Electric Zoo - New York City

There is no way I'll be missing this festival this year, just look at the talent:

Paul van Dyk Benny Benassi Richie Hawtin ATB Major Lazer Kaskade Above & Beyond John Digweed Fedde Le Grand Boys Noize Bassnectar A-Trak Adultnapper Aeroplane Afrojack Chris Lake Chuckie Claude VonStroke D. Ramirez Davide Squillace Diplo Dirty South Dixon Erol Alkan Flying Lotus Funkagenda Gareth Emery Jon Hopkins Joris Voorn LA Riots Laidback Luke Marco Carola Markus Schulz Martin Buttrich Martyn Matthias Tanzmann Paco Osuna Paul Kalkbrenner Rusko Steve Aoki Steve Bug The Glitch Mob Tom Middleton Victor Calderone Wolfgang Gartner + more to be announced!

Bixi

Yes ladies and gentlemen, my PC died, actually the power supply is toasted, so my PC is at the shop as we speak. Many things to write about and I'll wait until my old pal is back from its electronic retreat.

Not sure if I have told you, but now I'm also a subscriber of the Montreal bicycle share program called BIXI - love it and in case you want to know more about it, here are some facts taken from openfile website where they were talking about seven things Toronto should know about the BIXI

1- It's about frequent short trips, hence the pricing. Toronto fees are expected to be the same or similar to Montreal's, where subscriptions cost $78 for one year, $28 for one month and $5 for one day. After that, there are usage fees to consider. The first 30 minutes of every ride is free. After that, the next 30 minutes cost $1.50. The following half hour costs $3. And every subsequent half hour sets you back $6. But very few users ever reach that point. Bixi is not for sightseeing. It's for getting from Point A to Point B. A survey shows half of Montreal users jump on Bixis to get to and from work or school. Some are taking lunchtime jaunts or using Bixi to meet friends across town or as an alternative to the bus when they get off the subway.

2- You might not be able to return your bike at the first self-serve docking station you visit. It might be full. Don't panic. You'll be given 15 minutes of free time to reach another one. And stations are on average only 300 metres apart. A smart phone will help; you can check bike-dock availability online. In Montreal, this summer, some stations are filling up so quickly on weekday mornings that three "depot stations" were opened where commuters can hand bikes over to Bixi employees without the need to bother with a docking station.

3- Bike-sharing services typically focus on densely populated areas that feature offices, shopping and cultural venues. In Montreal, stations are concentrated downtown and adjacent neighbourhoods to the east such as Plateau Mont Royal. Almost three-quarters of Montreal Bixi users live in the area covered by the service.

4- The specially designed Bixi bikes are sleek and distinctive. They have sturdy tires, internal brakes, a covered chain to protect your clothes, an integrated basket with an elasticized cord and always-on front and back lights. But the bikes are heavy and hills have been a problem, as the original Bixi only had three gears. A new version with seven speeds is being tested.

5- It can be addictive. In Bixi's first year in Montreal, one rider — the system's most active user — took 853 trips. That's an average of more than four trips per day. (Bixi was up and running for 200 days in 2009.)

6- Motorists will grumble about bike-sharing, calling it a folly and a waste of tax dollars and complaining that bikes are taking up too much space on roads. (Not to mention all those on-street parking spots the docking stations eat up.) But after so many years as king of the city, cars are just going to have to make some room.

7- If Montreal is any indication, within weeks, the bikes and docking stations will become an appealing part of Toronto's urban landscape. And people who never considered cycling downtown will find themselves lured by the prospect of experiencing their city in a new way.

Source: OpenFile

and here is a video with an explanation on how to use the Bixi

Roger Sanchez @ Terrasses Bonsecours

and yes, review is coming up, and there is one for David Morales as well (but I'm still doing my taxes)

Victoria Day - May Long Weekend

Unofficially this day marks the beginning of the Summer in Canada, and it happens usually one weekend before the Memorial Long Weekend (USA). Yes, this long weekend celebrates the birthday of Queen Victoria in English Canada, and because this is a no no no in Quebec, here we are "celebrating" National Patriots' Day (former Fête de Dollard).

Due to the fact we must celebrate something, and specially since I'm not working on Monday, there are many options in Montreal. Personally I'm taking it easy until Sunday when my dancing tours starts with Roger Sanchez, then David Morales and finally Victor Calderone.

Talking about David Morales, the Fresh part at Parking will be special to a group of people that will be celebrating the life of Daniel. They have asked everyone to wear orange for the occasion, and David Morales will play a song in Daniel's honour. Even if you don't know this guy, I think it would be fun to see everyone wearing some type of orange, and I'm sure this will mean a lot to Daniel's friends.

Madonna Needs Your Help

Madonna released the following statement in response to a Malawi court's decisions to jail two men for 14 years for the "crime" of homosexuality. Read the statement, then add your name in support of equal rights.

I am shocked and saddened by the decision made this week by the Malawian court, which sentenced two innocent men to prison.

As a matter of principle, I believe in equal rights for all people, no matter what their gender, race, color, religion, or sexual orientation.

This week, Malawi took a giant step backward. The world is filled with pain and suffering; therefore, we must support our basic human right to love and be loved.

I call upon the progressive men and women of Malawi—and around the world—to challenge this decision in the name of human dignity and equal rights for all.

—Madonna

Add Your Name to Madonna's Statement

Produkt 6 Anniversay: Roger Sanchez

Roger Sanchez, Danny Torrence and more, will be gracing the decks at the Terrasses Bonsecours this Sunday, and I must say there are too many things happening in Montreal this long weekend - gratefully I'm not working on Monday.

FIFA World Cup 2010 - Commercials

Lady Gaga - Alejandro Remix

absolutely love this Alejandro remix version, and if I'm not mistaken this it the one DJ Abel dropped last night at Parking.

Abel is back .. and so is Scotty

and I know I'm kind of late, but last Saturday I checked out Tony Moran at Parking and he delivered a house epic set, very circuit oriented and enjoyable.

from Hector with love

Piknic Électronik - New Policy for the Summer 2010v2

Good news boys and girls, the Piknic Electronik people have reverted their initial decision of not allowing people to bring their own alcoholic drinks - see press release below - and I also noticed their site is now bilingual.

MAY 13
GOOD NEWS !


Good news! This year, fans of Piknic Electronik can once again bring their own wine or beer, if accompanied by an actual picnic.

Piknic Electronik has taken into account the comments of our many law-abiding Piknicers who’ve considered it unjust to be restricted because of the excesses of a few bad seeds. So, each visitor who shows up with an actual picnic can also bring wine or beer if the following formats: 750ml of wine (one bottle) OR the equivalent of 1.1 litres of beers (3 small cans of 355ml or 2 tall cans of 500ml, etc).

Happy Piknicing! Bon appetit! And we look forward to seeing you once again under the Calder on Sunday, May 23 for the launch of a new season!

Go Habs Go

Montreal Canadian 5-2 Pittsburgh Penguins - and for those that have no idea what this is, well we are in the middle of the hockey play off, and the home team (Montreal Canadians) just eliminated the defending Stanley cup champion (Pittsburgh Penguins).

One Hundred Thousand

Just noticed the counter at the bottom of the page, and it is showing 100,000 hits - thanks for reading the blog guys.

Betty White @ SNL

and yes ladies and gentlemen, tomorrow is the night when Betty White will finally host Saturday Night Live (SNL), and I can't wait to see what she is going to do. Good job facebook and all the best Betty.

My Suggestions for the Weekend

2010 FIFA World Cup - South Africa

One of the biggest sporting events in the world is returning this Summer, and for the first time it will be an African the host nation. I can only imagine been there during this time, and some of my friends are actually going to be there, I just hope I can score some of their pictures while they are in South Africa.

Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Mangaung / Bloemfontein, Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, Nelspruit, Polokwane, Rustenburg and Tshwane/Pretoria.







In 2006 I spent 3 weeks in Cape Town, and what can I say more than write it down in your itinerary. If you have time, you can always read what I wrote about this wonderful city, and my apologies if some of the photo links are not working.

Cape Town - First Impression
Cape Town - Second Impression
Cape Town - Third Impression
Cape Town - Fourth Impression
Cape Town - Fifth Impression
Cape Town - Final Impression

DJ Theresa @ Parking - May 1, 2010

Guys, where did this girl come from? First time I heard about her was when I saw the Parking flyer for her party, and then I started researching about her work and I liked the energy that I was able to find. One of my best friends is also from Columbia, and they share the same last name, and now I must add they also share the energy, and in Theresa’s case it feels like there is no end of it.

Theresa probably arrived a bit after 12:30am, and I was actually getting worried that she wasn’t going to show up, but she did and started to play right away (didn’t take long to get set up), and not sure what was going on with the sound system, because the quality of sound was not that great when she started. Probably a small glitch or something, but nothing that did not get fixed right away.

How do I describe Theresa sound? Imagine the top 40 since Olivia Newton John with her hit “Physical“, to Lady Gaga latest hit “Telephone”, and on top of that you add the Theresa twist, which is this delicious mix of tribal progressive energetic Latin deep house sound, and let me tell you, this blend a very dangerous formula for a great party.

Yes, the music is mostly the commercial type - but not exclusively commercial - and if was another DJ I would probably say no thank you, but Theresa made those tunes her own, rearranging them in a way that we could recognize the song and transforming them in something totally new, and with that she owned the dance floor from beginning to end. Theresa’s energy lifted the dance floor in a magical fashion, and actually it felt as if she was telling us a magical story with a nice beginning and a happy ending, and don’t forget to add the bongs she kept on playing all night long, which added the originality to her style.

Parking was boiling with energy, and the dance floor did not stop one minute, and I must say I did not stop smiling, and whatever she was eradiating was highly contagious because it probably reached everyone in the neighbourhood.

Just one more thing, I would strongly recommend the Divers/Cité to book Theresa for their famous T-Dance during Pride in Montreal (I can’t remember anymore if it is Pride or we call it something else now), because I can only imagine adding Theresa’s energy to the crowd during either the Sunset Party or la Grande Danse, it would be like a wildfire in a very dry forest.

World Expo Shanghai 2010

Already day 1 and this Expo is supposed to break all kind of records (countries participants, visitors, etcetera), and the Canadian pavilion two main attractions are the Cirque du Soleil and a virtual water fall.

Please send me pictures if you are one of those 75 million lucky visitors that are expected to go to the Expo 2010.

I wasn't even born at the time, but here is the poster of the Expo 67 - many claim that Canada changed after the Montreal Expo, is it true?




Canadian Pavilion - Expo 2010