I have to admit that in all the years I have played Los Angeles, I have never had such a great gig over there like this past weekend at Compression! I truly had such an AMAZING night! I don’t want to sound lame, but after playing there so many times in so many years and always having so-so gigs, I just did not think that it was possible anymore to have an amazing gig over there, and I had lost all hopes, I didn’t think the scene there was made for techno after all, and I learned to accept that. But this weekend I had the proof that I was wrong, and what a nice surprising way of realizing that you’re wrong! Honestly!
Now, what is it…. Why did I never see a crowd like this before in LA? Where were all the people hiding all this time? I swear, I felt like I was DJing in a loft party in 1996, like I used to at the beginning of my career. I was at a distance of less than half a meter to the crowd, in a dark dark dark room, with a GREAT sound, beautiful people, smiling, dancing really well, and whom I could tell were totally understanding what i was playing, but really really understanding it, and enjoying it very much.
It was GREAT! I said it already haven’t I….
Ok, then I’ll say something else that I’ve never said before… It really made me wanna do E! Ahahaha! For real! It was that great of a vibe!!!!
Huh..
Right.
🙂
Oh, and can I also say what a great name for a real techno party Compression is by the way. Simple but effective. I know that the mind of real techno lovers can connect this word right away to pure techno. With such a name you can’t get anymore techno than that. In fact, it reminds me of the good old swedish techno fuuuuuully compressed. My first love that was, after all…
I want to thank the promoters of this event, for they were SO nice but especially for how hard they’ve worked to put up an event like this for which I can only imagine how much time and efforts they’ve had to put into in order to have made their events so successful throughout the years. I know for a fact that it mustn’t have been easy to create such thing in a city where true techno is loved by a very very very small minority of people, and I want to make sure to spread the word.
Compression nights rock!
I’ll be glad to go back there anytime!
So a funny thing happened to me during that night. A guy called Luke whom I met in Melbourne 7 years ago and who now lives in LA, shot a video interview of me after a gig there as it was my first time ever playing in Australia (you can still find that interview on Youtube actually) and I remember him telling me that he knew about a book called ‘Mistress Barbara’. Mistress spelled in the proper way of course, not my way with one more S. And this book is 107 years old. Written and published in 1901. It has a green kardboard cover, with no image, just the title written in gold embodied letters. It looks old. It smells old. It’s crazy!! So he came up to me saying that he had found it and bought it as a present for me and kept it for the last 3 years, waiting to see me again in order to give it to me, but the last time I was in LA a year ago he was back in Melbourne on the same weekend, so he waited more and more and he finally caught up with me at Compression to give it to me. Now, he told me he didn’t read it, so I don’t know what the book is about….. but….. between you and me….. a book that’s 107 years old, with a title like ‘Mistress Barbara’… humm….. I had such a laugh when he gave it to me, I think it’s too funny. I can’t wait to read it….
It was really nice to be back in LA, apart for the really cool gig, I also had a blast all day hanging out with my old friend Charissa (DJ Rap), driving around, bar hopping, drinking in L.A. type of afternoon….
Great, great, great.
Los Angeles has been the second place where I recorded my album, after starting it in Montreal and finishing it in Montreal, and I have to say it brought back some interesting memories. I was walking around the streets, same spots I’ve been at last year when I was working on my album, and I can’t believe I was back there but with so much LESS baggage this time! Felt so good. The feeling of relief of being finally finished with this piece of art (and all that went along with it), and not stressing anymore about all the little things that even if they are very exciting and new and challenging, are always a bit scary when you’re recording a first time full length album. I mean, it is a lot of work, and it does take a long time. And now, I’m done! And I was walking under the warm sun of LA and I was like “WOW! I feel good, I feel light!” I could literally feel the lack of weight on my shoulders and the smile on my face.
Being back there now was like closing the loop for me…. And enjoying myself so much, playing at a great gig and partying with friends without any worry whatsoever was just great. No stress of vocals to cut the next morning, or tracks to record, but just a flight to grab, so who cares how tired I could be.
I felt like a kid who just finished school, not having to worry anymore about the exams….
Because I passed!
Yeah!
bx