Deep. House.
I just posted a DJ mix yesterday (and just got sidetracked reading & replying to Steemit comments for 20 minutes searching for that link, damned ADD) which was one of three promos I put together prior to moving to Bali. This is the second of the trio.
In all my years DJing, I was never that into house.
Deep. House.
I just posted a DJ mix yesterday (and just got sidetracked reading & replying to Steemit comments for 20 minutes searching for that link, damned ADD) which was one of three promos I put together prior to moving to Bali. This is the second of the trio.
Sunset Groove Alchemy Lounge Sessions Vol. 2
In all my years DJing, I was never that into house.
First, was hip hop. Underground. Plus a little breaks and drum-and-bass thrown in, and some funky shit. Back in the basement turntablism days.
Transitioning to play professionally, it was more mainstream hip hop and R&B. A bit of dancehall. And there, some house. Rocking Skybar's Wednesday Ladies' Night and weekends, the most upscale club in Vancouver at the time. Good days, those were.
Around that time, I was also getting booked at two different lounges by the beach, playing very eclectic. It was around that time I started exploring more deep house - though still probably never threw in more that 10% in my sets. Same as - fast forward another 4 years after bouncing around to Thailand and Phoenix, before back to Canada on Vancouver Island - some lounges played in Victoria, preparing for the leap to the Island Of The Gods.
It was weird putting together an all house mix. (Although I had done a mini one years earlier). While I've always appreciated good music of all genres (mostly), my attention span for house would get lost quickly with the ceaseless 4-4 beat. But I guess I was attempting to anticipate what the music directors in Bali would be wanting, so prepared by dedicating a full mix to some of the best house I could find.
And damn, it was pretty good.
Most of this 70-minute mix is deep house.
Though, that's not say there isn't a healthy infusion of soul, funk, and jazz thrown in.
Fuck words. They never do music justice. Not even close
It's fascinating relistening to mixes like this, preparing for a share with such a synopsis as this. While the music is one thing itself, there just a whole vibe to the final work of art reminiscent of the space and time it came from.
For me, it was one of a major transition.
I had known for three years that I needed to move to Bali. And after continually putting it off, I finally made the commitment. T'was a big one, packing up to leave my home country and setup homebase in a country I'd never been to, knowing practically nothing about the place except for that it looked amazingly gorgeous, was supposed to be a magical place, had great surf, and alot of dope beach clubs to DJ.
There was alot of passion that went into this mix, if for no other reason than it was one of the keys which was to unlock my destiny.
I wasn't going there to half-ass it and "see how it went." I was playing to win. And I did.
I'd been doing my homework, sussing out the players, contacting promoters, DJs, music directors - planting the seeds and lining up the connections to get my foot in the door and up-to-speed fast. There was no room for a half-assed job on these mixes.
And c'mon, then there was just the sheer excitement.
Having all that backed up energy of a dream waiting to materialize...
And I had also kinda been on a break from DJing after having burned out, just getting back into and rekindling the love. It was a very different space to come from, juiced on life and ready to rock harder than ever.
Ah... lol.
What a heart-warming experience, revisiting and capturing this all into words. God, this turned out to be more fun than expected.
So yeah... awesome reflections.
And of course, you'll have to listen to the actual mix yourself to get a taste of that vibe.
And it's my hope, that in doing so - besides getting your body moving, it'll provide a healthy hit of inspiration. Cuz fuuuuuck, ain't that what life oughta really be about...?
My, how I've forgotten.
Sometimes life goes by so fast and we get so caught up in the swing of things now, that we forget to properly reflect on just how far we've come, and what treasures lie in our past.
I mean fuck. I actually lived that life.
Sure, it's time ran out, and I was happy to move on. But it was a dream that wouldn't leave my soul alone until I fucking did it. And while it might have been somewhat different than I imagined, and it definitely didn't match my idealized version of this ultra-posh, luxurious fantasy of the perfect tropical island, it happened.
Dreams do come true.
With the commitment and follow-through...
It's not always a smooth, easy, fast road. But when spirit calls, and there are forces at work pulling you towards a destination... :-)
Without further do...
Get listening already if you aren't!
Sunset Groove Alchemy Lounge Sessions Vol. 2
And if you dig and wanna know what any of the tracks on it are:
May your listening experience infuse your being with the passion and energy that drove my dreams into reality, supercharging the acceleration of yours.
Enjoy! ;-)
