2006 was a pretty awesome year for bringthebeats. But I honestly don’t think it was that great for the rest of the EDM scene in Canada; at least in my opinion.

Our nightlife in Toronto saw the end of an era and the beginning of another definitely not custom-made for our underground tastes. And unfortunately, our club trips to Montreal have just simply come to an end.

Globally we’ve become tight with a crew that is sure to be a force in the industry for years to come and we’ve been introduced to some wicked talents that we need to get into Canadian booths pronto.

It’s been a year of incredible ups and less than deep downs – all of which I’ll sum up in this review of 2006 (which is full of great downloads by the way).

The beginning of the / and end

The first day of 2006 was officially the last day ever for System Soundbar. Danny Howells was the headliner, spinning a less than inspired extended set. It really didn’t matter as nobody was 100% up for the night and saying goodbye to the space that provided so many positive and long lasting memories. A buddy of mine said it best, “I’d give my right arm for another night at System Soundbar.”

And so begins Soho Friday’s at This is London. Billed as the next Twilo… the space that all major DJs will beg for a residency at – there were very high expectations for this new ‘upscale’ venue. And despite a typical Dzzzzp Dish performance, the opening night brought an incredible amount of excitement with it.

Two weeks later Dimitri from Paris styled the joint perfectly and we were super pumped for another potentially strong run for the underground here in Toronto. Not really. TIL quickly reverted back to it’s nicely polished (but wasted) ways. This may be London, but it’s not very cool.

Let the good times roll

We skipped Miami this year and went to Vegas instead. Thank God we went for the UFC and not the clubs as the music in Vegas was incredibly weak – cheese, cheese, cheese. But I do highly recommend everything else in Sin City, especially the fights.

Since we couldn’t make it to the WMC we decided to sort our own little conference here in Toronto. We launched our intimate It’s Not a Deli series with Feedback Bookings’ Ricky Ryan who was fresh off a very successful trip to Miami. Ricky played a flawless set and we’re so psyched to be able to offer it NOW WITH TWO PARTS. Both are filled with exclusive edits that you’ll only hear in this mix. This has to be my most played out set of the year.

Download (left-click and unzip):
Ricky Ryan - It’s Not a Deli - Toronto-pt1 - March 31, 2006
Ricky Ryan - It’s Not a Deli - Toronto-pt2 - March 31, 2006

April and May saw the resurgence of the Guvernment as a great place to party for the bringthebeats crew. There was a phenomenal line-up in the main room for the Decadence event on Easter weekend. Brad Copeland, Lee Burridge, Sander Kleinenberg and Danny Howells put on a Progressive clinic allowing us to let loose on the Guvy floor for this first time in a long time. May 2-4’s Freedom party brought us up top to The Drink where once again Brad set the floor on fire followed by another blaze lit by Demi. He’s really impressed me in the past, but this was the night where Demi moved directly onto my short list of favs. His stellar selections and over the top energy had me once again leaving the Guvy a sweaty mess.

bringthebeach

The highlight of the summer was most definitely the Grand Bender. This year was extra special because we helped officially launch Luke Fair’s Electraluxe record label. Despite an absolutely insane travel schedule Luke managed to establish the label with Manuel Tur and Roman Salzger’s masterpiece ‘You Won’t Change’ as it’s first release. He also managed to get online with one of the industry’s coolest websites. It was a great year for Luke and we were super pumped that he agreed to celebrate these two fantastic accomplishments at our favorite beachside club, Cocos in Grand Bend.

Earlier in the summer we made the year’s only trip to Montreal for F1 weekend. Unlike in years past when we went to the city on this weekend to go clubbing, this time we actually went to the race – go figure. We checked out Circus for a couple hours on the Friday but despite it being a very nice venue, there was absolutely zero energy in the room. What happened to Montreal? It used to be crazy at every club during F1. It’s definitely not like that anymore.

One kick ass bday weekend

Adri, bringthebeats and I celebrated our birthdays on back to back nights the weekend of October 6th and 7th. This year we did it up big time by bringing in John Do from L.A. to spin at the Deli. The event exceeded all expectations with an overflowing turnout and a guest DJ that not only spun an amazing set, but set a positive vibe that wouldn’t quit the entire weekend – literally. I’ve said it a million times before and I’ll say it a million times more, John Do is a stand-up dude with absolutely outstanding tunes. Just listen to how he’s wrapped up ‘06.

Download (left-click and unzip):
John Do - Basic Frequencies on Proton - December 15, 2006

The second half of our back to back bday bender featured Lee and Lee at Footwork. Lee Osborne is a childhood friend of mine from Brantford and it’s always awesome to see the floor go crazy when homeboy drops his Tech House bombs. It was so cool that Lee had the opportunity to open for Leeeee because Burridge is one of the DJs that we’re both totally in to. This was a phenomenal night all around - hear for yourself.

Download (left-click and unzip):
Lee Osborne - Footwork, Toronto
Lee Burridge - Footwork, Toronto - pt1
Lee Burridge - Footwork, Toronto - pt2
Lee Burridge - Footwork, Toronto - pt3

Living up to the hype

We completed our clubbing escapades of 2006 with one of the greatest adventures we’ll ever embark on. For almost three years now Ricky Ryan has inspired us with his music and passion. His Feedback crew is consistently producing and mixing the best music around and we were desperate to see where all this talent comes from.

With Luke spinning back to back nights at Lokitas and Pacha, the decision to fly 14.5hrs to Buenos Aires, another hour to Cordoba and then back to Buenos Aires - all within 36hrs - was made in a heartbeat.

Our days in Argentina were unforgettable. Our amazing hosts, including Ricky, Lucas Abadi and Paul Dolan, treated us to the time of our lives. The city was astonishingly beautiful and the people even more incredible. The clubs? I will say no more…

Luke Fair live at Pacha, Buenos Aires - October 28, 2006

more videos from this incredible nightThese guys bringthebeatsTo wrap up this review I have to give props to my stand out artists of the year.

NYC’s Holosound (Alex Fish and Noah Becker) are the nubreed of 2006 for sure. As with most great music, I found their sets on Mercuryserver and have been blazing them all year. Their live mix from the Egg in London is the peaktime joint of the year. They are extremely ambitious and will be heard across the world in only a matter of time. This promo they put together for the holidays was one of the best gifts I received the entire season.

Download (left-click and unzip):
HOLOSOUND - HAPPY HOLODAYS

After blowing minds with their productions over the past few years, 16 Bit Lolita’s stormed onto the DJ scene in ‘06 with over a dozen hours of mixed music (that’s all I could find). Brad introduced them to me as a live act at the WMC in ‘05 but it wasn’t until 2006 that I noticed them as world class DJs. Almost every time I went hunting for sets this year, I found a new keeper from Aad & Peter. I’d do just about anything to hear their live act here in Toronto. I will surely settle for a DJ set. I can’t think of a better way to end this review but to offer a couple sets that express why 16 Bit Lotita’s are the bringthebeats artists of the year.

Download (left-click and unzip):
16 Bit Lolita’s - Live at Musica (.AUdio on Proton) - May 20 2006
16 Bit Lolita’s - Club Fresh (Fresh FM) August 11, 2006 - pt1
16 Bit Lolita’s - Club Fresh (Fresh FM) August 11, 2006 - pt2

All the best in ‘07 and adios to ’06 – one of the best years ever.

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