Laid back Friday.

Looks like I’ve been robbed of another rowdy Friday night once again. Gotta love the early Saturday morning shift. Guess it’s going to be another relaxing evening with my one and only; my car. As usual, some tuneage is necessary.

Morgan Page has always impressed me. From his many, many awesome podcasts, to his dance floor anthems, he’s always remained consistent yet innovative. His remix of the already laid back Adam K’s Wake Up, is my new fav and I honestly can’t get enough of it. As soon as the melody hits you’ll be feeling the same. Take it with you wherever you go tonight on your adventures more exciting than mine.

I’m kind of a loser,

Grant.

Adam K – Wake Up ft. Naan (Morgan Page Remix) [Mediafire]

Here’s the original… sort of.

Adam K – Wake Up ft. Naan (Adam K & Soha Remix) [Mediafire]

I wish I could relive last night.

Last night was honestly the most fun I’ve had in a long long time. I woke up smelling of six thousand sweaty bodies, entire body sore, hangover as well as a bangover, ears ringing, money gone, many missed calls, and a handful of amazing memories.

My friends and I ended up at the Vancouver Convention Center around 8:45 or so, just in time to throw back another RedBull and make our way to the very front of the intimidating mob of people. Sultan and Ned Shepard were the first (technically second since we missed Dre Morel’s set) to take to the stage. Halfway through their set, they pulled out a guitar and a synth-tar and continued to play arguably some of the best House music of the night. A few minutes later they were joined by vocalist Nadia Ali. Twas le awesome.

After the trio’s set, the reason that I purchased a ~$100 ticket in the first place took to the stage. Avicii opened his unfortunately short hour and a half set with Swedish House Mafia’s latest track, Save The World. Not a bad start. Throughout his time on stage, he played a handful of new tracks and remixes and was even joined by Nadia for a few moments.Avicii’s set was cut off too soon as the household named Frenchman, David Guetta, took to the stage.

I really don’t mean to bash, but there wasn’t very much DJ’ing going on for the majority of his set. On another whiny and negative note, the Kryomen robots’ suits were lost on the way over. Don’t get me wrong when I complain about all of this; the guy’s a great entertainer. There were bright flashing lights, tons of bass, beeps and boops, and he even stood up on the equipment table and held out a Canucks jersey. The whole set just didn’t seem very innovative to me. It almost seemed like he just hit play on a pre-made megamix and paused every so often for the six thousand person crowd to yell out the lyrics to Memories and Sexy Bitch. Nonetheless, it was still a great show. Definitely one of the best electronic shows I’ve ever been to, and by far the biggest.

Now, hands down, the best part of the night was the afterparty. We all had a feeling that the surprise DJ would be Avicii since he tweeted earlier that week that he’d be doing two Vancouver shows. Little did I know that we’d end up being about an arms length away from the ever smiling and fist pumping Swede. We had the best seats in the house as we got to see the man at work uninterrupted for over two and a half hours.

Don’t you dare hesitate on buying a ticket when he comes around to your city. You’ll be thanking me when you’re covered in sweat, sore all over, slowly crashing, ears ringing, money disappearing, getting separated from your friends, but smiling from ear to ear.

I think sleep is calling me,

Grant.

This isn’t a video from the night, but you get the idea. It’s an amazing set in decent quality.

Sultan & Ned Shepard – Deeper Underground

Tiesto – Century ft. Calvin Harris (Sultan & Ned Shepard Remix)

My liver may or may not hate me.

Tonight’s the night. In about six or so hours, my city playing host to a massive electronic event at the Vancouver Convention Center. Four DJ/Producers will be taking the stage for six thousand people throughout the night and then the afterparty will continue until four in the morning with an unannounced artist. I don’t know if my body can handle ten or so hours of abuse, so I’m considering just staying in my bed until the time is nigh. David Guetta is the headliner of this event, but I couldn’t give a care. I’m most excited for and only really care to see the Swedish wonderboy Avicii.

“Avici is kind of like Dante’s Inferno. It’s the lowest level of hell in Buddhism. A friend of mine told me about it, and it stuck in my head. I was going to make up a name for my MySpace page for the first time, and I just kind of went for it. I tried a couple of other [names] before, but they were all taken (laughing). I kind of ended up with Avicii, and then I got really attached to it.”

Avicii, Tim Bergling, Tim Berg, Tom Hangs, whatever you’d like to call him is amazing; there’s really no denying it. At only age twenty-one, he is touring the world and creating mixes that get people moving within the first few seconds. His insanely catchy, undeniably danceable style is one to be recognized. I categorize it as House music border lining on Prog House, with hints of 8 bit noises and disco melodies, but feel free to take it as you’d like.

That’s what she said,

Grant.

Avicii – Rapture

Avicii – My Feelings For You ft. Sebastian Drums

Avicii – Levels

Avicii – Street Dancer

Avicii – Penguin

Avicii – Fuck The Music

Tim Berg – Bromance (Avicii Remix)

Tiësto – Escape Me ft. CC Sheffield (Avicii Remix)

Robyn – Hang With Me (Avicii Remix)

Daft Punk – Derezzed (Avicii Remix)

Tom Hangs – Blessed ft. Shermanology (Avicii Edit)

Oh, and I’m excited for giant robots.

Yet another reason to travel to Brazil. [Pedro Amaral/Ugly Disco]

A good megamix is usually a pretty hard thing to find. The majority of mixes longer than half an hour usually tend to be failures in my books, as I lose interest and change songs part way through. Many artists have managed to create large mixes that obviously have their peak moments and weak moments, but not many have made ones that never let up the entire way through. I was fortunate enough to get a chance to ask a few questions to a DJ talented enough to pull it off.

Pedro Amaral, better known as Ugly Disco, is an up and coming producer based out of São Paolo; the largest city in not only Brazil, but the entire Southern Hemisphere. His style can’t really be limited to one genre as it’s easy to see after listening to his various remixes and original work. If it were to be labeled, the majority of his reworks are more on the Electro House side, whereas his original work is a more relaxed, Progressive House style.

The one thing that really made me take notice of this artist, was his ability to keep a forty five minute long mix incredible the whole way through. The majority of DJ’s will put together a set of songs, and then focus on the transitions more than anything else. Where Pedro stands above the rest, is that he adds his own personal touch to each and every one of the tracks, as well as providing smooth transitions between tracks. On top of all of this, his English is pretty good too.

SSOM: Firstly, I’ve gotta ask, what’s the story behind the name Ugly Disco?

That’s actually an interesting story! I was working on my first EDM production and when I finished I did not feel my real name, Pedro Amaral, was as a cool sounding name.  In that moment I was inspired by guys like Lucky Date, Lazy Rich, and Dirtyloud. All of those projects have catchy names that I like but no real names! I decided to create something in that mood, but different I would say Ugly Disco sounds like the Rock & Roll of the digital world! Ugly, Dirty, Filthy can be cool and beautiful as well, but I let people take their own thoughts about it!

SSOM: How long have you been producing and mixing?

I’ve been drumming and working with bands since I was twelve years old. I decided to create my own home studio when I was sixteen. Got tired of bands and their problems and decided to go at it alone making my own music when I was eighteen. I’m twenty now, so I’ve been producing music for two years.

SSOM: I had no idea you’ve only been doing this for a couple years! Props for standing up to standards that DJs far older than you have set. What first got you into the scene?

Even when I was working just with musicians and bands, I always loved the night clubs. Three years ago I was working with a professional audio company that rented audio and lighting equipment for many kinds of parties and events. Every night of work I ended up DJing at the party. When I realized I was giving away my phone number as a DJ for various types of events, it all started there.

SSOM: What words would you use to classify your style?

In the World of the Electronic people will call it Electro House, Progressive House, and sometimes Dubstep, but I think it’s far from just that!  As I said, I’ve been a musician for several years and brought to my music along a variety of influences from progressive rock to Rock & Roll incorporating this to my dance music influences and you got my style!

SSOM: Any major influences or House heroes?

Of course I have some favorites! Dirtyloud, Calvertron, LazyRich, LuckyDate, Zedd, Skrillex, Deadmau5 and a lot others. I will always love the classic ones as well like Kraftwerk, Chemical Brothers and Daft Punk.

SSOM: I know that the night scene in São Paulo is huge; do you believe the scene itself and it’s popular electronic artists have influenced your style?

Yes! The scene here is great and incredibly diverse! Certainly many Brazilian artists have influenced me. I could mention two names, Felguk and Dirtyloud, as the principals. Even though both are not from São Paulo, they really are making some noise internationally and bringing the reputation of Brazilian producers to a level that did not exist a few years ago.

SSOM: Have you performed in other cities around Brazil or South America?

In Brazil, yes. A lot of cities here in São Paulo and other states, but I am still looking forward to my first international gig!

SSOM: How do the other states compare to your native city?

In Brazil is very easy to see the diversity of cultures. For example in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais had a warm reaction; people are open for new stuff! There the scene is still under development, so you’re not just on the scene, you’re part of what it might become, while in other states, since the scene is set, people are already conditioned to some specific genres. It’s actually really easy to notice.

SSOM: What is the biggest show you’ve done before?

It’s a funny story actually! My biggest show was not planned. I got a call from a former bandmate telling me that his band would play at a graduation party. The fee was good and I needed the money. And while playing at a graduation party may be the most boring thing, I accepted the proposal. Already disheartened with the night I waited; I took only a few things of my equipment. I took no headphones though. When I arrived, the party had more than 4000 people, certainly the largest crowd I had ever played. The shock was HUGE! Fortunately I had more time to get my full equipment and it was an amazing night!
SSOM: Any plans in the future to take your music elsewhere around the world? I know that we need more producers like you up in Canada. I’m sick of hearing top 50’s remixes by terrible so-called DJ’s. 

Yes! There are many plans. I had some problems and had to leave my former booking agency so I’m looking for a new one.  I intend to do many gigs soon so hopefully I can book some in Canada! I would love to visit that beautiful country.

At the time, bookings made can only be made by direct e-mail to djpedroamaral@hotmail.com

SSOM: Let’s talk about your massive mixes, because let’s face it, they’re phenomenal. How do you go about choosing which songs go into each mix?

First of all, thanks a lot! Everything flows naturally to me when I mix. The choice of song is intuitive and spontaneous. I use a lot of “Hot Cues” since I use specific parts of a song and within them, anything can happen. When I record or play live sets at the studio, the concept is the same, but live on stage, anything can happen since I really try to feel the dance floor and what it needs at that moment.

SSOM: How long does it usually take you to create a set of that caliber? 

When I record a set in the studio, is much like how I would live, I ride my equipment. In my case I use:

• MacBook Pro
  
• Kontrol X-1 controller,
• Behringer Nox Midi Mixer
• And a Traktor Scracht Pro 2. 

The secret of the Mix’s hugeness is because I use all the tracks in WAV format and it really makes the difference in the outcome. After it’s mixed, I do a little mastering on it. Then I try to listen to it in different places; in the car, in my IPod etc. After that, all I need is to decide whether it’s good enough .The whole process takes me about two weeks. 

SSOM: On your SoundCloud there are a few previews of original mixes. Does this mean there’s a chance of an original album in the near future?

Yes! I have an upcoming EP of original tracks coming soon! It’s going to be available on ITunes, so keep your eyes open on my FaceBook Artist page for the latest releases.

SSOM: Speaking of the future, where would you like to see yourself in five years?

Producing lots of albums and EPs, touring all around the world, meeting new people, meeting my idols, sharing my experiences, teaching to those who want to learn. Way too many things I dream to do, but I am working so hard to make it true.

SSOM: Is producing more of a pastime or is it slowly becoming a full time hobby/career?

Surely, in fact I can not imagine doing anything else in my life, if producing music is what life intended for me, I will follow this enjoyable destiny. No matter what, my life always will be directly related to music.

SSOM: Amen to that.

Keep your ears turned to this guy over the next few years as his talent can only increase as he gains more experience and exposure.

Happy Friday the 13th,

Grant.

Ugly Disco – Fuck Dance (Set)

4 Strings & Dave Darrel – Take Me Away

Ugly Disco – City Love (Preview/Work In Progress)

Dave Matthews Band – American Baby (Ugly Disco Remix)

Ugly Disco – Friends And Lovers

Ugly Disco – A Reason To Live

Ugly Disco – I Found Love In A Disco

Enya – Orinoco Flow (Ugly Disco Remix)

Bonus

For the record, 7:30 – 10:00 is so full of win.

I hate computers.

I apologize dearly for the lack of posting over the past couple days as I’ve been having major computer problems. My little notebook which I usually post from is broken and has been too glitchy to use for a long long time. My main laptop had a problem with the power cable and I needed to cut it off and solder a new one in and my desktop was giving me the ever infamous BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death). I’ve always been unlucky with computers and only had hand-me-downs. If I get into school, I’m treating myself to a brand new computer for the first time in my life. Cross your fingers for me.

Now, this ‘technical wizz kid’ loves computers and always has. Deadmau5 is the stage name for the computer genius Joel Zimmerman, hailing from Niagra Falls in Ontario. Basically, he creates computer generated sounds using his own software. He does this so well that it comes out the speakers in the form of highly danceable progressive house music. What I most love about him is that all of his tracks, whether they be slow, fast, or straight up rave-ish, they are all still extremely musical. Just have a listen to Bleed or Brazil with a pair of good headphones and you’ll get goosebumps.

I’m sure you’ve heard of this guy before, or heard his song Ghosts N Stuff ft. Rob Swire since it was a number one hit. His official biography on his website will tell you all about it in great detail and tell you the story of how he’d influenced the course of dance music. Seriously, check it out. It’s actually quite a good read and you’d be surprised with how he’s so much more than just a musician with a mau5′ head.

Dance your heart out,

Grant.

Deadmau5 – Bleed

Deadmau5 – HR 8938 Cephei

Deadmau5 ft. Greta Svabo Bech – Raise Your Weapon

Deadmau5 – Right This Second

Deamau5 – Brazil

Deadmau5 – Some Chords

Bonus

Foo Fighters – Rope (Deadmau5 Remix)

Deadmau5 ft. Rob Swire – Ghosts N Stuff (Sub Focus Remix)

Haley VS. Deadmau5 – Falling In Love With Brazil (Kaskade Mashup)