Spring is in the air, the Miami and the Winter Music Conference is beckoning, and the party season is starting to get into full swing. March looks set to be another incredible clubbing month at Cielo with a plethora of guests jetting in from such far away places as Japan, Spain, England, Sweden, Germany, and Ibiza…
But it’s with Chicago we begin and Thursday 4th as Dance.Here.Now presents a night in the company of Bad Boy Bill. To call the Chi-Town born and raised DJ accomplished would be a bit of an understatement. In addition to being voted America’s favorite DJ by BPM magazine, he’s also one of the co-founders of Beatport; the leader in electronic dance music downloads. That might be enough success for some, but not for this world-renowned DJ who also has two decades of globetrotting DJ work under his belt, and a dozen of acclaimed compilations featuring his infamous quick-mix skills. Last year Bill finally found time to release first full-length artist album. Aptly titled, ‘The Album’, it was everything you would hope for from a man on a mission to shake things up: adventurous, experimental, fresh, and yet authentic with his signature electronic edge layered into every track. “People are surprised because its different than what they probably expect from me,” says the Bad Boy about his unique production that seamlessly weaves his crystalline electronic edge into rock, hip-hop, and rap and features an equally eclectic selection of guests from Duran Duran’s John Taylor to JJ Flores and Steve Smooth.
Another man on a mission is Marcus Schössow, with a modus operandito reinvent trance music. Whether that’s performing to thousands or producing for the masses, the Swedish artist is in demand the world over. Europe, the Far East, America, and beyond, are all calling out for gaps in his DJ diary that’s already seen him play at such prestigious events as Zurich’s Street Parade, Dance Valley, Sunrise Festival and Godskitchen. But it’s the intimacy of lower Manhattan and Cielo on Friday 5th as the Made Event welcomes one of the new school heroes of trance and a DJ whose music has quickly become stable parts of sets by Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren, Axwell and Steve Lawler.
“I’ve starting the New Year by getting my inspiration back,” reflects Tedd Patterson whose Vibal night returns to Cielo on Saturday 6thand is never devoid of inspiration. “Somewhere along the way, I lost some of it. Traveling around the world and playing in the big rooms is exciting as hell but it can really distract you from your roots if you let it. So recently I’ve been revisiting the classics and getting some inspiration from my roots. My love for funk, soul and disco is as pure and strong as it’s ever been. I still live for the big room anthems, but there has got to be a way to bring ‘feeling’ back to the floor…” Hear for yourself as the irrepressible man from the South revisits his youth and educates the masses in true Tedd Patterson-style.
Friday 12th promises to be another musically charged night as Turntables On The Hudson returns with DJ Smash & DJ Center as your deck generals for the night. Manhattan’s DJ Smash (or Wayne Hunter to his mum) is an internationally respected DJ, music producer and project consultant, with an amazing list of remix credits to his name including reworking singles by such legendary figures as Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Bobby McFerrin, Roy Ayers, Herbie Hancock, Donald Byrd and Dizzy Gillespie. The man with the Midas touch for reimaging classics from the past and transforming them into contemporary offerings that bridge the generation divide is partnered for Turntables On The Hudson with the equally eclectic DJ Center. The Romanian-born, New York-bred artist first cut his teeth on '90s hip-hop, despite being mentored as a jazz musician. “With that foundation, I never separated music by genres. My influences were, and still are, wide open,” states Center, reflecting on his musical upbringing and insatiable appetite for rap, jazz and hard-bop with a global outlook and immigrant roots. Next up is his production debut with the album, ‘Everything In Time’ – a ride across multiple genres, woven by lush piano chords, warm basslines, boom-bap drum patterns, flying tambourines and soaring horns. A night of seductive funk grooves and edifyingly rich sonic soundscapes are promised.
Nicolas Matar’s Paradizo night welcomes Alex From Tokyo as special guest overseeing proceedings on Saturday 13th. Paris-born, but Tokyo-raised, the internationally eclectic DJ and producer has unintentionally become a key person connecting the dance world with Japan, working with such seminal labels as F Communications, Mr. Bongo, Disorient and Bossa Tres Jazz. And while since 2004 he’s made New York his home, he still can be found most weekends spinning in Paris, Barcelona, Tokyo or a dozen other fashionable cities. During the day Alex records as Tokyo Black Star (with partner Isao Kumano) releasing widely acclaimed material, including last year’s ‘Black Ships’ opus for Berlin’s Innervisions label.
Thursday 18thsees Dance.Here.Now welcome guests Theo and David Tort to their night. Theo, is best known as a radio personality, currently hosting weekly dance mix-shows on Sirius XM Radio and WDRE in New York. Yet his current position as one of dance music’s most influential tastemakers was not attained overnight, rather earned over the course of years working as program director and mix-show coordinator on college radio stations and then via steady club work throughout the tri-state area. It paid off catching the attention of Nervous Records where a string of top-selling compilations followed fusing the soulful side of house vocals with ease into tougher twisted beats. In juxtaposition, David Tort is one of the most in demand Spanish artists on global electronic scene, a fact proven by 50 plus productions, and remixing a plethora of acclaimed artists including David Guetta, Ultra Naté and Barbara Tucker. As a DJ David can regularly be found on a plane jetting off to far-flung reaches – before arriving at Cielo he’s in Brazil on the first leg of his South American Tour before returning for dates in Columbia in April, with Miami, Moscow and Montreal sandwiched in between.
On Friday 19th Cielo’s Willie Graff and Nicolas Matar welcome Tania Vulcano and Tato to the DJ booth. Tania hails from Uruguay, but has lived in Ibiza for the last 10-years where she’s made the white island her own. With residencies at Space and DC 10’s infamous Circoloco night she’s truly cemented herself on the international stage playing alongside such legends of house as Danny Tenaglia and Fatboy Slim. Vulcano's unique vibe takes its strength from her surname (yes it’s her real name) as she delivers relentless, flowing rhythm in a journey into true deep underground sounds that go from deep funky house to percussive tribal affairs. Her energy is evident in each session winning crowds over with her incessant foundation of quality house music. Tato, the man named Tomas Estaben, is by her side both professionally and personally – the fellow Circoloco resident is also her boyfriend, and the two are partners in the Isgud record label that specializes in deep and hypnotic house of the finest degree. Tato has previously collaborating with Charles Webster and Pig & Dan, and is known for painting soundscapes crafted from dreamy orchestration and near chilled neo-techno melodies.
Currently to be found riding high with his new Bryan Ferry-sung single, ‘U Can Dance’, DJ Hell arrives in New York on Saturday 20th as guest of the Made Event. Followers of the German techno icon will know that he is fond of grand statements and this time he's spot on with his new album, ‘Teufelswerk’ - German for “Devil's Work”. Across 16 exquisite tracks divided into two themes, Night and Day, Hell weaves an intoxicating spell. The nocturnal side offers a contemporary interpretation of Chicago house and Detroit techno. It's sunnier sister disc finds him embracing the rich cosmic groove of his roots. A lush, narcotic odyssey, the album sounds unlike anything he's produced in the past. But at the same time, Hell has drawn on his wealth of experience in his forty-something years and put everything he knows into Teufelswerk. Hell - once, a long time ago, Helmut Geier - has DJed for more than half his life; somewhere in between launching his International Deejay Gigolos empire allowing his rebellious creative streak to gave the label a punk DIY aesthetic. An open-ended techno imprint with a natural pop sensibility, Gigolo immediately stood out and attracted like-minded artists such as Fischerspooner, Vitalic, Miss Kittin & the Hacker, Tiga, even the Pet Shop Boys, and Jeff Mills. Willie Graff will warm things up before we descend into one hot and hypnotic night in Hell.
Every year, for the past 25, the dance music industry has descended on Florida’s South Beach like a pack of locust feeding off the frenzy of the hearing the year’s hottest new club releases for the first time in the presence of clubbing royalty. There’s no other place on the planet where within a few square miles you’ll see, hear and dance to just about every major DJ from the house spectrum and its various sub-genres. Although the business side of the Miami Winter Music Conference has waned in recent years, the club nights have yet to feel the pinch of recession and once again this year is no exception with a veritable plethora of pool parties and hedonistic club nights to satisfy your every need. And when the fun starts you can expect Cielo to be front and centre leading the way with a party featuring an incredible array of DJs longer then most guest lists! On Wednesday 24th Cielo comes to South Beach for what promises to be a very special night at The Vagabond (30 NE 14th St.) with Willie Graff and Nicolas Matar joined by a veritable who’s who of the clubbing world. Fresh for slots earlier in the month in Manhattan, we welcome Alex From Tokyo and Tania Vulcano, along with Cielo regulars Tedd Patterson (Vibal), Darshan Jesrani & Dennis Kane (Adult Section), Nickodemus (Turntables On The Hudson) and Behrouz (Nervous Records). While flying in from Ibiza is the iconic founding father of Balearica, DJ Pippi; Michel Cleis the mastermind behind the cult Cielo classic "La Mezcla", and from Therapy Montreal we welcome Jojoflores. Finally Wagon Cookin perform what promises to be a stunning live set too. It all takes place between the hours of 10pm to 5am and comes at a snip of a price – just $20 in advance @ www.wantickets.com… see you in Miami!
After the fun and frolicking in the sun we round the month off back home with Playtime featuring the Groove Assassin mixing up some deep beats and disco treats on Friday 26th. The man behind the moniker is Manchester’s Nick Moss, whose alter ego has graced releases for a multitude of labels including Defected, MN2S, Jellybean and Nite Grooves. His passion for house music the driving force behind Nick’s enthusiasm for DJing and producing, drawing inspiration from disco, funk, Latin and soul which he now translates into his disco-etched house productions and equally chunky sets mix ‘n’ match the new with the old, and the underground with the cross-over.
Phew, what a month! I think you’ll need a lie down after that little lot! Don’t forget if you can’t make Miami we’ll bring a little slice of it to you as every week as our two weekly parties, Roots and Deep Space, play the freshest new music around. On Wednesday’s Kevin Hedge and Louie Vega, two veterans of the Winter Music Conference, will showcase the very best in deep, soulful and Latin-infused house music from around the global; no doubt also road-testing their own Miami bombs. While Monday’s we throw open our doors to Deep Space with New York musical hero Francois K. The man who needs no introduction still continues to educate and expand the parameters of dance with his mind-enveloping sets into the house abyss. Sublime stuff.
… See you on the dancefloor!
CIELO: MARCH 2010
ABOUT CIELO
Located at 18 Little West 12th Street, in the heart of New York City’s trendy Meat Packing District, is open nightly from 10:00pm-4:00am. Cielo is a beautifully designed 350-capacity club featuring a world-class, state-of-the-art digital Funktion One soundsystem. Since its opening in 2003, Cielo has become an internationally renowned dance music nightclub brand and has upheld its edict of world-class music, professional service and all-inclusive atmosphere.
Over the last 7 years, Cielo has continued to triumph and collect accolades including; Club Awards 2009 winner for Best Party – Dance.Here.Now.; Club World Awards 2008 winner for Best Club (Winner 2005 & 2006) and Best Party – Dance.Here.Now.; Top 50 Nightclubs in the World- DJ Magazine 2006, 2007 & 2008; Best Nightclub- Village Voice 2006; Best Deep House Club- New York Magazine 2006; Best Resident DJ Francois K- Club World Awards 2006 & 2005; Best Venue USA- URB Magazine 2005; Best Interior Design- Club World Awards 2004; Best Club- Dancestar Awards USA 2004. For more info, please go to www.cieloclub.com.
