"I also entered
a minimal jazz house phase," he adds. "Then when I
started DJing, I loved stuff from Fedde Le Grand, Deadmau5,
Peter Rauhofer."
So how were those early days?
"My first Live PA gig was in December 2004 at Gweilos Makati,
a yuppie bar with absolutely no interest in live electronic
music," he begins. "My friend and colleague 'Silverfilter',
knew the owner of the bar and he graciously let us play back
to back. Fortunately between the two of us, we had enough friends
who attended to support us. Subsequently, the live PA thing
did not work out for me because aside from the lack of public
interest, it was frustration on my part, lugging around equipment
and playing for less pay. It was then I decided to become a
DJ instead. It was more fulfilling (despite the usual less pay)
and it was less hassle setting up. I could also easily introduce
my original material. My first DJ gig was in late 2005 at the
Embassy Cuisine, the restaurant then located underneath the
old Embassy Club at the Fort. Playing mostly soulful house tracks
I had a good mid-sized spill over crowd from the main club."
'The Fort', arguably the Philippines' premier club. Is it worth
the hype?
"Everyone knows the nightlife there is known for one thing
and its Embassy Superclub. Call it hype but admittedly it does
deliver when it comes to clubbing and having a good time. A
lot of other clubs in other areas besides the Fort offer the
same thing but it's because of the personalities running Embassy
is what makes it successful. A string of scandals, celebrity
fights and even murder have rocked the place and all of it even
adds to its stock value. If you want to believe the hype then
go ahead. Chances are it will not disappoint but if you're after
a more substantial clubbing experience, there are plenty of
other clubs that can offer that."
Interviewed by Andrew McLean 2008, Photography
© Brian Cua 2008 |
