Volar solidified its reputation as Hong Kong’s top club for cutting-edge d.j. / performers by hosting French dynamic duo Justice, and Ed Banger label owner Busy P on Friday night.

Volar vs. Dragon-i

Competition in club-land is a good thing for music lovers. Volar has recently carved out a successful niche. While Dragon-i brings classic d.j. / producers such as the legends, Little Louie Vega and D.J. Jazzy Jeff, Volar has differentiated themselves by bringing the most up-to-date d.j. acts around. In the past year they have brought forth a smorgasbord of new talents. (more…)

The CLOT third anniversary is swiftly approaching! Rumor has it that the special guest d.j. is one of the hottest global d.j. / producers around. If the info is indeed true, I’m extremely excited since this will be his first time performing in Hong Kong. CLOT’s previous events have historically been my favorite parties of the year, and I expect the third anniversary to be equally amazing!

The past year for CLOT has been a milestone with several huge achievements. In addition to tens of high profile collaborations (such as LEVIS, and EA,) there’s been the Kanye West concert, the wildly successful launch of the CLOT Nike sneakers, and the CLOT clothing line - Alienegra, not to mention all of the action with Soleciety in Shanghai.

Congratulations Edison, Kevin, Pavlos and Billy - here’s to another year of taking giant steps forward! (p.s. I’ll leave the beer-bong home this year!)

Stay tuned for coverage!

Dragon-i, Hong Kong’s top venue for international d.j.s has been in overdrive recently with a constant stream of big musical acts. In addition to D.J.s, last week featured Ultra Nate, one of the premier voices in club music.

Last night, L.A. based four-turntable duo Haul and Mason returned to Dragon-i for their second performance in Hong Kong. Their set featured elaborate mixes of classic West Coast Hip Hop in addition to mainstream Hip-Pop classics. The intricate sound collages were perhaps lost on most listeners who were too busy dancing!

Last week D.J. Disciple, a top house d.j. also graced the club. Coming up on May 12th is the return of Joe Causell who played a spectacular set at Dragon-i last year.

Glow sticks? Check. Lollipops? Check. Saturday night, D.J. Dan and D.J. Falcon - who is associated with Daft Punk, swooped into Hong Kong for what most people referred to as a ‘rave party’.

I’m o.k. with defining it as a rave as long as it meets the following criteria: it’s a large event held outside of a club; the event is centered around uptempo dance music provided by a d.j.; and lastly, it’s held at a location not originally built for the purpose of holding a party.

On the night of the rave I received a text message from my friend notifying me that the venue had changed from the Exhibition Center in Wanchai to Western Market in Sheung Wan. Western Market is actually one of the very few large old buildings left in Hong Kong. Occasionally used for fashion events such as the infamous Agent Provocateur show, it’s got a huge three-story beamed ceiling, brick walls (a real rarity in H.K.,) and wrought-iron balconies that surround three-quarters of the top floor.

When I arrived at around 2 am, the music was a little on the low side - no doubt because the police had just paid a visit. Despite the lack of volume, the crowd was hyped and the party was in full swing. I’d say there were nearly 700 people in attendance and the combination of music, lights, and crowd energy in the old space was perfect.

Bisected by an old escalator, the main dance-floor forms a ‘U’ shape. The d.j. was perched up one story above, playing from the balcony. Older fixtures, such as the lamp posts sprinkled about, added to the historical ambience of the venue.

Hong Kong had a huge, flourishing rave scene in the late 90’s. It was deftly captured by a magazine called Absolute that chronicled the scene in photos and words. (more…)

Christmas came early for House music lovers in Hong Kong as famed D.J. and producer Little Louie Vega graced Dragon-i with his second appearance at the top club.

I arrived at Dragon-i early even though Louie Vega is known for his marathon sets. Last time he was here he ended up d.j.ing into the early morning hours, and at 5 am, ate a salad while playing! I was curious how he would begin his set this time…

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After checking out the band show on Friday night, I hopped into a taxi and headed up to The Peak, Hong Kong’s most famous scenic spot. The newly renovated Peak Tower was the site for Electronic Art’s event - a launch party for the new EA showroom and store.

CLOT, the multifaceted branding crew were the organizers of the event. EA certainly chose the right partner to handle the party. CLOT has been on a rampage lately, with projects ranging from launching a much sought after shoe with Nike to bringing Kanye West to perform in Hong Kong at the end of the month. The thing I like about CLOT is that they have vision and put their connections to good use. More than that, their events are always fun. It’s a win-win situation, people attending their events go away with a good time and sponsors are happy (well, except for time we were drinking Moet in the beer bong, but that’s another story!)

When I got to the Peak Tower the place was bathed in spot lights with a large marquee set up near the entrance. The building itself is interesting. It’s shaped like a partial elipse.

Over the last year, the place has been completely redone, making room for more new shops, including the EA store. The Peak Tower also houses the terminal for the Peak Tram, a main tourist attraction that takes you straight up the steep hillside. On the large rooftop of the Peak Tower is an observation deck that offers amazing views of the city. I didn’t know it at the time, but the party was located on the newly renovated roof!

After walking into the building, I took several escalators up to the rooftop. On the way up, I passed by the new EA store which was intriguing. Occupying two floors, it has an atrium-like wall of lights and around thirty gaming stations where visitors can sit and try out the latest EA titles. The place is divided into sub-sections which makes it more exciting to walk around and explore.

The renovated rooftop was much better than before. The entire roof is now accessible, as opposed to only half under the old design. Installed around the lengthy space are high-powered binoculars allowing tourists to focus in on the buildings below. For the night, the rooftop was also sprinkled with XBox 360’s outfitted with EA games. The space was divided into two sections, a VIP area and a normal side. Although a little hazy out, the view from the roof was spectacular. Click these thumbnails to see a bigger view.

The night’s decorations weren’t limited to the immediate grounds. Residents of The Peak, Hong Kong’s wealthiest address (and one of the most affluent neighborhoods in the world) were in for a shock as they returned home from dinner to find a huge logo of the branding group CLOT projected onto their mountainside! Actually, the light alternated between the EA logo and the CLOT symbol. One word: impressive!

Hong Kong’s famous D.J. Tommy was the first act of the night, spinning from an elevated platform just above a huge screen showing clips from different EA games. Later in the night N.Y.’s Just Blaze, one of the top producers in Hip Hop music would take over the decks. This would make Just Blaze’s third appearance in Hong Kong in the last year. He’s been here previously for the CLOT anniversary party and for a Diesel event as well.

The party was packed by eleven. Bottles of Moet and Hennessy were everywhere. It was a tough night to not indulge!

Towards the end of the night I went downstairs for a closer look at the EA shop. There were groups of people hanging out playing the games.

The police put an end to music on the rooftop, so the party eventually moved downstairs to the EA store. During the transition I had a chance to talk with Just Blaze about the old days of N.Y. Hip Hop radio - and he actually burned me a CD of a long lost show! I hope I can repay his generosity some day.

The Electronic Arts event was yet another in a string of memorable parties by CLOT. Despite all the planning, the CLOT events wouldn’t be a success without this guy, codename: Cobra, he even smiled for the photo!

D.J. John Acquaviva recently passed through town and played at Volar. His choice of songs were solid, but the beat was almost too constant during his set. There were no highs and no lows in the songs. It was almost the opposite of the recent set by Joachim Garraud, where each song had a discernible, party-rockin’ climax. Although the music was good, it didn’t work the crowd into much of a frenzy because there was little build up within the songs. His mixing however was impeccable.

Actually, it’s hard to compare Joachim Garraud with other d.j.s because, unlike most people, he is playing instruments on top of the music he is spinning. As far as entertainment value, it does add a tremendous amount to see the d.j. actually doing something physical, rather than just standing in back of a laptop or mixer. Another fact to consider though is that a d.j. like John Acquaviva is mixing completely live, whereas Joachim Garraud may be playing a pre-set routine.

On Saturday, January 7th, D.J. Gregory from Paris is going to return to Dragon-i. He played here last year at Kee Club on the weekend and then played another set at Dragon-i on a Monday or Tuesday night. Despite it being early in the week, he had the place jumping. D.J. Gregory played all sorts of classics, and was really into it, even though it was a smaller crowd than his weekend gig. With all the positive word-of-mouth from last year, it should be crowded this time!