Recap of a LONG weekend in RI/ Boston (originally posted 10.29.05)

Attended two exceptional events this weekend that raged till the wee hours of the morning and judging by my approaching cold…I am a bit worse for the wear. In spite of this, I saw something at each event that bodes really well for the future of EDM in New England and beyond.
Friday Night.

Was excited to head to RISE in Boston to check out one of the biggest DJs in the world, Roger Sanchez. As impressive as the list of performers that RISE has hosted over the last few years, it must be said that Roger Sanchez is on another level, a level that I would have bet was beyond such an intimate venue. Somehow forces converged and we were blessed to have the S Man agree to play for us at RISE.

I walked down Stuart Street around 2:30 and saw Todd Reeves, Shayna and a few other friends escorting Mr. Sanchez. We walked straight in, headed upstairs and Roger went right to the booth. Joe Mama was laying down a thick and chunky opening set and the room was bubbling under, just ready to burst. Roger jumped right on and started his assault of party rockers and funky house jams. Mixing flawlessly and dropping acapellas and working the effects like they belonged, Mr. Sanchez showed why he is one of the best in the world. The vibe in the room was upbeat and positive and there were smiling faces from front to back (on both floors.)

I would have liked to hear him space out the anthems a bit, with a few more instrumentals and vocal-less tracks but overall, it was about what I expected from Roger. A ton of well known tracks, a lot of remixes, some well placed classics and a TON of energy. Musically, it wasn’t exactly my bag. But in terms of energy and crowd control, I haven’t see too many DJs do it better that that.

Saturday Night.

I left Boston at 1:30 a.m. to head down to Providence for “Rave is Dead” at Therapy. As I drove on nearly deserted highways, it dawned on me the dichotomy that is DJing.
The whole nature of your job revolves around being the center of attention, with people looking to you to control the vibe and make a room full of speakers and lights into a party. But there is also this kind of solitude that is DJing, where you are often driving at all hours of the night to parties by yourself. Even after the most bangin event, as the last record fades…you are left alone to pack up you gear and think. I don’t bring this up to get into some deep psychological discussion; it is just something that I never really considered until this past weekend. Onto the party.

Volume Productions always throws the best parties. Great visuals, good sound, strong line-ups and a good mix of younger and slightly older attendees. Got to Therapy around 2:45 and walked in to the welcoming smile of my man Chuck, who consistently holds down the door and security at Therapy. One of the nicest people around, I am always happy to see him and his positive attitude and pleasant personality are major contributing factors to Therapy becoming one of my favorite rooms again.

Went upstairs to the sounds of Charles Feelgood, working the shit out of that room. Dropping 80s electro, remixes, funky Chicago house and ton of other booty shaking bombs, he had the room juiced to the max. Downstairs, Danny the Wildchild was on dropping his signature Drum + Bass grooves and while I couldn’t really feel it…the room was bouncing and the kids were rocking out.

Went back upstairs and got to listen to a true legend of the dance music scene in the US, Scott Henry. He worked his way through a variety of sounds and styles form smooth, progressive and funky tech house, to a vocal or two and a couple of great remixes. It was a pleasure to spin after him and even more fun talking to him at length after my set (read more below.)

I played from 4 to 5 and went straight to it, rocking a forward moving techno set. I played a few funky jams like the new Joris Voorn and the Motor Remix of Precious by Depeche Mode, but generally stuck to the harder edges of my record bag. The crowd was right along with me.
My friends Kevin Nazty and Vin Diesel closed out the night and played a lot of their own productions, which went over very well.

After my set, I had the pleasure of chatting with Scott Henry and we spoke about a lot of things related to the EDM scene in the US. He mentioned that he was VERY impressed with the crowd and the vibe at Therapy and how he thinks that New England has one of the STRONGEST SCENES in the US, and he would know.

While the New England scene isn’t nearly as strong as it once was and it isn’t as good as we would all like it to be, we should really take a good look in the mirror and appreciate what we have here and how it compares to the rest of the country.

Having played all over North America in the last year, I can honestly say that Boston and Providence is top notch all the way. Here’s hoping we can recognize this ourselves soon and start to really appreciate what we have right here in our backyard.