To most, clubbing in South Beach has always been about two genres of music in particular: Hip-Hop and House.
Notwithstanding the monthly residency of local Trance legend DJ Edgar V at Crobar, Trance and Progressive Trance has been a genre that has fallen along the wayside since George Acosta had his bi-weekly residency at Level in 2002.
On January 4th, 2005 all that changed. The New Year has brought about new tunes. Trance is back on South Beach!!!
Presented by CoolJunkie member Koky, the new weekly party known as “The Fix,” brings to the forefront DJ Eric Rodriguez (Groove Eric) and his “big sounds” to one of the beach’s most intimate venues…Blue.
While Tuesday nights may not be a “big” clubbing night, Blue was packed to the brim by CoolJunkie’s own message board members as well as members from other boards in support of Groove Eric and Trance in general.
Our very own “Macboy,” who frequents Blue regularly, commented that: “it was the most packed I’ve ever seen it on a Tuesday” …a testament to Eric’s growing reputation and the dedication of Miami trance fans to the genre.
Opening the night, was Southside’s Charlie Solana. Currently holding a residency at Crobar opening for Edgar V, Charlie delivered a head-throbbing Tribal / Progressive set.
From Lazy M’s “Music is my Life” to “Time” (Southside remix w/ vocals by local dj Stryke), the night truly began on the right note.
Charlie Solana continued his musical assault upon the crowd with his new track entitled “Dire Straits.” Originally produced by Charlie along with Ralph Falcon (1/2 of Murk along with Oscar G), the crowd in front of the DJ booth exuberantly danced and jumped about in a frenzy. Charlie brought the house down!!!
At 1 a.m., armed with his “lethal weapons” (dual Pioneer CDJ 1000’s), Groove Eric took the crowd on a journey into the world of Trance.
Eric Rodriguez first became the “Groove Eric” we have come to know back in 1999. Alongside friend and promoter “DJ Concept” (Luis Martinez), Eric played a major role with Luis’s underground radio station “GrooveRadio” based out of Miami.
His dedication to trance soon grew exponentially and before long, he began to spin at private house parties and created monthly promo cd’s for his ever-growing fanbase.
All his hard work paid off when in late 2004, Groove Eric became a finalist for the Global DJ Broadcast Bedroom DJ Contest. Though he did not ultimately win, his high placement within a contest among trance djs worldwide, helped catapault him to his residency at Blue.
The crowd erupted screaming out his name as he took control. Starting off in typical Groove Eric fashion, “nasty” from the get-go with U2’s “Vertigo” (Rednaka Remix), he quickly followed up with Kyau vs. Albert’s “Made of Sun,” “Passion” (Robert Nixon remix), and Sunblind’s “Believe” (Arc in the Sky dub) nasty baselines included.
The crowd chock full of trance addicts, and even some househeads, united on this evening. The magic “glue” that performed such a miracle? Great music!!!
Groove Eric continued his inaugural set with a plethora of crowd pleasers. From Fractal Structure’s “Lost Sequence,” to Inner State’s “Changes” (John O Callaghan Remix) and Push-“Strange World” (2000 remix), Eric was set on cruise control.
Cameras were- a- flashin as members from CoolJunkie and other boards, took pictures to commemorate the inaugural event. And business was robust as many enjoyed $3 Bud Lights and Jager shots.
The madness on the decks continued.
Dogzilla’s “Your Eyes,” Randy Katana’s “In Silence” (Txitxarro Mix), The Cranberries-“Shattered” (bootleg) and the classic trance track Three Drives-“Greece 2000” (DJ Shog Remix), annihilated all those still standing during the last two hours of his set.
Delivering high energy trance to an audience salivating for an alternative sound on South Beach…. Groove Eric has arrived!!!
