Monday, Nov 04, 2013

Alex Seda began young — at the age of 11, to be precise. Then, following his introduction to electronic music at 16, this Miami born spinmaster’s never looked back. As a DJ, he has now played in every continent in the world and last year launched his own record label with friend Pablo Kopanos called 07800 Productions. Following his residency at Nikki Beach in Miami, Ministry of Sound in Spain and Es Paradis Ibiza, Seda has decided to make Dubai his home as resident DJ in the city’s newest duplex club 2LIV in Sofitel Resort & Spa, Palm Jumeirah. Soundbites caught up with him to talk floating booths, moving to Dubai and of course, music.

So what are you bringing to the Dubai clubbing scene?

What I plan on bringing is real full-on no-nonsense House Music. Not the typical cheese that’s on the radio but real soul, the real essence of what House Music is and what it means to me. This is what I will do, all that I can to bring to this country.

Have you ever performed in a floating booth before?

I have, actually. I played in Pacha Ibiza’s floating DJ booth. Thanks to the DJ, Luciano, for suggesting that to club, I was able to play in one this past summer.

Tell us about the craziest booths you’ve performed in?

Well each booth has its own vibe, its own energy that allows you to transmit what you got to the rest of the people in crowd. But if I had to name a few, I would say Pacha Ibiza’s booth is just insane, from all the energy you get from the people below. There is another club in Khabarovsk, Russia, called Hospital Club, that had a phenomenal booth where I was so able to just go insane with the crowd. I like booths with tons of space, because I jump up and down kind of like a monkey, and I’m a big guy so I need my space. And of course I can’t forget where I started and that’s Nikki Beach Miami’s DJ booth which has gone through a few changes over the years, but always maintains this special vibe and is still so close to the people that you are really able to connect with the people on a real personal basis.

Why did you accept the 2Liv Dubai gig?

I accepted the job with 2LIV because I really wanted to have an opportunity to bring something to Dubai that I feel is missing. With the exception of a few clubs that play quality music, I feel that most places here aren’t really playing cutting edge music and that is what I wanted to do here, so I jumped at the opportunity.

How has the experience been so far?

It’s been great. I really love all the people I work with. They have really been so great and so supportive and they have really let me do what I want as far as playing the music I like, because they believe in me and they feel the music that I’m bringing. So I really can’t ask for more.

How different is the Dubai clubbing scene from say, Miami, Ibiza and Barcelona?

Well the clubbing experience here is really actually quite different. With all the rules that Dubai has, including its closing of venues at 3am, no consumption of alcohol for the DJ, no one on the dance floor taking mind altering substances etc etc, you do feel a different kind of energy coming from the people. Not as if this is a bad thing, it’s just different. You notice the people behaving in a different way then you see from most clubs around the world. And the clubbing scene here is really based on radio records. Not too many people here are open minded to something new, something they haven’t heard. People here want all the records they know, all the records they listen to in the car on the way to work. So it’s a little hard to feed people new music and have them digest it. But you do have those select few people who are willing to take in those new sounds and have it take them on a real trip, and these are people I’m looking forward to meeting.

From your perspective, how has house music evolved over the years — and where do you think it’s heading?

Well house music has evolved a great deal. It’s even gone to a point of what they call music, isn’t really even House music. With the likes of Swedish House mafia, Avicci, and David Guetta, they have turned House music into this EDM thing, and people think that is House music, when it is so far from it. House music is music with rhythm, with a beat that rocks back and forth, which gets those hips moving from side to side. It’s not this hands-in-the-air, screechy electronic noise which is being played by most of these DJ’s now a days. Some House music can be like that, but the true essence of House comes from the groove.

House music will always continue to evolve like most music should. But it does seem that the true sound of it is getting lost. But what’s great now is that there is this huge movement of this deep and techy side of House that is really keeping that original vibe to it and its rocking the planet right now, so I am so happy this is still going on and going strong. But right now I see that when it comes to playing House music, you either go with this real commercial festival huge room sound or you go more to the underground more true essence house music side. Is it possible to be into both? Well yes, that’s where I come in come in, I try to find that median and play what’s great from both sides of the spectrum to give my crowds a full dose of what’s hot at least from my perspective.

So what do DJs do on their down time?

I produce music. Been doing it since I was 16. I try to create the sounds of what my brain can cook. And I’ve done it all, from the commercial electronic stuff, to tribal drum records, to deep house to even downtempo and chillout records. I don’t like to put any barriers on what I can create. I like to experiment, and try different things, this at the end helps me be a better musician.

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

I see myelf married to the woman of my dreams, continuing to rock crowds around the planet and most of all, the owner of a beach club in Thailand or Singapore where I can do what I want, play what I want to play, invite all the DJ’s of my choosing and do it all in a beautiful and peaceful place where the people come with an open mind to listen to good music of all genres. A place, where labels don’t apply, sexual preference, economic standing etc. A place, where everyone is the same. This is the feeling I got when I first visited Ibiza and it’s the magic I want to bring to my own beach club.

*2LIV is located next to the Sofitel Resort & Spa, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai. For reservations, call 055-9867180 or BBM 2A122BDA. For more on DJ Alex Seda, go to alexseda.com.

By David Tusing, Deputy tabloid! Editor

Gulf News 2013. All rights reserved.