Following the opening of the Vivamusic Hub at Orchard Cineleisure, the weekend was chock full with gigs by local talents on both days. It was DJs Keishi and Blissout on Saturday September 9th and Elustix on Sunday, providing the audience with a range of musical tastes from house to electronic and even progressive in the evening from 7pm to 10pm.

DJ Blissout was the first to get his hands on the turntables situated in the middle of the "Box" in the Hub, although beginning his set 45 minutes later than the stipulated time of 7pm. Getting inspiration for his stage name from a remix track of a U.K. group 'The Beloved", Adrian started out listening to pop before moving onto deeper, edgier sounds (think John Digweed and Deep Dish's Renaissance remix, who plays a big musical influence in his life). With a full time job in a major Korean company, Adrian spins more out of interest and passion more than anything else. This interest has brought him behind the turntables at Nox, Phuture and Insomnia Café; but no matter where the set, be sure to listen out for Deep Dish's remix of "Wrong" by 'Everything But The Girl" and BPT's "Moody", a vinyl given to him by Zouk's resident DJ Jonathan Yeo. Did I mention Danny Tenaglia had used that same vinyl to spin in New York?

Back here in Singapore (now what were we thinking?) was a mixture of deeper, dubbier house music, punctuated with electronic and bassy elements which grew with more confidence towards the end of the set. The best part about the set were remixes of tracks like Gabrielle's "High", although perhaps the audience expected more effects to the otherwise dull mixing.

Just a little after an hour, DJ Blissout made way for DJ Keishi, who has just chosen his stage name, moving the rhythm to a quicker pace with progressive fast forward music. Less bass this time, but upbeat drum sounds have been added, plus some effects to go with the flow.

Keishi is actually a direct Japanese translation of his name, Kelvin, who chose it because he feels it reflects the kind of music he spins. Citing Dave Seaman, Sasha and Andy from Hertz Records as his influences, Keishi has played at Nox and feels playing for a showcase here at the Hub is very different from playing to a crowd. "The concept of a showcase is nice, although playing to a club crowd can be more fulfilling, since the bass is more distinct…plus the feeling of spinning (to the crowd) is much more different".

The NUS undergraduate does not want to go into full time spinning, however. "As a bedroom DJ, you will need a lot of experience to make it there." He also expressed his interest to go overseas to work on this passion of his, especially since the potential for expansion there is definitely better than doing this locally.

Ending a little before 9, the set was deemed complete with a rare remix of Alanis Morrisette's "Uninvited", a treat for both the audience and the DJs as they finished their showcase at the Hub. But wait, the show is not over, with Elustix at the helm come Sunday evening.

Elustix, who had a three-hour set on September 10th, delivered a pulsating mix of dance music, fusing electronic, upbeat and tech trance with sounds from an electronic keyboard in their three-hour set which began a few minutes after 7pm.

It can be roughly said that Aloysius, Nux, Xz-ez and Ry came together while they were learning to spin together, plus a couple of stints at the former Chaplins pub at Holland Village. With their similar interests it was not difficult to see how they managed to get an outfit of four out, calling themselves Elustix. And an apt name that is, for their music can include anything tech, from trance to tribal and even jazz house.

Perhaps the unique thing about Elustix is the inclusion of en electronic keyboard, fusing its sounds into the regular spinning sets the DJs take turns to do. Ry, who is at the keyboard, explains that it shows people how different dance music can be with the keyboard, especially since the four believe in going with the flow, knowing what they have in mind as they progress with their music. Strains of their original works can be heard at various places, including Nox and China Jump, where they have performed.

As Aloysius, Nux and Xz-ez took turns to spin in the "Box" during the four-hour set, Ry came in perfectly with his electronic notes, lending a smooth, futuristic feel to the music pumping out of the speakers. While I toy with the idea of such music becoming increasingly popular in the future, I thank the boys for the interview as they prepare to leave the Hub after the interview. With a DJ workshop in the Hub by Andrew Chow in the pipeline, let's hope more people will rise up in Singapore's growing dance scene.

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