George Acosta @ Ampersand

George Acosta @ Ampersand, New Orleans -- APR 12, 2008 Still lying around with strained muscles in my lower back, I decided to finally write my unofficial review of George Acosta night at Club Ampersand in New Orleans. It’s funny because I waited until the last minute to officially decide to go that night. I’ve been spoiled. My first trance clubbing night ever was in Ibiza (the Mecca of clubbing) and I had the big DJs every trance night there. George is rated America’s #1 DJ, but he is far behind the others globally so I was a little apprehensive. Then again, when am I not apprehensive about anything? Exactly. So we got to the club very early. When Ferry Corsten came in October he got on the decks a little before midnight. We got to Ampersand a little after 11:00 and Wyldchile was on the decks when we entered. It said Electro-House and Breaks so I figured he must be the opening DJ who spins House. Sure enough he did, but ironically he spun PPK’s “Resurection” when the club was all but empty. That tripped me out and I should’ve gotten footage because nobody spins that anymore. It’s an oldie, but goody! That DJ spun for 3 hours and by the middle of hour two, I was ready for Mr. Acosta. This certain House was that fluffy, boring, generic stuff that I tire of easily. Upon first arrival, it was ok because I hadn’t heard electronic music live since Ferry’s night in October, but like I said, I was bored. I tried to figure out why and came to the conclusion that the structures of the tunes are just so basic and follow the same pattern. Oh, and then there are vocals. If I want pop music, I’ll turn on the radio. Just to note, this DJ spun David Guetta’s “Love Is Gone” toward the end of his set. That made me chuckle. Mr. Acosta took over on the decks alittle after 2am. When he entered, I was taken aback because he’s so short. I’m about 5’3 and he was totally my height! I’ll be honest, though, I did not know what to expect because I read different reviews about him beforehand. My opinion just observing him entering the DJ booth and then DJ-ing, however, is that he is not too sociable with the clubbers, but he can spin a very decent set. I guess it’s a matter of do you want a friend/entertainer or DJ? He spun for about 2.5 hours and the first hour felt like all tech-trance. I know it wasn’t, but goodness it sure felt like it. I’ve grown a liking toward tech-trance and realize how good it is for clubbing because of the sounds and the ability to dance to it, but after a while I kind of got tired of it. That is until he randomly dropped Saltwater’s “The Legacy (Alphazone remix).” I died. When I heard it mixing in, my jaw dropped. That was the highlight tune of my night since I always have a highlight tune. And Rank 1’s “Airwave” shocked me as well! Here’s a list of some of what I remember in no particular order: Oceanlab - Sirens of the Sea (ID remix) Cosmic Gate feat. Denise Rivera - Body of Conflict DJ Tiesto - Lethal Industry Rank 1 – Airwave Saltwater - The Legacy (Alphazone remix) Sander van Doorn - Riff Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan – Silence (ID remix) 4 Strings - Take Me Away (Re-ward dub) First State - Your Own Way Zombie Nation – Kernkraft 400 There were some others I recognized, but for the life of me, I could not remember the IDs. I really could’ve used Naveed that night, lol. Maybe if I see some of Craig’s footage I’ll remember. Some other things I want to note for memory was this guy in a wheelchair raving. He was too cute! George had an actual CD case of CDs, not a tool like Serato’s Scratch Live. Come to think of it, Ferry still uses CDs as well. I just remember Armin van Buuren and Paul van Dyk on laptops in Ibiza. I met this girl and guy that came all the way from Georgia. I hope they were here for other reasons because Mr. Acosta will be in Atlanta soon. And I met this guy from Nashville who taught me a cool technique to the way the real clubbers dance. It’s all about the string, haha! After Mr. Acosta, DJ Trashy took over on the decks with Breaks. And after about 3 tunes, we left. EDM music is about having an open mind, but I honestly think I have to be in a certain mindset to really enjoy myself with that particular House and with Breaks. By certain mindset, I mean drunk off my ass, with dancing shoes, and no intentions of actually feeling anything!