|
Stryke's Tour Diary
Punta Cana/Bavaro Beach, Dominican Republic
August 9 - 11, 2003
Saturday,
August 9, 2003
7:43 PM
Well, it's that time
again...diary time. I have arrived in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic today
with one of my best friends, Chris Schafer, in tow. All I can say right
now, is YYYYYEEEEEESSSSSS!!!!!! It's been a long couple of days, but all
great. I flew to Jacksonville, Florida for a Fusion party last night, and
was driven back to Miami by the promoter Robbie so I could catch my 11:15 AM
flight to Punta Cana (there was no early flight back to Miami for me to be able
to catch my flight). I slept as much as I could in the long 5 1/2 hour car
trip, but my mind was pretty active. I was anxious to get back to the
Dominican Republic. It had been way too long. Chris was already at
the airport, waiting for me. There was a long international line, but
Chris was holding a spot down for us in line. The flight was smooth and
quick. Both Chris and I were pretty tired, but as soon as we arrived, we
were greeted by the sound of some traditional Dominican music at the Punta Cana
Interntational Airport. Ulises picked us up and we went to check out the
venue for the party tonight. It's a beautiful outdoor restaurant named
Jellyfish., which lies right by the ocean. We were amazed at the
beauty of the venue and the beach. We both ran for our cameras and started
shooting pics. Here are a couple...
We had a fairly light lunch, which included some
good ceviche and roasted eggplant....Good stuff! Ulisses took us to our
hotel, or should I say palace! We arrived at Breezes Resort, Casino and
Spa around 6 PM. We were blown away by the scale of the place. We
must have looked like Willis and Arnold from Different Strokes arriving for the
first time at Mr. Drummond's penthouse. This place is huge! I'm so
glad that Chris gets to be here and enjoy this all with me. He's been
working his butt off these past few years and now he's going into the family
business. We're all really happy and proud of him and this trip was just a
perfect way (and perfect timing) to celebrate his success and new endeavors.
While we waited for our room to be ready, Ricardo (who's an incredible
percussion player who plays live percussion to DJs as they play) greeted us (he
works for the hotel...I mean palace), and took us for a little (i mean big) tour
of the resort. We made a stop at the cigar store, where we picked up some
goodness for the trip and to take home. We both lit up a nice fat Cohiba
(Chris went for a strong, i went for a mild, as I'm not trained in the
etiquette of cigar smoking yet...but I'll get it). Ricardo took us around
the rest of the resort....beautiful pool, trapeze, rock climbing, gyms, 5
restaurants, you name it. We finally got to our room...3 balconies, blah,
blah, blah. Here are some pics...
We're both here chilling on one
of the balconies now, both writing our journal entries. We're being picked
up by Ulisses tonight around 10:30 PM to head back to Jellyfish so I can setup
Final Scratch/sampler f/x, etc... so the opening DJ can begin. I am so
ready to play. Full report (and hopefully some pics) in the morning.
Now, it's time for a little nap...
Sunday, August 10, 2003
8:25 AM
Chris and I have returned from
the party. We are both dead!!!! I DJed from about 1:45 AM to 7 AM.
Here are a few pics from the party.
The crowd was just wicked.
Everything I have come to expect and love from a great Dominican Republic techno
party :) I'll explain more in detail later. My legs are killing me,
and my laptop and record bag are covered in sand from it blowing into the venue
from the beach. I've just gotten out of the shower and sleep is finally
calling. I will answer her call.
Sunday, August 10, 2003
7:40 PM
Just getting back to our room
from a wonderful shiatsu massage. We woke up around 12:30 and lounged for
a bit, grabbed some lunch, came back to the room to digest and then went down to
the beach. The water was the perfect temperature, and it was just a
relaxing time. The power of God's ocean is immense. The water
revitalized us. I only wish I could always jump in the ocean after a gig
to get re-energized. Chris and I talked about our experiences at the party
last nite. Chris was a real trooper to the very end. My audience
here is so special to me. They will always be at the front of my heart.
The love and support they have always shown me since my very first time here is
still alive and well. My Dominican fans truly have a very special place in
my heart. They always remind me why I love what I do. Their yells of
"BARBARO!!!!!" (barbarian) were always greeted with a huge smile on my face.
Anyway, since I didn't get into too many details about the party, I suppose
now's a good time to do that. We arrived at the party a little after 11
PM. The first DJ was on, playing a nice combination of house and techno.
There was a small crowd there already. I made it a point to head out to
the beach and hide for a bit and just enjoy the night air and the sound of the
music mixed with the sound of the ocean. pure bliss. I was, however,
quite anxious to play for the Dominican people again. I get very ansy
before a gig. Usually, that's why I don't show up until right before I
play. But, thanks to the advent of Final Scratch, I'm forced to be a bit
more social. Thanks to Stanton and Native Instruments for making me a bit
more social these days ;) The next DJ went on around midnight and played a
selection of tribal house. The crowd kept coming in and dispersing around
both floors of the venue and out onto the beach. At around 1:45 AM, I went
on. The crowd in front of the turntables were already starting to go a
little nuts when they saw me behind the decks. I admit, it felt really
great to be back. I started and everything just flowed. The crowd
stayed with me and let me take them wherever I wanted. It was great to
look over on the floor every few minutes and find Chris there with a smile on
his face and a Presidente beer in his hand. I always tell my friends about
my travels and how the parties go. It was really great to have one of my
best friends with me, experiencing it first hand. I played until around 7
AM. The crowd would not let me go. They just wanted to keep going
harder and harder, even when I tried to bring it down. At sunrise, I went
into a small ambient set (my hint to the crowd that it was time for me to leave
and get back to my hotel for some sleep). They weren't having it.
They demanded that I continue to play. Not one to disappoint, I did.
There were a few songs that really went over well. The addition of using
my Cycloops sampler with some of the classics of the Dominican parties ("Jaguar," Force," "Blue Monday," etc...) really sent the crowd in a
fever pitch. They weren't used to having the songs remixed live.
But, they were up for it. Here were some of the track highlights of the
night:
Technasia - Final Quadrant
(Live Version) (Technasia)
Marco Bailey - Platinum (MB
Elektronics)
Stryke - Domino (unreleased) (I
actually recorded this song with the Dominican crowd in mind)
Mauro Picotto - New Time, New
Place (Primate)
Oscar G. & Ralph Falcon - Dark
Beat (Acapella run through the cycloops)
DJ Rolando aka the Aztec Mystic
- "Jaguar") (UR) (Dominican Republic's #1 classic!)
Technasia - Force (Technasia)
(a classic here)
777 - Alpha Wave (Plastikman
Remix) (Astralwerks)
There were so many more, and it
seemed like every track got a wonderful response. These are just the ones from
the top of my head. Anyway, almost time for dinner. We have
parasailing tomorrow before we leave. Man, life is hard.
Monday, August 11, 2003
11:45 AM
Just got back from parasailing!
First time! I have a small fear of heights (nothing out of this
world...just the typical fear). This seemed to help quell that fear.
We went up around 10:30. Afterwards, we took one last dip in the ocean,
and came back to the room to pack and prep to leave. We don't want to
leave, but the real world is calling. Here are a few shots from our
excursion this morning.
Till next time!!!!!
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
12:50 AM
Ok, so you thought it was over.
Guess what? We're still here. Our VIP host, Ricardo was taking us to
the airport, when we got a call from the party's promoter, Uli, to tell us that
our flight was on Tuesday, not Monday. We had to scramble to change
meetings, rearrange schedules, and call friends and family to let them know the
schedule change. Of course that meant another day of resort life.
Darn... We went to have a drink and a cigar at Jellyfish. I had some
last minute business to finish with Uli, then it was back to the resort (and a
new room). We headed down to the beach and hit the water again. Such
a great feeling it is to be in the ocean. After about an hour, we headed
back to the room to check our email and chill. Ricardo made a dinner
reservation for us at the Marlin restaurant (grill and seafood). We ate
like kings. We enjoyed a Cohiba cigar and a Quattro after dinner liqueur.
Talk about flavour! We headed back to the room, chilled, then headed down
to the casino to lose some money. Let me tell you kids out there...don't
waste your money. I just figured I was just having a good time, so why not
try some new things. It was fun...I lost about 30 bucks, but that's life.
Anyway, I was still feeling a little hungry (yeah, I can be quite a pig
sometimes). We headed out to our favourite little grill by the pool and
had a couple of T-bone steaks. We've just gotten back to the room and we
are chilling like villains. We'll see what's on the agenda for the
morning. More parasailing perhaps?! We'll see ;)
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
4:25 PM
Back home, which means back to
the studio. Uploading this baby right now. Hope you all enjoy.
Many many thanks to Eduardo Berges (for always being you and supporting me), Uli
(for making everything work), Ricardo Moran (for being the world's best host),
Chris Schafer (mi hermano!!!!), and the people of the Dominican Republic for all
your love and support. You have mine eternally!
|
