So Eradik and myself were asked to play an all vinyl jungle set at Bass Coast this year and we agreed without hesitation. As the weeks went by, plans ended up changing and we had decided we didn’t want to play an all vinyl set after all. A couple nights ago we changed our minds yet again and figured we should stick with the original plan. Now here we are at nearly 2 in the morning leaving for Bass Coast tomorrow trying to re-learn the intricacies of our records. At least we haven’t gotten a noise complaint! When I started using Serato I swore to myself I’d always play vinyl, and here I am not having played it for FAR to long =( Sadly, it is not quite like riding a bike, and getting back into it is proving to be a little more frustrating. With Serato, visual cues allow unfamiliar tunes to be mixed quite easily whereas you don’t have those visual cues with vinly. Knowing the tunes becomes far more important so you know exactly where the breakdowns start and stop by listening rather than by looking. Serato also allows for much quicker mixing as you can simply push a button to cue your record to the exact desired location, whereas with vinyl you’ve gotta physically move the record and meticulously place the needle.

All that being said, playing vinyl sure does feel good! The satisfaction of nailing a mix just right after trying it over and over to get the timing just so =) Flipping through a stack of records to figure out what to play next. And most importantly, realizing you haven’t forgotten how. I guarantee that our set probably won’t be as perfect as it would if we weren’t playing all vinyl, but that’s all part of the fun!! So for anyone reading this that will be attending Bass Coast, we will be playing on Saturday from 6-8 if you’d like to experience that all vinyl feeling =)

With Basscoast just a few days away, what better to get you amped then a mix from DJ Thunderface. It’s a 2hr mix made up entirely of tunes from this year’s Basscoast line up. We’ve got some SHAH representation on here too, with a tune from my self and another from Kir Mokum.

The mix is free to download. Enjoy.

DJ Thunderface Presents: This Is Why We’re Hot by thunderface

Quote from DJ Thunderface:
“Here’s a pre-mix of this year’s Basscoast Festival, which goes down next weekend (July 29th -August 1st)… almost 50% of the lineup in 2 hours, so at times it jumps around like a heart attack.

And that’s with missing out on some really great performers so sorry to those who’s tunes I couldn’t squeeze in. Here’s the artists that were subjected to my insomnia:”

1. Psychemagik – A New Beginning feat. Joseph E. Lowery
2. Robot Koch & Mexicans With Guns – Icaros
3. Psychemagik – Re-release the Beast
4. Fort Knox Five – Dodge City Rockers
5. Stickybuds – Come Together Love Haters
6. DJ Wood – Poppa Large
7. JPOD the Beat Chef – Funkin’ It Up
8. Sunday Soul Sermon at Bass Coast the Sequel – DJ K-Tel, Dagan Beach, Dunks, Chili Thom
9. Joshua Heath feat. Louis Hale – Copacetic (Neighbour RMX)
10. Basement Jaxx vs Malente – Oh My Gosh! (Wood ‘n’ Soo Don’t Smile Blend)
11. Jeff Daniels ft. Tara Lett & Tonye Aganaba – Everybody (Woodhead Remix)
12. DJ Cure – Wormhole VIP
13. Dave Nada – Apocalypse Theme
14. Shamik – Bruise You w/ Johnny Hooves & JPS
15. Eradik – Paradox
16. Taal Mala – Da Flex
17. Pirahna Pirahna – Stutter
18. Sabre – 100 Teeth (Kir Mokum rmx)
19. The Librarian – Mt. Angel
20. Monolithium – Simon & G-Funk (Eames refix)
21. Daega Sound – Outpost
22. Max Ulis – Thrill
23. Jacques Greene – Holdin’ On
24. Neighbor & Think Tank – Written Future
25. DJG – Roots
26. MRed – Chase The Devil Riddim Retouch
27. Shamik – Break It Down w/ Erica Dee
28. Robot Koch & John Robinson – The Program
29. Ill-Esha feat. Chadio & Damon Morris – Treasures
30. Honey Larochelle – Be Your Baby
31. Longwalkshortdock – Misbehavin’
32. Crystal Precious – High School Confidential
33. Eprom – Chromium Decay
34. Spoonbill – Collective Mass
35. Fungineers – Tea Master
36. Eprom – The Symbiote
37. Danny Corn – Hyp Hyp
38. Calamalka – Spine
39. Salva – 40 Karats ft. Zackey Force Funk
40. Monolithium – Swag Equity
41. The Weeknd – What You Need (Prison Garde 808 Edit)
42. Red Button (Ronin + Self Evident) – Baby’s Got To Go (Train’s Comin’ Remix)
43. Tujiko Noriko – Stereotype (Self Evident Remix)
44. HxdB & Distal – Typewriter Tune
45. Rockwell – Aria (Danny Corn refix)
46. Tony Joe White – Thing About You Baby (Psychemagik Love-Dub Edit)

This past Thursday I traveled to Victoria with Whitness to play a show at Hush.  Theory Thursdays is a weekly night at Hush and is promoted by April M. The whole trip was an absolutely amazing experience!! It was the first time I’ve ever traveled with Whitness and her company was great =) We arrived in Vic and our ride was there waiting for us at the ferry. We were escorted to April’s where we got ready and chilled for a bit. Before the show, April treated us to dinner and drinks at the Mint and everything was delicious. Next was sound check. Whitness and I wanted to tag, so we decided to daisy chain two Serato boxes so we’d both be able to play off of our own laptops.  April waited very patiently while we fiddled around trying to get our daisy chaining to work. She must have been a little worried cause it took us so long but she didn’t stress once. Just as Outsider (who was opening), walked in we got everything working =) After sound check we went back to the Mint for a while to relax before we went on.

The show was a lot of fun!! We played mostly drum n bass, other than my small segment of electro/garage/housy stuff. The crowd was very receptive! It was the first time I’ve played a show tagging with anyone other that Willisist or Eradik and I was really happy with how everything went =)

After the show, April took us back to her place where we were staying and we had a glass of wine and chatted before going to bed. She was seriously one of the most gracious promoters that I’ve ever played for. Her hospitality was truly uncanny. I’ve played too many shows in the past where I wasn’t paid as much as promised. But April paid us what we were promised, ON TOP of treating us to dinner and all of our drinks at the club. I felt truly appreciated  so thank you soooo much April <3 <3 <3. I really look forward to partying with you at Bass Coast in a week!!!

This post presented along with Friction’s mini mix:

Friction is headlining our World of Drum and Bass show on Sat Aug 13th.

So here I go, first post on the blog, definitely gonna try and make this a regular occurrence.  Sometimes this will be my diary, inner rambles, sometimes a notable story from parties past, today it’s an explanation of the name SHAH and why it’s capitalized

About 5 years ago Jon Holistic said to me “We should start a dj company and throw shows!”. I was about 10 years into dj’ing and had seen plenty new enthusiasts come and go, so naturally I rolled my eyes and said “try me again in a year, if you’re still spinning then maybe.” I thought I was in the clear. Nope. Jon’s a persistent bugger.  Some people reach for the stars, Jon shoots for galaxies.

Anyways, during the planning stages, with my Hip Hop background and Jon’s Annie Mac obsession, we got to discussing what are the common factors in all of the music genres that we love.  A slew of adjectives started getting tossed around; deep, energetic, uplifting, heavy, thick, hard, rolling, complex, exciting….the list goes on.  We ended on a concise 4.  All our favorite tunes were smooth enough to just groove to, hard enough to get you moving, aggressive enough to give you that umph, but overall happy and uplifting.  The next day I put them together as Smooth Hard and Aggressively Happy – S.H.A.H.  I didn’t know that that was an existing word, but it means something like ruler, monarch,  king of kings. Yeah, that’s a win.
And that’s where the name came from.

So, this summer, I’d say I’m taking it pretty easy. My wife Claire and I attended the LOKI Music Festival (http://www.lokifest.com/) in Kaslo, BC.

I plan to go to Basscoast (July 29-August 1 http://www.basscoastproject.com/), and that’s probably it.

However, it’s not for lack of selection.

The number of high quality outdoor festivals is growing and evolving. With our fantastic climate, and loving people, it’s no surprise.

FESTIVAL TIPS

Visiting a festival does take planning, and it’s important to know the rules of the party.  Event websites usually have the details, and it’s crucial to read ‘em.

Don’t get stopped at the gate because you decided to bring your replica AK-47.

It takes more than just reading the rules to have a good time, I find.  Things that are often overlooked include:

• Weather awareness – It’s BC.  It might rain anytime.  And temperatures drop a lot at night in the mountains, so bring layers.
• Water - Ya, this might be on the site, but don’t forget!  You might need to bring your own, and share with others.
• Keep Clean – Wash your damn hands, you savages.
• Toilet Paper – Because outhouses run out.

REVIEWS

LOKI - This year, 2011, was historic. The crews putting this one together have accomplished a lot, in only 2 years. This second year heralded some serious construction. Their single stage was pro. Straight up.

LOKI 2011

Been to Shambhala, in the Village? Well, the LOKI crew just spawned it’s baby brother. All-encompassing, and all-amazing, this stage boasted a 20 foot surrounding fence, covered booth, SICK back-stage, and professional sound. Damn impressive for year 2.

My only real criticism was the lack of 19+. I welcome the younger generation, but there was a bit of aggression coming from that demographic, and I got a bit tired of being asked by these kids if I want to buy drugs. I think my generation can get crazy, but has a respect for others that those youth lacked. IMHO.

Next year, I look forward to more vendors and increased crowd turnout. Maybe double the attendance and the party will fill out nicely. And bring the love. The space is beautiful and sacred, and we owe it to the organizers to respect this gem.

BASSCOAST– So, last year was epic. But I didn’t go. This year will be my first, and I think it’ll be party of the year. See you there!

BassCoast

Please reply with your thoughts and comments about parties you’re going to.  I’d love to know.

dB.