Infusion # 272: May 29-June 12 2016

MUSIC • PEOPLE • LIFE

Summer Festival Roundup, Richy Ahmed, Sensation Dubai, The Parlotones, Zero Gravity Beach House, Infusion DJ Factory and more! infusionmag

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GAME SET AND MATCH OF THE

DAY

The European football matches are on!

Head over to Velocity to relax with a drink, grab a bite and cheer on your favourite team playing live on the huge 109 inch HD LED screens.

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Entry fee AED 50, redeemable on one selected beverage.

Special food and beverage packages from AED 275.

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GUEST LIST TALAL BUDEBS Publisher

CHARL CHAKA

Managing Partner charlchaka@infusion.ae

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Editor andy@infusion.ae

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Magazine / Sales Director vip@infusion.ae +971 050 169 8712

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Online Guru chris@infusion.ae

PAULA MANGUEIRA Design design@infusion.ae

Sequels to Human Traffic and Trainspotting have been confirmed and are due out early next year. Please be good, please be good, please be good…

One of our favourite homegrown fashion labels, amongst few have now launched their online store at amongstfew.com – get on their quick, as some of our favourite pieces have sold out already!

We love Trackstack, a new Beatport friendly app that opens up their back catalogue as if you’re scrolling through vinyl.

CONTRIBUTORS:

Vip Patel, Stu Todd, Matt Zaharias, Stephen Day, Chris Rayner, Sarah Abel V

Ramadan Kareem from the Infusion team!

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OUR PARTNERS

It’s going to be a looooooong summer, with the fun stuff not starting until the end of September. Best find your indoor clubbing spot from July onwards! .

Even more rules and regulations are in force for the coming Ibiza season, with Amnesia being told they can’t open beyond 6am which sucks for Marco Carola and his crew as that’s when his party gets good!

BLACK LIST

SAY WHAT? RUMOURS Dimitri from Paris and Joey Negro are lined up to play a new house night after Ramadan.

Audio tonic have almost sealed their new home, with parties expected to start again in October.

The Dek on 8 is being turned into a bar/lounge, meaning club nights like House of Afrika and Superhereos will need to find a new home.

Marshall Jefferson and Tall Paul are rumoured to be heading back to Dubai after the summer break.

OLD JOKES HOME: Little boy asks his grandpa to make a noise like a frog. Grandpa asks why. Little boy replies, “Because mummy said when you croak we’re all going to Disneyland”.

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WEEKEND 2 nd -3 rd -4 th JUNE

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Looking Back

What we did

ONE BIG FRIDAY @ ZERO GRAVITY Zero Gravity have gone from strength to strength this season and their final One Big Friday before summer was an impressive showcase of all they’ve managed to achieve in the last nine months.

We’ve written about their new renovations before but we finally had the chance to see it in full swing and it definitely works best at sunset - on this occasion, Chicane treated us to a chilled melodic set to begin, and then brought the tempo up with tracks like Faithless ‘Not Going Home 2.0’ (Eric Prydz Remix). He was followed by Scott Forshaw, one half of Somn3um, who played a crowd-pleasing set that wasn’t quite to our taste - so we used that time to refuel and grab a drink.

Wankelmut was next to take the stage: we weren’t sure what to expect, but he impressed the crowd with a techno driven set that befits his status as a Berlin based DJ and still managed to close it out with his well known ‘One Day/Reckoning’ remix.

At midnight it was the headliner Markus Schulz’ turn to grace the decks and making the most of the new production setup, he played a large range of music from his new album as well as unreleased remixes of tracks from yesteryear. Chris Metcalfe was left to close off proceedings, and he kept the dance-floor going with a full power set that made it difficult for us to leave. More please!

Matt Zaharias

ARMIN ONLY @ MEYDAN

If you were there on Friday May 20, you saw one of the best parties of the season as 10,000 clubbers braved the sultry start of summer for a commanding performance from trance icon Armin Van Buuren.

If you weren’t there, you’ll have to read our review...

Packed with guest singers, dancers, visuals and stunning light and pyrotechnics, every big stage box was ticked. And then there was his set. While some of us are used to 2 hours from a jetlagged, uninvolved, unimpressed and/or restless DJ, Armin’s unbridled energy took us through a 4+ hour set seamlessly, with tons of love and joy. He even brought in his #ASOT by literally asking us to close our eyes and get into “a state of trance”… brilliant. And if that wasn’t enough, van Buuren brought the proverbial roof down with his hour long, centre stage, vinyl only bundle of classics.

And I apologize if all of this brings the #FOMO for some of you (or maybe I don’t), but this was definitely one of the ‘funnest’ gigs I’ve been for in a while, and it was for the thumping, electrifying music more than it was for the – admittedly very impressive – frills.

Sarah Abel V

AUDIO TONIC THE LAST DANCE @ 360 Fittingly, for audio tonic’s last ever dance at 360 – after 10 incredible years – they gathered their crack team of resident DJs for the occasion, even pulling Julian Jinx out of retirement for another sunset session. The crowds didn’t disappoint either, packing out the open-air venue from 4pm until the very last tune dropped just before 3am.

The mystery guest DJ, inevitably, turned out to be Raxon, who flew back from Barcelona to play the 1-2am set, taking over from a happy/sad Mr Mr who dropped the tune of the night in Junior Jack’s ‘Thrill Me.’ The faithful then descended downstairs for one final late night dance, with hands/faces/bodies pushed against the DJ Booth as they connected with audio tonic’s brand of house music for the last time at their Jumeirah Beach Hotel home. The good news is they’re back at a new venue in October!

PLUS MINUS FEAT. SOUL CLAP @ ON 42

Upon arriving at the newly opened ON 42 space in Media One Hotel, it was clear that the air conditioning problems that plagued Level 41 had been well addressed. It was also clear that Plus Minus had gone to a lot of time and effort to ensure this party was special: around 40 silver disco balls had been installed to the roof of ON 42, casting amazing shards of light in all directions.

Even more impressive than the shiny disco balls, considering the headliner’s grueling schedule, was the energy and show they put on.

The pair easily jumped between vinyl and CDJs, from house to funk to disco. Particular highlights were Thatmanmonkzs’ funk infused house weapon “For Bae” and of course the anthemic “Promised Land” from Joe Smoothe, which brought a huge reaction. Such feel good music was not lost on the crowd and these sort of selections even had Seth Troxler – who’d come down after his show at Eden – whooping and hollering. Now that’s the sign of a good night out!

ARMIN ONLY @ MEYDAN

DECIBEL FEAT. MARC MAYA @ ON 42

FULL MOON PARTY @ CIELO

HOUSE OF AFRIKA FEAT. STEVE PARADISE

PLUS MINUS FEAT. SOUL CLAP @ ON 42

SUBURBAN @ TRIBECA

Looking Forward

Local News ZERO GRAVITY LAUNCH THEIR SUMMER BEACH HOUSE

Never one to rest on their clubbing laurels, Zero Gravity have innovated once again as they’ve launched their Beach House concept. A 150 capacity beach house that contains bars, a DJ booth, stage and sound system, the ‘bachelor-pad’ style venue also has an anti gravity bed (we’re not actually sure what that is, but it sounds very fun), air hockey, beer pong and its own Dubai Marina facing garden.

Infusion Magazine have teamed up with the ultra-cool new venue on Thursday June 2, with House of Afrika take over the intimate venue with Charl Chaka and Fazzari laying down the deep-afrohouse soundtrack.

SENSATION 2016 MOVES TO THE DESERT

A Dubai institution after just 2 years, Sensation 2016 is moving into the desert for their 3rd party this year.

Featuring the highest stage ever built by Sensation, the crew will be taking over Bab Al Shams’ Event Arena for their Desert Dome event on Friday November 11. As usual, expect nothing but the biggest and best production including light shows, aerials, dancers, pyrotechnics and a DJ line up that’s yet to be released. Sensation are also laying on shuttle buses running from Dubai Mall, Marina Mall and Mall of the Emirates to and from the venue.

SA BAND THE PARLOTONES PLAY DUBAI

After a busy few weeks of live music, McGettigans JLT close out their season with a live show from South African indie-rock band The Parlotones. One of the biggest SA bands, they’ve toured across Africa, Europe, Canada, South America and America and played alongside Coldplay and Snow Patrol. Inspired by British rock bands like The Cure and Radiohead, they’ll be playing material from their 6 albums, including 2010’s Live Design at the Baggot on Thursday June 2, with DJ support from Step On. Entry is AED90 including 1 pint of Guinness.

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ZAYN MALIK MAKES UAE DEBUT

Ex One Direction star Zayn Malik has been confirmed to play the Autism Rocks Arena on October 7. The solo artist was the first UK act to top the Billboard and UK Album charts, selling over 157,000 copies in the first week. Tickets go on sale soon via www.117live. com.

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LAST HOUSE OF AFRIKA AT DEK ON 8

It’s been an incredible three years for the House of Afrika team at Dek on 8, but with news that the venue is being turned into a bar after Ramadan, the HoA team are throwing their last party on Friday June 3. And there could be no better DJ to close out proceedings than ex-Dubai star Schooly, a true funk soul brother who’ll be dropping nothing but the finest deep-afro-soul house alongside resident and founder Charl Chaka. Get down early to claim your own spot of dancefloor history!

ORIGINAL SOUND RETURN

One of our favourite new venues is back in use as techno night Original Sound take over the Industrial Avenue space on Thursday June 2. Romanian DJs Gescu and Dan Andrei will battle it out for the main slot, with local stars Maks and Dante going back to back on the warm up. Ladies are free before 11pm and AED100 after, with men AED100 all night at the Westin Dubai club.

Football Focus!

It’s time to swap our late nights clubbing for late nights cheering/screaming at TV screens across the city as the Euro 2016 Championship arrives on June 10 for a whole month. With over 50 matches being beamed across the city, we run down the must-watch matches, tell you how to blag your way through a football conversation if you don’t know your offside from your Arsenal and more…

THE GROUPS GROUP A

GROUP B

GROUP C

France

England

Germany

Switzerland

Russia

Northern Ireland

Albania

Slovakia

Poland

Romania

Wales

Ukraine

GROUP D

GROUP E

GROUP F

Croatia

Belguim

Portugal

Czech Republic

Ireland

Austria

Spain

Italy

Iceland

Turkey

Sweden

Hungary

MUST WATCH MATCHES (all matches kick off at 5pm, 8pm and 11pm) Saturday, June 11

Sunday, June 12

England v Russia

Germany v Ukraine

11 pm

11 pm

Monday, June 13:

Monday, June 13:

Spain v Czech Republic

Belgium v Italy

5 pm

11 pm

Thursday, June 16

Tuesday, June 21

England v Wales

Croatia v Spain

5 pm

11 pm

Tuesday, June 21

Wednesday, June 22

Northern Ireland v Germany

Italy v Republic of Ireland

8 pm

11 pm July 10

Final 11pm

HOW TO WATCH AT HOME Bein have the rights, and du (from AED53) and Etisalat (from AED78) both offering packages. Alternatively, every pub, bar and night spot in the city will be screening the matches live.

FANTASY FOOTBALL Missing the buzz of the Fantasy Football League? Then sign up to the official Euro version – 100 million to spend on 16 players, including Harry Kane a steal at just 8.5 million. eurofantasy.uefa.com/en/fantasy16

BLAGGERS GUIDE TO THE FOOTBALL Likely winners: France. In Paul Pogba, they have one of the world’s best players, and have one of the easier groups to progress from.

Dark horses: Turkey. Ranked 13th in the world, they’ve not lost a competitive game – until a recent defeat to England in a warm up match – for nearly 2 years.

If you’re a betting man: Thomas Muller for top scorer. He’s already notched up 10 World Cup goals (he’s only 26!), and has been knocking them in for fun this season for Bayern Munich.

Who to support when England (inevitably) get knocked out: The British Isles are blessed with represenatives this year, so choose from Ireland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Do say: Did you know there are double the teams in this year’s Championship for the first time, which means that the four best 3rd place finishers will make it through to the next round.

Do say: Rooney’s best position is in the False 9, right behind Vardy and Kane, Hodgson has got to play him there!

Don’t say: Why’s Messi not playing?

Dubai’s local restaurant guide

download our app

zomato.com/app s e a rch | dis cove r | orde r | book

STORY KICK OFF THE EUROS

Noted nightclub Story Rooftop will be turning their spacious venue into the Story Stadium for the 2016 Euros, with everything from fake grass, hospitality boxes, Euros brunch and more!

Housed at the Holiday Inn Express in Knowledge Village, Story will be screening all 51 games live across 2 large projectors and 2 TV screens in the Away End when there are more than 1 matches showing.

They’ve also set up 4 exclusive Hospitality Booths which can hold 14 fans each. A 3 hour package costs AED5,000 including all food and drink. They’ve even themed up the food menu, including the Three Lions Burger and the Italian Pasta Job (nice guys, nice).

The Story Stadium will also be hosting evening brunches every Thursday and Friday – including opener France v Romania, England vs Wales and following game Germany vs Poland – which are just AED250 from 8-11pm.

They’ll also be rewarding regulars – there will be loyalty stamps for every game (the more stamps, the better chance of winning prizes), while there’ll be branded give aways during the month of football (a whole month of football, bliss). They’ve also created a 6 tiered stand to really give Story that stadium feel – you just need to bring your best chants.

055-773-0010 / yourstory@storydubai.com Story Rooftop Lounge, Holiday Inn Express, Knowledge Village, Media City (Behind Zayed University), free entry for all games

A Hot Creation

Blue Marlin Ibiza UAE favourite Richy Ahmed returns to close out a stunning season at the Ghantoot beach club.

We caught up with the Hot Creations star to talk house, techno and why he loves playing at Blue Marlin…

A very warm welcome back, always good to have you back in the UAE – how do you play your gigs here, can you go fully underground, do you have to balance your approach?

No, not for Blue Marlin. At Blue Marlin you can pretty much play what you want. It depends what set you’re playing as well. The last few sets I’ve played for Blue Marlin, they really got the music and I play Techno, House anything, as underground as you want really. The sound is pretty big as it’s a pretty big venue, so you have to work a bigger crowd.

You've been in the dance music business for a while now – what have been the best and worst changes during that?

I started professionally in 2010. It’s grown a lot. It’s massive in size and it’s spread all over the world. That’s one of the best things about it, there’s a wider audience, lots more different areas around the world such as UAE, it’s really kicking off. All over the world in South America, Asia, it’s all really going well. The flipside, is that sometimes you get a lot of music that isn’t high quality, a lot of what you call ‘Entry Level’ Electronic Music, it’s not really my taste. It’s still not really that bad, at the end of the day Dance Music is still growing, I really like that fact that it’s now gone worldwide.

Techno and tech-house have been the driving force for a lot of Djs and labels over the past few years – what do you think will be the next sound to break through, what will be the next cycle?

I really don’t know. I mean for me; I really don’t go in cycles. I play different types of House and Techno. There’s lots of different types of music that come in and out, but one thing that does stay constant and has been for over thirty years is House and Techno. Whether it gets bigger or smaller, it always maintains. It might go through peaks

and troughs and highs and lows but it’ll always stay. One thing that’ll never go out of fashion, I believe is House and Techno.

How excited do you get about the upcoming Ibiza seasons, is the vibe and feeling there still exciting for you? What have you got planned?

Yeah, I always, always get excited about the Ibiza season to an extent. Excited and nervous, because I know how stressful, how full on it can be. Stressful is not the right word for it, full on is better. But at the same time, I always love going back to the Island, especially in June I find the energy in the Island for me, that it’s clean, fresh, exciting. It sometimes changes by the end, at the beginning everyone is really excited to see friends, play clubs you haven’t been to in a while, see what parties are doing what, what themes are going on and what sort of style they’ve got. I really enjoy May, June, July in Ibiza, it’s really cool.

And you'll have played with a lot of Djs over your career – which stand out for you, who would you most like to go back-to-back with?

My favourite back to back that I do is with Eats Everything, we seem to get on a really cool level, it blows up every time. A back to back I’d love to do is with someone like Laurent Garnier, that would be an absolute dream of mine, to do something like that. It would really test yourself and go through your old really good records, someone that’s going to challenge you, someone that plays a little bit different.

Richy Ahmed plays Blue Marlin Ibiza UAE alongside Jasper James, Friday June 3, 11am-late.

ON THE RADAR

JULY 8-9

NOVEMBER 25

ROY AYERS

CHEMICAL BROTHERS

JULY 29

NOVEMBER 27 RIHANNA du Arena

Rogue Traders

EINMUSIK

On 42

du Arena

For a full list of what’s on, please head to infusion.ae

THURSDAY 2 House of Afrika, Zero Gravity Beach House Charl Chaka and Fazarri take over Zero Gravity’s new venue for a night of deep afro house.

9pm-3am, free.

INFUSION PICK! Richy Ahmed, Blue Marlin Ibiza UAE Blue Marlin bow out of an excellent season with Hot Creations star Richie Ahmed joined by hot-shot Scottish DJ Jasper James. 11am-late.

Guns’n’Roses Experience, Music Room

Housebrunch, Story Rooftop

One of the leading Guns’n’Roses tribute acts play live, no doubt including ‘November Rain.’ 7pmlate, AED100.

The House brunch gang are back with Ibiza star Marco Loco joined

by Armo and Matt Mike, with AED60 from every brunch going to charity. Midday-late, AED250.

INFUSION PICK! Parlotones, McGettigans South African indie rock band The Parlotones play live, with DJ support from the Step On crew. 9pm-3am, AED90 including 1 free drink.

FRIDAY 3 INFUSION PICK! Late Late Brunch with Loaded feat. Bridge Incident, Stereo Arcade Live indie/rock from Bridge Incident at this popular brunch.

2-5pm, AED250.

Lost in Pacha feat. DJ Jam, Pacha Snoop Dogg’s tour DJ drops urban jams in the main room.

10pm-3am.

INFUSION PICK! House of Afrika feat. Schooly, Dek on 8 It’s the last every House of Afrika at their Dek on 8 home, with UK DJ (and ex Dubai legend) Schooly in charge of the soulful, afro house vibes.

6pm-3am, free.

INFUSION PICK! Plus Minus season closing party, On 42 The Plus Minus gang are throwing one last party for the season with Haidz and Gabriel Floriani dropping house, techhouse and techno. 9pm-3am, free.

Look and Listen

Music News HOT FRIDGE SALE

Our good friends at The Fridge not only put on the most excellent concert series shining a light on the hugely talented and varied music scene in the UAE, but they also have an amazing urban warehouse that they lease out. And they have a 20% sale this summer for their 191 square metre Warehouse space, which is perfect for concerts, private parties, presentations, screenings and more. warehouse@thefridgedubai.com

BRIGHTER DAYS FOR PIMMS BROOKE

One of the stars of this year’s Dubai Music Week, Pimms Brooke releases her new single ‘Brighter Days’ on May 22 ahead of her new EP out this October. Originally inspired and influenced by the classic sounds of Etta James and Nina Simone, her new single features recent Infusion interviewee Sleepy, and is a radio-primed slice of sunshine RnB, and is out now via iTunes Middle East.

THE RECIPE GET LOCKED AND LOADED

It’s been a busy and very successful year for The Recipe trio, and they’re back in action with new single ‘AK47’. A dark, broody hip hop joint, it tells the tale of disillusioned renegades living on the edge, and was produced by Bangzy (who was also behind their comeback single, ‘Death To Get Here’). And there’s more good news for hip hop fans, as this single is the prelude to their new album which you can expect later in the year.

ILONA MARAS GETS PHYSICAL

With thousands of record labels, and literally millions of producers, getting signed to a record label isn’t quite the big deal it used to be. But huge congratulations go to Dubai DJ and producer Ilona Maras who’s signed her new track to the mighty Get Physical label, who have included it in their 18th edition of their Full Body Workout series. A collaboration between Swiss producer Sanja and with Sutja Gutiérrez on vocals, it’s a pulsing, dark and dreamy slice of tech-house that’s out now

Bump with Nasrawi One of the city’s unsung heroes, Nasrawi is one of the most eclectic and truly underground DJs and producers, and is now part of DJ Koze’s Pampa Records team. Words: Lisa Sant There are a lot of reasons why people love music, but there should only be one reason why people choose to have it as a career. There are too many ‘DJs’ out there these days doing it for the fame they think they can gain, the money they think they will earn or simply because it’s ‘easy’ and anyone with a lap top can do it. Then there

are the guys that started decades ago. They started the hard way, on vinyl, spending all their cash on new records, playing wherever they could because music was their escape from whatever was troubling them at the time.

Abood Nasrawi started the hard way. Of Palestinian heritage, a lot of things in his life haven’t come easily but his respect and dedication for music have been his escape into a place of peace, a place where borders don’t matter, and a place where everything is in harmony. He’s played clubs in Australia, Berlin and Dubai, always keeping it totally underground, and is a well respected resident DJ at Analog Room.

His time at the SAE school in Dubai gave him the opportunity to spend a lot of time in the studio and it’s there that he met several producers to collaborate with. He began working on the album ‘Lunar Express’ a few years ago, using sound bites he had collected through spending time with friends and his travels.

After the album was completed, he opened for DJ Koze at Groove On The Grass in Dubai in 2013, and that was when the ball got rolling! With the help of a good friend, the track ‘Bump with Me’ was heard by Koze and over two years later it was finally signed to one of the most well respected labels in the industry, Pampa Records.

What was your first reaction when you heard the mix?

I was actually quite lost in the Axel Boman track that was playing before that! He’s always making super lush stuff. I’ve always been a huge fan. I was super stoked, even though it was really old, it was lovely to hear them in there.

Does your mood affect the music you make?

Yeah definitely, everything does really: the weather, your hormones, politics, what’s going on back home, love, sex, I used to make a ton of boom boom club music but it gets tedious after a while and I feel like I’ve gotta switch it up.

What was going on the time that influenced that track?

I can’t specifically remember at that time, I can’t even remember the records I sampled. All I know is that it was after a trip back from India and I was trying to hold on to remnants of that vibe. It’s not easy finding inspiration while hustling and juggling different jobs just to make ends meet. This city is tough and eats you up in a lot of different ways so I laugh at some ignorant fools who think we’re all balling and chillin’ on yachts and gold plated toilet seats all day.

Pampa Vol.1 is out now

Soundstage TACIT Aaron Kim, AKA Tacit, is a classically trained cellist who also makes stunning, free form electronic music. He talks us through Bach and getting advice from Herbie Han-cock

My first musical influence was…

Like most classical musicians, I started Cello at my parents demand, at age eleven. I was trained to be a ‘classical music machine’ rather than having fun or getting influenced by something. I would rather say that Bach and Haydn made my childhood very painful. Later, I grew tired of playing other people’s music and started to improvise on my cello. That’s how I got into Jazz - the art of improvisation, and later on I’ve got into electronic music - the art of sound.

My musical motto is..

Make your own ‘Kick’. When I create music, I do it from scratch, starting from a simple Sine-wave oscillator. I don’t like the idea of using other people’s sample. Yes, it is efficient to have others samples right at my finger tips, but in the end, the music wouldn’t be 100% my work.

Noodling around with real electricity is a fun process for me and that’s a thing that I wouldn’t achieve on a laptop and when I need strings on my track, I simply record my Cello.

My sound is best described as..

My music is best described as “non-danceable” or “noncommercial.” I do use Polyphonic-rhythm structures and do soundscape-design and all of my tracks rely on Harmonytheory, mostly Modal, Counterpoint and a bit of math.

Some would disagree with the terms ‘IDM’ but for me it totally makes sense. Whenever I’ve got a performance scheduled, I prepare for two to three weeks to create the music for the show. Every stage is unique so must the music be too. I try to avoid playing my music twice and I am very proud of it. It took me a lot of time and effort at the beginning to do so but, it is getting faster now. So, if you don’t show up, you will not hear it again anywhere else!

Best piece of advice you’ve received?

When I was in Berklee, I had a chance to play with Herbie Hancock. During an open rehearsal, one student asked

him to give us some musical advice. We were expecting something like ‘never play T13 on Dorian when it’s the second Mode of a Major diatonic key,’ or, ‘if it’s wrong, play it loud.’ But he completely surprised us with, ‘Don’t be late, respect other people’s time.’ And I have done ever since!

What’s your musical guilty pleasure?

I like to listen to Baroque music on very low volume, specially when I’ve had enough of many hours listening to heavy synth sounds, blasting drums and wall shaking bass. It makes me calm and reminds me of my roots.

The best band in Dubai is…

Anybody who takes music seriously is the best. Anything from traditional music to commercial. Dubai is such a young country when it comes to underground music, whether it is jazz, rock, elec-tronic or any genre, we are the pioneers of Dubai’s underground scene.

When I make it, the one thing I want on my rider is…

Stable electricity! By the nature of a Modular-Synth, if someone drops the AC, my system will change too. And that’s why my set is mostly loose in structure. There is always a moment when I need to improvise on stage. But having stable electricity I worry less and keep focussed on my set.

Best gig you’ve played?

A few months ago I opened for a friend of mine, Bosaina (Cairo based musician) at ‘The Other Side’ in Dubai. Usually, for an opening, the vibe is quite calm and it doesn’t go ‘crazy’ but the place got packed and as soon as I started my live act, the crowd went nuts! I felt the energy from the crowd and it got way over my head. It was so powerful that I will never forget. aarondhkim.com facebook.com/tacitmusik

4

OF THE BEST SUMMER FESTIVALS

Luminosity Beach Festival, June 24-26

Held on the coast near Amsterdam, the Luminosity Beach Festival feels more like a party with 4,000 of your friends than any other event you’ve been to. This is one for the trance music lovers - with 3 days and a newly announced third arena, it’s quickly become the must-do event of the year for the die-hard fans. DJs and producers are a common sight on the dancefloor (even ones who haven’t been booked to play) and the relaxed nature of everyone present means you’re guaranteed to have made new friends from around the world by the end of the weekend. Given that the sun doesn’t set until 10pm there’s no over-reliance on flashy visuals either – the crew ensure that the sound system is on point instead. You can wander down to sit on the sand and give your legs a break without worrying about missing anything either; all the sets are recorded and posted online. There’s also an official after party if three days of madness aren’t enough for you. luminosity-events.nl/

STUCK ON WHERE TO GET YOUR MUSICAL KICKS AND ESCAPE THE SUMMER HEAT THIS YEAR? MATT ZAHARIAS PREVIEWS 4 OF THE BEST DANCE MUSIC FESTIVALS ON OUR DOORSTEP…

Awakenings Festival, June 25-26 Should you find yourself in The Netherlands at the same time as Luminosity but prefer techno over trance, then you might want to head down to Spaarnwoude for the Awakenings Festival. Boasting a 20 year pedigree, top notch production, the whos-who of techno on the line-up and eight different stages, you’d have to spend a year in line at Berghain just to see half the acts on offer. Camping and hotel packages are on offer and the site is located on a massive picturesque patch of grassland next to a lake, although we’d advise you not to be “that guy” by going for a swim in it. Frankly it’s all a little overwhelming but for those up to the challenge, if you manage to see every artist on offer, it’s rumoured that the Techno Viking himself will appear before you to pay his respects and challenge you to a dance off. awakeningsfestival.nl/

Melt Festival, 15-17 July If there’s one thing the Germans know how to do, it’s party hard – and party efficiently. Running until 7am every morning, Melt festival sees a mashup of pop, rock, techno and house, all held in a former strip mining operation beside a lake, two hours south of Berlin.

Despite the huge crowds it attracts, the entire festival is a pleasure to navigate, with friendly staff and laid back revellers. This year sees performances from Disclosure, Jean-Michel Jarre, Jamie XX, Andy C and Tiga among others, and the production value is immense – without giving too much away, we’ll just say that they make full use of the disused equipment scattered over the site. meltfestival.de/en/home-2/

Dimensions Festival, August 25-28 The last few years have really seen Croatia come alive as a party destination and with festivals like Dimensions on offer, you can see why. Held in and around an abandoned Roman fort (as you do), you’ll be treated to a variety of underground acts across multiple genres (and we don’t just mean the different shades of techno) over 5 days. Thankfully the Ibiza lad crowd is absent – instead, you’ve got dedicated music fans from around the globe to make new friends with. During the day you can laze around the beach or jump aboard one of the officially organised boat parties: at night, you’ll be inside the amphitheatre or fort itself. With different stages located in close proximity to each other, the only tough decision you have to make is when you’re going to sleep. dimensionsfestival.com/

DECKS

The next step in creating our own dance music empire (cue maniacal laugh), is to launch the Infusion DJ Factory. Based out of our custom-built studio inside the cool Infusion office (not to boast, but we have a table football table and office graffiti), our team of dedicated experts will be able to teach you everything you need to know about DJing – from the subtle art of vinyl to the latest DJ controllers, from hip hop and scratch mixing to blending techno and house using filters and EQs. We’ve teamed up with several partners to bring you the best experience, including DJ Corner, the leading dance music retailers in the region. We’ve paired up with Traxsource, so every student will get AED200 vouchers to make sure their record collection gets off to the best possible start. And we’ve partnered with Threedots Photography, giving you the options of first-class press photos.

We’ll also help create a live video using our Pioneer DJ Lab, and master a mix for your Soundcloud/Mixcloud profile so you can get your skills out to the world and start you on your path to stardom!

FACTOR

For more info on DJ tutoring packages, please email djfactory@infusion.ae

DJ BOOTH: MAKS

Groove on the Grass star and thorough bred tech DJ Maks is next up in the DJ booth…

One thing you might not know about me is... I have a Master’s degree level education in finance and currently work during the day in a major financial publisher.

DJing is much like... Cooking. It’s all about timing and your selection of ingredients to reach that perfect final result.

Dubai’s clubbing scene is... Full. There’s some sort of party for every type of clubber

on every day of the week in the city. It’s not totally a bad thing, but it can feel congested at times and quite repetitive as a large chunk of nights are now mimicking each other and not offering anything unique anymore.

I’m really proud of... The creative friends I’ve made since moving to Dubai. Especially the ones who have transformed from being fans to now aspiring musicians such as DANTE, Paul Joseph, Ciryl, Alxndr, MAAT, LooneyTek, and HMDN. What track could you drop in every set? I actually make a conscious effort not to repeat records in sets played close to each other. Though lately, I’ve been closing out a lot of sets with Dixon’s “Just A Different Mixdown Version” of “EXhale” by Plastikman.

My biggest DJ achievement to date is... Being lined-up with one of my key influences, Richie Hawtin, for the New Year’s edition of Groove On The Grass.

What is your guiltiest pleasure? Disco. Nothing like a bit of Rick James, Funkadelic, or the Ohio Players in the morning to get your mood straight.

If you could DJ in any decade which would it be...

Late-90s to late-00s for sure! That was the techno and minimal renaissance.

If I could go back-to-back with any other DJ it would be... Jeff Mills aka The Wizard. Just keeping up with him would be a tough task.

I’m not a politician but… People should try to stop worrying so much about things that don’t really matter, and focus their energy more on the things that do. soundcloud.com/thelifeofmaks

THE SPIN MAY 2016

PAGE 217

ISSUE 42

DJ WHO KEEPS POSTING WORKOUT VIDEOS BEATEN TO DEATH WITH A DUMBBELL

In a move that’s sent shockwaves around the dance music and fitness community, a local DJ has been found bludgeoned to death by a dumbbell after posting one gratuitous work out video too many.

Ben Dover, a well known local DJ and celebrity, who has become infamous for posting a series of poesy workout videos was found at the outdoor work out zone near Zero Gravity with a dumbbell poking out of his forehead and a note saying “Benchpress this b@*ch”...

Maybe he should have spent a bit more time working on his mixing and a bit less time working on his glutes. *These stories are not true, this is not a real newspaper. This is a parody/fiction/satire/joke. The Spin is not intended, in any way whatsoever, to be taken as factual.

JUST FOR

NIKE AF1 ULTRA FLYKNIT MID

What do you need for the ultimate travelling shoe? Something that looks good with everything, obvs. And something lightweight, and something that won’t get dirty (boring but important consideration).

We present the Nike Air Force 1 Ultra Flyknit. An updated version of the 1982 classic – and weighing in at 50% less – this ultrabreathable trainer conforms to the contours of your foot making it super comfortable.

There’s an adjustable ankle strap (we love trainer details and accessories), a foam collar, leather heel tab and tongue and a mid-trainer Air-Sole unit that helps with cushioning and impact protection.

We couldn’t decide which colour scheme we liked the most, so we’ll most likely buy both, there are enough hard decisions in this world already.

DJing now is about so much more than just playing music in the right order at the right time to the right people. You need to shout about your gigs yourself until you look like a narcissistic deckhead, you need to handle your own PR and you need to hustle for gigs like a needy corner crackhead.

So, the Monkey has come up with a new pay structure for DJs to respect the extra work they have to put in...

AED750, Tier 1 – you just DJ, there’s no social media promo, no PR, you just do your job to the best of your ability AED1,000 Tier 2 – you DJ (obviously, that’s what you’re for, although it’s easy to forget with some promoters’ attitudes) and you do up to 3 social media posts across FB/Twitter and Instagram AED1,250 Tier 3 – you DJ, you shout about the event on social media and you add the event flyer as your profile pic/banner photo AED1,500 Tier 4 – all of the above, but the promoter gives you a cheeky reach around at the end of the night as gratitude for you doing your job for him

Monkey Out...

The Angry Monkeys’ views are his own, and don’t necessarily reflect the views of Infusion Magazine.