It all began on the shores of Maine back in '74. I was born, became a hopeless Red Sox fan and seafood lover, and then we moved a couple times. In 1983 my family ended up in Hollywood, Florida, right between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami. It was then that I first develped an obsession with record collecting. My two older brothers already had a collection of rock and pop albums and 45's from the late 70's and early 80's, and I wanted to be like them, so I went to the Spec's in the mall and started buying 45's. It was at about this same time that I discovered hip-hop. Songs like Planet Rock, Jam on It, and the early Run-DMC albums were my first real musical loves. Once I figured out that I wasn't coordinated enough to breakdance, I became more interested in being the guy who had all the good music. I still had no real idea about DJing at all besides what I would see and hear about Jam Master Jay on Raisin' Hell. All of my allowance and lunch money was going to that Spec's, and in 1988 I had an experience that tied all of this junk together in my brain. At a freinds' house, I witnessed his older brother and a few other DJ's mixing records. They were a DJ crew getting ready for a house party that night. I ran home and got my small collection of wax, and they were pretty impressed. So impressed that they borrowed my whole collection, and a couple days later they mixed my records in front of me. It was then that I found my calling.
Fast forward to 1992. I moved from Hollywood to Austin, Texas. I continued to buy vinyl at an ever increasing pace. I also bought a couple busted Technics 1700's from a pawn shop with my first paycheck ever. I still had no idea what I was doing with those records and that equipment, but I was determined to learn. I started going to generic afterhours clubs in Austin trying to analyze DJs, but I hated most of what they were playing. My high school friends and I were always looking for something new. We got a flyer for a 'rave' one night, so we checked it out. What I found there changed my life forever yet again.
There were DJ's playing music I had never even imagined before. I was from the school of hip-hop. These people were playing techno and house. I was interested in this new thing. It wasn't the industrial wackness that I heard in the clubs, it was soulful, progressive, and like nothing I had ever heard or experienced. I was instantly hooked. I began going to parties almost every weekend, and soon I was buying the music at the same rate I was buying hip-hop. In the summer of 1993, I bought my Technics 1200's, and I packed my stuff and headed to Albuquerque.
In Albuquerque, I immediately got hooked up with Donovan and the crew at House of Vibes. They let me play at some of thier imfamous house parties, and I began to grow a house music style. Since then, I've done tons of stuff. I've played at hundreds of raves, club nights, house parties, afternoon coffee shop jams, and parites in the park. I've put out over 25 mixed tapes and CDs. I've played with a pretty impressive list of headlining DJs. I've helped throw some of the biggest and most memorable parties in New Mexico over the past 12 years. I've worked at 3 record shops and co-owned another. I've put my mind, body, and soul into spreading the music that I have grown to love.
I've done all of this with a lot of help. It would take 13 years for me to thank the people who have booked me, listened to me, danced to my sets, encouraged me to keep going, listened to my CDs, bought records from me, threw parties with me, influenced my style, impressed me with styles I never heard before, and supported me in any other way. I am eternally endeted to so many people in this community. Almost every single one of my friends and associates comes from this community. Thank you all!
