When I was in college, I stayed on campus the first few years of my time at the University of Houston. My first on-campus residence was the Moody Towers. They are not too hard to miss. When you first drive up toward the University Center, one of the first things you see in the distance are two white towering buildings. Side by side, the Moody Towers sit off Wheeler Avenue. A large parking lot sprawls out from the towers where hundreds of cars slide into spots more expensive than you’d like them to be. As a freshman, living on campus was pretty overwhelming. For the first time, I was technically on my own and living among my peer group.
The laundromat was on the top floor. Once you got to the last floor of dorm rooms, there was one more flight of stairs to lug your laundry up. It got boring pretty quick waiting on clothes and studying, so to provide some late night, after hours entertainment, I would bring my CD boom box with me (yes, I said boombox, for this was a time before everyone had a palm-sized mp3 player).
Shortly after entering college, I started going to parties in the Houston area. One of the first event nights I would go to is Friday Night Karma, where I was introduced to house through the likes of deejays like Kung Fu Pimp, who many now know as John Tran. This led me to try to find out more about house, which in turn uncovered the mix album In Stereo By Dj Dan.
Released in 2001 off Kinetic Records, In Stereo includes tracks from Todd Terry, Street Preacherz, Jr. Sanchez, Eric Davenport & Smitty, and Dj Dan himself. This mix album went deeper and funkier than I had heard a mix go before. I was instantly drawn in by the sound of horns, Latin house, soulful choruses, and heart pounding rhythm. This album defined house for me and I would play it over in over, as my clothes were bandied about in the dryer.
I usually didn’t have an audience when I played music, and I guess it was for my own good because my peers might have deemed me a possessed mad woman, seeing as I danced all about the laundromat when I was alone. It’s a miracle I got any studying done because it was so hard not to get up and shake it. Dj Dan’s In Stereo was and still is an important part of my life. I will never forget those care-free days bopping my head to the music as I poured over text and in the back of my head, planned my next adventure.
To purchase Dj Dan’s In Stereo, click here.
Dj Dan’s website: http://www.djdan.com/
Dj Dan’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DJDanMusic
Dj Dan’s Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/djdanmusic
Dj Dan’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/djdanmusic/
I was listening to electronic dance music without even knowing it when I was listening to Jock Jams in the 90s. Fast forward to my senior year in high school and I had discovered Fatboy Slim. I have been listening to edm ever since and love writing about new sounds, good sounds, and the music that makes us move.
