For all of you who don’t know, DJ Craze is a DMC world champion who represents Miami, Florida. Now for all of not in the know about DMC, heres a quick 101: DMC stands for ‘Disco Mix Club’, which started out as a DJ remix service founded by Tony Prince. DMC began as a radio show (Disco Mix Club Show) in 1981 on Radio Luxembourg in the UK. Prince helped popularise a new style of DJ mixes using the turntable as a musical instrument. DMC started operating as a remix service in 1983 and in 1986, DMC started the annual DMC World DJ Championships.
I’ve had encounters with these DMC championship types, with DJ Kentaro in particular last year who was just bloody mindblowing. So it’s safe to say that anyone who is a DMC world champion is kind of a big deal. But let’s discuss the rest of the night…. DJ Craze was playing at a venue that I just can’t get enough of, Miss Libertine. I love this place, not only is the bar layout funky with friendly bar staff, the sound engineering is also excellent. A solid selection of brews on tap through to exotic high-impact shots. Miss Libertine caters for the big spending alcoholic connoisseur through to the more budget-minded drinker. So when I arrived, Gsan was spinning funk, through to bumpin’ hip hop, dropping tracks like Pharoahe Monch Simon Says and old-skool Dr Dre. Gsan explored hip hop tracks from all over the globe mixing in Katalyst’s All You’ve Got and some Jungle Brothers for good measure, kicking off the night with great taste in tunes and respectable pace.
Ooh-ee was a different set, which turned the atmosphere into what reminded me of an RnB super club. Dropping the BPM and dishing out some variety, with classic tunes Queen Another One Bites the Dust and a bit of the new with Debbie Deb When I Hear Music, Fam-Lay Hit Me On My Beeper and MIA. But I’m gonna just go out and say it, his set was average and lacking in energy a little.
Regardless, DJ Craze was up next, and the boy doesn’t disappoint. He started straight off by hitting the audience with the Rocky theme, and from that point on it was pretty much a musical battle royale, and it was oh so glorious. DJ Craze does not discriminate, he knows what sounds good and he mixes it with the precision of a ninja and the wisdom of a Dalai Lama. Once again, my duty as an event reviewer became a logistical nightmare, keeping track of all the great songs he mixed through my alcohol consumption. The diversity of his tracks ranged from old skool hip hop anthems like Rump Shaker through to modern pop like Jenny from the Block, through to Pink Floyd and James Brown and multiple Daft Punk tracks, UK hip hop from Dizzee Rascal, through to Michael Jackson, Plump DJs, Dire Straights... you get the idea. He mixed all those tracks with his skills and the crowd was rocking all night.
Then Craze thought it would be a great idea to drop a ton of drum n’ bass and jungle and, the crowd agreed whole heartedly. It’s at this point, about 90 minutes into his set with 30 minutes left to go, that I lost my ability to keep it together and the rest of the night became one big blur of awesome fun. I do remember two things though; firstly, DJ Craze provided a set that really was at a world class level of impeccability and fun that I will only experience a handful of times during my life. Secondly, he interacted with the crowd, he had his own microphone and had friendly banter with the audience which is a nice touch.
His follow up Hans DC, had a tough act to follow, but he kept the party rocking with some memorable chart topping tunes like Timberland The Way I Are. I just wish I could remember more. But as I said, it’s at this point, the night started getting… blank. And I walked in not even intending to drink. Like I tell all my friends, if a DJ can play a set that lets me throw away all my cares and responsibilities, I say that he’s done an outstanding job…. Not so great for my future as an ITM contributor though. So, my apologies are extended to my Melbourne promotions coordinator (god bless her cotton socks), and the wider ITM community for being an irresponsible drunken tard. But if I keep getting similar opportunities to review such awesome international performances, I’m certainly not going to stop.
