Ouch

As I mentioned on the Retail DJ Facebook Fan page, my sincerest apologies for there having been no new posts this weekend. I have had an out-of-this-world headache since Friday afternoon which, along with the massive heat and humidity combo, released its wrath upon me, making my partying stop Friday night as well as my writing. Fortunately, I was a trooper and completed two interviews and a lot of transcribing to get you all ready for this week (in which I have a few interviews, the usual series of mixes, and a lot of other goodies coming up).

In the meantime, I have a little week in review from the shows I went to prior to my weekend coming to a halt thanks to pain. . .

1. Wednesday – Kraak & Smaak + Lauren Flax

Let me just say that the weekday party idea will always be a solid venture I support, particularly if the party gets started at 7 and allows me to dance and get home before the trains get totally wonky. I missed the opening group, but had the opportunity to see Lauren Flax and later Kraak & Smaak of the Netherlands DJ. Both of their respective sets were amazing, with Flax playing more hyper, upbeat tracks of an electro sort and Kraak & Smaak bringing in a little funk and soul in remixed form to keep the party going. The crowd was relatively small (my guess is that this had to do with a) it being an early Wednesday night show and b) the fact that people don’t do their research, so they didn’t know who Kraak & Smaak were, despite their pretty successful single in the States “Squeeze Me” (the video for which you can see here)). Overall, it was a great party, and thanks to the space, I officially got my dance on pretty hardcore.

2. Thursday – DJ Falcon + JDH

DJ Falcon is truly a legend in the electronic music scene, particularly as he has played a pivotal role in the development and proliferation of French house music. With all this mind, I was of course incredibly excited that he was coming to NYC. It was one of those omgwetmypants moments when I read that he would be here via the Santos site. He lived up to expecations and then some, dropping some old school French house that almost made me cry (nostalgia!) along with some hip hop, pop, and other suprises that made for a solid set. JDH, as per usual, impressed the crowd with his nuevo disco and funk records (and yes, I mean records-homeboy was playing with vinyl!). I also met lots of French people (who had clearly come out to support their fellow countryman) and saw lots of men dancing up a storm (which is so rare these days that seeing it makes me wonder if my eyes are alright). Fun night, great crowd – AKA do not miss him if he ever comes again!

3. Friday – EZRAKH

I had never been to House of Yes in Bushwick before, but had heard good things. One minus: no a/c (and Friday  night was definitely an a/c night). One plus: people actually get down. It lacks the pretentiousness and self-consciousness that some crowds seem plagued by. There was none of that here. People were fine with being a sweaty mess so long as it meant dancing to the music. In this case, the music was supplied by none other than EZRAKH, whose musical range during his set went from MIA’s “Born Free” into dubstep and UK funky, then later into funk carioca, house, and then some. He even managed to drop “I’m Not Your Lemonade” from the Major Lazer meets La Roux mashup mixtape Lazerproof and Dam Funk’s rendition of Cubic Zirconia’s “Fuck Work,” all of which are favorites around these parts and obviously with the crowd as well! Despite his being more “underground” at this stage, he puts so many well-known DJs to shame with his music choice and skills. Whenever you see that EZRAKH’s playing, free up your calendar and go!

So all in all, despite my having the headache of the century, my Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday nights combined made up for my weekend, half of which I spent in bed, half of which I spent interviewing, and none of which I spent partying (unless my commute + iPod and some guy hitting on me as I took out the trash constitute as partying).

- Retail DJ