June 2006 - Page 2 of 3

DJ’ing at French Cafe

Hey, hold on. Because of a clerical error a post from June 2004 showed up as a new one here. I haven’t been to Andalu in years.

Last night I played to warm reception at the French Cafe near the Blue Lagoon. A few months ago I vowed not to bring my equipment out to parties anymore, but I broke that rule last night by bringing one turntable and my mixer, along with laptop and Serato. There were no sponsors, there was no promoter, and there was no house music all night – downtempo, jazz, soul, and trip hop. It was really nice to be able to share that kind of selection with a room full of people, instead of having to play dance music in clubs. I flipped through Bonobo, Thievery Corporation, Xploding Plastix, Bjork, Al Green, and Massive Attack. I don’t know if it’s worth the weekly hassle and lugging equipment around town, but I’d be happy to find a place that’s interested in hosting a weeknight residency to showcase this kind of music.

Tonight I went with Nemo and Sunny to sichuan opera at Wuhou Temple which was a great way to spend the evening – I’d seen the show at this venue once before, but the show was as impressive as I’d remembered it. The 90-minute show is set inside the 2,000 year old temple which provides excellent atmosphere and backdrop.

I’d write more but I’m too tired.

Gig @ Babi, Chengdu

I just got back from the second gig at Babi this weekend, which went much better than last night.

I was looking forward to DJ’ing there because it was the first Chinese club that I saw when I first came to Chengdu, and since that time I think I’ve always known it as the most crowded and well known club in the city. It’s not very distinct (looking like almost every other club in China), and truthfully, the music is usually terrible there, but at least it’s always crowded; especially on Friday & Saturday. Nemo was there and we drank a lot and hung out for a few hours after the gig which is unusual for me; especially when I’m here in Chengdu, I’m usually ready to go home shortly after I finish playing.

There were plasma TV’s all around the club showing the soccer matches tonight, the highlight of which was I think the England game. The final score was 1-0, which equals super boring to me. Unless the score is like 12-18, watching soccer is like watching paint dry to me. I suppose that must be because I’m American, right?

I met a guy with a pony tail tonight who looked like the Highlander. The most appropriate thing I could think to say when I met him was there can be only one. 🙂