It could be said that Deep Ellum holds the city’s soul: We can boast of its nightlife, live music and food — but today let us marvel at the neighborhood’s street art. There are 50-plus pieces by various artists on the walls of restaurants, clubs and tattoo shops in Dallas’…
It’s common for electronic music fans to experience heightened inspiration after a festival. Some leave Lollapalooza Chicago and imagine themselves a world famous DJ like those they saw on the main stage. Others may pull out of Bonnaroo in Tennessee and think, “I’d like to create something like this.” That…
Unless there’s a day off from work, most don’t give a damn about historical anniversaries. Nov. 9, 1989, saw the fall of the Berlin Wall. That date, exactly 30 years ago this month, spurred the reunification of East and West Germany and East and West Berlin. Born Matthias Paul, the…
Sasha, a Welsh-born DJ-producer, perks up when our phone chat veers toward the subject of food. He loves the rare Amazonian vegetables found in Peruvian cuisine and has great admiration for the sushi chefs in Tokyo. Music is forever his first love, but food is his side piece. We bat…
When Joel Zimmerman’s, aka Deadmau5’s, team of handlers offered an interview ahead of his Sept. 12 and 13 shows at South Side Ballroom, I thought “OK, fine.” A conversation with Deadmau5 seemed like fun, after all. He’s a talented musician and no-filter guy who likes to rant about everything and…
Unlike their ant-snorting rock star predecessors, for Rufus Du Sol, the only acceptable vice is exercise. The band’s on the road for their 25-date North America summer tour, and drummer James Hunt is strolling California’s Avila Beach. The sea breeze is blowing while an unruly flock of seagulls rudely chirp…
It’s a 2016 tour stop somewhere in Pennsylvania. Zach Deputy has the audience jiving to his one-man funk-jam show. Deputy plays the last tune, exits the stage, and an icon is standing there. It’s The Prime Minister of Funk, George Clinton, who says with a smile, “Hey! You dat boy…
Danny Tenaglia has a yellow sticky note on his refrigerator, “3 p.m. interview with Elvis from Dallas Observer.” A 3 o’clock call to Tenaglia is unanswered. A text from Tenaglia comes over about 45 minutes later, “Hey Elvis, so sorry, I’m just waking. Had an unexpected marathon in the studio…
Paul Oakenfold is a DJ with a purpose. There is a philanthropic component in many of his recent shows. His 2017 set at Mount Everest base camp benefited Himalayan Trust and Supporting Nepal’s Children, two efforts helping survivors of the 2015 Nepal earthquake. Last September, he and fellow U.K. legend…
With more variety than a United Nations Conference, the crowd at the 10th Annual Emmitt Smith Celebrity Gala was celebrity totality. There’s Billy Dawson, a country singer from Nashville; “Kid” Reid of Kid ‘n Play hip-hop fame; an elite group of NFL Hall of Fame running backs: Curtis Martin, Eddie…
Channel 69’s Kyle Schember laughs at the memory of a time when an unknown boy band named Backstreet Boys opened for them in Miami in the ‘90s. “It was around 1995 during Winter Music Conference on South Beach and there were shows happening everywhere in Miami that week,” Schember tells…
The DJ-producer duo Cosmic Gate and their “exploration of Texas” soars through the Lone Star State this weekend on a Houston-Dallas trance two-step. Saturday night’s show at Stereo Live Dallas backs a Houston stop as part of their 30-city, four-continent 20 Years Tour. Claus Terhoeven and Stefan Bossems joined forces…
DJ-producer Eric Luttrell’s new album on the Anjunadeep imprint and corresponding album tour isn’t the height of his greatness. The album Into Clouds is just the latest highlight in a lifetime of legendary moments. As a senior at Woodside High School in Woodside, California, he was awarded the coveted “Everybody’s Friend”…
Beauty Bar is typically closed on Monday, but not this week. It was shoulder-to-shoulder, maximum capacity to celebrate the birthday of a local boy done good. Eric Estornel, aka Maceo Plex, aka Mariel Ito, is Dallas’ most successful electronic music DJ and producer. Originally from Miami, the Cuban-American Estornel moved…
It’s 1:30 p.m. Thursday and New York City is at full speed. From the Upper East Side to Wall Street, cabs are honking and couriers race on bicycles. This is prime earning time for Ryan Serhant. He’s gracious but clear, “I have 15 minutes for this call,” he tells the…
For the past two years, The Secret Factory has established itself as Dallas’ go-to techno cathedral. Literally. Some of dance music’s most respected DJs ran the controls from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. there, then the space was cleaned and reorganized for 8 a.m. church service. Artists such as Audiojack,…
The two-hour deep clean at The Secret Factory starting at 6 a.m. Sunday mornings is of paramount importance. The Secret Factory transforms from techno den to place of worship. Yeah, from nightclub to a church. Disco balls and the massive Fulcrum speakers that push 118 decibels of techno sound are…
The bags of mulch in the front yard for new flower beds resemble any ol’ house in the suburbs. It’s a nice red brick home, and the subdivision has one of those typical names, like Canyon Lakes, Dove Ridge or Grand Oaks. Do not judge a book by its cover…
Not all global DJ-producers leave a wake of trashed hotels rooms and one-night stands. It’s a little-known secret in the music industry that many artists are in fact (gasp) responsible. Ana Miranda, also known as ANNA, and some others even eat clean, exercise, drink in moderation, show up on time…
For an eighth year, all things epic, neon, lit and bass will gather for two evenings of Lights All Night in Dallas. Like previous years, the 2017 lineup is rich with electronic dance music’s most popular DJ-producers and served with a small side of hip-hop. Porter Robinson, Seven Lions, AC…
My conversation with Paul Oakenfold at his home in Hollywood Hills, California, begins like most with a proper Englishman — with an offer for tea. “I learned to make a proper cup of tea while I was running around in India,” he says. “You make the tea and let it…
Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike play Stereo Live on Friday, June 9 Dimitri Thivaios, half of the brother duo Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike, is packing for a 6 a.m. flight to Dallas when he breaks to speak with the Observer. At home in his native Belgium, he’s also planning…
