Wanna know what really went down at this years Miami Winter Music Conference? RA caught up with a select group of leading DJs and Producers and made them spill the beans...

James Zabiela
Personally, how was the WMC for you?
Amazing! I've never been to the conference before so it was all quite exciting for me. I played at some great parties & went to some great parties. It was nice to see all the faces on the end of phone calls and hang with friends that I've made through DJing over the past few years.

What fresh DJ's/Producers/Live Acts caught your attention at Miami?
Infusion really blew me away, I was very impressed with their live set & I'm not just saying that because their form Oz either. They were ace.

Highlight tune from this year's Conference?
I only get one tune? Ok, this 2 Freaks thing by Rennie Pilgrim. The reaction it got at Space was amazing.

Was there a low point for you at this year's WMC?
No.

What was the best party or highlight during the WMC?
Actually, for me, it was the one doomed for disaster. I played at a hotel party called shameless but just before I went on, the monitor blew & it was virtually impossible to mix. I ended up DJing without headphones playing back to back with Steve Porter & every time we managed to get to the next tune in people were cheering. It was a struggle mixing with 2 second delay but it was definitely a challenge & a fun one at that.

Do you have any funny stories from the Conference?
As I said before, I got pretty sun burnt. On the 3rd day I was there I went out in the sun with my shades on and at the end of the day I removed them to find myself looking like a panda bear. Doh. How my friends did laugh.
Tee-bloody hee.

Also what made me laugh was Seeing Sasha walk down the street in full on furry black track suit when it was 40 degrees.

Jonathan Lisle
Jon Lisle

Personally, how was the WMC for you?
I loved it. I was really happy with my gigs, the parties I went to were class and I met some great people. This year I chose to spend more time on the dancefloor having fun than 'networking' and all that.
When your in the sun all day and youve got 2 or 3 quality parties every night for a week lined up its pretty hard not to have a good time.

What fresh DJ's/Producers/Live Acts caught your attention at Miami?
Infusion's live set at the Marine Parade night was something special. Powerful breakbeats, warm rocking bass, really sparkling percussion and some amazing sounds and riffs.Very complicated layers that proper blew me away.

Ive seen them play a few times now but this was the best by miles. They had almost 'techy'sounds over their crisp snares and massive kicks. Dirty but clean. Complex but powerful. Very clever, original shit. I just hope they
turn that set into individual tracks.

Highlight tune from this year's Conference?
Dirty Fours - 'Breathless' ...that main riff works so well on all floors.

Was there a low point for you at this year's WMC?
The reality check at the airport on the way home. I saw a newspaper for the first time in a week and realised the bleedin war had started 4 days earlier. Then it dawned on me that when I got back to London I had to go straight to work from the airport and wouldnt have any money for a
while... real life is rubbish!

What was the best party or highlight during the WMC?
In terms of music, it was Digweed and Sasha at Space. The tracks were spot on and I just got lost in it for about 8 hours. They reminded me how much I still like good straight beat stuff. The best atmosphere tho was Bedrock @ Nerve.

Which of the established DJ's/Producers/Live Acts delivered the goods again?
Like I say, John and Sasha were on it. RITM, Uberzone, Underworld and Grayearea were the best live acts I saw after Infusion. RITM really scared us thou... you can imagine having been partying all week with little sleep and then you've got this big scary black rabbit with long nails shaking for ages while this dark ambient track
is going 'hocus pocus' over and over...

Do you have any funny stories from the Conference?
15 of us got stuck in a hotel lift for 6 people at 7am on the first night. We were with some of the Spundae crew and some friends of mine from LA. We were all in a bit of a state after Maze and after a very long hour or so, the
Fire Brigade eventually came to cut us out... They weren't impressed...

Another good one involved some antics on the beach but I'm not going to repeat them here...

Also in the WMC Perspectives series:
- Bill Patrick and Lawler.
- Paul Louth and Hellpass.
- Infusion and DJ Remy.
- Hernan Cattaneo and Chris Fortier.
- Jody Wisternoff and Pole Folder.