Canberra Vs Sydney clubbing

[Bubbles]

Ok, after an amazing night at Steve Lawler, I came to thinking about this...

I haven't been out in canberra for a while, and i noticed a lot of differences between the people in canberra, and the people in sydney clubs...

1) Canberra people are SO friendly. If you go out in sydney, and start talking to people that you don't know, they'll talk to you for a few minutes, but then walk away or turn back to their friends.
On friday night (and many other nights that i can think of), i made instant friends with strangers. eg I asked one guy for a cigarette, ended up talking to him for ages, then danced with him later when i seen im on the dance floor. This wouldn't happen in a sydney club. I'd probably get told to 'go away'.

2) Canberra clubs are intimate. I doubt that i would have been able to get up on the stage and get a photo of lawler from less than a metre away at home. (it's an awesome photo, i'm going to put it up on a webpage for ALL to see)

3) Everyone knows everyone in canberra.

4) Although Canberra has VERY FEW clubs, the one(s?) that they do have are really good.

5) Canberra people are better dancers.

6) (similar to 3) On any given night in canberra, I can go out and see at least one person that i know.

So, everyone might say that canberra is the most boring place to go out in australia, but i COMPLETELY disagree. Canberra ROCKS!

[ful_sik_trippa]

Bubbles:

I agree to everything you said except point 4. I dont think that the clubs we have here are really good - i think that if the DJ and night is right (like lawler) it can be awesome. It was a shame to see heaven close down, but now that Habana is taking over - we can expect to see quite a few good quality acts here.

i only wish they had a deep/prog. house night, instead of that hard stuff they play at Melt.

[forbidden]

Very impressed with Canberra's night quality and level of friendliness.. Lawler fucked with the brains of every individual and tore the danceflor 2 shreds and also leaving Morillo for dead @home.. Ive only been 2 Canberra once so after Nick Warren il add more input.

[tomic]

I find that sydney parties (of the few ive attended) are rife with pure arrogance. find it distracting, un-nerving and it really makes to ruin any kind of experience you're out for..

then again, being all of 5 foot nothing, everyone seem to think their elbow belongs in the side of my head...

-tomic

[Disco_Stu]

I'm gonna agree with all of u guys. Although the scene we have here is small, it definately makes up for it in quality. When you think about it Canberra does get alot of quality DJ's coming here for such a small town.

Of course there are occasions where a trip to Sydney is necessary (utopia, BDO). But otherwise i think Canberra has a great atmosphere, and i agree with you that canberra people tend to be more friendly. Who hasn't gone out for a night, gotten pretty drunk and made friends with some other, equally drunk person??? I know i have many times.

[chris fresh]

Ful Sik Trippa,

if you're after deep tribal progressive then i suggest you come to State - friday july 13. you won't be dissapointed.

cheers
chris

[bennybee]

Canberra iz nice. Yes. But its very strengths are its very weaknesses. Habana does a fabo job but lordy almighty i get sick of going there. It was nice lots of people from sydney were there as it meant some new faces. um what else. Oh yeah it would be good if we had a proper club with more than one room. The 'new' chill area in Habana made me laff. It looked like it was a converted broom cupboard.

Still habana is all we got. and its nice.

um i'm babbling now. boi

bebe

[Disco_Stu]

Where did they manage to fit a chill out room in??? I can't think of anywhere it could go.

[Lee Lee]

I think that they both have their positives. I went to sydney a sydney club for a ordinary club night on Friday and while it was good it does make you realise that Canberra is pretty good. I love in Canberra how I can go and see a world reknowned DJ and have alot of room to dance, talk to him afterward without having to have a VIP pass and the like. The thing I love about Sydney though is the anonymity. There is such a hierachy in Canberra and it sucks. People consider promoters and DJs gods which is cool as they do input alot to our scene. What annoys me is that people will go about trying to get to know these people for status. I would prefer to hang out with someone for who they are and not what they are, but my experience in Canberra is that there are alot of "ladder climbers" as I like to call them, who go out of their way to suck ass. So I think that both are good. Definitly going up to Sydney on the weekend has made me realise how lucky we are here though.

[bennybee]

the "chill out room" is between the girls and guys toliets near the bar. It very little.

But i guess its sompin new.

bebe

[Disco_Stu]

Christ, that must be tiny!!! At least they are trying to improve the club i suppose

[ful_sik_trippa]

<b>Chris:</b>

When u played <i>DBD</i> by <i>Dan Robins</i>, it totally melted my brain!! If State is gonna be anything like that then count me in....

that was you who played that track right?? (brain still not too good)

:tripping:

[moose]

chill room's been there for a while...they just dont always open it.... probably only opens when the place is jammed packed like on friday

[One_Twisted_1]

Well I have only been to Canberra Once and from what i experienced i think you got a great scene down there. I was there for Lawler and the Local Dj's on the night were great. The people were friendsly down there i made heaps of new friends and i hope to go down there on a normal night not for an event and see what it's like.

[chris fresh]

yeppo - that was me. brain melting was just the effect i was after too!!! :)

state is actually mostly deeper, nastier and darker than the lawler night too..so be prepared.

l8r
cf

[The Cat]

sorry peeps

canberra sux and there aint nuttin u can do about it. i have spent at least a month of weekends there for uni stuff over the last couple of years and i have not seen a good night out there yet. although i aint been to this habana place you are all going on about yet - c'mon, 1 club in the whole town worth going to?

the verdict from 99.63% of sydneysiders is that canberra is dead.

[tomic]

and you're tryin to tell me sydney is a better place to live? thats a funny one...

-tomic

[Bubbles]

OK, I am probably a good person to give evidence about this one, cause i used to live in canberra, and now in sydney.

firstly, canberra only rocks if you live there. I think that's WHY it rocks. It's a little, tight knit community, where everyone is everyone's friends' brother's girlfriend's cousin (or something along those lines).

Only the people in canberra know where is good to go on a saturday night, and only people in canberra know how to make it a good night.

Certain people go to certain places in canberra, but two of the GREATEST things about the nightlife in the ACT are:
1) You NEVER EVER pay more than $10 to get in anywhere (that's more money to spend on other fun stuff!)
2) If you don't like the vibe/people/music in one place, then you can just walk around the corner to somewhere else. Who hasn't had a night of 'club hopping'?!

I have to make the point again that people in canberra are just SO nice. No one will ever care about what you say, or what you wear, or what music/DJ you like.

There are more drunk people in canberra. And how funny are they?!

After spending a whole year in sydney last year, going back to canberra in the summer holidays was great. I had some of the best nights of my life that summer. Somehow, insomnia was better than home or china white in sydney.

I don't suppose that many people will realise these things about canberra, but it's not until you move away that you realise that the 'national dump' will always have a special little place in your heart, and you will want to go back there in the future (even just to visit).

Look, so long as you have your friends around you, it doesn't really matter where you are. You could be in Goulbourn or Young. You'd still make the most of it and have a great night out.

[The Cat]

let me get this straight. canberra is:

a) close knit cos cos there is noone there
b) cheap (very cheap indeed)
c) a haven for drunks, but they're funny so thats ok
d) a 'national dump'
e) 'a special little place in your heart'
f) kinda like Goulbourn or Young in terms of nightlife

no wonder youth suicide rates are so high.

[Slicky]

Hmm... some random thoughts from another Canberra punter.

a) I think how good Canberra is can vary a great deal depending on what exactly you're into. Sydney probably hold the upper hand for punters who have particular tastes, since there's so much going on there.

b) We are friendly. I can vouch for that. I agree that there are a lot of arrogant posers in Sydney. Utopia is full of these plastic pretenders.

c) I think for the size of Canberra our CLUB scene is fairly lively. We're lucky to have what diversity and events we have. Lack a of a decent venue for big events is a bitch. UC was the best we had so far, except for the heat upstairs and the nightmare it probably was for Chris with all the people turning up and loitering outside. Maybe not a direct pain, but I'm sure the powers that be were skittish about what MIGHT be happening out there. (And probably was.) ANU sucks. I can't stand that place. (*rattle rattle*)

d) Good regular crowd. It's not like you know everyone, but you remember the people who are always up for the big nights.

e) It'd be nice to see a semi-big not quite a superclub and, not trying to be a superclub, club. Heh. Something bigger and flashier than any of the pissy little itty things we have. C'mon, Habana's a shoebox. I want more space. And I want a dirtier, dingier club. (Like Heaven!)

f) We get some DJs n acts into this town that we really are @!#$ lucky to get. Ferry Corsten, BT, Fergie (!), Binary Finary. It's good stuff. Now if only we could get PvD... heh, shame he's booked like a 2 dollar slut and probably costs, geez, at least 20k to get in.

Ummm, I think that's aboot it. All up, we're lucky to have what we've got ( We're even getting a nod on the Gatecrasher tour, which surprised me at least, and it's set for a Saturday night, no less. ) but I think we deserve every bit of it. There may not be a lot of us, but the few of us are classy, fun people.

Besides, if there's anything worth seeing in Sydney we can drive there. We don't need to see any Syd DJs... ours are better. Heh, just look at the can o whupass Chris and Arch opened up on Dynamix and Fenix at Clash. Wooo fuk that was good.

This post is much longer than intended. Sorry people.

-Slicky

[muzik_response]

yo went for my first 'non' school excursion trip to the national dump to see lawler.............. and, i was pleasantly surprised! now lets get this straight canberra clubbing v sydney clubbing doesnt compare FULL STOP. head out to mark dynamix, shamus, pee wee/john ferris et al at the greenwood for sounds on sunday to see what i mean. unfortunately in my opinion the djs just dont rate. theyre good, just not up there with likes of the aforemnetioned sydney disk jockeys.... throw in others such as bexta, kid kenobi, jonathon wall, nervous, etc etc etc... your guaranteed an awesome dj pretty much anywhere you go out in sydney.

i dont think ppl are heaps snobby in sydney. it depends where you go. yeah at kinkidisco/china white etc theres a few snobs. but not that many... i dunno, i never seem to run into that many. i just go to where the music is best and the crowd always seems to be cool there..... like at habanna in canberra.

LAWLER@HABANNA
venue: pretty cool.
lighting/visuals: sucked ass...
crowd: cool, friendly. however one blow up at the raiders front row who kept on barging up the front near the DJ. i kept on gettting shunted backwards to the rear of the crowd....
sound: not kick ass, but i thought it was cool, especially as my ears are fucked these days.

went out again on sat night in canb civic... @!#$ it was funny. like schoolies week!!! couldnt get over how many ppl were on the streets. the music absolutely sucked ass everywhere, except for shooters, but nobody was there so that sucked too. funny to see 50% of people SHATTERED DRUNK (havent seen that many fights in a while...) and 50% PILLING HARD... hehehe they all walk around suckin on lollipops... like with a sign on there heads... cool, but funny! must say had an awesome time though just cause everone was out, lovin it, up for it and everywhere was packed. will be back, but on tour only...

SYDNEY, unfortunately for you canberrans, is WAAAAAAAAAYYYY better.

seeyas
muzik.

[Sir Pimpsalot]

word up raider-peeps,

i have read how fiercely u guard the reputation of your nightlife, but i must say (from experience) that it is seriously lacking. one of the common themes in the above posts is that it is easy to have a good time out with your friends in canberra - of course it is. if you are surrounded by a group of mates who wanna get smashed and have a good time (and it seems getting smashed is the thing to do in canberra) it is easy. it would be easy to do so in sarajevo, but that doesnt make the nightlife any better, it just makes the beer/pills/weed effective.

as an aside there is this place MANUKA that looks as if it should be pronounced manooka, but people call it marnika. wtf is up with that?

anyway. it seems that idf you dont mind what sort of music u listen to, there are heaps of places to go to, but if you are more discerning u could be in trouble. i think this is a serious problem. in sydney it doesnt matter what u r into, be it house, techno, trance, hip-hop, breaks, funk, etc, etc, there will be an awesome club geared totally to your taste inhabited by people of similar persuasion. such an environment inevitably leads to the progression of the different genres of music due to the everyday punter's exposure to 'the latest thing'. in canberra, from what i can gather, everything is inherited from sydney ... or designed to cater to the widest possible tastes (which is where u get problems with commercialism).

as an aside, slicky said above: "We don't need to see any Syd DJs ... ours are better. just look at the can o whupass Chris and Arch opened up on Dynamix and Fenix at Clash." if u say dynamix and fenix are representative of the cream of sydneys DJs, i will have to slit your throat and burn your corpse. those names are synonymous with cheese and awful mixing.

anyways later peeps

Sir P.

[muzik_response]

fenix = crap totally agreed.

BUT mark dynamix is probably the best dj in sydney at the moment. he headlines EVERYWHERE he plays. eg greenwoods 2nd birthday practically all of sydneys best djs played there (from memory: kid kenobi, nik fish, bexta, pee wee/john ferris, jonathon wall, craig obey, jumping jack, the jackal, shamus, andy van... and more...) guess who headlined at the end in the courtyard.... you got it MARK DYNAMIX.

hes awesome dude. i seriously suggest you have a rethink on the 'poor remixing skills' call. you mightened like the music... fair enough but you cant say the mixing is bad.... @!#$ no.

[Sir Pimpsalot]

just cos he headlines dont make him any good - same thing goes for kid kenobi (ooooh .... controversy). in my experience headliners are invariably shown up by the unknowns, as the unknown have something to prove and are not resting on their laurels.

i myself am a (anonymous) club dj in sydney, and from the perspective of being a dj those 2 guys suck. sure, they play the tunes that the crowd want to hear, but next time u see them check out the mixing. there is a set mix that both of them do for EVERY FUCKING MIX.

a) kill bass of track 2 (track mixing in) at beginning of mix
b) have a break, drink a beer or two
c) kill bass of track 1, to create tinny crappy noise
d) at end of big buildup or breakdown turn up bass on track 2
e) eventually get rid of track 1
f) wave hands in air cos i'm supergreg no.1

sometimes, they go without making the tinny noise part of it, but every mix is like that - and the punters dont realize cos all they hear is a big ass sound system going woof-woof when the bassline comes in. its predictable, boring and a pain in the ass that they get away with it. i dont know about dynamix, but i do know that kenobi has the skills not to have to do that, so as a paying customer i always feel cheated when i see him perform these days.

next time you see dynamix, watch what he does carefully and you will see what i mean.

[Slicky]

Nah, I didn't really mean to say the Fenix and Mak Dynamix were Sydney top pops. Still, our boys are good, and we love em.

Personally I don't like any of Australia's 'top' DJs. Like you allude to, their sets are often quite blandly mixed.

When you get right down to it, it's pretty obvious that Sydney Clubbing is more diverse, busier and generally of a higher standard. But let's not forget how much fukking BIGGER Sydney is. Sydney is more than 25 times the size of Canberra. We got guts for a little boring city, give us some credit.

Supah Greeeeg. Numbah 1.

- Slicky

[cancle]

I like Canberra(what choice do I have?) But, There are NO venues. Im impressed with how far habana has come for such a small club but We need decent venues for big events.

[cyZilla]

I'm a Canberra local but have made trips to syd and melb in the last few months, so here's a few comments on the above...

"Which is better, Sydney or Canberra?" is a pretty meaningless question cos they're just not in the same league. A closer question might be - which is better - Syd or Melb? Anyway.

Canb and Syd both have their strenghs though. Syd has the sheer numbers of punters to support a much bigger and so more diverse dance music scene. Simple as that. It is way more interesting. It can support super-club venues like Home. I went up for Sounds On Sunday 2nd birthday, that was an event and a venue that was streaks ahead of what Canberra can put on on a regular basis. Damn it was good!!!

Canberra... well... its nice cos its _our_ little town. You can know just about everyone. And I think this reinforces why people are nice and friendly down here - if you're a fuckwit, pretty soon everyone in the dance (ie... Habana, plus a bit here and there) scene will know about it. And the promoters down here seem to work their asses off and have the right connections. How else can you explain us getting events and DJs like Gatecrasher, Lawler, Binary Finary, Adam Freeland in the last 6 months alone to our country town. Go you plucky little Canberra scene! And like someone above said... what are the chances I could have just wandered up and chatted to Steve Lawler and got a few photos if I was in Syd??

In a nutshell: Canberra is OK, you can live in it, but its like bread and water sometimes. You need to spice it up and go shake your ass in the big smoke every once in a while.

And also its true what Bubbles said up top: Canberra people DO dance better :) I think Sydney ppl spend all their time squished together waving their arms about.
They don't understand the Canberra(water) or Melbourne(talc) slippyshuffles, thats fer sure...

[Bubbles]

Canberra is good, but i have to say that i couldn't go out every weekend and not get completely bored with the nightlife. I agree, Sydney has great clubs and great DJ's.

However, I've lost track of the number of times i've been feeling really 'friendly', and turned to talk to the stranger next to me, only to get a look that says 'what the hell has this girl had?!'.
I don't like that, it's not nice. :(

So, a message for you all... BE NICE, and people will be nice back. Hug a random person on the dance floor (but please don't if you're all sweaty).

[Sir Pimpsalot]

just for future reference:

if you have had a pill or two and you think that giving a stranger a hug is a good idea ... just remember that you have had a pill or two and dont do it.

[Slicky]

Depends. Girls can usally get away with it.

Now, if a guy were to suddenly start hugging strange girls and boys, then we should think about it. Heh.

- Slicky

[muzik_response]

this is goin off track.... but its all good. hmmmmmmmmm sir pimpsalot, i like the way you have defended your coments in an analytical way. no blow ups or anything. and i must admit alot of the points you raised are quite interesting. tell ya what though, you seem a pretty harsh judge.

now i aint no underground dj, but i'll tell ya this, EVERYONE knows that its not just mixing that makes a good dj, its track selection aswell. you say these guys only play the tracks everyone wants to hear.... ???? :? :? ???? so would you prefer them to play the tracks we didnt wanna hear? every time these guys play the place invariably goes off. i cant comment on their mixing skills too much and there weaknesses maybe, as you say, disguised by a kick ass sound system. everytime ive seen these guys, which is quite a few times, ive had no probs with their mixing. i think you maybe too much of a conousiour. if you want to hear creative and innovative mixing than maybe some scratch/hip hop events might be the place for you to go. dont wanna sound like your mother r anything... awwww yeah another thing, kid kenobi is pretty much at the forefront of the sydney breakbeat scene..... (isnt breakbeat pretty much one of the MOST innovative in terms of mixing skills; out of the dance/electronic mucic genres?) some of the stuff ive seen him do has been pretty amazing...

[trouble]

This whole topic is pretty pointless. Like Cy and others said, there really isn't much common ground between clubbing in Canberra and clubbing in Sydney. Lucky for us, we can get the best of both worlds just by driving for 3 hours.

You might as well compare New York to Dog's Dags, Arkansas, or London to Hairy Bollocks, Oxfordshire. Not that I'm saying Canberra is dog's dags, but my point is that the two are completely different.

I've had awesome nights and terrible nights in both cities. Both have heaps to offer and heaps of drawbacks. Why not just enjoy the best of both?

PS ful_sik_trippa, the last State was the best night I've had out in Canberra since Heaven closed. I won't be missing the next one!

[ful_sik_trippa]

I agree that hugging can be good, but not if the other person doesnt want to.....that being said....

At lawler, at my most choppedest, huggingest point, i hugged one of my mates who hates it. He bet me that if I hugged the next person to walk past, he would give me $10. I says ok cause i was feeling so great. Needless to say, some guy walks past who i just have to give a great big bear hug. He didnt really like it much, but i looked at him with that "ooops, ive got the wrong person" type of look. I figure it was worth the $10 to see the guys horrified face! (im not gay BTW).

As for State, ill be there with bells on (bring on the uni holidays and 3 weeks of fun for all!)

8)

[Pierced]

> Depends. Girls can usally get away with it.

> Now, if a guy were to suddenly start hugging strange girls and boys, then we
> should think about it. Heh.

> - Slicky

Oh I don't know... quite a few of the Habana boys and girls would know me as that strange guy who floats around giving random people massages, hugs etc... I got told at Bexta the other night that my hand massages were becoming famous, I give so many during a night. The Canberra crowd is just so relaxed and friendly you can get away with it :) I think that everybody I talk too knows that I am just there for fun, and trying to make others nights as good as possible. So if you see me around, feel free to come up and get a good guilt free hug/massage!

Pierced.

[MercurialRythym]

sadly i will be interState for State - always up for some deep and nasty - how often is State likely to be scheduled?

cheers
Mercurial Rythym

[Dusty]

I think I posted my last forum message in the wrong stream!
Please refer to my msg on the beXta stream for my thoughts on this topic.

I also wanted to say I completely agree with bubbles about you don't realise how much you love Canberra until you leave it. I came back for beXta and had an AMAZING night, it was great meeting up with old and new friends.

The Cat is a perfect example of whats wrong with Sydney people. Need I say more?

But like I said inn my beXta post, Canberra need to experiment more with different vibes instead of following Sydneys taste. Last night I saw beXta who played a very nice NRG set which I liked better than her set in Canb, but I have to say the highlight of my night would be one of the locals who I saw play a morning set - Hellraiser. This kid is amazing, the stuff he plays is a new genre in itself, it could best be decribed as 'dark trance.' It was very hard, deep and banging with some nice melodic interludes, it is the closest thing you can get to goth/industrial but still with a classic trance feel to it.
It just goes to show that with enough influences, new and fresh sounds can be created and I feel this is just what the Canberra scene needs.

[Jaanos]

I lived in canberra until feb this year, now i'm in sydney.

sydney has one thing, and one thing only over canberra:

VARIETY.

personally, people are pretty friendly, not as much as canberrans, but not snobs like in melbourne either.

still, being able to chose between so many different events is god, but it's simpley a matter of economic scale (350,000 ppl vs 3.5mil ppl) if sydney had the intensity of canberra.... i'd never get any study done!

Jaanos

[stylustrouble]

if you think syndney is snobby and rude you should try NYC sometime.

[skywalker]

quit ya whining and accept that Sydney is always gonna have a better scene

[muzik_response]

yeah

[Sir Pimpsalot]

two times

[mikel]

Hey everybody,

Mikel DJ Fenix here, just read through this entire forum thread, phew what an effort. To the guys/girls saying me and Dynamix are cheesy bad mixing dj's, well I might be hahahahahah, but Mark is one of the best DJ's I have ever seen, and guys I've been around for 14 years. . I've seen a lot!

I think Canberra is a farkin awesome place to play, i actually enjoy playing there more than Sydney, cause the Canberra crew are so more into it. It's not hard to get the Canberra guys and girls revved up. In Sydney, you almost need to smack 'em up side there head with a shovel to get them going.

As for Archie whoopin my arse at the last in Canberra, I can't agree more, that boy be on the "mixin-roids" I swear to God!!! He is just too damn good for me, but for our next Canberra mission, I'll be bringing some tranquilisers in my box and while he's not looking, jab on the butt cheek, might give me more a chance hahahah

Anyway, have a top weekend, and everyone stay happy alright


Mikel Fenix

[Sir Pimpsalot]

"fenix = crap totally agreed."
- quote from muzik response above.

strange that fenix feels he needs to reply to this thread. reading some of it must have hurt. sorry bro, but u suck.

[mikel]

To Sir Pimpsalot,

nah man nothing "said on the net" hurts me. I can dig that people don't like what I play or even for that matter who I am. It's strange because it seems the people that say "Fenix sucks" have never met me, have no idea what sort of person I am, or even what I look like. The response comes because these people don't like the music I play, and if that is case would it not be more precise to say "the music FENIX plays SUCKS"?

I always wonder how a logical and balanced person could possibly decide that they don't like a DJ "personally" becasue of the music he/she plays. It's really quite immature and "simple minded".

That's not to say that you are immature or simple minded, just that you have no real reason to dislike me as a person. I mean if I had "done you wrong" somehow, other than playing some records you didn't like, then the "Fenix sucks" things would be more reasonably, but to come up with that conclusino is really quite pathetic.

Anyway, you are one person in millions. I've always said, I can't please everyone, and there will always be people who simply don't like me, for whatever reason, reasonable or not. That's not for me to try and change. I am happy with what I do, where I am in life, and the people I am surrounded by.

Cheers

Mikel Fenix

[bennybee]

nice post fenix. i've never heard your music. But i agree if your going to criticise someone be critical (ie identify what you don't like, say why, explain), don't just be insulting. hurling insults just reflects badly on thineself.

bb

[Sir Pimpsalot]

you take it a bit too seriously dude. this is a forum for music appreciation and criticism. it is a given that if i say that u suck, i am talking about dj fenix, not mikel. how many times have u listened to a dj and thought "this guy sux ass"? u dont care if he is mother theresa or charlie manson, because your exposure to him has been aural, not social.

i think u could be a bit too sensitive if u think what i wrote was a personal condemnation. i wrote "u suck", because it doesnt take as long as writing "the music you play sux". but that's not really what i meant cos i think your mixing sux ass too.

[Will Styles]

Sir Pimp,

When have you ever been concerned about being concise? Half the length of this thread is taken up by your comments.

Next time any of you see Ajax play, spend 10 minutes watching the crossfader and then send me a mail in reference to skills.

[Sir Pimpsalot]

what does ajax have to do with this, mr will-i-um?

[mrfunky]

Pimps...and anyone else who likes a slagging fight

Dude - lighten up. Just because a DJ doesn't play the music you want to hear, doesn't mean that they suck. One man's...ah, forget it. Look, you're a DJ yourself right (you said this in an earlier post)? How hard have you worked to get where you are?

Like most DJs you probably spent a fair bit of time behind the decks practising, put a considerable amount of dough into vinyl/cds/equipment, and tried to pull as many favours to land a break (or maybe you got lucky). Who knows?

Anyway, I'm sure people like Mikel and Mark Dynamix have had similar starts and becuase of a bit of hard work have achieved success. Well, don't slag them off becuase of it. If you don't like their style, or think that they might not be up to your high standards then good for you. Tell your friends. Tell your neighbours. But putting your opinions on a message board means that your argument/opinion will be replied to (and in many cases, shot down). Importantly, your anonimity means that Mark and Mikel don't have the chance to see how you play (or form a base opinion like you have of them, which I'm sure they're far too mature to do). So try to keep your foot out of your mouth before you start slagging a fellow DJ.

Peace kids.

Mr Funky - ITM Canberra

[sensei]

you can't possibly tell me that mark dynamix is a good dj, you may have heard him on the radio show and seen him on the tv show but i have also seen pokemon on tv, that does not make it good. the main crowd that dynamix and fenixxxx play to are 14 or under, or stupid. i think their success is due to them and they have worked hard for it but i also believe it to be misdirected as they play catchy catchy catchy choons which people don't love long time - "don't believe the hype" - they are not solid dj's and their only following is only false hope for the fans. why do they not have any GOOD releases that you listen to repeatedly after "14 years" - strange. I have many cd's that i and all of my friends listen to repeatedly but quality releases such as dynamixxx's "ANTHEMS" don't endure the test of time. i also make mention of vegas' central nervous system and more specifically the more reputed cnsII - "the brain" which sucked, many of the tracks off that I have heard dynamix play live, but not any mo' - why don't these dj's play some of the same tracks from back in '96 you know, like rob gee's "ecstassy" - again, strange. luckily i can explain all of this, club culture - silly people taking lots of drugs that they can't handle and loving it because they don't understand it - woo hoo! this pill is wicked! yeah! I still like most of the music that i back in '96, does dynamix?? does fenix?? or is he too busy tagging and talking to 14 year olds at powerhouse parties (which i would recommend to any pre-teens but no-one else). realise.

p.s. transcience in music is a phenomena to be evaded. aforementioned dj's thrive from the latest thing, while the art they purport to represent suffers.

[Sir Pimpsalot]

mr funky

is there a problem that my argument can be replied to and shot down? isnt that the aim of the game? if i was talking to my friends and neighbours about these djs, they would not have the opportunity to reply, like fenix has done here. personally, i dont like his mixing or track selection, and have a right to espouse these opinions on a website geared to cater for public debate on this very topic (or a FORUM if u like). as for anonymity, MR FUNKY, i have an equal right to guard that fiercely. mikel chose to give his up, but this anonymity ensures people can speak their minds without fear of retribution. what would u have me do?

u should have a hard think about the aims and effects of the site you are (presumably) involved in before you start telling people to keep quiet.

"So try to keep your foot out of your mouth before you start slagging a fellow DJ." Nice.

[Fimble]

I'm just going to wave my 'I like Fenix!' banner. Peeps seem to be giving the man some biz and it ain't fair!

Can't wait for you to bring your box o tunes down here for Kevin Energy @ Habana Fenix! Tis gonna be a 'ard 'ard bangin' nite.

Meanwhile, I keep scratching my head why THIS thread is still the most recently updated. =)

Party on Wayne...

SPYKE!
Fimble

[mrfunky]

Pimps,

Touche on the anonymity debacle, but since Fenix, or anybody else on these boards hasn't seen you DJ, it means we don't have the chance to rate your skills. What a pity. What clubs have you played at?

Sure it's a forum, and sure you have the right to an opinion, but saying a DJ 'sucks' shows a low brow criticism that offers no insight into any possible flaws in a DJ's style, or how you think he could improve. Ah, so you don't like his track selection and mixing you say? That's much better.

At the end of the day, Fenix seems to either be playing music that you don't particularly like, or simply isn't up to your 'standards'. Fine. Personally, Fenix is a top bloke who gives his all into parties and his sets. I haven't heard a bad word about him from fellow DJ's (apart from you Pimps). Anytime I've seen Fenix play at parties/clubs, the crowd seems to have enjoyed it and left the dancefloor with a smile on their faces. Isn't that what all DJ's aim to do?

If you want to keep this discussion going, then e-mail me at the addy above. But I think this thread has pretty much deteriorated into a slanging session that cannot be resolved. Let's end it here and now.

Mr Funky (Canberra ITM Editor)

[Sir Pimpsalot]

fenix sux

[Cee Cee]

if you really want to see the two finest deep house DJ's in Canberra groove on down to Lot 33 in kingston where Dylan Evans and Ashley Feraude grace us on both friday nites from 10 till close (about 3am) and sat from 10 till 12am. it is a laid back comfory club where you get to hear two amazing DJ's work there magic

[Cee Cee]

well after reading all that and being an ex-canberra girlie who was a youngen in the scene in canberra and who still struggles to get a weekend off up here in sydney i have to say there are pros and cons to both cities. with out a doubt in my mind before heaven closed down Canb kicked arse over the big S (it had a unique atmosphere that will never be mimiked, but we all know all good things must come to an end and so it will always hold so many fond memeories). but now i have to addmitt, there is never a dull nite in Sydney. i tried to stop clubbing so now i only going to big events and Sounds. well with out fail there has been a big event every weekend for the last year, so so much for the weekend off. but when Canberra does have a good line up on, it is so amazing to come home and get amungst it.

so here's my two scents, if you don't like Canberra then don't enter the city because it does not deserve your negativity, and if you live in Canberra then go out and explore it, find a place(s) where you like and get into it, support your fave DJ's and open your mind to the other talent. because what i can say is there is soo much talent in Canberra just waiting for you to appriciate it. p.s. i really hope to be there for nubreed in two weeks time to get amungst the ppl of my home town. p.s. it is a known fact up here that every Canberra person i have met clubbing is an absolute legend and there is something about us Canberra folk that draws us together no matter where we are

[lil_jazz]

Kind Sir - ya'll need to lighten up bro. :p (hehe!)

In response to the original post - I lived in Canberra for 3 years whilst at Uni and have lived in Sydney for the last 4 so I have a pretty good idea about both scenes.

<i>1) Canberra people are SO friendly. </i>

Not necessarily. It depends on where you go and what kind of state that you're in. Honestly if you walked up to me in either Sydney, Canberra or the on the moon gurning off your face and wanted to chat I'd probably give you about 10 seconds of my time and walk away. However if you're bright, bubbly and friendly I'll give you the time of day. A smile often goes a long way.

<i>2) Canberra clubs are intimate. </i>

So are some of the Sydney clubs. Like Globe (go FunkTrust!), Club 77, Tantra, Gas... I could keep going. But for bigger name dj's Sydney is always going to require larger venues because we have more <i>people living here, hence the dj's pull a larger crowd. </i> Elemantary really Watson. :)

<i>3) Everyone knows everyone in canberra. </i>

To a certain extent you'll find the same thing in the Sydney scene. After living here for years I know a tonne of people (in fact quite easily in excess of a couple of hundred). I feel comfortable going to most clubs or bars that are regular haunts knowing that the chances of running into somebody I know are pretty high. But it's all about what you're comfortable with really isn't it?

<i>4) Although Canberra has VERY FEW clubs, the one(s?) that they do have are really good. </i>

Define a club for me. The definitions are going to vary all over the place. Canberra has some very dodgy establishments that choose to call themselves clubs (or bars for that matter) - so does Sydney. I don't like the Sublime nights a whole lot in Sydney, and as for Canberra, I hate Lot 33. Too small, too narrow, not enough ventilation. Altho props for thinking of the idea.

Sydney has some absolutely awesome club nights - the old sat@ home rocked my world, Funk Trust @ Globe is awesome, M2M @ Gas is good when I get along to it (although the sound system is not the best). Canberra seems to have bigger "events" on a regular basis with the quality not necessarily being there week to week. That said though Danielson, Barrie Barton (altho now in Melbourne) and Chris Fresh absolutely rock.

5) Canberra people are better dancers.

Some of you - but you do all dance very similiar. There's a lot to be said for individuality - even if it bites. I know a large number of Sydney clubbers that can dance well - but at that end of the day who really cares who's the better dancer so long as you go out and have fun?

6) (similar to 3) On any given night in canberra, I can go out and see at least one person that i know.

See my response to 3. :p

I'll tell you one thing the Sydney scene has over Canberra that Canberra hasn't yet developed. When I go out in Canberra I find that the crowd is really varied. You're going to have your clubbers, mixed with your footyheads, mixed with your bikies. I personally don't like this kind of crowd - I prefer to go out where I know I'm not going to be hassled about anything (be it a guy trying to pick you up when u just want to dance and hang with your mates through to some idiot who doesn't like the way that you just looked at them when u were vaguely looking around at the crowd). Sydney definitely provides this. And the way in which the Canberra scene is growing it definitely will sometime in the near future.

Each scene has it's merits and it's drawbacks. Please lets not make it into a who's better or worse like the Sydney/ Melbourne debate, because at the end of the day - if you weren't missing something from your own scene you wouldn't check out others and vice versa for Sydney.

:-)

<i> I don't think I've ever used the word 'scene' so much in one post... :p </i>

[Sir Pimpsalot]

good work lil jazz. how long did that take to write? also, i love the FT plugs. LYW.

[lil_jazz]

Jus keepin it real Kind Sir. ;)

[krafty_x]

Sydney is one of the friendliest happiest perty cities in the world.
I'm not from Sydey originally but I came here and havn't been able to leave.
The people are the BEST.
The city is the BEST.
The music is the BEST.
Can't promote you enough Sydney.
You rock my world.

I dare anyone to take the challenge to come out with me and not have a good time here..... err....

krafty_gets back in her box now_x oxo

PS. of couse I'm biased

[Marky]

When Heaven was at the top of the Clubbing Hierachy in Canberra, many people used to whinge about it. And the biggest whinge was without doubt that is was dirty and dingy. And now that it is gone, replaced by the "slicker" styles of Lot 33 and Habana, we have comments like this:

> And I want a dirtier, dingier club. (Like Heaven!)

I find that funny. I wonder how many of the people who used to whinge about Heaven being a dive are now whinging about Habana or Lot for being too "stylish".

[Fimble]

Hehehe, and you had to use ME as an example didn't you Marky? =)

It was actually me who said "And I want a dirtier, dingier club. (Like Heaven!)" under an old name and the funny thing about it is that I used to LOVE Heaven's dirtiness even when it was OPEN! It was the first thing I liked when I walked in. Hehehe.

Fimble

[Debz]

Hadnt been to Canberra for quite a while until some friends and myself decided to jump in a couple of cars and head down for Freestylers on Friday night.. spur of the moment thing.

Found them to play a lot differently as to what they did in Sydney, apart from when they started bustin into breaks ... it was all really breaks up in Sydney and in Canberra they played a lot more dance-club type stuff .. if thats what you could call the genre? *shrug*

Anyway, i had a really great time for the couple of hours i managed to be there for, and it was a little bit more spacious than the Sydney event... but i didnt find the atmosphere to be any different to Sydney's .. everyone is as friendly in Canberra as they are in Sydney ... lots of people dance the same... i found it wasnt as much of a General Pants-dressed crowd in Canberra tho as it was in Syd :P (I think with us having it at the Greenwood, an outdoor venue, and during daytime hours though, it was expected for the surfie-skater-bla bla whatever you wanna call it look... g.pants co stylez! you know what i mean.)

I just wanna know somethin though ... do you guys always have dead kangaroos lyin around on the roads in the city of canberra? weird @!#$. I was so shocked by seeing this!! So now when american tourists ask me "do kangaroos like, hop around in the city in australia" i can say "yeah, in canberra they do!" (with the exception of roadkill) .. ergh.

All round a nice/strange trip to canberra which made my weekend a little different to what it usually is... thanks to lee for his hospitality again also, and all the funksters that came along =)

.... 1 2 1 2 .... sydney crew ;)

[bennybee]

Habana = Stylish?

ermmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

[skywalker]

hahaha debz......be thankful it didnt have wickys face on it

ROFLMAO

SKY.....whyisthispoststillgoing

[Marky]

bennybee

habana stlyish comparatively speaking. Walk in the front door and look across the loungey chill area, and tell me that isn't a touch more stylish then a the dirty blackness of Heaven?

[bennybee]

maybe. I'm pretty down on habana at the moment. I think it looks like a scout hall or a school disco. at least it was dark at heaven you couldn't see how dirty it was :-)

i like the dark