Here’s my live and DJ set schedule for the playa next week. Would love to see you there.
Wednesday – 9:30(ish) -DJ Set – Semi Private party at camp Tetrion/Overkill @ 7:45 & Esplanade
Thursday 8pm – SHIFT camp – Live downtempo set @ 4:30 & Esplanade
Friday – TBC – various art sound art cars throughout the night
Saturday – 12 midday – Interview on BMIR Burning Man Radio 94.5fm – BMIR
Saturday 10pm after man burns – El Circo & Do Lab – Simpler Times camp – live set also featuring Jess, Meta, and Femur from the Black Rock City All Stars
Sunday – 6am – Camp Tetrion/Overkill – Live sunrise set
Also DJing on the Golden Gate Bridge art car at some point through the week, so if you see it, have a look who’s playing.
Other sets to be arranged on the playa.
Looking forward to it, it’s gonna be a blissful week.
For anyone heading out to Burning Man this year, I’ll be playing at the Do Lab & El Circo Simpler Times theme camp, on saturday night, at 10pm after the man burns.
The line up is looking incredible for the whole week and I’m feeling very flattered to be part of it, so if you want to get some good music in during the week, it’s a great place to hang out.
Here’s what they have to say about the camp:
For the first time ever The Do LaB and El Circo are joining forces to create an unforgettable visual sound camp, Simpler Times, at Burning Man this year.
The merging of these iconic communities of San Francisco and Los Angeles is sure to produce one of the most epic and memorable places to be on the Playa with the creative explosions, amazing musicians and mind blowing performances.
Here’s who’s playing:
Ana Sia
An-ten-nae
Auditory Canvas
Bassnectar
Beats Antique
Braden
Brion T
Chris Sia
David Starfire
Dee
dj Shawna
dj Laura
Dov
Dr. Toast
El Papachango
Freq Nasty
Heyoka
the Ianator
Jonny Cota
Kether
Kitty-D
Knowa Knowone
Kraddy
Little John
Lynx & Janover
Marty Party
Micah J.
Mimosa
Mozaic
Oscure
PanTyRAiD
Patricio
R/D
Ruff Hauser
Siren
Taran
Texx
Tipper
Vibesquad
Welder
So it’s now been a few weeks since I got back from my second Burning Man festival.
My mind has finally caught back up with reality, and I completely miss being there.
Not because of the crazy parties, not for looking up from the DJ booth to see a sea of smiling, dancing, happy people, not for the freedom of being out of touch with the rest of the world, neither because of waking up to music, sun, and crazy people expressing themselves everywhere the moment you step out of your RV, but simply because of the way people interact with each other and treat each other.
Before my first Burning Man people would tell me it was a life changing event, something I would politely shrug off as hippy talk, thinking it’s just a festival, but as soon as I experienced it I was overwhelmed with emotions, thoughts and feelings I would struggle to put into words even now.
It really is life changing because it reminds you what life is all about, expressing your inner self without fear of persecution, interacting with strangers from all over the world who treat you as a friend, as an equal, sharing, giving, and receiving, and letting your guard and defenses down.
Ignorant glances away are replaced by welcomes, handshakes replaced by hugs, frowns replaced by smiles, and stresses replaced with positive and creative energy.
Even though I had anxiously waited to return all year, I didn’t expect the overwhelming warm feeling of being ‘home’ as soon as I stepped foot onto the dirt and filled my lungs with playa dust this year. At that moment i fully understood the words of the people at the gate when they said ‘welcome home’.
Coming back from a life less ordinary for a week to what we call home is a somewhat depressing experience, and at that point you start to see what’s wrong with the world. People too wrapped up in their own stresses and woes to care about others, ignorance and selfishness ruling the day, people battling and arguing over things that really shouldn’t matter, and people being rude, bitter and defensive.
And then you slowly get bogged down in the stresses and tolls of reality, and you slowly forget the new energy and intentions you returned with, until you look at photos from the week, and replay memories in your mind, and you realise that most people haven’t seen the beautiful side of humanity that you experienced for the week, and it helps you tolerate the shit from the ignorant, selfish ones…..for a while.
We all need to change the way we interact with each other in this world. It doesn’t have to be this way, it’s only our blindness and apathy that stops us from making it a better world to live in.
Founder of Summer Rain Recordings, David grew up in the seventies, surrounded by music (at least until he took his mother’s record player apart at the age of 6 to see how it worked). His favourite toys were those that made or recorded sound. One of his most loved being the Stylaphone, which he was given at the age of 4.
David began Djing at the age of 18, playing local events and clubs whenever the opportunity arose, often for free, solely for the enjoyment and satisfaction it gave him.
Whilst at University in Manchester, UK, David co formed and ran a successful club night for 3 years, playing to a loyal, continuously growing crowd every fortnight. Success in this arena lead to David securing many bookings at local clubs and events around the North West of England.
Through his love for Djing, David felt an increasing desire to create his own music, and explore the soundscapes that were building up in his mind.
The day that profoundly changed David’s life occurred by chance. A friend took him into the University music studio, briefly showed him how to turn the keyboards and equipment on, gave a ten minute lesson in the music production software on the computer, and left the room. 6 hours flew by, completely hooked, he had found the path he had been searching for since he was a child.
Ever since, every penny he shouldn’t have spent, every spare moment he has, goes on letting emotions flow through sound.
Through the last 10 years David has been busy spending all his time exploring all the musical avenues that intrigue him, as well as concentrating on his own tracks, he has worked on numerous remixes, written, scored, and performed many contemporary theatre underscores and soundtracks, music for hair shows, and music for various websites.
David’s records and releases under the Auditory Canvas alias and David Leeson alias on Summer Rain Recordings, the label that David founded and setup to help artists get what they deserve, and also give something back via charity donations. David donates 25% of all royalties received from the sales of his EPs to the charity NextAid, Summer Rain Recordings also donate 25% of all profits from the EPs.
Discography: Portraits EP - 2006, Destinations EP 2007, Earth EP 2008, Elements EP 2009, Album TBC – July 2009, Always There - Caitlyn Hessell (Auditory Canvas Remix) - 2008, Imogen Heap - The Song That Never Was (Auditory Canvas Remix) - 2009, Truth - January (Auditory Canvas Remix)- 2007, Mask Dance - Ingo Vogelmann (Auditory Canvas Remix) – 2006 + Several unreleased tracks, collaborations, and remixes.
Recent Gig History:
Played recent Live and DJ sets supporting Random Rab, David Starfire, Bassnectar, Freq Nasty, Kaskade, and several other prominent artists across the US and UK, held residence at Bliss Nightclub in Reno, Nevada, also played several camps at the last 2 years of Burning Man, as well as a number of events and clubs in Nevada and California. Full list available on request.
Next Gig:
The Big Bounce festival – 19th, 20th, 21st June 2009 – Belden California – flier: THe Big Bounce
