Booking # 109: Direct Drive @ Sullivan Room, NYC w/ Adam F, Dj Seoul, Mousky

Fantastic Night!!! Wow, Sullivan room was packed, 250 people or so. Lots of faces i know, but the majority of the crowd were people i don't recognize, which is always nice at an NYC DnB party where you tend to see alot of the same faces. Like i have said, this is one of my favorite places to place, such a wonderful system, i had a real blast spinning and i think i played one of the best sets i've played in a while. It was tights, and i played real bass heavy tunes, really excellent funky melodic but danceable stuff, nothing to hard, just lots of great tunes with some dubs also. Lynx, Saburuko, Midmaster Doc, Random Movement, Calibre, Commix. I wish i had recorded the set, it was lots of fun and the crowd reaction was fantastic. Many thanks to all the people who stayed till the end to hear my 3:30-4:30 set. Boooooh!

Booking # 108: Respect @ The Bee, Los Angeles, CA w/ Commix

This was my first time playing the West Coast, Los Angeles in particular. Respect is a fantastic party in LA, one of the longest running DnB weeklies in the country. Huge posh club with a sushi bar, outdoor rooftop deck and $10 drinks. Great sound system, great locals, a real nice party. I opened from 10-11, a little early for my taste, not many people there that early, but it was fun and i played well. High Contrast tunes went over big, that guy is on fire this year. Played alot of Calibre, he to has had a great year. Commix played a good set, they are one of the best producers out their now, their latest album 'Call To Arms' is fantastic, and i have been playing many of the tunes from that album out. Big up to the West Coast!

Booking # 107: Direct Drive @ Club Midway, NYC w/ Strife, Artur L, Alongside TC Izlam

Another great night at Direct Drive. Locals night, sexy dnb style. Lots of fun, good sized crowd enjoying deep DnB all night long. Artul L played alot of old tunes and some new ones, very good set, thu it did take him 40 minutes to set up. Dj Strife as usual played an excellent set. She is one of my favorite DnB DJ's in NYC, and i'm not just saying that because she is a good friends. She has perfect timing on the turntables, her tune selection is fantastic and she always have fresh dubs from an array of producers. I played the last set after Strife from about 2:45 till 4:00. I opened a bit to hard but quickly went into the soulful deep stuff that the crowd had been feeling the whole night. Great vibes in the place, everyone was dancing the whole night. Much respect to the Direct Drive locals.

Booking # 106: Direct Drive @ Club Midway, NYC w/ Klute, Alongside TC Izlam

Amazing night! Klute is one of my favorite producers. I've wanted to play alongside him and see him live for a long time, this was an honor. I played for almost 2 hours from 12-2 as he was not quite ready to go on until 2:00. Large crowd dancing for most of my set, real good vibes, and with TC Izlam in prime form on the mic it was alot of fun. Klute played an awesome set, very high energy, dark, deep, brooding Drum and bass with experimental tunes thrown in, some old amit stuff, and some Disco Dodo, which was great. Wonderful set, and a real nice guy. Direct Drive at Midway is a fun chill spot for Saturday nights.

Booking # 105: Quality of Life @ Sullivan Room, w/ Grooverider

This was a gig i was very much looking forward to. Sullivan room is one of my favorite places to Dj as its got one of the best sound systems in NYC, amazing DJ booth with a great view of the floor and its usually packed. Grooverider is a legend in DnB and someone i have seen like about 5 times starting in 1999 and the last time being in London in June of this year. I've also worked with him a few times with Direct Drive. I'm not much of a fan of the style of DnB he plays but he's a great Dj and he has always been real cool with me. It was a honor to be booked as the sole guest alongside Grooveridrer for this event by Quality of Life. Great promoters. The vibe inside the venue was not that good however. I opened from 10-12 and no matter what i played, soft, hard, deep, funky, classics, dubs, i could not get the party to start! Everyone was just sitting there. Thats depressing and not fun from a Dj's perspective. No matter how good the lineup or system is, if they are not dancing, its not quite a party. I left before Grooverider came on, as i had to work early in the morning, but i heard the vibe did not progress that much. Much respect to the Quality of Life guys, i do hope i can work with them again in the future.

Booking # 104: Camouflage @ Sin Sin, NYC w/ J-Smooth

Once again i had the privilege of playing alongside J-Smooth for the second time in as many months. This time at Camouflage. Presented by Christian Bruna, camo has been running for about a decade on Tuesday nights as well as one offs. They have a great vibe and the venue they use is a nice little lounge with a Dancefloor and a decent system. Only thing i don't enjoy is the plants blocking the Dj's view of the Dancefloor, hard to read the crowd if you can see them! I have not played for them in over a year so it was really nice to be back. I had lots of fun. I look forward to playing this party more often in the future. I played alot of Lynx and Mixmaster Doc and minimal deep stuff as i opened from 10-12. It got harder towards the end and the people were very into it, seems like the harder stuff went over well.

Booking # 103: Plan B w/ J-Smooth

Its always exciting for me when i get to play alongside people that influenced me to become a DnB dj. Back in the 90's J-Smooth was the DJ that introduced me to the sound, his funky hiphop infused DnB got me hooked. At at time when most DJ's were playing hard Techstep, J-Smooth was playing a style that i really appreciate. This party was a Sundays night party in a nice chill bar. Not a very large crowd, but the people had fun and J-Smooth played well for what i heard.

Booking # 102: Driven AM Showcase 3.0 @ the Delancey w/ Bachelors of Science

It was an honor and a pleasure to have Rene from Bachelors of Science out to NYC for their east coast debut. Excellent set, high energy, melodic funky drum and bass along with plenty of original tunes from the new album. Real good Dj, real nice guy. Unfortunately the club we usually use lost their liquor license and could not work with us that evening causing us to move the party a few blocks south to The Delancey. I played before and after Rene, mostly funky DnB with a bunch of tune with Upright Bass samples, a real organic DnB set from me. Lots of fun, wish the turnout was better. Bachelors of Science will be back to NYC in the future!

Booking # 101: Direct Drive, NYC (w/ Nookie)

I organized NOOKIE's US tour this time around One stop on the tour was with the crew i've been working with for 4 years now Direct Drive. Nookie did not want to play for nearly 3 hours, so when he finished i jumped on the turntables from 3-4. This set was alot of fun, i was not expecting to play so i did not have anything planned, which led to a really fun improv type set. I tried to read the crowd and play to them, and i think it worked well, the majority of the dancefloor stayed till 4Am. Lots of positive vibes in Club Midway, lots of smiling faces, and new faces. I heard accents from the UK, Australia as well as down south of America. Direct Drive is always about the diversity. It was a pleasure and an honor to play after Nookie, real nice guy and a fantastic DJ!

Booking #100: Dream, NYC

Last night I spun at a party run by a few friends of mine, good people. I played earlier that i would have liked, 11-12 and i walked in and there were 2 people there... But it packed up very quick, big up NYC for coming out before 12:30! I played alot of minimal deep tunes and some really chill rolling tunes, songs by Lynx, Lomax, Do the Math, Mindscape, Chino, Mixmaster Doc, High Contrast, a few Commix tunes... There were 2 MC's from upsdate who were alright, they could rhyme but i'm not sure they knew when not to rhyme, its just as important. I like MC's who can rap, but being an MC for a DnB party is more than rhyming, its about connecting with the crowd, letting them know who they are listening to, alot of people miss those subtle parts. One of the MC's rewound my record when i turned around to get another one. Don't do that. Ever. The AC was broken, which made it rather uncomfortable, but still an enjoyable evening.

Booking #99: Driven AM Showcase 2.0 @ Midway, NYC

This was the 2nd edition of the Driven AM Showcase series at Club Midway. It was a Great night! Musically the night was fantastic and diverse. Great sets all around, and great to see everyone in the place dance to Mixmaster Doc's original stuff, those deep, bass heavy tunes were the highlight of the night for me, alongside Odi's insanity behind the decks, and Strife's excellent selection. I played for 30 minutes from 3:30 - 4:00, its a total blur. i heard i played a really good set, but i don't really remember too much. It was just to short, and my mind was somewhere else at the moment, but it was fun. Really looking forward to the next one with Bachelors of Science, Raw Q and Seen.

Booking #98: Direct Drive @ Midway, NYC

Last night was Direct Drive's return to Saturday nights in NYC. I booked Club Midway for the first Driven AM showcase in July, it went really well and the owners wanted us back, so now we are doing every Saturday night. We were scheduled to be downstairs from 1-4, but there was a band until about 2... So we ended up playing upstairs. I started with about 15 minutes of Electro House to continue what CT Burners (Chris Thomas) was playing. I like Djing house and they had a very professional setup, so i had fun. Then i played about an hour of DnB, started with some chill vocal stuff as were we technically in the lounge area. Nice size crowd seemed to be enjoying the music even thu the majority of them were not there for DnB. My set got a bit harder and the crowd for the most part stayed with me. Saw a bunch of new faces, and some of the regulars, big up to the new people who introduced themselves to me. I think it was a good start to the weekly event, good vibes in that place!

Booking #97: The Secret Night of Science, NYC

Raw Q

I've been trying to play this party for a year now since it started. Run by DB, Secret Night is likely the best DnB night in NYC at the moment. It is at Club LOVE which is an amazing underground place, literally and figuratively. Likely the best sound system in NYC, great light and lighting person (thou she does keep it quite dark), nice layout of the club, few places to relax/talk/rest your ears. The staff is also extreemly friendly, they are all about vibe and it works, happy dancing people all over that venue. The Dj booth is crazy. Built for House Dj's its all rotary knobs, no crossfader or regular up/down volume controls that DnB Dj's are used to. 2 Technics SL-1210M5G, which really thru me off, first time i think i have used them, the range for pitch control is +16 instead of +8, very sensitive turntable, and not something that i have been practicing on for 10 years now and am used to like the 1200/1210's. Still i played well and had a very nice crowd dancing for my set. I played after Raw Q, who killed it and left the floor busy after he finished his set. I played from 3-4, again i played all the new Lomax, Calibre, Lynx, Mixmaster Doc, Icicle, Nu:tone, High Contrast, i played the Photek Remix of Roni Size's Brown Paper Bag, that made alot of people happy. Artisan by Lomax was a huge tune, followed by Calibre's Hustin, i could see the crowd really enjoying that stuff. It was a real pleasure to play on that System, best i've ever played on, even thu the mixer was a huge headache. Many thanks to DB for having a Driven Artist Management showcase at his monthly, much respect! It was also my birthday set and Strife brought a cake for me! It was enjoyed by a bunch of friends and local dj/producers, really nice of her, made my night!

Booking #96: Paradise City, Albany NY

My first time DJing that far upstate. Road up with Dj Force, nice drive, not to long. Our hotel room reeked of disinfectant, but thats to be expected. The setup at the venue was very nice, Pioneer DJM-500 mixer, 2 cdj 1000, good monitor and great speakers. Unfortunately there was an outdoor area that was much more popular than the inside where i was playing, likely due to it being a great warm summer night... So i DJ'd to 5 or 10 people for most of my set while there were lots of people outside. Total disappointment. I did get to meet a few real nice people, and chat with some people i don't get to see often, so i did enjoy the night. I played all the new Lomax tunes, bunch of new Calibre, Lynx, Icicle, i played a deep harder than usual set.

Booking #95: 3rd Annual DnB BBQ on Long Island

Another year, another great BBQ. 3rd annual time Dj Strife and I presented this BBQ, ant this was the best year. Wonderful weather, not to humid, but nice and sunny. The music was fantastic, everyone played a long set, highlight to me was Odi. He played just about every style of DnB in his 2 hour set, a really span of tunes, and of course matched with his skill it was really impressive. Seemed like most people i know came out, lots of support from the local DnB scene, every one had a real good time. See you all again next year!

Booking #94: Driven AM Showcase

Great night! This party was my idea, i booked the club and the talent, thankfully alot of the people i know in the NYC DnB scene came out. The vibe was real strong all night, good turnout and great music. I personally played one of my best sets in a while, everything just clicked and i played a bunch of records i purchased in the UK, so i was well prepared with new music to keep them dancing. We had to ask people to leave at 4:05am, people were still dancing. I will be hosting more Driven AM each month at club midway, many thanks to everyone who came out to support!

Dj Strife vs. Dave Shichman Live on Bassdrive (Mp3)

I tagged with Dj Strife again on May 26th, this time for Bassdrive internet radio. The show was run by Overfiend, good dj, nice guy. The setup to play on was amazing, lots of fun. Many dubs on this mix, signed and unsigned. Its a fun mix, starts light and gets harder and harder. Always fun to tag with Strife.
Download the set here: Dj Strife vs. Dave Shichman live on Bassdrive May 26th 2007

Bungle & Ney Faustini - Ni Routine (Jerona Fruits)
Random Movement – Scarlet Trouble (Bingo)
To-Sha & Sinda– Give Me Your Boot (dub)
Ray Keith Feat. Alexandra And Navigator - No No (Dread Recordings)
Inztance – Never Say Never (dub)
Basic Operations - 4th Street Sound [Kubiks & Lomax RMX] (Phunkfiction Recordings)
Saburuko & Style Control – Center Line (dub)
Break – Diffusion (Subtitles)
Logistics – Inhale (Hospital)
Capone – What You Sayin (Test Recordings)
Dj Hazard – Busted (Playaz)
Mixmaster Doc – Love Dub (Forthcoming on SideChain Music)
Saburuko – Exudus (dub)
Mixmaster Doc – Eeka (dub)
Apex Feat. Ayah - The Space Between (Hospital)
Roni Size – Sound Advice (Full Cycle)
Klute Feat. Calibre – Freedom Come (Commercial Suicide)
Icicle – Numbers (Med School)
Spectrasoul – Emptyness Is Form (Diverse Products)
Bungle & Vandre - I'll Be (dub)
Utah Jazz - Feeling inside (Liquid V)
Marky & XRS Feat. Stamina – LK (V Recordings)
Architect feat. Ayah - Dance Child (white label)
Datcyde – Crumble (Taciturn)

New Mix from Dj Odi

I'm hosting a new mix from Dj Odi called Human Traffic.

http://drivenam.com/Guest_Mixes/DJ_ODI_HUMANTRAFFIC.mp3

Booking #93: One Night in Brooklyn

After catching an excellent set by Dj Strife @ the Secret Night of Science, i drove to Brooklyn to DJ a late night set at Club Exit. Very nice club. It was primarily a techno and hardcore rave so i played in the 'Chill room', which was lots of fun. While my style has progressed to the point where i really enjoy playing dancefloor style melodic dnb tunes, it is always fun to throw down a chill set of funky, melodic, atmospheric style DnB. As usual, my set progressed in intensity as my hour went on. I played a few classics (Midnight, LK, Feelin) and some new classics (Bungle w/ Ney Faustini - No Routine, Klute - Property is Theft, Kubiks & Lomax - Things To Come). Thanks to the early morning crew that enjoyed my 3:30-4:30 set, and special thanks to the guys at DPIM records for having me down.

Strife @ Secret Night Of Science, NYC

Love may be my favorite club in NYC, except for the fact that its way to hot in there, even before it was crowded it was to hot. Strife played an excellent, smooth set of classic DnB tunes (Brown Paper Bag) and tunes by Saburuko, Random Movement and Peshay. I was disappointed to hear her play so early, and i know i was not the only one. I would have very much liked to hear her play the 12-1 slot, perhaps next time. I plan on being there next month twice for The Insiders and for Klute, both have released some fantastic music this year.

Booking #92: Purchase College

I was asked to play a Rave at my alma mater Purchase College. I received my BA there a few years ago in Psychology. I loved the school so it was nice to go back. There were a trance DJ on before me, who drove everyone away with awful music. Thankfully i had an extended set, played about 90 minutes and i brought the crowd back. Good amount of people dancing and enjoying themselves. Met some nice people. Overall good time.

Dave Shichman - Something Beautiful (New Mix)

New Mix, 17 Tracks, 43 Minutes
http://davidshichman.com/Djmixes/Dave_Shichman_-_Something_Beautiful.mp3
1. Mixmaster Doc – Never Loved U (dub)
2. Red Shift Mantra – Rain [Blame RMX] (720 Degrees)
3. Nookie – Get down (Phuzion Recordings)
4. The Insiders – Renaissance (Nu Directions)
5. ST:Cal – Losing Ground (Soul:R Recordings)
6. Switch & Redeyes – Backwards (Celsius Recordings)
7. J-Cut – The Beginning (Fokuz Records)
8. Dan Marshall – Dream Catcher (Under Construction)
9. L.A.O.S. - Beautiful (Defunked)
10. Ska & Bratwa – Solitude (Good Looking Records)
11. D Bridge – Dream Pipe (Bingo Recordings)
12. Logistics – Together (Hospital Recordings)
13. Saburuko – El Presidente (Horizons Music)
14. Icicle - So Close (Med School Records)
>>>NIN – The Good Soldier
15. Saburuko – Exodus (dub)
16. Supply & Demand – Right Move (Cold Steel Records)
17. Dave Shichman – In the Picture (dub)

Booking #91: Sullivan Room w/ London Elektricity

My second time Djing alongside Tony Coleman AKA London Elektricity, and its always a pleasure. His set was great, thu harder than i expected. I had some trouble with the digital monitors as they had a .5 second delay, which is no good for trying to beat match. It was not my best set, still a honor to play alongside Tony again, as well as alongside Dj Seen and Eshin, two of NYC's best at one of the best clubs in NYC, Sullivan Room. Big up to the Direct Drive family.

World of Drum and Bass @ Sullivan Room, NYC

WOW Crazy night! I spent most of my time help work the door so i can't give a detailed review of the music, but WOW, packed place, amazing vibe. Every time i stepped on the floor all i saw were people smiling and dancing. SS grabbed the mic as expected and ran around the venue with the cordless mic mcing over the other guys sets, awesome!

Booking #90: Direct Drive @ Tonic, NYC

This gig was bittersweet. It is always fun to tag with Strife. She is one of the only DJ's in the area that i feel comfortable enough to tag with, and whose records work well with my records. Our live sets together are always so much fun, and unexpected, due to the improvisational aspect of tagging with someone, mainly working off each others last record. The night was a fun locals night, real good sets by Dj Stress and one of NYC's best Eshin.

But the bad part was knowing that Tonic would soon be closing. Another great venue for live music in NYC, particularly the lower east side is gone. Tonic was landmark for experimental music and jazz, it will be missed.