Zane Lowe @ Engine Shed, Lincoln (23/09/2010)


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Hey everyone,

It's still fresers week here at uni, and as always there is day after day of events beinh held. Zane Lowe has come back to Lincoln for what must be his fourth or fifth year now, this time for his DJ Hero 2 tour.

Me and my best mate, Leon, didn't manage to buy tickets in time (they sold out within an hour) so we arrived at the doors 1 and a half hours early to ensure we got tickets on the door. We were let in at 10 and after a trip to the toilet headed straight to the front. At this time nobody was really bothered about standing at the front, they just wanted to dance ... but I knew from past experiences just how people wil try and do anything to stand on that front row!

Zane was supported by Shy FX this time. Leon was more excited about this than seeing Zane as he is a DnB/Jungle/Dubstep kind of guy. Shy FX did a blinding set, and even dipped in a bit of electro halfway through (I heard a remix of Ian Carey - Shot Caller in there).

Zane didn't make a fancy entrance this year. He stepped up and plugged in his Akai 400 (more on this later) and got started.

I think I will mention now ... at the end of the show, I turned to Leon and said if we went round back quick enough we could meet Zane. Sure enough, we casually strolled round back (through hoards of drunken students) and found him chatting with the venue staff. The bouncers stood with him saw me and Leon and started edging forward (assuming we were drunk and gonna pile on Zane or something) but when Zane clocked us he ran up to us and started chatting. He asked us both about our DJ careers, and then decided to show us his set up. He was using his own CDJ 2000 decks (which let him down mid-set!) and the akai controller which he had only just purchased a few nights prior to the event. He told us all the equipment was new to him and it was his fourth gig on tour using any of it.

Back to the night itself though, Zane did his usual mix of every genre imagineable taking advantage of the CDJ's quantized cue points and loops. Halfway through the set playing a live-produced remix of Yolanda ... the music went dead. What had happened is because he was using usb sticks, they had overheated. He controlled the situation beautifully, so well I had to ask him if it was planned and he swore it wasn't. He got the crowds chanting using his microphone, and at the same time talking to the technician asking him to fix it or get the old 1000's back.

The night ended with a really chilled out version of 'Ney York' by Jay Z and Alicia Keyes, which was really diferent to his set which is packed with energy ... but it was the perfect end to his show. He came down and shook hands with everyone at the front. But then as I've said, we met him round back and had proper manly hugs and everything!

He is now in Sheffield, possibly still asleep in the back of his car. But my god that man knows how to work a crowd! :)

(Photos and videos can be found on my facebook) http://www.facebook.com/simonross46#!/album.php?aid=495677&id=502985723&ref=notif&notif_t=like

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