Andrej's Management Christmas Party

The first holiday party of the season for me this year was a gig held at the Novotel Hotel near Vaughan Mills. A group of 100 people or so gathered for the annual Andrej's Management Christmas party. A good friend of my sisters, Josie, who works at the company was nice enough to suggest me for the job!

Dinner was buffet style and the food selection was amazing. The Concord room, the larger of the three meeting rooms, was cozy but opened up into a large reception area with it's ceiling sharing that of the lobby one floor up with a huge open staircase connecting the two. Kind of an interesting set-up since with the doors open I was probably entertaining not only the parties guests but the people checking in or having a drink at the bar above!

Great crowd!

There were lots and lots of prizes raffled off as well as spot prizes for the people on the dance floor. Thankfully the people running the show were smart enough to hand out all the raffle prizes b4 dancing started. Nothing is worse for a DJ than to stop the music every 20 minutes or so to do another draw!



Myself with Josie...

November was a slow month this year so it was a great opportunity to try out some new tracks that I picked up since the last party! Loving some of these new top 40 tracks...

Avicci - "Levels"

Flo Rida - "Good Feeling"

Benny Benassi ft Gary Go - "Cinema"

Pumped Up Kicks - "Foster the People"

Anyhow as always... met some great people and had a great time as usual! 

Longrun Fundraiser

Once again I teamed up with Hollywood Heaven this time for an event at Woodbine Racetrack. Every year the "Longrun Thourobread Retirement Society" hosts a fundraiser to help find homes for horses that are no longer fit for the raceway. Check them out at http://longrunretirement.com/

This year's gala spared no expense when it came to the entertainment line-up! Hollywood Heaven supplied some of the best look-a-likes the company has on offer with Shania Twain, Tina Turner, Young Elvis, Michael Jackson (with full band backup and dancers) and Lady Gaga all performing throughout the night.

Here are some pics from the event...

 

Shania starts off the night!

With horses comes country music and what better way to start up a night with Canada's favorite Shania Twain singing some upbeat tunes such as "Up" and "Party for Two!"

 

 

Tina!

I have worked with this Tina Turner impersonator on several occasions.  She's got a powerfull voice...can dance...and oh and definitely has the legs...

 

Gino as "Young Elvis" has entered the building...

I met Gino for the first time.  He is an Elvis perfectionist...you have to be especially if it is your full time job.  If you are looking for an Elvis impersonator that is as authentic as they can be...look no further.

 

 

 

The MJ Experience with full band and dancers!

 

Bishop Soul and his dancers performing "Beat It"

What can be said about the Michael Jackson experience.  This group of performers has it down packed singing favorites such as Rock With You, PYT, Shake Your Body, Billie Jean, Beat it and Thriller.  You can find them regularily performing at Stage West and who just recently performed at the Woodbine Casino.  This act has travelled the country keeping the legacy of Michael alive!

 

Lady Gaga

 

Lady Gaga track list included all the hits...Bad Romance, Born This Way, Paparazzi amongst her other favorites. 

 

This night was all about live performaces and my part was to play the backing tracks to all of them  apart from MJ.  After Gaga, I took over the dance floor to finish the night off DJing.  It was a great night!

 

For more information check out www.hollywoodheaven.ca for some of the best look-a-like entertainment available!

MK - Burning Remixed!

"my body's burning for you wanting and waiting for more...give me...all that you can give me...I'm wanting more...you make me beg for more...caress me...your touch is sending me bring me down to reality...."

For those that frequented the night clubs back in the early 90s would no doubt remember this lyric from one of my favourite classic house tracks...



MK - Burning (1991)

Fitting that the other night while checking out ZipDJ - a DJ pool I use to get all my latest tunes from - that at the top of the main window where it shows all the latest releases was the song "Burning" by MK. 

 

Here is what the Defected label had to say about it:

 

"Burning is the quintessential MK tune. Nearly 20 years old yet sounding as fresh as the day it first surfaced, it still inspires clubbers and producers alike to this day and is one of those tracks that pretty much any producer worth their salt would love to get their hands on"

The deep bass line, the chords and the sweet vocal is never tiresome. The release on ZIP Dj contained the original "Vibe Mix" along with two new mixes one by James Talk & Ridney & the other by Round Table Nights. Now, I am usually not the biggest fan of remixes of the classics...I mean why mess with a good thing? However, I have to give full props to Round Table Nights for their rendition of this classic.

A slight twist on the chord arrangement and a nice deep tech house feel makes for a nice refreshment of the original which will undoubtedly be included in a future soundspin mix.

Check it out a preview of it here on youtube:

 

 

It is also available now on iTunes.  Buy it!

Tweet Tweet...

I have had a twitter account for a while but never bothered using it for some reason.  Well I've decided to see what the hub bub is all about.  You can follow me @sound_spin or click on the follow me link on the right!

See you in twitter land...

Finding Gems thru iTunes

I remember the days of Napster.  It was officially released in 1999 over 11 years ago!  I am not going to get into the legalities of peer to peer music sharing however back then it was the best way to find old tunes that were hard to come by at the local HMV.  I remember searching hours for songs from my earlier years...a lot of it recorded from vinyl to mp3 format...oh the quality....

Fast forward to 2003 and Apple launches it's "Itunes Music Store."  I never really payed much attention to itunes until I got my first iphone 3 years ago.  I started using iTunes at home cause of it's cool interface and apple remote app on my iphone...that just rocks.  

However one area where I find the itunes music store is awesome is finding music...the stuff you have forgotten about...and when you hear it you say..."I remember that....I LOVE THAT SONG!!!"

I have been collecting music for quite some time now however my mp3 collection is no where near the size of the 14 million or so downloadable tracks at itunes!  

Here's how to find those forgotten about gems:

1. Install Itunes if you don't already have it.

2. Visit the itunes store via the program.

3. Search for a song...maybe something you remember from your highschool days.

4. You will most likely find 10-20 references of that track from different albums.  Check the albums the song is found on and it will most likely be on some compilation.

5. Click on the compilation album...and voila....

For example...the search for the track "Friends" by Whodini results in a bunch of results:

Search "Friends" by Whodini

If you click on "Old School Hip Hop Greats" under album this is what you get:

Wooot!  "Roxanne's Revenge" by Roxanne Shante!!  Sweet track!

Doing this will find tracks that are common in genre or were hits that year and so on.  If you find another hidden gem then search for it and continue the process.  You will be suprised what you find and how easy!  There are tonnes of compilation albums online!

 
Give it a try and happy hunting...

That Girl is Posion!

When Bell Biv Devoe released the track "Poison" back in 1990 I was the square root of sixteen, times sixty-four, divided by thirty two plus eight....  It was a massive song reaching #1 Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop chart.

Bell Biv Devoe - "Poison" (1990)

Fast forward to 2011 and one of my favorite DJs Steve Lawler released a mix compilation called Lights Out - Decades.  On disc one you will find a track called "Poison" (Anton Pieete & Bart Skils Remix) by Lauhaus.  If I were (a lot younger) and in a club (ie the Guvernment) I could listen to this over and over and over and over again.  It makes me want to scrunch my face...picture Billy Idol with his lip curled....and bounce my head to the beat.  This btw is the definition, in my oppinion, of a dirty house track.   I absolutely love this remix!  You can check it out here on youtube:

I like it so much that I am going to feature it on Soundspin Vol 2.  It will be surrounded by some heavy techno and tech house tracks.  It will be hard...and it will be dirty....

Since I am on the 90s theme I found a nice remix of Arman Van Helden's "Witch Doktor."  That may find it's way into the mix too!

So stay tuned.

Saverio & Alison's Wedding

Having a wedding in late September can sometimes result in very unpredictable and unwanted weather. The days leading up to the wedding was cold and dreary with most probably thinking summer was gone for good. Not this wedding day though! The clouds cleared, the sun came out and the temperature rose to result in a picture perfect day which is what you want especially when hosting your wedding at a golf course.

Saverio and Alison were wed at the at the Wyndance Golf Club in Uxbridge with roughly 120 guests witnessing the event. Alison is the sister of a friend of mine, Ryan another fellow hockey referee in Markham. Both Ryan and Saverio work for the Toronto Police Service which is why Alison, unbeknownst to Saverio, was escorted to the ceremony in a 1957 Chevy Toronto Police Crusier with the old school siren blaring making the golfers on the 18th probably nervous. It was a nice touch and definetly made for some good picture taking after the ceremony.

Alison's ride - '57 Chevy Toronto Police Cruiser!

The ceremony and cocktail hour was held outdoors before the guests filed into the dining room which was nicely decorated and intimate since the room was designed for smaller groups and we were definetly close to capacity. The wedding party was introduced by myself with Alison providing me with a little background info on each person (another nice touch) and of course appropriate entrance music including "Celebration" by Kool and the Gang, "Let's Get It Started" Black Eyed Peas, "Save A Horse Ride A Cowboy" Big and Rich, "Shook Me All Night Long" AC/DC and "The Way You Make Me Feel" by Michael Jackson.

Room and Set-Up

Myself along side fellow reffing buddy Ryan...brother of the bride

"Save a Horse Ride A Cowboy?" In the past I rarely received requests for country music. I knew nothing of it, so usually shied away from it claiming I didn't have any when asked except perhaps "Achy Breaky Heart." But ever since I agreed to DJ an all country affair last year I had to get up to speed and found myself appreciating this genre of music. "New Country" is a whole lot of fun and being a mobile DJ you need to be versatile so I can now line dance with the best of them...well not so much.....

Probably the most memorable point of the evening for me was the father of the bride's speech when he handed Saverio a cigar that he had saved from when she was born!  I had never seen that before and with him being a very loving family man...brought the room to tears.  (luckily my daughter is only 3...got some time...)

With the speeches over and the bride and groom making rounds after dinner the dancing got going late, roughly 10pm and with the party ending at midnight I only had 2 hours to work the dance floor. With a smaller crowd and varying musical tastes it was a lot of work to keep everyone moving and the dance floor full. In the end though the night was a great success. With a beautiful ceremony, awesome food, lovely guests and a super easy going Bride and Groom you can't go wrong....oh plus no one got arrested ;)

Here is the track-list for the night:

1 - She's Everything - Brad Paisley (First Dance)
2 - Don't Know Why - Norah Jones
3 - The Time (Dirty Bit) - Black Eyed Peas
4 - Party Rock Anthem (Main) - LMFAO
5 - I Got That Feeling (Radio) - Black Eyed Peas
6 - Don't Stop Till You Get Enough - Michael Jackson
7 - Village People - Y.M.C.A
8 - Fire (Album Mix) - Raghav
9 - September - Earth Wind & Fire
10 - Thank God I'm A Country Boy  - John Denver
11 - Boot Scootin Boogie - Brooks and Dunn
12 - Friends in Low Places - Garth Brooks
13 - Fire Burning  - Sean Kingston
14 - Give Me Everything  - Pitbull
15 - Do You Remember - Jay Sean
16 - Firework (Radio) - Katy Perry
17 - Club Can't Handle Me - Flo Rida
18 - Hot N Cold (Single) - Katy Perry
19 - A Little Respect - Erasure
20 - Home For A Rest - Spirit Of The West
21 - All Summer Long (Radio Edit) - Kid Rock
22 - Stuck In The Middle With You - Stealers Wheel
23 - Single Ladies - Beyonce (Garter Toss)
24 - Dancing Queen - Abba
25 - Billie Jean - Michael Jackson
26 - Night Fever - Bee Gees
27 - All Night Long - Lionel Richie
28 - We're Here For A Good Time - Trooper
29 - Spirit In The Sky - Doctor & The Medics
30 - Only Girl - Rihanna
31 - Co-Pilot  - Kristina Maria
32 - We No Speak Americano  - Yolanda Be Cool
33 - Dynamite - Taio Cruz
34 - DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love - Usher ft. Pitbull
35 - Mr. Saxobeat - Alexandra Stan
36 - One Love  - David Guetta
37 - Hello  - Martin Solveig ft. Dragonette
38 - I Know You Want Me (CalleOcho) - Pitbull
39 - Sexy Chick - David Guetta ft1. Akon
40 - Dirty Talks (Single) - Wynter Gordon
41 - Tonight (I'm Loving You) - Enrique Iglesias
42 - If We Ever Meet Again - Timbaland
43 - Party Rock Anthem (Main) - LMFAO
44 - Save A Horse Ride A Cowboy - Big & Rich
45 - Honkey Tonk Stomp - Brooks & Dunn
46 - Toes - Zac Brown Band
47 - American Honey - Lady Antebellum
48 - Someone Like You (Single) - Adele