Who: DJ Jelo
Where: Savage Beagle
When: Sunday, Jan. 15
Tickets: $5
What can you expect from DJ Jelo’s latest album Live@System?
Pretty much more of the same hard house tracks that have made the Toronto turntablist’s dance parties famous among these parts for more than five years.
"I wanted the average Jelo listener, the newbie, and the naysayer to all get the feeling of what it’s like at a club with me at 2 a.m.," he said of the newly released album. "(It’s) great music with a live feel."
The adrenalin rush of recording live with $15,000 in studio equipment and engineers invested in a single night along with grappling with unforeseen glitches, such as a photographer moving Jelo’s track list only four records into the set, really tested the sonic talents of the jet-setting turntablist.
"It is the way these hurdles are handled that demonstrate how skilled a DJ is," he said, noting how his set was cut 10 minutes short to add to the list of challenges. "What will happen if and when during this live $15,000 recording it all goes wrong? How will Jelo respond? Jelo Live@System shows just that. It is one of those examples where a lot was strategized and choreographed, but certain unforeseen changes resulted in spontaneous decisions and it’s better because of it."
The ambassador of all things hard and funky in North America’s electronic movement returns to Whistler Sunday, Jan. 15 at the Savage Beagle.
The mountains, not to mention the fans, keep bringing the mix master back to the West Coast.
"I really have a deep love for the mountain and the vibe that is there," he said. "Everyone has a really warm spirit about them. Maybe it is the joy of boarding or the constant rush of fresh mountain air but smiles are a constant. A very laid back environment."
An environment he seeks to stoke up with his interactive sets of dance-based electronic music for new and old-fan crowds.
Not afraid to cross genres, his spicy fusion of house, techno, breaks and rock led to the innovator of moving sounds being awarded Eye Magazine’s Most Innovative DJ accolade. In between shows dazzling thousands at a time from Dubai and Greece to the United Kingdom and the U.S., Jelo has recorded with numerous labels, including BugeyedRecords.com, 2Wars.com, Promo, Free Records and Eden Recordings.
So what gets the remix artist’s head bobbing these days? Death from Above 1979, Metric, M.I.A., NIN, Chemical Brothers, BlenDbrank and Basement Jaxx.
DJ Jelo rocks the house music early Sunday from 10 p.m. to midnight with doors opening at 9 p.m. Tickets are $5 at the door.
