Good question! I was attempting to complete a an overwhelming summer courseload that was too ambitious. Had to drop something at a late date. Then I was trying to get an internship and scored a co-op doing Web development, and possibly more. My brother’s wedding was coming up, and I was making the jewelry for the bridal party. I also was trying to get my own jewelry out there and finally did sell a few pieces at the end of the summer, but never had enough time and jewelry prepared to get a table at the Farmer’s Market this year. I was so busy this summer that I had to forgo Habitat for Humanity entirely. This is why I have not posted in months. I did get a mix posted on SoundCloud and should have my August one FINALLY posted soonish….
I am very happy this week. I’m heading to Chicago tomorrow night for what should be one of the best club-DJ shows in Chicago this year: Paul Van Dyk, one of the guys who really got the trance scene going in the U.S., is on his world tour celebrating 10 years of Vandit records. He brings with him successful crossover DJ and artist Paul Oakenfold, who has recently released some DJ sample CDs and a Perfecto Las Vegas compilation (which sounds great). Check out the flyer for the show.
I’ve been listening to Paul’s past and current tunes, compilations, and remixes on DJTunes.com to job my memory and hear some of the new stuff so that I’m fully ready to bounce at the concert. I had forgotten about some of these old PvD tunes that I loved! Emma and her friends will be joining me at the show (yay!), and I may even (if I can find them) meet up with the Chicago TranceFormation Meetup group led by Sound Bar and ETN.fm DJ Zita Zie! I look forward to meeting a fellow trance music lover who is also a successful female DJ. I have prior plans and will be cabbing over with friends, so I don’t know yet if I’ll be able to meet the group at 10:00 PM at a bar down the street–but it would be nice to meet some fellow trancers (trancies? trance fanatics?).
I’m really looking forward to this show, after a pretty long hiatus from going out dancing or taking a trip up to Chicago. It should be kick ass. Photos, video, and comments will be posted after I get back.
I’ve embedded someone’s iPhone live broadcast from the Roseland Ballroom live, below. Kinda cool–if need be, refresh occasionally to see if they start broadcasting again (it’s intermittent), and play the live music stream at astateoftrance.com right along with it (though there’s a delay of like 15 or 20 seconds). You can also check new videos (and tracklists!) at the source.
Armin van Buuren recently announced his Bedroom DJ Contest. The DJ with the chosen 60-minute trance mix will have it broadcast live on A State of Trance 450, which airs worldwide on various stations (such as XM/Sirius) in just under a month. Entries are due March 21.
DJ Jill Shanna would LOVE to enter, but since I do my mixes entirely on my computer, dragging around waveforms and what not, rather than live on physical turntables or turntable-emulating software, it’s unclear whether they will accept a mix by me. I e-mailed Armada Music the other night to inquire and am eagerly awaiting a response (preferably in my favor). I think it requires equal skill, though of a different kind, to do what I do. A bad mix is a bad mix; it’s just easier to screw up the timing when doing it on the fly.
In any event, having my mix played for millions of listeners, and on ASOT with Armin, would be incredibly awesome! I hope that I can give it a shot.
UPDATE: March 30, 2010: So, when all was said and done, they changed their official rules, because I took a look and saw nothing saying anything about “showcasing your skill as a DJ and performer” (which was the phrase that suggested to me that I could not mix it studio-style in the first place). So I was going to enter and revised a mix I had already done for year-end 2009 by shortening it, smoothing out some transitions even more, and adding a couple newer songs…and whaddya know, the contest closed like half an hour before I was ready to submit it. I went down to eat, relaxed a bit…drat. I wish they had posted a time zone for that midnight deadline. In any event, my own fault–I just had too many other things to do and let it go until the last minute. Regardless, I’ll be listening when ASOT 450 airs on Thursday, for sure.
So, I’m excited at the prospect of seeing Above & Beyond at Vision Night Club in Chicago on November 21. If I can get a decent hotel downtown for not too terribly much and have time to drive up there, and I’m going. I’m all set with glowsticks I picked up on Halloween at Wal-mart for $1.00 apiece. Emma and her friend Serge are already going to be there. I’m considering a VIP ticket, which is only $10 more.