D. Ramirez USA Blog // Part II / Aug 2009
D. Ramirez // Los Angeles - Hollywoood Hills
Friday 07.08 (Pacha New York City)
On the plane to New York I’m feeling a bit worse for wear, but i can’t complain as its entirely my own doing. I try not to feel too sorry for myself. My plan to work is again ruined by the lour of alcohol (the night before) and i get none of the things done i need to. I end up head banging on the plane, falling in and out of consciousness but as the plane lands I start to feel the excitement of New York City.
I have a limo waiting for me at the airport, and a real character of a driver named Zee. New York is such an amazing place i can’t help but feel like a little boy as we drive over the Brooklyn Bridge. I’m meeting my a notorious friend tonight, a London social butterfly who’s affectionately know as the Nanimal. I know I’m in for a long and eventful night and for that i need to sleep. Trying to sleep before i DJ is near by impossible, after much tossing and turning and what feels like a call from the city herself, i head out for a walk. I feel quite overwhelmed in this moment, feeling like just a boy from Sheffield wandering around big city. I try to blend in a bit and not look too much like a fish out of water.
I meet my friend Nan and we head over to Pacha in the limo. Rob the promoter meets us and takes us inside explaining that Pacha has been closed for the last month for a drug bust and it’s only just re-opened. He explains it’s probably not going to be so busy but should be a good night anyway. I’m upstairs in the VIP area called Pachita DJ ing with a great couple called Sleepy and Boo who I’ve played with before at Cielo NYC (where i was supposed to be playing this time until they also got busted for drugs).
I go on and start to spin, it’s slow, as it sometimes can be, but the people who are there seem up for it. Over to the left of me there’s some guy who’s got himself a D.Ramirez wig! It’s a funny grey blonde thing which is swept over to the side just like my hair – brilliant! He makes my night and in between tracks i chat to him, he’s cool. There’s also a contingency of Eastern Europeans there – people from Belarous, The Ukraine and Russia and they are all cool as f**k. All of those places are massive for me and in fact i’ve just done all the Global Gatherings in those countries so to see them there as they’d seen me in their own countries was amazing! Me and the Nanimal head off to meet his friends for a drink after the gig. In the city that doesn’t sleep how can I make an excuse to go home early. I decide that I will sleep when I am dead.
Saturday 08.08 (Vinyl Denver)
The flight to Denver is 4 hours and i’m ruined! I get on the plane and my seat is in the emergency isle (they call that premium economy). I don’t even sit down yet and im sound asleep. Happily dribbling on myself, I suddenly get woken up by being violently shaken by the air stewardess. Apparently anyone sat in my seat needs to be responsible for the emergency exit. They really chose the wrong guy to be responsible at this point! I feel bad as the whole plane is looking at me laughing. I take what dignity I have left and fall back asleep. I arrive in Denver 4 hours later, feeling semi refreshed after my 4 hours sleep, the most ive had in 3 days!
I’ve played in Denver a few times, always for the same guy Jonathan Shuman who runs some really great nights there – Vinyl, 2 AM and The Church. Denver is the birth town to Beatport so there is a really healthy electronic music scene.
Vinyl is a great club in Downtown Denver with a cool DJ booth, a pretty good sound system and an up for it crowd, a lot of whom i recognise. The last time i was there it was rocking and it didn’t look like it was going to be any different this time. I only hoped they didn’t want me to play at the after party as i did the last time because i was pooped.
Once i started playing and the crowd started rocking i got my third wind and i was off. Again my big tunes were Mark Knight and D.Ramirez ‘Downpipe’ and my remix of Max Linens ‘The Soulshaker’ with people running up to the DJ booth to find out what they were. The biggest moment of the night was when i played my new single ‘Satur8′. The place went off. What an Awesome night!
Of course as I finished and started dreaming of my bed I got wind of the fact I was due to play the after party. I had been trying to avoid it, but I was buzzing now from the great night and with a few vodkas under my belt – I was up for it.
Off we went to the club ‘2 AM’ which is literally next door or could even be part of Vinyl where i proceeded to spin. I couldn’t find a power supply for my laptop so i had to play from the internal battery, after about 30 minutes the computer, a lot like my own internal warning system, started to warn me that it was running out of battery. So alas i had to finish. To all the guys who went there to catch me spin for the 2 hours I’m sorry I’ll make it up to you next time, i promise.
Sunday 09.08 (Back To LA)
Ahh, the flight back! It was a really fun weekend and i had a great time at all my gigs in Minneapolis, New York City And Denver but now I’m pooped. My amazing girlfriend kindly comes to meet me at the airport and i go home for some much needed sleep – Goodnight and God Bless!
D. Ramirez BBQ
Monday 10.08 (Day Off)
We go to visit some of the sights of LA taking in Melrose Avenue, West Hollywood, The Beverly Centre (great shops in there) and then we drive up to the Observatory which is unfortunately closed but the views from up there are amazing. There’s one problem while I’m here is the food – it’s just sooooo good i can’t stop eating! I must have put on some serious weight so far as I’ve got a little (or not so little ) stomach forming. Ah well, at least I’m in the right place to get some liposuction at the end of my trip.
