Another Cool Weekend.

Went to Detroit for the weekend to spin. It was pretty cool. Small crowd (oops, I should say "intimate") but had a lot of fun nonetheless. I played for four hours. No big deal. Got to play a lot of different styles, though, you don't get to do that very often.

One of the fun parts of my set was when I was playing minimal. I like to break it down in the middle. It's only when you try and play a whole set of it does it get boring. Mostly everything I played was off the Richie Hawtin "DE9: CE" double-pack, the one with all the loops. You can play a whole set off just that one record. It's the first time I had a chance to play it out. People were going crazy.

I also went into an industrial/club part. Front 242, Moev, etc. Old-school club music from the Todd's days. People liked that too.

A few Detroit brothas came out to see me. Lou from Scan 7, BJ from Aux 88, and Buzz Goree. Buzz is skinny now! He was just in Berlin for a few months and lost weight like I did. The Berlin Diet. Get away from American food, man. It's full of steroids and additives and all kinds of shit.

Punisher came through also. Man, she really looks good. Better than ever, in fact. Gave her a big hug. Ooooh, she's so thin and sexy. Wow.

The DTM guys came through too. Always good to see T. Linder and crew.

The Ultradyne cats were there too. Alex does a solo live act called Vidrio. I liked the parts I heard. Alex and Dennis know a lot of good-looking women, a few of whom were at the show. Alex told me all three chicks he was messing with turned up at the same time. This other friend of his was flirting with me the whole set, making requests. I would have been annoyed if she wasn't so cute. She looked just like Hunter Tylo, the soap actress (click HERE).

The next day, went to see "Miami Vice." The Ultradyne guys were supposed to come but they couldn't wake up. It was pretty cool, better than I thought it would be. Shot on DV, not film, and mostly at night. It had a really raw, handheld look to it as opposed to the high gloss of the original series. In this new context, Farrell and Foxx were cool as Crockett and Tubbs (in fact, you could have changed the names of all the characters and had it not be "Miami Vice" at all, it had that much to do with the original).

Storyline was basically an expanded, updated, more violent version of "Smuggler's Blues" from the TV show. If you liked Mann's previous film, "Collateral," or the short-lived CBS TV series "Robbery Homicide Division" (which was basically "Heat: The Series"), you'll like this. If not, the original still lives on DVD.

Left the movies and basically came straight back to Chicago, non-stop. I was really tired and didn't feel like hanging around. Now it's a heat wave here and I'm hiding from it. Getting ready for my L.A. art show next month, doing some new pieces.

PS: There's a rumor that the Detroit set was recorded. I'll let you know if it came out and where it'll be posted online.

Random Musings.

On now: Clan of Xymox, "Muscoviet Mosquito"

This is my third summer here in Chicago and the first where I'm really enjoying the city. The weather's been great. I've been taking the trains aimlessly, just to learn them. Went down to the Taste of Chicago a couple of weeks ago (my first since coming here), had a blast! Saw a Pierce Brosnan movie being shot awhile back on Wacker Drive. Watched "Batman Begins" again and identified Chicago landmarks where they shot (same area near Merchandise Mart).

Went to the Hollywood Diner on North and Ashland for the first time the other day. I'd been wanting to try that place since I moved here. A real Chicago landmark.

As you know if you've been reading this blog for awhile, last summer was complete bunk for me. I couldn't wait to get to Berlin. But this summer is an improvement. Won't say "vast," but an improvement.

That Fourth of July gig I did got me all re-energized. Great time even though the party didn't do well for the promoter. I love that old-school Midwest vibe and miss it. I like to rock shows full blast, it's in my soul.

Speaking of which, I got some records the other day from A. Paul from Portugal. The shit he sent was 100% bangin'. I didn't think anybody made records like these anymore. Bad-ass, three-deck DJ records that you can rock. Hot.

I'm playing Detroit again next week (see above). Four hour set! Seems like I play there more now than when I actually lived there. It'll be the fifth time since I left. "Miami Vice" is opening while we're there, so we'll be seeing it in Detroit (cheaper!).

I like the "X-Files" reference in the party name, "Purity Control." I wonder how many people got that. Probably none. I like the flyer, too. T. Linder did it.

I'm talking to a small venue here in Chicago about an art show. It'll be in the fall, October maybe, after my group show in Los Angeles (I can't wait to get to L.A., I've always loved it out there!). The woman who runs the spot is super-cool. She's Latina, I like that. Gotta be down with my brown people. I showed her my write-up in Mexico Design and I was in there.

Come to think of it, the curator of the L.A. show is Latin, too.

My agents are on the lookout for European dates for me from November. Yes, I wanna return to Berlin. Ich vermissen mein Freunden im Berlin! Mein Herz ist im Deutschland.

I watched the World Cup. I was excited the first few days, but it got boring after a while. It seems like a long time ago now, doesn't it? Now hopefully flights to Europe will be cheaper. That whole Zidane head butt thing is overblown. I hate how Americans get hold of something and run it into the dirt. They played that clip non-stop for over a week. Put it up there with the Howard Dean scream. Of course, Dick Cheney can shoot somebody in the face, and you barely hear about it.

Oh, and got my Massive Attack tickets!!!!! Sept. 13th at the Riviera, baby. Soon as I get back from L.A. I can't wait!

Leave some comments, dammit.

PS: My Myspace page is HERE.

Flicks.

New flicks I've seen lately (well, they're new to me):

"Capote." Highbrow, indie cinema a la "Syriana." Loved it. As good as I thought it would be. Phillip Seymour Hoffman deserved his Oscar. Great screenplay, great storytelling, great supporting cast (Chris Cooper, Catherine Keener). I love period films, they make you wish that you actually lived back then. There's actually another Truman Capote movie coming out before the end of the year, but this one's a tough act to follow.

"Memoirs of a Geisha." More mature cinema. Quiet, really understated filmmaking. Even the director's commentary was in whispers. Top notch thru and thru. Loved the ending, a little tear-jerker. Hard to believe the book was written by a man, it's so feminine. The Asian actresses were beautiful in this film (Ziyi Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li). I wonder why those Chinese actresses were chosen to play Japanese women. I guess maybe Japan doesn't have any actresses who are big enough to headline an American film.

"Munich." I love Steven Spielberg movies 'cause they're totally immersive. No expense is spared for a Spielberg flick. If a story takes place in London, Paris, Morocco, Tel Aviv, New York, etc., then that's where he shoots, period. No stand-in locations. His cinematography is always pretty, too. Always this haze and sheen over the production. If it's the future, then it's THE FUTURE, like "Minority Report." And if it's a period piece, it's period right down to the last detail. I've liked almost every Spielberg flick since "Saving Private Ryan" (Except "A.I." and "The Terminal," and hated the ending to "War of the Worlds").

"Munich" was a great flick, though. Although it chronicles the Israelis' revenge over the 1972 murder of their Olympic team by Islamic terrorists, it also explores the moral costs such revenge extracts, and the fact that you can't get away from such killing scot-free. And although the production was helmed by Jews, it doesn't gloss over the Palestinian side of the conflict. I liked that even-handedness.

The flick was almost three hours long, though, and the ending, while satisfying, was ambivalent. At least it wasn't a happy, cop-out ending that Spielberg is somewhat known for.

"Running Scared," a.k.a. White Man on Fire. One day I was out jogging and wondered to myself how Paul Walker would play in a Tony Scott film. "Running Scared" is my answer. Super-stylish crime thriller, great experimental filmmaking by Wayne Kramer, the same director who did "The Cooler," with William H. Macy. It's like Tarantino meets Scott (in "Man on Fire"/"Domino" mode). Lots of visual style and attitude, my kind of flick. Three-quarters of the way in, the flick takes a very disturbing departure, but comes back to the main narrative fluidly.

The DVD also shows the director's storyboards, and in the commentary he admits to ripping off "Man on Fire." He gets my respect for that. Some people rip shit off and then act like they invented it.

Cough.

(Speaking of "Man on Fire," they REALLY want you to see that movie. Not only is there the first DVD release of it which I have, there's also a special edition with deleted scenes and a different box, and it's also part of the three disc "Denzel Washington Collection.")

"Hostel." I'm not really a horror guy, but this was cool. It's like every American's worst nightmare about traveling to Europe come to life. When I tell people I go back and forth to Europe, this is what they think's going on over there. Nice third act and resolution, and wait'll you see the hanging eyeball scene. Commentary was hilarious, Tarantino's on there.

"The Neighbor Number Thirteen." Another freaky, post-Takeshi Miike Japanese splatter flick. It was pretty cool, worth a rental if you're into this current Asian horror/"extreme" wave, but I hated the ending. Too ambiguous. I was told "you just like those Hollywood endings." No, I like endings that justify me having just given up two hours of my life.

"Bloodrayne." Avoid. Bad casting (American accents in 17th Century Europe?), bad acting that ranges between non-existant (Kristianna Loken from "T3," where she was better 'cause she didnt have to talk) and hammy (Billy Zane and Sir Ben Kingsley paying for his summer house). Awful fight scenes. We've seen stuff like this before in the "Blade" and "Underworld" movies; bad-ass vamp only out to kill other vamps. Full disclosure: I didn't even watch the whole movie. Next.

"Nightwatch." Same as above really, more vamp shit. The Goth kids will be into it, though. Good, modern filmmaking for a Russian import, nice use of CGI and good scene transitions, but everybody and everything in the movie is so sick/sweaty/slimy/grungy/dirty/bloody/nasty. They don't have showers or washing machines or Pepto Bismol in Moscow? Again, stick to the "Blade" or "Underworld" flicks for this sort of thing done much better and with more style (I like the super-sleek, high-fashion vamps like in the "Blade" flicks). "Blade: Trinity," which I thought was kinda bunk when it first came out, is looking better and better.

Speaking of which, I saw the latest straight-to-DVD Wesley Snipes flick ("The Detonator") at the video store, I'm gonna have to rent it. I still believe in Wes and think he's bad-ass even though he's straight-to-vid these days. He made some ill-advised comments about sistas in an interview, now look at him. Gotta stick with my boy through tough times, though. Always bet on black!

Freedom Festival.

Well, back from the Freedom Festival. It was an interesting experience to say the least. Old-school rave literally in the middle of nowhere, the backwoods of Ohio. Real America. It was cool, though, lots of green space, fresh air. I love getting out of the city.

Stayed a place called The Castle. Literally a hotel that was like a castle in the middle of the woods. The people who worked there dressed like medieval serving wenches. The dining room looked like something out of Henry VIII. No TV or phones in the rooms, but plenty of old books to read. Crazy.

The night turned out to be beautiful, the party was open air. The laser show looked like something out of "Close Encounters." You could see it for miles. The gig was a little disappointing in that the promoter needed 3000 people to break even and only 1000 showed up. He couldn't pay me my balance but I played anyway 'cause the kids came to see a show. I'm past being an asshole about it. I'm in a state of acceptance. It's America, 2006, what do you expect. Look at it this way, there were 1000 paid people there, an achievement in itself these days.

The crowd was relatively small but very enthusiastic. Pretty girls were right upfront screaming and shaking their asses. It's very rare I get to actually play real techno in the States anymore in front of a real crowd so it was a good opportunity to get back out there and do it. I got three encores as the DJ after me didn't have headphones and it took almost an hour to find a pair.

(Still trying to get around the whole pro-DJ-with-no-headphones thing.)

After the party this girl came up to us. She hadn't seen me play since this party I played in Ohio called Generator, back in '95, with Dave Clarke and Woody McBride (yes it was a label night). She was beaming and happy. That was nice. Also got to meet Jonah Sharp, a.k.a. Spacetime Continuum. I have heard of him since the old days, but never met him.

The next day was wild. People were walking around looking to kill the promoter, he took such a bath on this party. His poor girlfriend was destroyed and barely functioning. Give the man his props, though, he stayed to face the music. Other guys would have skipped out.

I tracked him down first thing in the morning and, thankfully, was able to get a ride back to Columbus, which was almost a two hour drive from The Castle. That was my main thing, not getting stuck out there in corn country. A lot of other DJs got stuck out there due to lack of transportation. All the promoters friends who were supposed to give rides bailed on him. Poor guy. He and his girlfriend were good people, we felt sorry for them.

Me and Giaxia checked into a hotel near the airport. It was cool. Took a swim, got some sun, had some room service, watched some HBO, caught up on sleep. I even got miles for staying there.

Now I'm back at the crib. These crazy Puerto Ricans outside my window are going insane with the firecrackers at 1:30 am. It sounds like Baghdad out there.