b-x-treme @ X-O.M. {REVIEW}

by **DIONYSOS** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 12:56 pm

For one night, Bassel Oubari was King.

I arrived at X-O.M. quite early as it was my best-friend's birthday (DJ FADE). It had been quite a while since my last visit to X-O.M. so it felt good walking in there knowing that Trance is on the horizon. The DJ was spinning a blend of commercial House and "RnB" (probably the most falsely-labeled genre in the music industry today), and Bassel was getting more hyped as the 2 A.M. deadline approached.

At exactly 2 o'clock, Bassel climbed up the DJ booth and started getting ready for his big intro which we had thoroughly discussed during the recent past. All the TranceHits peeps were overwhelmed with joy seeing our little Bassel take on his first ever gig. Minutes from there and off goes the commercial House, in comes the intro of Synergy ~ Hello Strings! The place was still packed and people responded quite positively to that... and things only got better from there!

Bassel kept on pounding one massive track after the other, carefully selected and accurately mixed, satisfying both the dancing crowds and us hungry trancers. And for a DJ spinning for the first time, Bassel looked quite at ease with the whole deal, partly because he was using his own gear which is a big plus, giving him time to interact with the crowd and not stick his head to the mixer.

The people were dancing, the trancers were shouting, and Bassel was enjoying every split second of it! This gave him an even bigger drive to outperform our expectations, and he pursued his relentless hammerring of massive releases that sent us on a much-needed trip in Trance.

It was only after a couple of hours that people started to leave the club. electro-sam and I were ones of the last few people to depart while Bassel was still going at it. And from what I collected from everyone I got to speak to, Bassel made quite a good impression... But it's not only up to the people to judge, it's up to us as well...

Technically, Bassel was flawless. The very few mistakes he committed were ones that only another DJ would notice, and ones that every big DJ still occasionally commits today (trust me, I've heard your beloved Tiesto do worse!).
Trackselection-wise, the playlist was harmonious, energetic, and a bliss to the ears.
Crowd-interaction was up the ladder as well. Many DJs underestimate this one dimension of being a DJ while it actually is one of the cornerstones of a good DJ, and Bassel sure mastered it.

There you have it: my judgement, not as Bassel's friend, but as a DJ myself and a trancer. For a first time at a club, Bassel did one hell of a job. It is a shame that someone with such talent is stuck in somewhere like Lebanon where true Trance is so under-appreciated that it's a crime. Then again, we may be lucky to be in a country where a Trance revolution is on its way, and we as the upcoming generation of DJs hold the flare of that revolution.

On a personal note, it was such a great feeling seeing Bassel, my friend and one of our own TranceHits.com family members, getting his first shot at a gig. I was really happy for him because first, he's been consistently working hard ever since he got his gear in preperation for this one opportunity to spring out of nowhere, and second, because I know what it feels like to finally be rewarded for all the hard work and practice, and the thrill of finally shifting from a bedroom DJ to a club DJ.

Great job my friend, you were impeccable, and we sincerely are proud of you. We had one hell of a time, and went on a journey that we haven't been on for a while. I congratulate you from the bottom of my heart, you earned it mate! Best of luck for the future, and stay true to your music; I do believe that the single most important rule of deejaying is playing with your heart, not with your mind.

DJs of the world beware... a new star is born!

TranceHits.com members present:
bxtreme
DIONYSOS
electro-sam
DJ FADE
DIPPS
ZooZ
jucky13
hasneez
Path;)s
inspiration
pTq
PROZACT
Psychadelic Cowboy

by **System.S** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 1:49 pm

That is SO good to hear guys.
Hoping for Bassel to have he's own Big GIG for a longer Trance session!
This is how every Trance story starts so u did great.
=Thumb up=

(Bassel i would like to read ur own personal review as well, how you felt, how it end up feeling and everything else!

)

by **bxtreme** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 2:29 pm

Oh God, as was once said in an Armin Van Buuren song: This... Is The Longest Day Of My Life!

... and it surely was! I arrived at OM as early as 9:30-10:00, I had already connected the equipment the night before, but i went early just to check how everything was going from the very beginning. 2:00AM took forever to arrive.

When it did, i had like a million feelings running through me, but all the bad ones fell out after playing my first song!!! I loved the crowd! It was such a great experience!!!!! Thanks to everyone who came out to support me, I hope you all had a good time, and that I didnt disappoint you!

After this experience, I do have some advice to offer to other DJs new to the club! First, never get overexcited! When i got overexcited, I screwed up! Everyone was shouting Adagio For Strings, and I was even more hungry for this tune than they were! So I took the CD and put it in the player, got the tune beatmatched from the very beginning. LITTLE DID I KNOW HOWEVER, after bringing the song up to the crowd, it turned out that i didnt change the track number and i left at track 1! lol, so yeah, overenthusiasm does kill the cat as well sometimes!

Secondly, get a lot of liquid next to you! I got dehydrated and i badly wanted to drink something, I was dizzy and excited all at once.. it was weird

.. But i guess i was able to perform well, even with that. Last but not least, and this is VERY important, is to interact with the crowd, and not think of urself as some hot shot up there!

I do have to mention that this was such a beatiful crowd! Esam and Dio, were kicking it as usual! pTq and PROZACT seemed beyond happy, and Path')s and inspiration were GOING WIIIILD! I enjoyed every minute of watching all the people that were there, its part of what u get in return for ur djing, and i was able to get more than what i was expecting

. Luckily i was also able to fulfill requests to people! This one guy requested Synaesthesia, and oh boy u should have seen the look on his face after i played it! What a beautiful NIGHT IT WAS!

Thats all I have to say i guess, im awaiting everyones comments/questions

by **LARA** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 2:51 pm

well...i wasn't there but i'm sure u were d best dj ever!!

by **Path;)s !** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 2:53 pm

heheh ! bassel u were awesome yest !! thx 4 giving us that we most wanted ! keep us the good work !!

by **TRANCExual** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 2:55 pm

yay!!
Good to c another TH member doing a great trancy night.
sorry bassel, i couldn't make it,though i tried my best

.

yalla where's the playlist?

by **DIONYSOS** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 2:56 pm

The advice part is so true! I fully agree as I experienced this first hand in Mute: I also screwed up when I got overexited, I also got dehydrated (at least last night you had me next to you to get you a drink!), and the crowd-interaction bit needs no further elaboration.

By the way, the guy who requested Synaesthesia is none other than our own car freak ZooZ!

by **bxtreme** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 3:31 pm

MEOW!

Synergy - Hello Strings
Tilt - The World Doesnt Know
Whiteroom - Someday (Instrumental Mix)
Lost Witness - Home (Mike Shiver Mix)
Filo & Peri - Closer Now (Whiteroom Remix)
Whiteroom - The Whiteroom
Adam White - Ballerina
Marcos - Around In Circles (Part One)
Young Parisians feat. Ben Lost - Jump The Next Train (Kyau vs. Albert Remix)
Mike Shiver & Ashkan Fardost - Arise (Vocal Mix)
Tiesto - Just Be (Antillas Club Mix)
Paul Van Dyk - Crush (Vandit Club Mix)
Oceanlab - Satellite (Above and Beyond Remix)
Endre - I Kill For You (Exertion Remix)
Paul Van Dyk - For An Angel
Talla 2XLC - The Air That I Breathe (Alex MORPH Remix)
Ernesto vs. Bastian - Dark Side Of The Moon (Dogzilla Remix)
The Thrillseekers - Synaesthesia (Ferry Corsten Remix)
Radiohead - Street Spirit (Tiesto Remix)
Above and Beyond - No One On Earth (Gabriel and Dresden Mix)
Tiesto - Adagio For Strings (Danjo and Styles Remix)
Joop - Sonzus (Original Mix)
Tiesto - Forever Today

by **hani** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 3:39 pm

well wowww great playlist bassel
well to tell the truth i thought u weren t goin to play tiesto tracks.
but i am really really sorry i couldn t make it.
khalsas plz next time fpr sure i ll be there!
i really really loved the playlist!