Steve Aoki (above)My goodness am I spent and speechless after the partying that went down yesterday and the world class music my friends and I were able to see, all for free. The wizardry that occurred over nearly 15 hours of music was impossible to describe and needed to be witnessed.
We attended the 9th Annual Bacardi B-Live WMC Party which was held this year at the Fontainebleau Pool. It's hard to top a private press pool party of this caliber the day before Ultra Music Festival. People from everywhere in the world were getting down and dirty all day long, and it was wonderful to observe and partake. As if getting to see all of the acts on the bill and being a part of such an exclusive party wasn't enough, Bacardi chose to sponsor ALL of the drinks ALL day long!! Unlimited Mojitos, Daquiris, Rum & Coke, etc. This blew my mind since I figured being on South Beach during WMC that getting in for free was more than I could ask for, and expected drinks to be close to $15 a pop. Nope, drinks cost us nothing from 3pm until 9pm!
The music was unbelievable, and the energy really something else. DJ Jazzy Jeff played early, and was hands down the worst DJ there. He barely mixed anything, and pretty much just played medleys of artists. It was very reminiscent of what a Bar/Bat Mitzvah DJ would play, and the MC onstage was not only worthless, but very annoying. However, I still got a major kick out of seeing Jazz, thinking of all the times he made me laugh on Fresh Prince.
His slight dud of an early set meant nothing, as everyone hadn't arrived yet. All was quickly forgotten once Diplo hit the stage. He is a madman. This was the first time I had the pleasure of seeing Diplo, and he had me breaking it down to nasty Baile Funk beats which were so grimey & dirty that my jaw was dropping. He played for about an hour or so, and then A-Trak took the stage.
A-Trak, a NYC resident, who happens to be Dave One from Chromeo's little brother, is a DJ I became familiar with very quickly at the Fool's Gold Records party after Ultra last year. It was his birthday, and he owned the stage for most of the night. This year he topped himself by spinning seamless mixes of dirty south beats and electro. From Robot Rock to Killing In The Name, A-Trak took us all on a delicious journey. At that point the place had filled up quite a bit and everyone was getting down. After about an hour or more, A-Trak stepped down and DJ AM played a really tight set which continued my dancing spree.
Then, unexpectedly, it was time for MSTRKRFT. They were billed as the top act but played 3rd to last. The second I realized they were onstage, we booked it towards the front for the onslaught of MSTRKFT. It had been a year since Ultra last March that I've had the privilege of seeing MSTRKRFT. I saw one of them spin at Camp Bisco last year, but that doesn't count. Needless to say, they shredded our faces into the ground unapolagetically. We were standing up on the ledge of the hot tub for a sick view & great sound, dancing our asses off and pumping our fists endlessly in the air. Their set flew by like a blur, leaving us dumbfounded.
My belief as to why MSTRKRFT went on a little earlier (which was no problem for me because it was as the sun was setting on the beach at the pool) was that Kid Sister was supposed to play a live set, but I gather she had not arrived yet, since she came out after MSTRKRFT for a really kickass short set of about 5-6 songs or so. It was a pleasure getting to see a live Kid Sister set, as she can spit out the lyrics with the best of them.
The party by the pool closed out with a Chromeo DJ set. I love Chromeo. I love Dave One. He is one of my favorite musical characters for so many reasons. After having seen Chromeo play a DJ set this past Halloween, I knew that we were in for it. They crafted together one of the funkier more dancetastic sets I have gotten down to in quite a while. The entire pool was bouncing in unison, and it was impossible not to get lost in the endless disco funk.
All in all, the Bacardi B-Live Party by the pool yesterday from 3pm till 9pm was way more than I could have ever imagined or asked for. I had my reservations and skepticisms, but the day was flawless. From the people around us, to the quality of music, to the unlimited free drinks all day, we were beyond satisfied and spent.
Yes, this is when the party was really getting started!
We went into the hotel to get a slice of pizza in order to refuel a bit, and then entered Blade, one of the two brand new clubs at the Fontainebleau. The Dim Mak Records Party was underway.
I was looking forward to this party, but had no idea how much of an impression it would leave on me. This party destroyed the Fool's Gold Party from last year by every means possible.
I will skip the early DJs, and go right into the night's special secret guest DJ Mehdi.
I watched DJ Mehdi spin for a little bit with A-Trak last year, and he was good, but it was hard for him to stand out. Last night, the man threw my head into a tizzy, playing well over an hour and a half set of massive proportions. He was grinning the entire time like a little kid, and you could tell he just did not want to leave the stage. I don't blame him. He had the entire place in the palm of his hand. I couldn't believe that at close to 2 AM that I was still dancing my ass off and having my mind blown, after having raged the pool party drinking & dancing in the sun all day. That is how good DJ Mehdi was, and how good the Dim Mak Records party was.
After DJ Mehdi's epic long set, Steve Aoki came onstage. Let me preface this by saying that I have never seen him, and last night he proved to me that he is hands down one of the top DJs in the world. He is a MADMAN, and even though saying this is not in line with my true belief system, the man shines like a God in his own right. Not only was the music he was playing completely fresh sounding and out of this world, but I have never seen a DJ truly COMMAND the stage like him period. He is the most energetic spazoid freakout that I can possibly imagine, and he ripped through our brains like a relentless Japanese combat robot. He was flipping out the entire set, jumping up and down, throwing his hands everywhere, hair flying all over the place, and dancing his ass off with every break and switch. Every move he made, the crowd followed, and we were dancing harder than we had danced in ages. My friends and I could not believe what was happening, neither could anyone in the crowd, and I am still completely dumbfounded by what I witnessed last night of the superhuman Steve Aoki, who is now in my opinion one of the best DJs in the world.
It was almost 3 am, and we had just danced our faces off between DJ Mehdi and Aoki. We didn't know how we would keep it up, but Armin Van Helden came on next and played a damn good set. It was certainly a step down from the mania that was Steve Aoki's set, but it kept us going for a bit. We went outside by the pool for a little to catch a breather and some delicious beach breeze, in order to save up the last potential ounce of energy we had for my most awaited act, The Bloody Beetroots.
Well, they lived up to everything I had been hoping for. Those Italian fly mask wearing maniacs are a mysterious force to be wreckoned with. The entire set was utter insanity. Steve Aoki came onstage for part of it and went absolutely nuts being held up by people on the stage while shrieking into his headphones. The Bloody Beetroots, who play Italian Melodic House music, have a sound like few others. It is so elastic and bouncing, with such pummeling force yet at the same time a beautiful classical melodic style to their madness. It was great getting to see them play their Il Brutissimo Remix of Crookers' Il Brutto, which is one of my favorite songs in electronica. Pretty much they are like evil Nintendo music on crack with a full decimating attack of mind and body. Basically, they drilled a hole into my head.
Once The Bloody Beetroots set ended, we stood there completely in awe of what we just experienced. It was nearly 5 am and we had been partying for 15 straight hours. We were on our last leg about ten times, but the music and energy was just TOO damn good and kept getting better and better in order to cave in and succumb to the exhaustion. We left feeling more satisfied than we had felt in a very long time.
I still need to recover from yesterday, and while I wanted to go to Ultra tomorrow, I really don't want to spend the money, but even moreso I think I got my fill of DJs for another year. I feel violated after that marathon yesterday, in the greatest of ways, but I'm not so sure I can take another 12 plus hours of Electro partying. I got juuuuust what I needed all day yesterday and last night, without having to pay anything.
That's right. As everyone kept saying throughout the day in accordance with the LMFAO song...
I'm in Miami biiiiiiiiiiiiiitch!
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