your tiny mind

yesterday's out & about 2007 kick-off event at Loca Luna was a great success. we were all a little nervous going into sunday, as we were at a totally different location, and one that lacks its own surface lot now that ANOTHER condo building is going up on the site formerly known as Backstreet....

Surprisingly, the gays showed up in gaggles, even arriving as early as 4:30pm, which was unheard of when we hosted at Shout. The weather could not have been more beautiful, and i think that people really liked the space. though i can see how it would probably get too hot in the middle of summer.

the total in donations collected at the door is just shy of $1800! We estimate that somewhere around 200 people were in attendance. big thanks to johnny sinclair for all of his hard work at the door. who knew that people would donate an extra $5 for a hug?

I think everyone enjoyed the music. I did have several compliments. and i can clearly remember two trainwrecks.....the most unflawless of trangressions....all while flirting with Scott Davis. even three years later, he still melts me....

our next event takes us back to Shout in june to benefit ChrisKids Rainbow program.

come with me

here's the official advertisement for next week's Out & About. It will be a guaranteed good time.

we have everything we need

I think i have finally found a way to post new music and mixes to my blog. so here goes my first attempt. let me know if this works..... click link below to download.

JT's spring mix 2007

me and my imagination

It's that time again. you know, spring in Atlanta, one of my favorite times of the year. and it's time to kick off this years Out & About events. I expressed an interest to become more involved this year, aside from simply spinning at the events, which i love so much. our meeting last week was very productive; it's amazing what kind of ideas can come about in a one hour brainstorming session over salads. it seems like we have finalized the details for our first event, to take place in less than two weeks at Loca Luna. sure i have some work to do, but trust me, it will be a fantastic event. stay tuned for details.

If you are a fan of Chicane, then you will be happy to know that new material from this group is due out this year. It's funny, I was at a party recently and we were talking about music, and I was really surprised to find out how many people have never heard of Chicane. I can remember first listening to Chicane back in 2001, after a long night at Backstreet. It was perfect morning music....

The mastermind behind the group 'Chicane' is Nick Bracegirdle. Back in 1996, after finding himself really bored with bad dance records that seemed to be churned out one after the other, Chicane was formed and the first single "Offshore" was released that very same year. Numerous very popular singles soon followed, including 1998's "Strong in Love" which is one of my favorites. Then, in 1999, Nick teamed up with long time friend Bryan Adams to produce "Don't give up" which eventually surpassed Madonna on its way to #1.

The last we heard from Chicane was last year when the track "Stoned in Love" was released, featuring the vocals of Tom Jones. This was a big track for me last year, though I am not sure that it caught on in the USA.

Back in February of this year, Chicane announced their split from Universal Records. Instead, they are going back to their very own in independent record label, Modena Records, on which the track Offshore was originally released. Their forthcoming album, titled "Somersault" is set to be released on the aforementioned record label in mid June. Chicane just finished shooting the video for the first single from Somersault called "Come Tomorrow" which is scheduled to be released in May.

give a lil love

For years, when you thought of global dance music, you often thought of New York, London, and Chicago - the birthplace of House Music. But it wasn't until the late 1990's that a new wavy of funky and cool tracks began emerging from Paris. This new sound, which was appropriately called "Le French Touch" by the UK music press, was inspired by soul and disco as well as early New York and Chicago house music. First came Dimitri from Paris, better known for his compilations "A night at the Playboy Mansion". Then Daft Punk came on the scene, and has been on the forefront of electronic dance music even today.

But in 1998, the smash hit "Gym Tonic" emerged, featuring vocals sampled from a Jane Fonda workout tape and credited to Bob Sinclar. Of course at that time, no one knew who Bob Sinclar was, though it was rumored that he was a spy, sunglass model, and even a hardcore pornstar. Turns out, his name was just an assumed identity of one Chris Lefriant. In fact, Chris wasn't new to the club music scene. Raised in La Marais, a bohemian and gay neighborhood of central Paris, Chris initially wanted to be a tennis pro. But when he heard DJs spinning hip hop, funk, and soul music, his interest quickly shifted to electronic music. For years, his focus was mainly jazz and R&B, but it wasn't until the late 90's after hearing the likes of Arman van Helden and Kenny "Dope" that Chris found the 4x4 beat of true house music. And that his when he realized what power a track can have on a dancefloor.

The last few years have been huge for Bob Sinclar. And again, his style has now changed into a catch, pop, feel good sound, with soaring melodies and uplifting lyrics. His release of the album "Western Dream" in the Spring of 2006 featured the very popular track "Love Generation" with the vocals coming from Gary Pines of the reggae group the Wailers. In fact, Love Generation sold over 120,000 copies with its first two weeks of release, and is featured as the them song from french TV's Pop Idol (the french version of American Idol). Other tracks from western Dream that have been big include Tennessee, World, Hold on, and Rock this party.

This week, another track from Western Dream is released, called "Give a Lil Love". Featuring the vocals once again of Gary "Nesta" Pine of the Wailers, this track for the changing season. The Harlem hustlers vs. bob sinclar whistle remix is nice, yet it sounds too much like previous productions, ei: world, hold on. Go straight to the "Electro Blues remix" and you will be happy. It has the perfect sound of spring and summer: uplifting vocals, heavy piano riffs, and synthesized strings. And if you listen closely, the sound of children singing in the background? It works.

Look for Bob Sinclar's next relsease, "Soundz of Freedom", due out in May of 2007. It features 14 exclusive remixes and 6 edits of his previous work.

For years, Paul Van Dyk has been named in the top 5 DJs in the world. But in October 2006, for the second year in a row, DJ Magazine named him the top dj in the world. DJ Magazine is known as a prestigious reference point for DJs around the world, and this vote drew over 250,000 votes from over 235 countries. Not only is this DJ a grammy nominated remixer and composer, but he is also a political activist, when he became involved with the "Rock the Vote" campaign in 1994 to encourage America's youth to exercise their right to vote. This marked the first time that an electronic artist was involved with the campaign as he joined other artists such as Mary J Blige, Bono, and Lenny Kravitz.

Growing up in communist Berlin, it wasn't until after the wall came down in 1989 that a growing culture of electronic and techno music emerged. But Paul found himself looking for another sound. The debut of his unique style of dance music wasn't until 1991 at the Berlin club "Tresor". From there, Paul focused on composition of new music, and his first production called "Perfect Day" was released in 1992. In the late 90's, Paul released his first album called "45 RPM" was released, and soon he was gaining popularity with the American house scene. In fact, he even held a residency at the infamous New York dance club Twilo. In 1999, Paul created his own record label called Vandit Records, and since then has released numerous remixes and compilation CDs on this very label.

Now that Eleven50 has closed its doors for renovations (yet again), my enthusiasm for the house music in Atlanta began to fade. Until I found that Liquified has totally revamped their website and has an exciting spring line up. And this time, he won't be here on a Tuesday night, as in previous appearances in Atlanta. And not only that, but he will be playing at the Tabernacle.

Having been described as a "trance" DJ, I have personally read posts and listened to some of his live sets, and can say he really runs the line of progressive house. And from what I have heard, he consistently puts on a fantastic show.

bang the box

This summer, Lovebox Weekender 2007 returns for a two day musical celebration in London's Victoria Park. Now heading into its fifth year, this annual festival organized by none other than Groove Armada, features cutting edge musical acts. It is a far cry from corporate saturated music events. Instead, this event is put on and run by people who live and breathe music. Although the headlining acts have yet to be announced, as you can see above, there is quite an eclectic collection of bands, electronic musical acts, and talented DJs. Even more interesting is that the B-52's will be appearing on Sunday, playing their first UK show in over ten years.

more info is available at www.loveboxweekender.com