And so my journey to Miami began on a lovely Tuesday afternoon. After what seemed like the longest layover in Jacksonville history, we finally reach Fort Lauderdale. A few friends and I managed to haul down a town car for the trip to South Beach. 45 minutes later we're on 10th and Collins at The Essex hotel. Decent prices, but not so decent hotel. On to other bigger and better things. The only event that seemed to pique our interest that evening was James Holden's Border Community party at Bed. A couple of $14 dollar cocktails later, we make our way there. The night was being thrown by New York-based promoters Made Event. I had some problems getting in, but the lovely Helen from Bed and Betty Kang took care of us right away. What seemed to be a trend at most of the clubs I visited was the Integral Sound system. Very crisp and clean, with bass that you felt in your chest. Mistress Barbara was manning the decks as we arrived, she's an incredible Russian techno DJ. I think the highlight of the night was her dropping Trentemoller's 'Moan' with vocals by Ane Trolle. You could almost hear the entire club singing word for word. By the time Mr. Holden came on, the club was quite packed. He started off rather slow, but it seemed like everybody was loving his signature clicky sound. Second great track of the night dropped by James was Cobble Stone Jazz 'Dump Truck,' an absolute smasher. Not a bad beginning to the week.
First thing on the plate for Wednesday was the Onbeat.com launch party at the Miami Resort and Spa. A friend and I arrived around 2 to the sounds of Donald Glaude. Maybe it was just me, but I felt like the wind would blow me away to Cuba that day. I couldn't enjoy Donald's set and left shortly after arriving to make my Tiesto interview. I'm quite thankful that I left when I did, walking down Collins I ran into Radio 1 front man Pete Tong. He was kind enough to chat for a minute and to take a button picture. DJ Ron and I arrived at Setai Hotel for our Tiesto interview, we were greeted by the gracious Catherine of Funky Dumpling. Waiting for Tiesto to wrap up his last interview I couldn't help but notice the beauty of Setai, very eloquent and beautifully decorated. Cutting to the chase, the interview went better then expected. Tiesto was more then humble, can't wait for the new album 'Elements of Life'.
My party had a tough time deciding between Steve Lawler's Viva or Danny Howell's 9 hour marathon set Wednesday night. We decided on Danny at Pawn Shop. One of the most infamous parties at last years conference, we knew we were in for a treat. Pawn Shop by far is my new favorite venue in Miami. Everything seemed so out of place in the club, but some how it came together and worked very well. The DJ booth and the bus alone are two reasons to visit Pawn Shop. A who's who of industry people were present, DJ Demi, Desyn Masiello, Charles Feelgood, and Omid 16 B were just a few of the faces that I spotted in the crowd. 6 hours of Danny's mayhem took the wind out of our sails and we were out for the night.
Thursday was definitely the most event-filled day. Rain, rain, go away seemed to be the theme for Thursday, moreso then any other day during the week. Lines are inevitable during conference, but organizers should have some sort of structure to make it run smoothly for everyone. With that being said, I didn't have any luck with Andy Smith, Mstrkrft, and Justice at The Raleigh Hotel. Luckily, right across the street is The Catalina Hotel/Spy Lounge. DJ Zak Davis and Proxxy hosted for the second year Essential Breaks featuring Jen Lasher, Rogue Element, Hostage, General Midi, and many others of the biggest breakbeat artists in Miami. A few hours of breaks later I made my way to the Inter Continental Hotel downtown where the One + One yacht party with James Zabiela and Nic Fanciulli took off. First of all I would like to thank everyone involved with this party. It was the event of the conference for me. Walking on to the yacht, everyone was greeted with a new drink line that was being released in the UK in a few weeks, some how the name escapes me right now. DJ Kos warmed up the crowd quite properly. If I remember correctly, Art of Tone's 'Praise' played in the background while we took off. 3 hours of cruising the Biscayne Bay with James and Nic working their magic, plus the Miami skyline in the background seemed like a scene from the movies. The ending was almost bittersweet, I can honestly say that I did not want to get off the boat. I managed my way back to the Essential Breaks party to see BT hanging out while Real Time Hand Motion played. And so the night was upon us once again. Easily one of the most anticipated parties of the conference, the Berlin-based Get Physical Music showcase, was held at Studio A. The fine folks at Phuture Miami let us right in after we managed to get caught in the downpour that hit as soon as we got out of the cab. Heidi, Claude Von Stroke, Jesse Rose, Booka Shade (live) and M.A.N.D.Y were on the bill for the evening. Without going into too many other details, hearing Booka Shade play 'Mandarine Girls' live had to have been one of my greatest moments during the week.
