by jayman | May 12, 2017
Whoa. I’ve neglected my duties here at Fist HQ. Lots going on at the moment on the adulting front. Where to start… let see this past weekend was EXILE – Mike McConnell filled in for Will. It was a bit dead until Musicfest let out then we got hit late like 1am with a rush of folks. So it turns out that folks have a way through the back. Skipping the $5 cover. Kind of shitty if you ask me however it’s to be expected. Especially with Memphis folks. They will pay 50 or more to go to a festival but bitch about $5 when its not something they consider worthy. Although this was a fringe group, it’s something I’ll have to keep an eye on now which makes doing events at Canvas a headache. For the love of the music, right?
Speaking of Mike, he and I will be at BBQFest on the river starting Wednesday next week (#TeamUsualSaucepects), each night putting some work on the decks making sure the hottest party on the river stays the champion it is. R-67 is our booth and its just a few booths down from where we were last year so… you should be able to find us! BBQFest, if you don’t know is a week long reason for the country in all of us to let loose, drink beer and eat PIG (every form of it)
Then, the following Friday, i’ll be back at Canvas for Michelle Kristen’s bday event which should be crazy and then again the following Saturday for the next EXILE. Make sure to stop by for EXILE if you cant make it to the party. Not sure if we will have an out-of-town guest dj or not – Detroit will have just ended and i’m sure Will has plenty of deck time he wants to use for new releases and such. (BooHoo – i’ll be unable to go this year). I’ll be interested to hear all about it though. Mecca, I will return soon, . . .
by jayman | Feb 13, 2017
Last minute events can be lots of fun – lots of work too but worth it when you get to spend the time with fellow djs that you have known for years. Case in point – “Impromptu! dance party with Justin Hand & Guests”. Saturday, Ficus Tree label owner Jeff Gonzalez aka Service was in Memphis (for unfortunate circumstances) and we roped him in to come throw down with us, myself and “Soul in the City” front man Brian Hamilton, aka Dj Irie, at Canvas. Lorin Vincent (DJ Saturna) was also supposed to join us but her son Dash woke up with a 103 fever – family first right? We made the best of it though even though she was missed!
Dj Irie getting it started!
We managed to work it out schedule wise. it was loads of fun and honestly extremely nice not having to watch a door and take money. Although counting it at the end of the night isn’t so bad, the freedom of not having to care made all the difference. It was a great turn out and loads of faces to hear us get down on some house. Even I hung up the techno badge for a little soul and vocals. As it turns out there were other things going on that night but it didn’t deter us from doing the damn thang. If you missed it, well… maybe next time. As a tribute to those that support, I think a quarterly popup freebie might be in order! We’ll have to see, wont we.
Next month… March 4th at EXILE – i’ll be celebrating my bday – plan to party.
by jayman | Feb 10, 2017
Well, as it goes sometimes, the money is the major factor and it seems that the new location wasn’t as BLNDR as BLENDER, if you catch my drift. I think there were a few factors that might have prohibited a quick spark of interest such as the need to refrain from mass promotion as well as trying to keep low key for various reasons. I think the main issue though was not enough of a draw to generate enough money to justify the dj. Boooooo. Especially when you play basically for chump change in terms of what they get. I will give props to my buddy David for giving it a fair try and having enough vision to see when something good needs a place to grow. It’s with great regret I have to say BLNDR/BLENDER is over until further notice… if there is such notice.
Chill atmosphere and swank vibes (? did I just say vibes?) is what this town needs, more than it knows. Over saturation of dirty south hip-hop, and edm/top 40 has just about killed my creativity and eaten away at my soul. No shame in those who fair well in this environment and love to play it but a techno brutha needs room to breathe and needs folks who are in to a little more sophistication than your average jukebox/Pandora background music when it comes to such atmospheres and events like BLNDR. I will say though, I haven’t had a Thursday night off in forever and this morning was nice not waking up with a hangover. Who knows… I said I would never do another weekly, then 3 and half years of Blender happened, maybe it’s for real this time.
by jayman | Feb 1, 2017
Big ups to everyone that came out for our JAN edition of EXILE @ Canvas with guest Saint Thomas LeDoux. After a surprising technical glitch, we got things rolling. Shout out to Thomas for putting up with the issues. Great set btw if you missed out, your loss. This Saturday is our next installment of EXILE, our monthly techno excursion hosted and performed by Will Azada, myself and special monthly guests. This month we will take a break from the guests and have extended sets from Will and I for your listening enjoyment. Of course the plans are still the same – cover is $5, start at 10 and party til dawn! (um, no – 3am is it folks). It’s what we like to think of as dawn these days. It’s always nice to spread our wings a bit between guest outings so I promise it will be a great show for sure. In the spirit of the weekend warrior, I’m borrowing a saying from a good friend of mine and making it my own: TECHNO WILL EAT YOU. See you on sat.
Next month however…. um yeah. EXILE falls on my day of birth. Celebration is in order so we’ll have to plan something proper!!! I cant say what or how but rest assured, I am definitely not getting any younger so we’ll make sure to do it right! Stay tuned for that but in the meantime, prepare to do the techno.
by jayman | Jan 25, 2017
Fellow BangTech12 dj and mix meister extraordinaire Christopher Gillyard, aka G-Major, will be this weeks host on the BT12 weekly show on Electropic Radio at 8pm entitled CIRCUIT. He will be showcasing several mixes including one from yours truly that I put together for Eno’s show, 1701. Other mixes will be from Annix TM, Taylor Norris and Mike Shadow. The show will be banging for sure so make sure to pour your self a drink and get comfy because the ride will be sweet! You can tune in HERE at 8pm for the broadcast. Big thanks to G-Major for putting my mix on and we hope to see back in the D soon! Much love to all my BT12 brothas from otha muthas!
