Two DJs, two continents, one venue. This Thursday night, Italian-born DJ Congorock and Canadian-born DJ Felix Cartal will both slip behind the decks at Zero Gravity in Dubai.
Congorock, who opened for Rihanna on her 777 Tour in 2012 and tells tabloid! she’s one of his “favourite singers ever”, will bring to the decks everything from dance-punk to electro house. Alongside him, Cartal carries the thumbs up of approval from big name producer Steve Aoki.
So what can we expect from the pair? “A high energy set — I can’t wait,” Cartal said. Congorock echoed the sentiment.
“I’ve got a lot of new music to play from me and my DJ friends — that along with my personal classics,” he said.
Ahead of their set, they each gave tabloid! a sneak peak into the hottest tracks on their sets, and shared their biggest rookie mistake from when they were first starting out behind the decks.
If you could collaborate with any current vocalist, who would it be and why?
Cartal: Britney Spears because she’s awesome.
Congorock: I’d like to work with Miguel. I just love his voice. For me, he’s like the ultimate R’n’B voice of the 2000’s.
Do you prefer the commercial EDM scene or its underground counterpart?
Congorock: I like both. I feel like I come from the underground but unexpectedly got recognition over the more commercial scenes.
Cartal: I think a bit of both is necessary. I love a great infectious pop vocal combined with ideas that borrow from the underground.
What’s different for you collaborating with a vocalist versus working solo?
Cartal: It’s more challenging because you have someone bringing their own ideas to the table that you may not agree with. Ultimately, I think that’s how you learn though, and that’s what I want to continue doing.
Was there ever a rookie mistake you made behind the decks?
Cartal: I think there was a level of winging it then that when I think of it now, is quite humorous. I used to just plug the mixer into the headphone jack of my laptop, which seems crazy now. It was a different time.
Congorock: [My earliest DJing memory] was in 2006 after a rock concert. I played with vinyl [records] and it was very hard to beatmatch [a technique that consists of matching the tempo of your upcoming song with that of your current song] in the beginning
What’s your biggest pet peeve as a DJ?
Cartal: People who play the same songs as everyone else.
Congorock: Bad sound systems!
What are the hottest tracks on your set right now?
Cartal: The Vicetone remake of Astronomia is incredible. And [I] just finished my remix of Jack U — Take U There [ft. Kiesza] which I’m very excited about.
Congorock: Zomboy — Raptor, Nom De Strip — The Game, Stanton Warriors — Can’t Hold Back.
— Entrance for men is free before 10pm and Dh100 thereafter, while entrance for women is free before midnight and Dh100 thereafter. For more information, call 04-3990009.
