Boiler Room Debut

Following on to a Live Resident Advisor appearance earlier this year (note that I wore the same T-shirt!), I was recently invited to appear in a Boiler Room session for the first time, for what was dubbed a ‘psychedelic special’ session where I would play after The Flamingods and before cult Colombian cumbia band The Meridian Brothers. 

We all have our own opinions about BR, some praising the exposure it gives to DJs while others (myself included) moan about its objectivisation of the DJ art form where, because of the cameras, a set becomes more a performance than about the music itself. It is indeed hard to stay still and let the music play when there are 3 cameras permanently in your face. However I took this as an opportunity to reach a wider audience and show what a typical (albeit very condensed) Cedric Woo set would sound like.

I had made sure a lot of my friends would be in the audience and hence distract me from the cameras, and indeed they helped. The #1 recipe for a good party is to have your friends in front of you. Then you have the music, and the quality of the sound system. This meant I felt reasonably comfortable considering the circumstances, and was able to do my own thing. Just over one hour is of course very short, especially when you’re trying to play across genres as I always do, but all in all it was a good exercise (which I prepared more than usual) and it went down quite well. The full set is now available on YT below, and also on soundcloud:  if you’re tired of watching my face.

PLAYLIST:

– Clemenceau Kancel, Edmonde Rusland – Cyclone Hugo Salot
– Uele Kalabubu et sa Tribou – Matata
– Eric Brouta – Machine A Lanmou
– Prins Emanuel – Aquarius
– Blackbush Orchestra – Sortez Les Filles (Kay Suzuki remix)
– Kiwi – We Are Here
– Tapes Meets The Drums Of Wareika Hill Sounds: Datura Mystic Dub
– Gotan Project: El Capitalismo Foraneo (Kushite remix)
– Wailing Souls – Shark Attack
– Tony Allen – Yebre
– Xanga – Mi Gusta Mi Cuica
– Toquinho & Jorge Ben – Carolina, Carol Bela
– Issa Bagayogo – Poye
– Sammy Massamba – Azali
– Mister Ho & Heap – Feeling Hopeful
– Jean Claude Naimro – Avèou Doudou
– Leonidas & Hobbes – Web Of Intrigue (Extended Mix)
– Andras & Oscar – Music Is My Life