Amsterdam Dance Event Archives - Page 10 of 11

ADE 2012: Day 2 (Quick Summary)

Panel – ‘Meet the Australians’ – Amsterdam Dance Event brings together industry professionals from around the world and this panel was a great off the cuff? discussion about the EDM scene down under.? A thriving economy and nightlife scene has led to the growth of both festivals and club nights whereas the two often cannibalize each other.?? Just like in the US, different cities have different scenes – psytrance, techno and dub step are all strong in different markets along with the big room commercial sound.? The importance of Australian artists breaking in their home market as well as the international market was discussed by the artists on the panels – producer / djs / reality tv show stars Stafford Brothers and underground producers turned pop star Yolanda Be Cool shared their stories.

Hot discussion topic – Throughout the day, I overheard many talking about who the top DJs on the DJ Mag list would be.? There are quite a few different theories: the winner is from a different country, the top 5 stays the same,? there will be some big surprises in the top 10.? All eyes (and ears) will be on the Convention Factory tomorrow.

Speaking of the DJ Mag list, I interviewed one of last year’s top new entries Hardwell and UK production/remix duo Bimbo Jones.? Watch for both to pop up here really soon.

While in the press room, I experienced one of those surreal moments when I just couldn’t believe what happened.? I bumped into three of my all time favorite DJs – the legends of the Def Mix posse – David Morales, Frankie Knuckles and Hector Romero.? I watched them do interview after interview and it amazes me how they are all so professional – fresh faced, enthusiastic and in good spirits while coming up with fresh answers and witty stories for each one.? It made me wonder which of the current batch of superstar DJ/producers will have achieve such long and vital careers.

The evening events for me were all about celebrating with friends.? One of my first panels I was ever on was at Winter Music Conference in 2001 where sitting next to me was Lainie Copicotto, then of ClubPlanet.? I was instantly drawn to her extensive knowledge, vibrant wit, boundless energy and creativity.? She harnessed those traits and launched Aurelia Entertainment in 2002 which has blossomed into a management/promotional force to be reckoned with.? The dinner at BIHP celebrating the first 10 years of success brought together people from all over the industry.? We shared stories and enjoyed the celebratory night.?? A bit of jet lag (and a touch of overindulgence) shortened my stay at the Mint Pig management party afterwards and forced me to call it an early night.

ADE 2012: Day 1 (Quick Summary)

Rather than doing a full wrap up of each day – here are a few quick highlights.

Panel – ‘Does Music Criticism Matter” – Esteemed music critics from Resident Advisor, Mixmag, Pitchfork and URB discussed the world of music journalism in the 21st century. Bemoaning the “economy of the click,” the importance of search engine optimized headlines and short 500 word pieces replacing long form magazine journalism and how the online audience dictates what is covered (due to the exact statistics,) the panelists also focused on positive such as the relevance of printed magazines is still in evidence. In the magazine world, the reader is more likely to experience music they don’t already know about because they have actively purchased the magazine as opposed to online where people tend to read about music they already have heard. On similarities between DJing and writing, Joshua Glazer (URB) shared the sentiment of “I like it, I want to share it” on his motivation for both. While most agreed that they choose not to write negative reviews preferring to write about what they like, Nick DeCosemo (MixMag) shared the obvious point that “negative reviews are more fun to read.” Probably the best quote came from Joshua about the difficulty of reviewing events and having to remember that “the worst party I ever went to is the best night of someone else’s life.”

Continue reading ADE 2012: Day 1 (Quick Summary)

Getting Ready for Amsterdam Dance Event

I am sitting here at the airport getting ready to fly overseas for the Amsterdam Dance Event. In addition to amazing panels (‘Does Music Criticism Manner’), I’ve booked lots of interviews for the site. Here’s just a taste of what you will be seeing here on the site – W&W, Firebeatz, Max Graham, Swanky Tunes, Aly & Fila, Junkie XL, Tom Fall, Bimbo Jones, Tenisha, DJs from Mars, Sied van Riel, Flexican, Ashley Wallbridge, Daddy’s Groove, John O Callahan, Susie Ledge, and more. Follow me on twitter @NotableDance for musings and the site here for daily updates.