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10 hours. 4 MP3's. 1 Mix.

Time to download!

This last one was never, ever in doubt. Lord knows that I, along with every other progressive house DJ and producer around, have long worshiped Mr. Transeau, but his latest album, well.. it just leaves you at a loss for words.

G an I were lucky enough to see the premier of this film over at Kendall Square a few months back. I'm not exaggerating to say that it was both an honor and a privilege to watch the film in that setting: a big screen, an amazing 5.1 surround system, Brian himself, and most importantly, Brian's mentors from his days as a student at Berklee School of Music. The entire thing was amazing, but the last track... this track... well...

Go buy the DVD. Turn on the Dolby 5.1 system. And find out.

So its the end of the mix... Good Morning Kaia... Good night Ableton....

I'll be back with more after New Year's, including info on how you can download the entire mix. Until then...

What is there to say about Craig Armstrong that hasn't already been said? The man writes some of the most beautiful ambient around, more soundtrack than soundscape. God... can you imagine the movie that would go with this album? If only...

You've probably heard the original... and if you've heard me at Avalon or Five, maybe the Wally Lopez remix, too. But you've probably never heard The Push like this. This is some serious bottom-of-the-ocean, periscopes up nonesense.

T-2 and counting.....

More loops, more breaks, more dub. Ever since I first hear Sheesha on one of those ancient Ambeint Dub compilations, I've always loved Banco. He's gone a bit too far off hte deep end for me recently, so I went back a few years to take a cut off of Lhasa.

Lots of edits to make this one work, but eventualyl it did. I initially thought I was going to have to edit out all of the vocal, but I eventualyl found a way to make it work. I knew if I didn't it would torment me every time I listened to the finished mix, so....

Those technical problems I had with my Mac early on set me back a few days, so I've decided to cram the last few bits into the last two days. I already have some idea of where I want to go with this, so there's really no reason not to. Plus, I'd like to give out an early version of this atAvalon on Friday night as a New Year's gift to the punters.

So yeah, The Roots... The break fit perfectly with the loops I had built last time around, so I decided to drop this one in here. Not sure if I'm going to keep the whole thing, r if I'm going loopy with his as well, but either way, here it is....

Raise your hand if you expected me to go from Skydive to The Roots in less than 10 tracks.

Yeah. Me neither.

Hip hop was the last style of music I was hoping would find its way into this mix, and for just the second time so far, its The Disposible Heroes doing the work. Thing is, there really wasn't a full track that worked here, so I took loops from "Language of Violence" off of "Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury" and combined them with loops from Kayne's "Jesus Walks."

Weird, but it worked. Now the question is where this will take me next....

Yet another amazing release from the Boxed Boys....

Yet another brilliant Ulrich Schnauss remix. Tracks like this make me long for the days of being a chill room DJ. Ah.... Memories....

Taken from his brilliant full length on the soon to be reborn Hooj Choons, this one clocks in at roughly 60 BPM. It's the home stretch, time to bring it on down...

I got this one via a friend 4 or 5 years back, and although I have no problem singing along to it, I have no idea what its called. Sorry....

Chris Lake does analogue progressive house like no one else. In fact, he's largely to blame for my turn in that direction this past year. What better way to say goodbye to 2006 than with one of his best this yeear...

12 tracks to go... Time to start heading back down the BPM's... Which means, yes.... more breakbeats...... Jaytech has been on fire lately, and this track is no exception. Expect to hear this during my first of two sets on NYE!

From BT and Jan Johnston to Anthony Pappa and Jan Johnston. Speaking of which... its amazing what one big record could do for a career once up a time, no?

Always... Always... ALWAYS leave them smiling.

An absolutely phenomenal remix of an absolutely phenomenal tune.

Funny story about this one... Bill sent it to Deep Dish back when they were working on their first GU CD. Neither of them seemed to recognize the original, so they decided to pass on it... and pass it on to me! For months I was one of the only people who had it, and I swear to you, every time I dropped it the room would go bonkers. It was my secret weapon for months on end.

Silly Deep Dish.

I've been looking for a clean copy of this for months, and wouldn't you know it... Pete himself comes to Axis and has it with him. The obsession with Faithless continues...

This one is really just designed to set up the track I want to go into next, so I don't expect to use more than 2-3 minutes of it. But nevertheless, here it is....

One of the greatest progressive trance records of all time, but in this incarnation as a chill breaks record. God... to hear this one more time on a big system.... Methinks.....

Things were just getting way WAY too deep there for a minute. From under the ocean to over the moon, I suppose!

More weird bassline driven tech house. Plus twinkely bits!

I heard someone drop this on Proton Radio a month or so ago, and its totally not my usual style, but... I had to pick it up anyway. And no, I wouldn't normally think it would fit with the gospel track that I'm coming out of. I mean... wired tech house and gospel house together?

But I promise you.... somehow it works. Surprises like this are the best part of DJing.

I realize that this one seems like it won't go here... and I'm not entirely sure what made me even reach for it.... But damn if it doesn't fit perfectly. Let's see if I can find something else totally odd to get out of it with...

King Unqiue dropped this one at Axis last month, and it made me realize I had been a dumbass for not playing it out sooner. Ah well...

Stuck in a world of breakbeat and looking for a way out? Grab a DJ Dan record!

This one is him at his best. Another record that is an essential NYE choon!!!!

I had to do some serious editing in Ableton to get this one to work. I really don't think I'll ever get tired of Hybrid. I really don't.

UNKLE remixes? Amazing. UNKLE originals? I really want to like them, I swear. But they just don't do it for me.

Hey Mr Lavelle.... More remixes please!

I don't know if this one is a bootleg or if it is an offical release, but no matter... Its sick. I don't know what it is about the original that has given it such an amazing shelf life, but seriously... this one just never gets old.

And yes, for the record... this one is still breaks! Back to 4to4 soon, but not yet....

Undoubtedly one of the records of 2005. I'd even put it in my top ten of the decade. It's that good. Why people don't believe me when I tell them these things I will never know...

I always expected this record to be bigger than it was. Honestly, I think Rowan sat on it for too long. Dunno why, really. Kid always underestimted his own production, I suppose. Weird, considering that whole "Twilo Thunder" thing, ya know?

What the hell happened to acid breaks anyway? Or even acid in general? I think some of the explanation for the collapse of the dance music scene here in N America during the early '00s can be linked to the failure of producers to include more acid lines in their tracks.

If you know, you know. And if you don't, I really feel sorry for you.

And yes... This one is DEFINITELY getting dropped on NYE.

Another massive nu skool breaks record. Sure thing... these aren't new. But that's really beside the point, now isn't it?

Whoo boy! Breaks it is. I just got a hold of a ton of new nu skool and proggy breakbeats, and the next bit of the mix is most definitely going to showcase them. Hmm.... These would sound damn good on a big system. Wonder if I have any serious gigs coming up at the end of the month? ;)

Praise jesus. Hooj Choons is back. There is hope. No, really.... There really is hope.

I cannot even begin to tell you what Hooj Choons once meant to all us proggy kids. From strength to strength to strength to strength to strength to strenght... these guys just never ever missed. Where we would sell other releases by the fives and tens, when we saw Hooj on the list we knew we could order them by the dozens. And even then our shop just couldn't keep them in stock.

But then.... their run at long last came to an end. And I'll be honest - the demise of Hooj was really a sign that the entire industry was on its was down. So to see the little stick man climbing out of his coffin... It really is beyond words.

There is a God. Hooj is back.

This really is turning into a massive breakbeat set, isn't it? Weird. I knew that working on this mix was going to change my perspective on my music, but I never would have expected this. Huh. Maybe now I understand why the early Northern Exposure CDs ended up being at least 50% breaks.

I really have no idea what it is about Chicane, but every time I play one of their records I end up playng two. In a row. Once upon a time I would have called that cheating. Now I know it just sounds damn good.

Chicane got me headed towards Drum n Bass, and now he's going to bring me right back out. From 175 BPM to 150 PMB in just 3 tracks.

Hmmm... Where do I go from here?

The first of what I suspect will be two EBTG remixes. Another example of two tracks that I've always wanted an excuse to play out, and sadly, of two tracks for which that excuse has never come. Until now!

You see? I do too like drum n bass made by more than just two or three producers. See?!?

Yes yes... Another day, another John B Track.

No doubt I keep playing tunes by the same three guys. I know what I like, and I like what I know.

My mix, my rules!

This one definitely represents the turning point back towards home. I pledged from teh start to go allt he way to D+B and back... And if I'm going to go there, I need to go all the way there, John Deere and all.

This is the one. Consider it my tribute to John Tester, the Senator elect from teh great state of Montana.

Now time to head home....

What does this one have to do with Thanksgiving?

Nothing!

Trance 'n' bass, man.... Trance 'n' bass!

Time to start heading off in yet another different direction. In fact, since I'm closing in on track number 60, it's probably time to start thinking about heading back down through the BPM count.

But first... a few of my favorite John B tracks....

But they are all remixes of LE tracks by other people, so really, its OK.....

OK, even I'll admit it now... This LE worship is getting a bit ridiculous. Don't blame me. Blame the records! They speak, and I listen!

Really... Seriously... I'm not kidding abou this album.

Another track from the same album by the same producer. Look... I said I was going to break the rules with this project, and I meant it!

Hospital goes from strength to strength. For the first time in years... no... for the first time EVER... producers are turning out Drum and Bass that I desparately want to play out. The first CD on this album? Good god... Its that epic, sun rising over the Chesapeake Bay this-is-the-best-night-of-my-life-and-we're-going-to-be-friends-forever, kind of music that you just don't hear any more. Only better, because as I said a few days back, its a full decade later, and people really REALLY know how to get the most out of their gear now!

As I said to G the other day.... I think that time spent writing 2 Step did these guys a world of good. As much as some might want to deny it, part of the art of DJing is learning to play music that makes both men and women want to dance. And 2 Step? Two Step taught a lot of these kids how get get the ladies on the dancefloor.

Just my 2 cents....

Do you believe me yet?

Two tracks today, given the whole lost track fiasco. And yes, its yet anoterh appeareance by the London Elektricity nutters. This album really is simply phenomenal. Imagine early D+B, the stuff that came out of the old hardcore days - only with phenomenal production values and a decade and a half of compositon experience under their belts. Thos of you who know me well know it takes a lot for me to rave about a record like this, and even more to keep doing it for months after its release. Those of you who don't well.... it's time to learn what that means, I suppose... now innit?

As I mentioned in the last post, Ableton ate my homework. Rather than recreate what was lost, I've decided to look at it as an opportunity to do something new. Always forwards, never backwards....

Ethereal 77 doesn't make for quite as poetic a midpoint as "I Remember the Future," but I suppose I'll find a way to live with it.

And for the record - the lost London Elektricity track will be making a return appearance. I promise you that....

The halfway point, so this one's gotta be something special. For those of you who haven't yet picked up "Power Ballads," I honestly don't have the first clue what you are waiting for. Seriously. Go... buy... now...

And in the meantime, yes... I do remember the future, thank you very much!

A classic. 'Nuff said...

Ulrich Schnauss under his drum and bass guise. If progressive house producers started making drum and bass, I suspect this is what it would sound like. Which, I suppose, is why I'm playing it!

So I wanted to get from breaks to D&B, but I wanted to do it without gradualyl ramping from 140 to 160. I sat for well over an hour trying to find just the right track when I stumbld across this gem. I honestly don't know when or where I picked it up. I'm not even sure if I've ever listened to it before. But damn if it wasn't perfect!

I've been banging this one out the past few weeks at Avalon. Aquasky produces some absolutely ripping breaks, but even with that said, this one is one of their best. Absolutely massve.

And yes, I've justbaout cleared 140BPM.

Absolutely no idea what this one's called. No idea. When I got it on CDR a few years back it was unsigned, but I'm sure by now that's changed. Now... if I could only figure out why I don't play this more often!

Erm... Duh! When you're playing this fast you play like Carl. Is there any other choice?

Nearly 138 BPM at this point, and it feels like I'm flying. It also feels like I've run into two problems:

1) I NEVER play this fast! I'm having a tough time figuring out what's going to come next...

2) Ableton won't render a file bigger than 2GB. Apparently. Who knew? Well, I'm just going to keep at it until I can find a workaround. I'll get there somehow...

Now this one is going WAAAAAY back into the vaults. Once upon a time, Sven Vath sat at the helm of one of the greatest dance music empires in history. Year after year after year, the Harthouse and Eye Q guys simply could not miss. In a catalogue full of absolute classics, this very may well have been the best.

Since I first picked it up in the tiny little shop in Arlington VA, I've always wanted to play this one out. Until now, I've never had the chance. Good things do come to those who wait, eh?

From back-to-back R-Factor tunes to back-to-back Chicane releases.

Hey, I can't help it... It makes her smile!

I remember when...

And for the record, yes... I can play trance if I want to!

Looks like R-Factor back-to-back. Not that that's all that rare for me, I suppose. Last time Fred Maslaki and I played Five in DC, we played all R-Factor for over an hour. Not that I'm biased or anything...

Dave Ralph and Chris Walsh tearing the roof off yet another club. I really don't think I'll ever get sick of this one. Ever.

R-Factor in the house!

Even after all these years, Max still can't miss. And he's got such a distinctive sound, too. Another DJ I haven't seen since time and a half. In fact, I think the last time very well might have been that weird night in Memphis. I got kidnapped, he got waylayed. I really should write a book one day.

I did the banging thing for a bit, so its time to change things up and head off towards progressive trance land. I'm now 3 hours in and crossing the 135BPM threshold.

Remember, I'm trying to go allt he way up to D+B and back, so...

This one reminds me of an old school Soma record. Or maybe something Funk D'Void would have done once upon a time.

These guys have been on fire lately, though. Even the releases that aren't 100% are deadly.

What the hell ever happened to Cass, anyway? One day the kid is all over the place, and the next... Hey Internet... you happen to know where Cass is nowadays? He don't write... He don't call... What's up?

Now this one I've actually never played out.

I think what this portion of the mix is telling me is that I don't get to play late-night nearly often enough. Once school is done, I'm definitely going to have to start traveling again. Whew... Do I miss it!

Looks like we're relaly storming now. I don't get a chance to play this one nearly often enough here in Boston. But c'mon... a track like this is made for the 4am crowd!

Back to adding tracks to the end of the mix... I'm now 2 1/2 hours in, so I figure its time to rip it for a bit. This is some serious 4am business, made for a dirty warehouse with sweat dripping off the walls.

Sometimes inspiration comes when and where you expect it; other times it knocks you on your ass when you're not looking. This one is defintiely the later of the two.

This one is going way back to 1992, and no, its not dance music. Disposable Heroes was a project between Michael Franti (now of Spearhead) and Rono Tse, the industrial musician. It's technically hip hp, but only technically. Anyway, I've dropped this one in back near the 30 minute mark with a big fat break underneath it. It was a bitch to timestretch, but I think I've got it now.

The entire Disposable album is still mindblowingly good, but of everything there, this one stands out for its relevance today. It was originally written about the First Gulf War, but if I hadn't told you that, you never would have guessed. Its both eeire and sad how relevant the critique of our foreign policy still is today.

I've replaced all four of the music selections over at MySpace with new 6 minutes bits from the mix. As always, no downloading until the project is complete!

One of the highlights of my career was dropping this at a gig at Avalon last year. When the bells finaally come in during the breakdown, the place went ballistic.

Anyway... getting out of the last rack was going to be tough, until I hit on the idea of going straight into the breakdown of this one. If we weren't full on before now, we ceartainly are now!

Another one of the first ten records in my collection. I actualyl bought this one entirely by accident, but when I got home and realized what I had... it was one of those records that made me realize that I absolutel had to do this.I've always wondered... how did they get away with using that Tori Amos vocal, anyway?

One of the first ten records on Platipus, and one of the first ten records I ever bought, too! Back before the world of dance music had balkanized into 5,000 different sub0genres, the Platipus kids were breaking new ground with every release, quite literally creating new subgenres from scratch with each release. This was one of their best. And finally... FINALLY I get to use it in a mix.

Time to dig one out of the vaults here. Way, way back in the days of Fever and Buzz, there wasn't a night that went by where you didn't hear this one dropped.

Hardfloor on the mixing duties here, at least on the original version. This one's end up a bit f a mash-up, both with the previous track and with D-Mob's "We Call It Acieeeeeeeed!" Time to break out the glowsticks and smiles!

Looks like we're rolling now.... Hmmm.... Maybe its time to head off down an acidline or two

I know everyone will forever be in love with the original version of Strings of Life, but if you ask me this pseudo-cover on RIP Records is still the one to beat. With a little bit of editing, of course!

Both the "original" mix and the Tarantella + Redanka versions have their highlights, so I decided to mash the two together and create my own edit. Its a bit long, perhpas, but when the strings do finally drop midway through... you've been warned!

This track was a real dilemma for me. At first I figured I'd head off in a progressive house direction, but then I thought better of it. I rarely get a chance to play what I would define as house, so what's the rush?

This one is perfect for an outdoor event... the groove is chill, and the pianos are ther ein just the right amounts, and the strings? The strings are magic.

I call it house, Mr. C calls it tech house... whatever you call it, its damn good!

I thought about doing the diva house thing for a bit, but that just seemed so... yesterday! Thisone keeps the vocal but takes it a bit deeper. Bassline... Everything I do revolves around basslines. I can't go more than a track or two without going deep.

Boston's Chris Micali on the mix here... He may be from Boston, but this one sounds like DC to me. The DC of Sam The Man, that is... Choon!

So I just picked this one up last week from beatport.com, and I figured it would fit perefectly at this point in the mix. Not only does it shifts the mood in exactly the right way, its also not breakbeat, which lets me head me off in a 4:4 direction as well.... Except, well, its not actually 4:4. It's 6:8!

Now I know Charile May is in fact a musical genius, but still... 6:8 isn't exactly dancefloor friendly, so mixing into and out of it is going to be a bitch. There was enough of a lead in that I made the mix in work, but I suspect getting out is going to be next to impossible. nothing like leaving yourself a problem for tomorrow!

Trentmoller doing the remix duties here.... I picked this one up from beatport.com a few weeks back, but I've only managed to play it out once so far. But hey, this is my last semester of classes, so maybe next year I can start accepting more gigs again.

The Ulrich Schanauss had such an uplifting vibe it made me think of summer time. That, of course, made me think of this record. I've always wanted to drop this one outside at sunrise, but its been far too long since I played one of those sets. Hmmm....

There's a heavily effected vocal acapella deep in the mix. One dollar to the first person who names it and claims it.

The first of what I suspect will be several Ulrich Schnauss remixes on this mix. I honestly didn't expect this one to work when I dropped it in, but sometimes that's when things turn out to work out best. Now why is that?

I picked this one up back in 2003, but I never did find out who made it. Hey Internet... An chance you know?

The original is one of those tracks that everyone has lost it to at some point, whether they are willing to admit it or not. This version is much more understated, but still choice nontheless...

The Dust... erm... Chemical Brothers' "Song to the Siren" is the selection today. This one is going way, WAY back to the time before the Chems were forced to call themselves the Chems by the other Dust Bros. out of LA. Scott Henry used to play this one at parties with names like "Primary," "Fever," and "Buzz." Damn I miss those days....

Perhaps a bit of old school will work here.... Just a few tracks for now....

I'm not exactly sure what happened when these guys were recording this session, but somehow they channeled a bit of New Order and Depeche Mode. I played this one every chance I could get a few years back at Avalon...

Listening to what I've got so far, the last few tracks have definitely gone off in an interesting direction. Songs. They are all songs. Interesting....

The beauty of using Ableton is that you can drop in tracks that would never, EVER otherwise fit. Together with a looped break underneath, this track is magic. I've been trying to use this in something for over a year now. Finally!

For now, audio previews of this mix are available over at MySpace. I'll be hosting all of the weekly six minute previews over there. For those interested, minutes 1 to 31 are available now!

Another classic that I never thought I'd be able to use in a mix. I can still remember when I first got this album way back in 1997; like Underworld, these guys were always able to surprise you.

Nevertheless, the track was a bit low energy for this spot in the mix, so I looped the break from the last track and ran it underneath, giving it a bit more groove than it has in its original form.

This is a track I got on CD through a trade with a friend of mine a few years back, but unfortunately I've never been able to work out what the title is. The main hook is a male vocal singing "confusion," so that's what I've always called it.

Several layers with effects here, and I like the break somuch that I suspect I'll be using it throughout the mix.

These were both taken from the bits available for download over at underworld.com. I've chopped, edited, and spliced them into... erm... something. And I've defintiely now headed off into a direction that sounds nothing like where I was a few days back.

This whole "day at a time" thing is much harder than I expected. And more interesting, too. But more on that when I have a bit more time to write...

I've always wanted to use this track in a mix, but since its both a) crunchy and hard, and b) 100 BPM, its never happened. Until now.

Apparently this is the first point at which you are meant to turn your stereo WAY up.

Today's addition to the project is Dusted's "Always Rememer To Honour And Respect Your mother, Pt 2"

I'm more than 20 minutes in and I haven't yet played anything dubby. Time to change that. As I was digging this one out I came across the Deep Dish remix, and although it doesnt'f fit right now, I may have to come back around to that before I'm done. It always was one of my favorites....

The second track recovered from the data I thought I had lost...

I lifted the breakbeat from Digital Witchcraft's "Fingerpaint," and dropped it underneath (in bits and bobs, of course) Gaelle's "Transient." If you don'thave it, this album is honestly the best thing Naked Music has ever released. And yes, I know what that means when I say that. Really seriously brilliant stuff.

Nevertheless, I had to tweak things a bit. I really wanted to use the track here, but the mood didn't quite fit, and that's why I added the breakbeat underneath. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the final result - again, I suspect it will need a few additional tweaks and layers added over the next few days. For now though, I must admit... I'm really quite pleased this work was recovered!

Well this is something I didn't expect....

My studio is back up and running, and it turns out the last version of the project I saved did in fact include my work for Wednesday and Thursday nights. I'm posting these on Sunday, but they were completed on the day they were actually "due."

There's not much layering here, although I did run quite a bit of effects and loops through the transition. My plan is to go back and add additional layers later. Remember - my rule here is that I can always add to things already complete, but never delete.

Anyway, this track defintiely shifts the mood quite a bit, since it really is more proper "song" than "track."

Turns out my travel time to and from the Apple store was longer than the time necessary to fix my machine. Wicked!

Looks like it is time to get back underway... Expect the next six minutes posted by tomorrow night!

Wouldn't you know it.... Less than one week into my project and my computer decides to up and die. That's the bad news.

The good news? Tomorrow is the very last day on my 3-year Apple Care contract. I think I may be the first person in human history to have something go wrong the day before the warranty ends. Wow.

So for now it looks like I've got to put a temporary hold on this. I did manage to add a track to the set last night, but that was the last I've been able to do. My hope is that I'll be back up and running tomorrow afternoon, but I'll just have to wait and see how this goes.

Until next time...

Just posted the first six minutes of the mix over at MySpace for you to check out. Look for the next six before the end of the weekend.

As I mentioned yesterday, I expected today's session to present quite a challenge. And damn if I wasn't right!

To get out of the Armstrong piece, I ended up having to run 8 separate audio tracks. Where Armstrong's work came to a full stop, I doubled the track and reversed it, building back down where he had built up. Then, I brought in Private Taste, splicing out and revising several sections of its drums to really work the backwards effect. On top of that, I added a few drum and synth loops of my own, along with snippets of vocal parts from a few tracks I've collected along the way. Chris Lake's Future Vox shows up very briefly, as does Joey Negro's Scattering Stars Acapella.

First, the track I built today's session around, is much more uplifting and floaty than what I had laid down previously. I just wasn't feeling the dark, deep vibe anymore, so I decided to take it in a different direction. I know what I was thinking, but I'm just not really interested in heading that way anymore. My primary goal is to keep this thing changing and progressing, making sure that it never stays in one place too long. So far, this format seems to be actually helping that process along, but we'll see...

One other thought: In the past, when I've put CD's together I've always worked hard to build a coherent whole. Ever track has always been selected with the next two in mind. but this project is forcing me to completely abandon that approach, and I have to admit I find that incredibly liberating. Even on my past downtempo works, I never EVER would have spent the time I did today working to build so many of my own layers into such a short segment of the mix. But because I couldn't think about where I was headed next, I could only worry about the track that was in front of me. The result, I'm happy to say, was something totally unexpected. Nice!

Today's selection comes from the soundtrack to The Quiet American, and its by Craig Armstrong. I'm going bottom of the ocean deep here, with loads of strings and pianos. It worked really well coming out of the RITM track, but I suspect I'll have some serious problems tomorrow getting out of this one. About 3/4 of the way through it stops rather abruptly, something that no doubt worked for the film but will present so real problems in a mix, particularly one that's this deep. Ah well, we'll just have to wait and see!

Oh, also worth nothing... I threw in a short sample from a 1960's recording I have of The mock Turtle Story from Alice in Wonderland. It's always been one of my secret weapons when playing downtempo. I spent WAY too long working on the auto-filters ad delays on this one, but in the end I think it was worth it.

Rabbit in the Moon's "Phases of an Out of Body Experience" was one of the first records I ever bought, so its only fitting that I use it at the start of this project. All these years later, this one still gives me chills. "Phase 5" was the cut I selected - short but sweet.

Beginnings and endings are important, but on a project like this I suppose they matter even more than usual.

Thanks to Ableton, I was able to do an odd mashup of Cinematic Orchestra's "Odessa" and Pink Floyd's Is "There Anybody Out There." Weird, I know, but it really worked.

So far, so good. Where will tomorrow take me?

100 days. 100 tracks. 1 track per day, none selected more than an hour or two in advance.

Always forward, never backward. Layers can be added, but they can never be removed.

Old songs, new songs, electronic music and more. Where will this mix take me? How will it evolve? I honestly have no idea. Surprise!.

Over the next 100 days I'll be using this blog to let you know how things progress. Each day, I'll post what I did, how I did it, and - I hope - why I did it as well. Then, at the end of each week, I'll mix down part of the project, post an MP3, and let you hear for yourself where things stand.

And then, come January 2007, good or bad, the entire thing will be posted online for the world to hear.

100 songs. 100 days. Where will it take us?

Come on... Time to go!

So... the questions have already started. After nearly 15 years of DJing, and after avoiding the MySpace thing for so long, why now? Why here? I've already got my own web site, and I've already got my own blog. What's the point? And why should anyone care?

The answer is a project that I'm calling - for now at least - "The Relentless Pursuit of Progress." And this is its debut.

I've been DJing for what at this point almost feels like forever. And don't get me wrong - I love it as much today as the first day I stepped behind the decks. As my friend George once said, "I'll stop DJing the moment after I stop breathing, and not a moment before." That's as true today as it was back in 1992. But still....

Something feels like it is... missing. Or more accurately, like somewhere along the way it got lost. And I'm not happy about it. But rather than complain, I've decided to do something about it. I've decided to shut up, step up, and see if there isn't something I can do.

In the beginning, vinyl was the everything and the only thing, and what separated one DJ from another could be found in the answer to two simple questions: What's in your box? And what are you going to do with it? That was it. Nothing more.

But then DJ culture began to grow, and as it did so too did both its art and its industry. Vinyl became CDs. Mix tapes became studio productions. Turntables became MIDI controllers. DJs became nomads. Producers became rock stars. And the music of the underground became the sound of Madison Avenue.

Don't get me wrong here... the changes have been phenomenal, and on balance I wouldn't change a thing. Without a doubt this life has been everything I've dreamed and more. But for all the changes I've seen, for everything we've all shared and done, I can't help but feel that something important has been lost. And that something is this:

Surprise.

Once upon a time, you would walk into the club and not know what was going to happen next. Maybe it was the venue that surprised you. Maybe it was the promoter. Maybe it was the theme, or the crowd, or the style of the kids throwing down on the floor. Maybe, on one of those rare, once in a lifetime nights that seemed to happen just about every week, maybe it was all of them at once. But one thing was for sure - no matter who was on the decks, whether their face and their name was new or old, you never knew where the music would take you next.

As much as I hate to admit it, and as much as it pains me to say, in most clubs, in most cities, on most nights, that element of surprise is gone. Surprise has been replaced by formula, something to which both the DJ and the crowd know how to play. And sad to say, at times I've been guilty of following that formula, too.

So... you can consider this my apology. My fault. My bad. And my time to do something about it...