Barcelona: Sammy Jo's Ai Caramba Adventure!

aaah, I didn't get to say good-bye. boo hoo!
Hope u settle in , I think its going to be a really great trip for u!!
XRR

When you told me you were leaving I was jealous.
Now that I know you have a terrace...
I'M GREEN!$#@$%%^&^*!

Ok, so I think I'm finally beginning to feel at home here in BCN. I have to admit when I first arrived I was in a bit of a panic. Like "What the hell were you thinking?" kind of stuff. But I've managed to find my supermarket, my morning coffee and pastry place, and the nearest kfc so I'm much better. Friday night my friend Keyan asked to play a mini set at his friend's magazine party which was a blast. The magazine is a quaterly showcase of about 30 new artists. Amanda was the covergirl for this (their second) issue which seemed like a good omen to me. The space was just a tiny gallery off the Ramblas. Here's the invite...

After downing lots of free cava we stumbled over to a club called Metro which is kind of like a spanish SBNY, if more NYers went to SBNY. Although the music had greatly improved since the last time I had been there (Metro I mean). Along the way we managed to scoop up some Russian porn star who had everyone drooling. I'll try and find out his "name" so I can dig up pics. Very lucas of Bel Ami fame. Of course Keyan went home with him- sexual predator doesn't even begin to describe Keyan, and I love him dearly for it because he's consistent, and quite a looker. By 6am it was time to fall into a cab and attempt to pronounce my address to an unfortunate suspecting taxi driver. Overall, a good christening.

Saturday was spent regretting everything I did the night before. Well, not everything. I managed to convince myself that I was still jetlagged and the only way through it all was to remain either in bed or on the couch.

My bed...

My couch...

Whoa, sorry about the size of those pics. I'll try and reduce future ones. So that brings us to today, Sunday. I'm sorry I don't have much exciting news to report. That's going to happen a lot here. I'm just trying to make sure I have some sort of account of this time in my life. Right now I've still gotta get settled in and make this place my own. Here's some other pics of my apt...

Extra bedroom aka the smoking lounge...

Patio...

Ok bear with me as I'm still trying to figure out posting pics from my phone.

ANd boo, I'm sorry we didn't get a proper goodbye. Guess you'll just have to come over here. Are you going to Paris with BAG in April?

Well, I'm in the airport in Belgium on a 3 hour layover on my way to Copenhagen. Didn't sleep a wink for no reason at all. Even popped an Ambien at 2am and the only effect it had was to make me get up and a make a grilled cheese sandwich. By 5 I finally drifted off till my alarm woke me at 6:30. I've got kookoo magoo jetlag. It seems to change every day. But whatever I made my flight and after a disco nap will be ready to play tonight. It's the start of Danish fashion week (*) and I'm playing the (bloody) launch of some nightclub's fashion line. This outta be good. But as I said right now I'm just sitting in the Brussels airport wondering if the smell of rotting garbage is coming from the woman sitting next to me or is just the wifi station itself.

The face of glamorous international travel...

I have to hand it to you Pickles..
People think it's so glam to travel like that.
IT'S HELL!
I really don't know how you do it.

Your apt. looks fierce.
I LOVE our room.

As I said in NY, you are doing the right thing.

JUST DON'T COME BACK WITHOUT A HUSBAND!!
Get a Russian.

Yep, there's nothing like the burnt toast feeling that comes from being microwaved too frequently at 35,000ft and then having to walk in to some performance situation.

But we know you were born for it Pickles.

For someone whose taste runs to Spanish blood I don't know why Daddy is recommending Russian for you. Maybe he can elaborate....Daddy?

I'm just saying, go where the money is.

You're flats in spain... i say a hot young risk it for a biscuit Morroccan that way I can come over for weekends and entertain him while you are so busy working these fashion events in Belgium!
Knock em dead tinker.
Let me know if u head over to Tenerife have some fab music biz chums there.

I see you got them nice twin beds there.
One for me an' one for my girlfriend Jackie Bigalow.

I guess that means they'll have to label one bed PUTA and the other CONYO.

I've still got that restraining order against Jackie Bigalow so you'll have to find another tavel companion, Bonnie.

No prob.
Maybe I'll come with my friend Britney.
I been sort of helping her with her career.
She really looks up to me.

i am still hung over from her going away party

Mine or Britney's?

YOURS!!!

Oh right. Sorry.

So let's see where did I leave off? Oh yes I was on my way to Copenhagen. Well I made it and had a nice trip. It was fashion week which meant pahty pahty pahty. My first night I played an event thrown by these adorable boys called POP. It was cute but I was still a bit tired so was in bed early. Oh these are the Pop boys (and some drunk girl sideways)...

Thursday I got to go back into a recording studio with my friend Kjeld and finish a remix we had started ages ago. We'll see if it ever gets to see the light of day (have to clear some publishing stuff), but it was nice to sort of tie the bow after a year and a half. That night I met up with my friend Metz who works at this great gallery/store/event planning organization called Art Rebels ( http://www.artrebels.com/ ). We downed cocktails at a fab japnese place called Umami which is the best sushi restaurant in Cope. Fortunately her bf is the head bartender so it was bottomless glasses of his ginger passion hooch. Then to bed. Me and Metz...

Friday as spent mastering the remix and wandering around town. I do think Copenhagen is a great city to just walk around because it does have some great nooks that you can get lost in. Luckily it wasn't too cold and my iPod was charged.

Saturday was spent getting ready for the party that night, an event called Laekker, that my dj grandfather Kjeld helped organize. They had it in the Tivoli Gardens and even
brought in a hot tub.

Walkway to the party...

Ok so that first pic isn't where the party was. That's actually the theatre in Tivoli. But that was the view from the party. BTW Tivoli is this extremely old amusement park that opened in August of 1843. Supposedly the creator got the money to build it by telling the King "when the people are amusing themselves, they do not think about politics". Sounds about right. So it's pretty rare that a nightclub event happens there. And Laekker was actually the first party I ever played in Copenhagen 3 and a half years ago so it was a nice sort of circle to complete.

Here's the dj booth. (Which btw Daddy, had no monitor so I was going crazy trying to mix- you know what I mean) They had Terry George art on the video screens. That's Kjeld...

I played the late set that night and while I didn't shit the bed I didn't quite rock it like I had hoped. At first I was real depressed about it cause of all the anticipation leading up to the night. But after some therapeutic time in the hot tub with the POP boys I got over it and realized it's just a party. But I'll tell you those danes can be very fickle (sp?) sometimes.

Sunday I made the journey back to BCN to what I now really consider my pad. Now I just gotta spruce up the place a bit, the mustard walls are doing me head in! Next weekend...MADRID!

Well How could you rock without monitors!!!!!
The nerve!

Sidebar: A DJ plays a song on CD player A. While listening to CD player B in the headphones he or she mixes the next song in matching up the beats. But there is a time delay. There can be a full second difference from what the headphones are "saying" and what is really happening on the dance floor. Albert Einstein describes it in length but I'll spare you the full theory of DJ Relativity.
In other words, A DJ NEEDS A MONITOR!

Poor baby.
Well remember what I told you.
In case there is no monitor...
ALWAYS wear a cute outfit!

Did you see the Little Mermaid statue?

Hey Pickles,
The next time you are in Copenhagen say Hi to my friend Gkjhtumptph.
He can hook you up with whatever you need.

I think I met his sister Annemtzropkensen.

Did you know that translates as, "Have my ass, the lacrosse team did." -?

More photos please.

I've filed a missing person report on Pickles with the local constabulary. I asked that every drained cocktail glass be searched. Hopefully they will find our traveller soon.

Hey I'm here. Just been doing boring stuff this week like buying fake flowers and ashtrays and researching spanish schools so thought I'd spare you. Uness you're having trouble sleeping then I can go on. He he he...

Promise I'll have more juicy bits soon. Tomorrow in MAdrid I'm hanging out with that lil hustler Jared Abbott and the guy who runs Rentboy.com. A bientot!

Hola papis! Sorry for the silence but wa waiting for the writing juices to start flowing again. So lets see.... Oh yes MADRID!

I have only been to Madrid once before and that was for literally 10 hours to play a concert with the Scissors so all I saw was the venue. But everyone says how fierce it is, even people in BCN (Barcelona) which counts itself as a total rival. So I was excited about going there to play and knew I really had to BRING IT. I arrive Friday evening and go to my friend Jeff's place for dinner with a group of 8 which was fab. He cooked a real feast and afterwards his bf brought out a cake to celebrate Jeff's contracting HIV. Or as they put it, "he got his House In Virginia." I gagged! An HIVersary as I put it. Just when you think you've seen it all. Oh and on the cake was written in icing "Sustiva" which they said is some fierce old school cocktail. I bowed. One of the people at the dinner was Jordan of the Misshapes who looked like he just made in his pants when the cake came out.

Afterwards we mosy (sp?) on over to the club which is PACKED, like Gary 49 packed. With a line around the block. EEK! The music is super loud indie and electro and 80's. But the crowd is super young so I'm feeling like the old geezer getting up there to play for the grandkids. But I have to say they lived and I turned it. A little shaky at first trying to sort out my set but 20 minutes into it and they were puddy. I'm signing body parts and smacking hands. Real silly stuff but it's the kind of thing that assures any dj that they hit the nail on the head and drove it in with one bang. Know whatta mean? 6am lights on and I have 1 hour to get back to the hotel freshen up and then head to the airport to catch a 9am flight to Vienna for my next gig.

This is Club Low in Madrid....

That's my boy!

Where are you playing in Vienna?

Hey daddy well not exactly Vienna. Oh and btw I finally got a camera so no more lopsided big blurry pics. Promise!

Oh and I hope you "accidentally" spilled red wine on the Misshaped one like I showed you.

So... make it to the airport, throw some coffee down my gullet, and get on the plane. Now, flying to Vienna at that ungodly hour isn't so bad but once I get there I then have to drive 2 hours to a town called Graz where the club is. A 2 hour drive with your buddies is hey no prob, ROADTRIP! A 2 hour drive with someone who doesn't speak english and you don't speak german and you've had 2 hours sleep sitting in a plane seat...not the look. But luckily the guy who picked me up was the other dj for the night so he told me all about the music at the club- which actually turned out to be the complete oppostite of what he said- and how many girls there are. I just sort of smiled and nodded as best I could. My gay pride losing out to my lack of sleep. Sorry sisters. Get to the hotel and pass out for hours.

It's Saturday night in Graz which is like Saturday night in Philly I suppose. Lotsa bars and a couple big clubs. Dom Im Berg is where I'm playing and it's rammed, always is. Now the name means "In A Mountain" and as you can guess the club is literally inside a mountain. You climb a staircase in a tunnel to this huge cave that they've set up a sound and light system in. Full on wall of video screens chandeliers etc. Having been told in the car that they only like funky house, the commercial stuff, I'm thinking I have about 2 records to play and then it's hail mary's for the next hour and 45 minutes. Well bless sweet jesus i guess funky house to my driver is electro to me cause they had no interest in anything of the house, or what one might call "funky commercial house". (Aside: funky commercial house is basically someone's way of saying crap club music.) My biggest records were thumpin', crunchy, bleepy stuff. They are huge beatport fans over there. (More aside: that's an online music download store which can be fierce. Lots of remixers who are now becoming huge started by dumping all their first works onto beatport.) So the job goes well. Not incredible, but earned my keep. Oh there's one other thing about this night. So I'm standing there djing on this platform with giant bank of video screens behind me, this huge cave in front of me like the size of Irving plaza almost, and I suddenly think "Hmmm I wonder what this place used to be? I wonder why they built this gigantic system of caves inside this mountain in Austria." A bit creepy n'est-ce pas? Oh well, back to BCN...