The Secret Life of Cedric Woo

Prepared by:
Alexey "Old Dog" Nikolaev
Anna "javybz" Karmanova
Yulia "javybz" Rodionova

The story of the party coming up at the club Kult on 6 March goes back a long way. Sometimes it's interesting to watch how schemes are born, how new ideas arrive, how possibilities are gathered grain by grain and, fusing into one, are made real. It seems to us that All Styles All Smiles featuring Cedric Woo is just one of those curious cases.

Once, the wonderful book by Tim Lawrence "Love Saves The Day" magically came into the hands of the girls from JAVYBZ. Having devoured it (and it's a fairly hefty edition), they let a big dream into their hearts — a dream of the perfect party. The prototype was the legendary New York club The Loft. Many have heard of this place, of its founder and godfather David Mancuso; it's no less interesting to learn about the people who frequented it, the special atmosphere, the balloons, the punch, the refreshments, the first-class sound system, the club's rules.

It turns out that the original The Loft parties are held in London and Tokyo once every three months, and with the participation of David Mancuso at that. The organizers — London promoters who have joined together into the group Lucky Cloud Sound System (LCSS) — acquired especially for this a unique Hi-Fi Class A sound system, which they assembled over several years, setting aside money from their salaries. After all, sound quality is an unchanging component of The Loft parties.

LCSS, which took its name in honor of the eponymous song by Arthur Russell, is a democratically organized sound system made up of dedicated enthusiasts and a large number of volunteers, whose number is constantly growing. And most magical of all, one of the creators of LCSS is that very Tim Lawrence, author of the book that inspired the girls from Javybz.

The members of LCSS are very different and interesting people, close to one another in spirit. Some teach at a university, while others throw parties — such as the London Voices and Beauty & The Beat.

And so on 6 March JAVYBZ are glad to present their special guest — an interesting DJ, a talented musician who once won the Red Bull Music Academy prize, the inspiration behind Voices and Beauty & The Beat — mister Cedric Woo.

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It was very interesting for us to talk with him, to exchange views. With Cedric's permission, we turned our conversation into an interview:

No, my music-related activity isn't my main job. During the day I'm a swimming and triathlon coach.

I'd say I got seriously into music in high school, when I was 15. Back then I listened to indie rock, collected it fanatically. Being residents of a small town, we'd travel at night to Lyon and Paris to see bands like Pavement, Sonic Youth and Smog. That kind of music was underground. It was our way of life.

A little later I turned to reggae, especially roots and dub, and it was probably then that I started buying vinyl (around 1994). Reggae is fairly popular among the youth and students of France, especially outside Paris, and guys like Lee Perry and Joe Gibbs stirred my imagination forever.

Around this time I started running my own show on the local radio and got acquainted much more deeply with "black" music, jazz, soul, funk and hip-hop. My musical tastes haven't changed much, rather they've broadened, and thank God, they have room to grow, because music is infinity!

A lot of interesting things are happening today, starting with the vast London dubstep scene and especially a producer like Shackleton.

Also Mujava from South Africa and his Township Funk are very popular and unique, and the reviving balearic/cosmic scene is very interesting. Thanks to the internet, forums and blogs, it's now much easier to keep up with what's happening in music all over the world, and the future looks quite promising!

Perhaps the most important person I've met in my life (as far as music goes) is Nao, my flatmate in New York, where I lived in 1999/2000. At that time I was a reggae kid, and he introduced me to parties like Body & Soul, Shelter and the Loft, and I can say it changed my life. I was struck not only by the music but also by the people, the sound, the "do-it-yourself" spirit and much more. Nao opened many doors for me, and I probably wouldn't be doing what I do now if our paths hadn't crossed!

The first time I met David was in New York thanks to Nao, and I went to several The Loft parties that simply blew my mind. A friendship followed, and when Lucky Cloud invited David to London, meeting again was only natural. I had just moved to London then, and you could say — it's fate.

I started throwing the Voices parties (not without the help of friends, of course) at the end of 2001. A little later I met Alex and John, and we realized we had a very close vision and close tastes. We decided to join forces, because at that time there were no regular parties where we could go to dance to underground disco and deep house. Our first joint party was a huge success, and we never looked back. We had a few conflicts and mismatches with clubs and club management, but we always knew what we wanted, and in time everything came together as it should. We acquired our own sound system and 5–6 times a year we do all-night parties, and we're also residents at the club Plastic People, which I'd call one of the best London clubs in terms of sound and atmosphere.

The Journey To The Light parties are hard, unpaid labor and a labor of love. A great deal is needed to make it happen, including loading the sound system into a truck, setting it up on site, mounting the decorations on the morning before the party, and after the party everything in reverse. This means that some of us start at 8 a.m. on Sunday (and the parties run on Sundays from 5 p.m. to midnight) and go to bed at 4 a.m. on Monday. You have to give yourself over to this cause completely; that's exactly when the parties turn out brilliantly. We do them 4 times a year, and it's always a special feeling to be part of what's happening. Sound quality is a very important aspect of what makes The Loft what it is, from the ingenious Koetsu needles to the Klipsch Horn speakers, Hi-Fi Class A equipment. And all you hear is the warm sound of the music floating through the air, not the sound system itself. Even records you've heard hundreds of times will sound completely different at The Loft, and you'll hear in the recordings those nuances you never noticed before. Because of all the above and the absence of a mixer, the records sound in their full richness and remain themselves. Each record is like a journey, and David picks them one to match the next, all while his set lasts 7 hours. Simply nothing can compare with The Loft.

The Loft parties were also possible to revive because David and the whole team do it not for money. I think he first carried his parties and their concept over to Japan about 10 years ago, and it worked out because the right people were involved.

Without any doubt, the music industry is in a phase of transformation; everyone — artists, music shops, labels — is trying to adapt as best they can. The wide availability of music software gives practically everyone the chance to record their own tracks and immediately distribute them over the net, without making any deals with distributors. Artists and listeners have far more possibilities today, which is good.

I'm a real vinyl collector and I'll never stop supporting vinyl, simply because it sounds better if the sound system is really good. I still buy records every week. MP3s are good not only for the iPod but also for sharing tracks, plus now we can listen to DJ mixes from all over the world — and that was impossible just a few years ago. So, as long as you know what you want (and I know that if a DJ in a club plays MP3s off his laptop, I'll ask for my money back), I look optimistically at new technologies.

Many clubs are closing. Some of them, such as The Key, Turnmills or The End, played an important role in the city's club life. Nevertheless, this isn't necessarily bad, because not only will new clubs appear, but promoters will also try to be more creative in their choice of party locations. Right now some of the best parties, such as Beauty & The Beat or Disco Bloodbath, are held outside clubs, and people like that home-made/"do-it-yourself" mood. The club world, as always, is evolving, and that's what makes nightlife so magical and thrilling!

I plan to keep working on my Voices and Beauty & The Beat parties, along with Journey to The Light. The next one will be on 29 March. On top of that, I'm also moving house that weekend. Nine of us have been living in the vicarage for 3 years now, and we've had great parties here. Unfortunately, our move will mark the end of this era… but we won't just leave quietly and will throw two more grand house parties in that time. I also plan to enter the triathlon season in good shape and will try to compete in the world championship in Hawaii. Playing at the club "Kult" in Moscow will be a special experience for me. I don't know what to expect, but I'm hoping for a good musical audience and I look forward with the hope of sharing what I can — I'll keep my ears and eyes open and enjoy it to the max!

http://www.myspace.com/cedricwoo→
http://www.voicescollective.co.uk→
http://www.houseparty.org.uk→
http://www.myspace.com/house2party→
http://www.deepfrequency.com→
http://www.residentadvisor.net→