Music

Music is a necessity. Though I focus mostly on alternative/industrial/EBM/electronic styles, my tastes are eclectic and wide-ranging.

Been a busy weekend

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Been going pretty strong all weekend long, so this is my first update for the past few days. I’m sure that there are just multitudes of people anxiously awaiting the next episode in my babble here, though, so I figured I’d try to get something up.

Right.

Anyway.

I’m rapidly discovering just how amazingly long Fridays are going to be for me for the foreseeable future — in essence, I’ve got a gauranteed minimum of 22 hours up every Friday. As my shift at GCI starts at 8am and I am hardly a morning person, my alarm starts going off at 6am. I work my shift at GCI, get off work at 4, get home, get some food, change, and get myself to the club around 7/7:30pm. The club doesn’t close until 3am, so I’m not likely to get to bed until around 4am — 22 hours. Uff-da.

However, it’s not something I’m going to give up…been anxious to get back into DJ’ing, and a little sleeplessness is a relatively small price to pay in my book.

Friday night went pretty decently — Samurai showed up to guest again, so he and I traded off through the night. We brought attendance up a few more — I think it was somewhere between 130 and 150 people all told — hopefully that number will just keep growing as things go on. Looking good so far, though.

So, I’m curious…

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What’s up with all these DJ-friendly themed songs hitting the radio lately? By ‘DJ-friendly’ I don’t mean they’ve all got 32-beat drum-based intros, or anything like that (though they might, I haven’t listened quite that closely) — just that, well, they’re all thematically very similar.

  • Madonna’s “Music” — “Hey Mr. DJ, put a record on…”
  • Black Eyed Peas feat. Macy Gray’s “Request Line” — “Hey DJ…hey DJ…just one desire from a hip-hop fan…”
  • Jennifer Lopez’ “Play” — I just heard this one on the radio today, so I don’t have lyrics running through my head, but it’s along the same theme.

I know songs like this have come out from time to time in the past, it just struck me as I was listening to J-Lo’s song how closely these three came out to each other.

It’s a conspiracy, I tell you! ;)

First night at Studio 99

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I had so much fun tonight! I’m up way, way too late (it’s 4:28 AM as I type this), and work is going to suck tomorrow (I open…10am…really shouldn’t be posting this right now), but it was worth it.

I was a little nervous going in to this — while I used to have a pretty decent fan base around town, it’s been a while since I’ve done anything — somewhere around a year and a half or so since the Eclipse closed down. Plus, in that time, most of my money has been going towards living, bills, and movies, so I haven’t been picking up a lot of new music lately. So, I wasn’t entirely sure how the night was going to go.

I really shouldn’t have worried.

I got there and got set up, and Samurai showed up not long afterwards to set up his turntables. We ended up switching off over the night — I took the first couple hours from 8-10, he took about an hour from 10-11, then I went from 11-12, he went on again from 12-1:30, and I took over again from 1:30-3.

While we don’t have a definite headcount for the night, we’re guestimating somewhere between 75-100 people…maybe a bit more. While that doesn’t sound like a whole lot, I’m actually quite impressed — considering our radio ads didn’t hit the air until Thursday, and most people just found out through word-of-mouth, it was a pretty good crowd. Besides, I’ve seen clubs who were happy to break into the double-digits on opening night, so this was really nice.

Everybody who was there seemed to be enjoying the night…I saw a few faces I hadn’t seen in a while, and apparently there was a lot of good word going around both about the place and about the DJ’ing — woohoo! We ran out of flyers, too — I’m hoping to have more printed up to distribute tomorrow (Saturday), but if that can’t happen I’ll definitely be getting them done early in the week.

Okay, that’s all the babble I can squeeze out of my overloaded little brain for tonight…time to see if I can get at least a few hours sleep before work tomorrow.

Good tunes

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While I grew up listening to an incredibly wide range of music thanks to my parents, I’ve never really been much into country. My tastes always ran to the alternative, industrial, and for the past few years I’ve focused mainly on electronica, from deep trance and house to dance remixes of more poppy stuff, as long as it’s fun to dance to and well constructed.

However, over the past few years, I’ve been spending much of my time around women who listened to a fair amount of country…and I suppose that can only last so long before it really starts to sink in. It helps that much of what I grew up with was the music that today’s country grew out of — rock and roll, blues, r&b (back when r&b actually meant rhythm and blues) — all that good old stuff. So, more and more lately, I find myself keeping the car radio more on 104.1 and 107.5, the two country stations in town. Thanks to them, I’ve just stumbled upon an absolutely incredible band — Trick Pony.

Trick Pony’s currently got a single called ‘Pour Me’ that, in my mind, at least, absolutely demands to be cranked up to the threshold of pain every time it comes on the radio. Well, their album just hit the stores this week, I’m listening to it now — and for the first time in my life, I really wish this band was coming to Anchorage soon so I could see their show. Just a great album, pretty much solidly upbeat all the way through so far, and from what I’ve read on the ‘net, these three put on an absolutely incredible live show.

So, if you’re into country at all, or even just into really damn good music, pick this one up. Well worth it.

I’m heading out tonight (hence why Ben-Hur isn’t going in the DVD player right now). The reason my residency at Studio 99 doesn’t officially kick in until next week is because they already had tonight rented out — but it sounds like it should be a fun deal to go to, so I’m going to stop by that for a while.

Polar Productions in association with Dance Nation (Tuesdays on KRUA 88.1FM from 10pm-1am) presents an all-ages dance event: R E V E R B. DJ Panda, Michael Kalman, DJ Jasper, Planet Lush, Scott Lappi and a special guest DJ will be spinning at Studio 99 from 8pm-3am tonight. $10 at the door, $8 with a canned food donation — all cans to benefit the Food Bank of Alaska.

A steady gig!

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Yeah, yeah, so it’s been a few days since I’ve put anything up on here. So sue me. It’s not like anybody actually reads this tripe, anyway…. ;)

The most important event of the past few days — I just got back from a meeting with the owners of the new Studio 99, and I’m now officially their resident DJ for Friday nights! Now it’s just time to get the word out. DJ Wüdi every Friday night (starting next weekend) at Studio 99 — electronica, dance, club, house, techno, a little bit of everything — non-alcoholic, 16 and up before 1am, 18 and up afterwards.

I’m finally spinning again! :D

DJ Wudi @ Studio 99 tonight

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Figured I’d toss this up now, as I probably won’t get a chance later on in the day.

Tonight’s the Spring Break Party co-hosted by 92.9 KFAT, AL Productions, and the new Studio 99, featuring DJ Wudi (me) and DJ Manaiacal, with KFAT’s Kim Keane broadcasting live on the air! Studio 99 is located in the Northway Mall, above Ariel’s Hair Salon. This will run from 8pm-3am — all ages until 1am, then 18+ with ID afterwards!

The Scotsman

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Well a Scotsman clad in kilt left a bar one evening fair,
and one could tell by how he walked that he’d drunk more than his share.
He fumbled round until he could no longer keep his feet,
then he stumbled off into the grass to sleep beside the street.
Ring ding diddle diddle eye dee oh, ring di diddly eye oh,
he stumbled off into the grass to sleep beside the street.

About that time two young and lovely girls just happened by,
and one says to the other with a twinkle in her eye,
“See yon sleeping Scotsman, so strong and handsome built?
I wonder if it’s true what they don’t wear beneath their kilt!”
Ring ding diddle diddle eye dee oh, ring di diddly eye oh,
“I wonder if it’s true what they don’t wear beneath the kilt!”

They crept up on that sleeping Scotsman quiet as could be.
Lifted up his kilt about an inch so they could see.
And there behold, for them to view, beneath his Scottish skirt,
was nothing more than God had graced him with upon his birth.
Ring ding diddle diddle eye dee oh, ring di diddly eye oh,
was nothing more than God had graced him with upon his birth.

They marveled for a moment, then one said, “We must be gone,
let’s leave a present for our friend, before we move along.”
As a gift they left a blue silk ribbon, tied into a bow,
around the bonnie star the Scots’ kilt did lift and show.
Ring ding diddle diddle eye dee oh, ring di diddly eye oh,
around the bonnie star the Scots kilt did lift and show.

Now the Scotsman woke to nature’s call and stumbled towards a tree.
Behind a bush, he lift his kilt and gawks at what he sees!
And in a startled voice he says to what’s before his eyes,
“O, lad I don’t know where you been, but I see you won first prize!”
Ring ding diddle diddle eye dee oh, ring di diddly eye oh,
“O, lad I don’t know where you been, but I see you won first prize!”

— Bryan Bowers “The Scotsman”

DJ alert

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I realize it’s been a couple days since I’ve posted on here — things have been kind of busy getting settled in at the new job. On the plus side, the job looks to be going really well so far…enjoying it a lot.

The main purpose of this posting, however, is a quick alert that I’ve been confirmed to be DJ’ing this Sat. night at the new Studio 99, in the Northway Mall above Ariel’s Hair Salon. This is going to be a spring break party, I’ll be co-dj’ing with DJ Maniacal (from KFAT), and Kim Kanes (sp?) from KFAT will be broadcasting live for much of the night. Radio ads should start hitting KFAT 92.9 FM sometime around 2pm today and be going throughout the rest of the week, so listen for my name on the radio! Hopefully will be a blast…as before, this is an all-ages party until 1am, then 18 and up (with ID) thereafter.

Studio 99 last night

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Well…it was definitely interesting :|. Opening night with very little publicity — about the only people there were a bunch of kids there for a b-day party, and once 12:30 hit, the place emptied out due to curfew. Ah, well…so it goes sometimes. More advertising will be coming out soon, so things should look up pretty soon.

The owners are looking at aiming Friday nights more at the hip-hop/r&b/rap circuit, as Millenium is only open for that on Saturdays at the moment, and aiming Saturdays at the more dance/club/techno/electronica crowd. They’re in the process of interviewing and hiring DJ’s at the moment — I’d like to get a permanent spot doing Saturday nights there, but will just have to wait and see how things for for now. Keeping my fingers crossed…just hoping I can announce the return of DJ Wüdi to the Anchorage scene soon!

DJ’ing tonight!

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Will post more later, just throwing this up to say that I’m DJ’ing tonight at Studio 99, above Ariel’s Hair Salon in the Northway Mall. This is an all-ages dance club — 16 (?) and up before 1am, 18 and up until 3 am. Hopefully this will become a regular gig — check back later for more details, or stop by the club and see what’s going on.