WMC | ChinaShop

Featured Gallery Music Nothing But Nervous

March 14, 2011 - 2:52 pm

Tuesday was mild, Wednesday was warm, and Thursday was poppin’, but by the time Friday rolled around, the spring break crowd was in full effect and the WMC’ers were ready to go hard into the weekend. We wanted to experience a little local flavor, so our friends over at Nervous Records told us to come by their big “Made In Miami” party, featuring an exclusive cast of homegrown deck masters like Behrouz, Rony Seikaly, Lazaro Casanova, Ralph Falcon, Jon Cowan, Stryke, DMS12, Edgar V, Danny Daze, Patrick M, and of course the one and only Oscar G. When we set foot in the building, it became abundantly clear that this was the place to be. We caught three sets worth of tunes, then had to give our ears and dancing feet a rest. Here’s what it looked like.

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Gallery Music In Search of Oakenfold

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 11, 2011 - 5:30 pm

Two words: Paul Oakenfold. Two more words: Florida Room. Four more words: No Ugly People Allowed. At least that’s what the sign said. I’m sure it didn’t reflect the opinions and feelings of the Delano administration, but it was an ironic reminder of just how exclusive and intimate some of Miami’s parties can be during Winter Music Conference. Tonight we were in for a special treat. One of the biggest names in dance music—a man famous for playing arenas all across the globe—was going to treat this hotel crowd to a small-scale performance with big room sound. No flip-flops and bikini bottoms allowed, and one gentleman was turned away at the door for wearing cut-off jean shorts. Go home and get your big boy pants, homeboy. This ain’t no beach party.

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Gallery Music Stormy Weather Is No Match for Second Sun

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 11, 2011 - 4:44 pm

Here’s what I love about Miami. At approximately 11:30am on Wednesday, I was walking along the rooftop deck of my hotel admiring the amazing view, taking in some sunshine, and cursing the fact that I had to quickly go back inside and get writing done. At 12:30pm, deck chairs were flying into the pool and the rain was coming down sideways against the glass of the café I was working in. It was a rainstorm of biblical proportions, and the beautiful people of South Beach were undoubtedly cursing the fact that they now had to go inside and do something not so fun. One glance at the weather report told me that that any outdoor parties scheduled for today were sure to be a bust, which included the annual mega-bash on Nikki Beach, one of WMC’s most tried and true venues. This was to be our big destination for the day. Electric Beach, a 12pm to 5am marathon of banging house music put forth by names like Donald Glaude, Harry “Choo Choo” Romero, Behrouz and Junior Sanchez. Gone with the wind, we thought—washed away by the elements. But we decided to go anyway, and of course, it was rammed.

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Featured Gallery Music Q&A With The Indelible Talib Kweli

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 11, 2011 - 2:52 pm

Hip-hoppers at Winter Music Conference this year got a special treat when the Red Bull Music Academy announced a special two-day event featuring indelible MC Talib Kweli and producer 9^th Wonder that hoped to provide an intimate look into two of the game’s most talented and influential artists. After an interview and Q&A session on Thursday, the two artists would then regroup at the Delano Hotel’s Florida Room for an “On The Floor” performance. We had the chance to interview Talib before he took the stage for the interview portion of the event, held at the Raleigh Hotel. Then, due to flight delays with 9^th and the session moderator, we jumped on the mic to kick off the discussion while we waited for the rest of the crew to arrive. Below is a portion of our conversation.

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Gallery Music Beatport CEO Matt Adell Provides Conventional Wisdom

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 10, 2011 - 5:25 pm

The music is omnipresent, the winter part is questionable, but the backbone that props up WMC every year is always the conference part of things. This year, the Miami Convention Center plays host to WMC’s numerous panels, product demos, and all the extracurricular fist-bumping and business card exchanging that connects DJs and producers around the world. The latest in wearable LED illumination is on display. Need a DJ booth custom-made to look like a pair of white sunglasses? They’ve got it. Motion-sensing control surfaces and app-based, virtual DJ technology is always a big thing. But if you want to see product in action, your best bet is to sidle up next to the DJ booth at your favorite club and train spot. Just make sure to follow proper etiquette. But onto business.

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Gallery Music Musical Revolutions with Egypt’s DJ Carlos

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 10, 2011 - 3:37 pm

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past three months, you’re aware of the wave of democracy and change that’s been sweeping through the Middle East. Nowhere has that been felt more strongly than in Egypt. While the club scene in Cairo has been slowly bubbling, the party has taken somewhat of a backseat to the country’s sociopolitical events. For Cairo native DJ Carlos, it’s been an astounding period of change.

A longtime DJ at Egypt’s influential Nile FM radio station and one of the region’s most successful performers, Carlos takes great pride in the musical influence he has over his listeners. We caught up with Carlos before his set at the Kung Fu Lounge, just a few steps off the bustling South Beach main drag of Collins Avenue, to find out more about his unique journey behind the decks.
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Gallery Music Pool Party 101

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 10, 2011 - 3:25 pm

People-watching at the Winter Music Conference is one of the highlights of the week, and chlorinated bodies of water seem to bring out interesting behaviors. While taking in the soothing sounds of Daz-I-Kue, Alix Alvarez, Vikter Duplaix and other sun drenched DJs at the Lotus WMC 2011 Showcase, we noticed a few things happening poolside and thought we’d report back. All you people looking to hit up WMC in 2012 take note—here’s the ChinaShop guide on how to conduct yourself at a pool party. You can thank us later.

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Gallery Music WMC 2011, Day 1: Danny Tenaglia and the Way Back Machine

by Rich Thomas and Graham John Bell

March 9, 2011 - 2:02 pm

It’s been three years since I last touched down in Miami for the electronic music smorgasbord that is the Winter Music Conference. For the uninitiated, WMC is a week-long dance party that occupies most if not all the hotels and live music venues on South Beach. It is ground zero for guidos, beat freaks, spring breakers and foreigners who “love zee house music!” There is no shortage of poolside shenanigans and late night club action to be had, and the party don’t stop ‘til 6 in da mornin’. Unless you’re talking about my photographer and I. In that case, the party has to stop at an hour reasonable enough to return to the hotel, upload photos, and recap the night’s shenanigans in a relatively intelligible manner. We will be doing this for the next four nights. Our first stop tonight, on Day One of the festival: the National Hotel for the 4^th annual Future Classics Pool Party.

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Contest Featured Feeling Lucky?

by Shop Keeper

March 17, 2010 - 3:42 pm

Every year during the Winter Music Conference in Miami, the world renowned Sasha and John Digweed board a private yacht and set sail on the most exclusive party of the year. Until this moment, unless you personally were in the good graces of these two electronic greats, you literally missed the boat. Through some incredible act of kindness or black magic charm, to celebrate our 1st anniversary, ChinaShop has acquired 6 spots aboard this fantastical journey, hereunto unknown by common mortals without connections.

YOU sir or madam, could be on the boat, shaking your groove thing next Thursday, March 25th!

3 Incredibly lucky (and resourceful) individuals over the age of 21, will win 2 spots each on the boat. As with all things desirable, there are a few catches. 1) You have to already be in Miami (hey I sold my first born for these spots…I can’t do ALL the work to get you there) 2) The spots are non-transferable (if you don’t really want them…you can’t give em or sell em to another individual) 3)You have to get creative and show us you are really worthy (after all this IS the holy grail of the electronic community)

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Miami Sunday School for Degenerates

by Neil Feineman

April 21, 2009 - 10:09 pm

If there was one thing that was evident this year, it was how closely “tribes” stuck together and how little cross pollination.

There were the pool parties but now that Beatport charges for their event, conference week lost its one great free networking event. Its DNS were top notch and mercifully less commercial than those at the Shelborne, Surfcomber and Nikki’s, where spring break was more the order of the day. Maybe that’s why my favorite pool party of all was the South Seas South Philly pool party. The pool itself had the charm of an urban watering hole, and if the bodies were less perfect than those at the swanky parties, the dancing, the music and the vibe had a gritty rawness the others couldn’t buy.

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