The show featured the opening acts Colin Clark and Salva. I arrived at at about 11:30 p.m.; for the beginning of Salva’s set. Unfortunately, I missed Colin Clark who started spinning when doors opened at 10:00 p.m. Colin Clark is an underground DJ from Toronto while Salva is an American DJ with a diverse and sound similar to A-Trak, and will be touring with A-Trak for the remainder of the tour. His flawless spinning blended electronic music with hip hop and trap, and kept the crowd dancing and active, preparing for A-Trak to come on stage.
Hoxton was packed the moment I got in, and as the night progressed, more people appeared. At some points it was a little difficult to move and dance, but without fear, I pushed my way to an accessible area with not as many people, and a clear view of the stage. The Hoxton proved to be a great space for such a venue, providing a large dance floor and massive bars with approachable and lively bartenders (something we all love).
At about 12:45 am; and almost through Salva’s set, A-Trak’s tech man came out to start setting up his equipment. The heat from the crowd grew and everyone could feel A-Trak’s presence linger around the venue. I was getting antsy. I have been anticipating this show since I bought the tickets online in April. He is a very rare DJ to see and when you have the chance to see him – I suggest you do.
It was 1:00 a.m.; and A-Trak came on with a bang. He was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt that had Fool’s Gold written in big letters on the side of the left sleeve, and started his set with electro-house, club-hit styled music. A-Trak talked to the crowd through the microphone, and even took selfies with fans in the front row. What I liked most was how interactive he was with everyone. A lot of the time, we go to see DJs, and the only form of communication between the DJ and audience is just smile, flash hearts and headphones to the audience and then the DJ leaves without any contact with their fans. A-Trak consistently kept thanking his crew and threw shout outs to people, a joyful attitude which is very magnetic.
A-Trak’s background image for his set up was interesting also. He left a camera to record the audience and used us as a virtual background to his stage, transitioning to and from a flashing A-Trak logo and swirling digital A-Trak heads, all of which were colorful and vibrant.
At about 2:00 a.m., A-Trak did what is very rare for many DJs to do – he played a disco-house set. If you are a Toronto native and a fan of disco-house, you will know that we do not have a very widely known disco-house scene here, so finding such shows are difficult if you are not involved in it. He mixed everything from Duck Sauce, Cassius, and Thomas Bangatler, amongst others.
Big A-trak digital heads flew around the crowd after they were thrown out to us. Many fans held them up by their side for the rest of the night. I bought an Albert Einstein duck face shirt supporting Fools Gold, A-Trak, and the Gold Gone Wild tour. The music continued to progress and A-Trak moved his set from disco-house to hip-hop, a music style that he has always been a part of. Early in A-Trak’s career, he was Kanye West’s personal DJ for West’s tour. A-trak continued to keep the relationship with West and produced for him. His hip-hop music acts kept on expanding, and he collaborated in Rayban Vision with CyHi Da Prince, and his latest hit – DIPSH*TS with Cam’Ron.
This year, A-Trak released the album “Quack” by Duck Sauce in April, which includes the singles It’s You, aNYway, Barbara Streisand and Goodie Two Shoes. He also released his own solo song Out the Speakers with Milo & Otis featuring Rich Kidz.
I left the show at around 3:00 a.m. and A-Trak was still playing hip-hop in his set. Although I love A-Trak and his creativity, hip-hop is something I can only stand for so long.
A-Trak was the youngest and first Canadian to win the DMC World DJ Championship in 1997, at the young age of 15. He moved forward with Worldwide DJ competitions and won 5. A-Trak has been keeping the roots of disco, house, hip hop, and turntables alive, has successfully created Fools Gold Records, collaborated with Armand Van Helden to create Duck Sauce, and quacked his way into many listeners headphones. His creative music videos, revolutionary talent and excessive passion for music made A-Trak at the Gold Gone Wild tour one for the books, and I count down the days until I can see him live again.
LINKS:
A-Track
Website
Facebook
SoundCloud
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
Salva
Facebook
SoundCloud
Twitter
Colin Clark
Facebook
SoundCloud
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram
The Hoxton
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Embrace
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Christina Turner – EDM TOR
