Even the most vivacious nightlife scenes can become monotonous after a certain amount of time. This is why it is great when new blood arrives and injects a spark of enthusiasm to promoters and other DJs. It is a bonus when that established DJ is also extremely amicable.
DJ Cross Cutz, who will be playing at 18Taichung this Saturday night for the Love2Funk back-to-school party, has recently decided to set up his home base in Taipei, after spending the last four years bouncing around between Macau, Beijing, Bangkok and Hong Kong.
By playing so many diverse places, this graduate of the Qbert Scratching Academy knows how to seamlessly mix heavyweight bass music, sexy deep house, old school hip-hop and ghetto funk into something all dance floors will love. When asked to describe his style, Cutz said, “Eclectic, sometimes aggressive, sometimes sexy but always funky with grooves and beats that draw people to dance.”
Photo courtesy of Cedric Bouazdi
Cutz first got wind of Taiwan’s ever-growing music scene when he came here to study Chinese six years ago for six months. At that time, Cutz was regularly playing at university parties in France and knew there was something more for him. He eventually got a gig in Hong Kong and then scored a residency at a plush hotel in Macau. Soon, Cutz was in the hotel DJ loop and skittering from city to city in Asia.
In that period, he visited Taipei and played a few shows at Luxy and LMNT, and liked what he saw here. He found that when it came to getting gigs, things were not as cutthroat in Taiwan as they were in some of the other cities. He also noted a peace and quiet and thought that Taipei was much healthier than some of the other, more hectic Asian locations. When his contracts were up with the hotels, Cutz decided that Taiwan would be his home for the time being.
Besides playing as many shows as he can, Cutz’s goal is to work on making his own music. “For now, I really want to settle down and spend more time on music production and build up my own studio in one fixed place. The goal is to stay in Taiwan, and when times allow it, keep on going to different places to DJ and do shows,” he said.
“There is already a lot happening in Taiwan, so I need to feel it and seize the different opportunities, but it would be great to use my overseas and international networks to bring more international DJs and artists around, and help in developing and diversifying the local music scene.”
■ Love2Funk back-to-school party featuring Cross Cutz and Robi Roka takes place tomorrow night from 10pm to 4am at 18TC, 38 Dachuan St, Greater Taichung (台中市大川街38號). Admission is NT$400 for ladies and NT$600 for men, which includes a drink.
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