we sweated through a dramatic flight where the plane tried to land twice in Gold Coast and then diverted to Brisbane. After a cab ride to the coast we finally arrived in Australia’s premier holiday destination. The scene here has always been a bit like San Antonio, but once you chill out a bit, it’s actually a cool place. My gig was in Platinum, where I played a couple years ago with Jack McCord. The set time was early as it was the official afterparty for Summer Field Days and I was sharing the headline with Benny Benassi. So far so good. As I came to the club, I was put in the house/deep room while some local guys banged out electro to a semi empty main room. I never understand how promoters think when it comes to more than one room. Surely it’s better to have a great main room than two empty ones. Well, go figure. I managed to get it going the last hour and at least I had all the girls in there
Platinum, Gold Coast January 5, 2008
Supermal - Come Feel The Love (Armstrong & Redroche)
Fudge - Fruitcake
Lorraine - Saved (Armstrong & Redroche)
Hooked vs MJ Cole - Watertight
Sterling Void - It’s Alright (Chris Lake)
Asle - HiFi Is Dead (Dumb Dan)
M&S - No No No
Dirty South - Let It Go
Mr V - Put Your Drink Down (Bob Sinclar)
Chris Montana - Porto Hustle
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
Samim - Heater (Vandalism)
StoneBridge - You Don’t Know (Club Mix)
Britney Spears - Gimme More (SB)
Armand Van Helden - Je T’aime
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Club Mix)
Daft Punk - Around The World (Dumb Dan)
TV Rock - The Others (Laidback Luke)
DJ Antoine - This Time (Klaas)
After Gold Coast we went to Byron Bay, which is the best kept secret little beach town in Australia. Very relaxed and no stress at all over there. I met Jason Herd one day in between gigs and had a chat about the state of house music, clubs etc. Very interesting. Then it was time for the jump to New Zealand and Auckland, where I’ve played once before in 2006. As I remembered from then, it was one of the funkiest places I’ve played, but as the rest of the world, the bleepy pop-electro has a strong hold here too I noticed before I went on. Good mate Jolyon Petch, who I only meet in exotic places did the set before me and playd some new Soul Avengerz stuff that was really good (guys, don’t forget the open hi-hat). I opened up with the Tocadisco remix of ‘Just A Groove’, which is massive. Very surprising mix from him and totally funky. Then I dropped Dumb Dan’s ‘Around The World’ remix and the place really went off. 2 hours just flew by and the crowd was amazing. Three Swedes were in front row holding up a note saying we’re Swedish and we had a chat after. You don’t really expect people from home that far away. As I write this I’m waiting for the flight to Melbourne and haven’t gone to bed yet - rock and roll part 2
Global Summer Dance, Auckland January 11, 2008
Mighty Dub Katz - Just Another Groove (Tocadisco)
Daft Punk - Around The World (Dumb Dan)
Armand Van Helden - Je T’aime
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Club Mix)
Amy Whinehouse - Rehab (Soulcast)
Lorraine - Saved (Armstrong & Redroche)
M&S - No No No
Dirty South - Let It Go
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
M&S - Stay Around (Murasca)
Soulmaniax - What Is What
Robin S - Show Me Love (SB & Gold)
TV Rock - The Others (Laidback Luke)
DJ Antoine - This Time (Klaas)
Daft Punk - One More Time (The House Moguls)
Bob Sinclar - Everybody Movin’ (ET & KM)
Teo Moss - The Walk
Morillo - Dancin’ (Fuzzy Hair)
Robbie Rivera - One Eye Shut (SB)
StoneBridge - Put ‘Em High
Melbourne is great, can’t believe I have missed spending more than one day here. It has a more European flavour both in they way it looks and restaurants. I was hanging out with Lorne from Vicious, who gave me an update on how the single is doing (great and building) and my longest Australian fan, Andrew. The club, Room 680, has been around for 7 years, but recently the direction has been changed into a more friendly house vibe which of course fits me better than a bunch of ice smoking muscle boys sitting in the corner. I have to say I haven’t experienced a more positive vibe since M2 in Korea and I have a new favourite place in this country To top things of, Martina from Ibiza and Attica in Shanghai turned up towards the end - wicked night and people!
Room 680, Melbourne January 12, 2008
Mighty Dub Katz - Just Another Groove (Tocadisco)
M&S - No No No
Dirty South - Let It Go
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
Teo Moss - The Walk
Morillo - Dancin’ (Fuzzy Hair)
Daft Punk - Around The World (Dumb Dan)
Emanuel, McCall - Gotta Get Through (Smax & Gold)
StoneBridge - You Don’t Know (Club Mix)
Fudge - Fruitcake
Armand Van Helden - Je T’aime
Chris Montana - Porto Hustle
Yves Laroche - Zookey (Africanism Allstars)
Samim - Heater (Vandalism)
Soulmaniax - What Is What
Robin S - Show Me Love (SB & Gold)
John Dahlbäck - Blink (Dim Chris)
Daft Punk - Da Funk (Wheelan & Di Scala)
Amy Whinehouse - Rehab (Soulcast)
Sterling Void - It’s Alright (Chris Lake)
StoneBridge - Put ‘Em High
Going to Brisbane at the end of the tour has become a bit of a tradition and some of the crew flew up for the last party to join Christian Luke, Rohan and his friend. As I came in, the party was already in full swing with Harry K dropping anthems. After the show, I stepped in and kept it funky and latin for about an hour before getting into Daft Punk and the tour peak combo of Soulmaniax and Robin S. I ended the set with a brand new french mix of Close To Heaven - perfect end of the tour and what can I say except I Love This Country!
Family, Brisbane January 13, 2008
Ian Carey Project - Get Shaky (SB)
Mighty Dub Katz - Just Another Groove (Tocadisco)
Emanuel, McCall - Gotta Get Through (Smax & Gold)
M&S - No No No
Chris Montana - Porto Hustle
Dirty South - Let It Go
Alex Gaudino - Watch Out
Samso 105 & Bart B More - Killing It
Yves Laroche - Zookey (Africanism Allstars)
Robbie Rivera - One Eye Shut (SB)
T2 - Heartbroken (Wawa)
Jojo - Anything (Wawa)
Morillo - Dancin’ (Fuzzy Hair)
Daft Punk - Around The World (Dumb Dan)
Soulmaniax - What Is What
Robin S - Show Me Love (SB & Gold)
John Dahlbäck - Blink (Dim Chris)
Ian Carey - Keep On Rising
StoneBridge - You Don’t Know (Club Mix)
StoneBridge - Close To Heaven (Teo Moss)
