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VAIL — The Smalltown DJs, a Canadian duo, play Samana Lounge in Vail Village Friday and Saturday.
“Pete and Mike (The Smalltown DJs) have left quite a mark on Vail,” said Scott Stoughton of Samana Lounge. “Their three-hour sets combine everything on the musical landscape yet are injected with their unique and energetic re-mixing styles. They are like no other act that rolls through Samana. They absolutely bring the house down with their positive styles and crowd-friendly grooves.”
Doors open at 8 p.m., with showtime at 10 p.m. Tickets are $10.
“We're just out to consistently have the best time possible,” said Pete Emes, who shares space behind the decks with partner Mike Grimes.
The Smalltown story goes like this. Emes and Grimes met in the late ‘90s and discovered a shared interest in funky breaks and baggy pants. Emes at the time was moonlighting as a DJ while working full-time as a geologist for an oil company. Grimes, a former snowboarding prodigy (he's on the inside cover of the very first Transworld Snowboard mag) was toiling in a skate/show shop. Joined by a love of imposing their musical tastes on others, the two started playing records out together.
Before long they had launched Hai Karate, a weekly Thursday smash-up that's still going strong. Now in its 10th year, Hai Karate is a free-for-all dance party that borrows a little from each of the scenes that shaped the Smalltown sound — community hall punk rock, block party hip-hop and early ‘90s rave.
The long-running night is now hosted at HiFi Club, the Calgary nightspot that the Smalltowners opened with a partner in 2005. The HiFi is but one part of the indie empire that Emes and Grimes have built in their homeland. They also own a record label (Bigfoot), a record store (Phonics) and a clothing store (Giant 45).
Aside from weekly residencies at HiFi and EyeCandy Soundlounge in Las Vegas, Smalltown DJs have showcased at SXSW in Austin, toured Canada with Brooklyn's The Rub, played Thievery Corporation's club in Mexico several times, performed at a bunch of festivals including Lollapalooza and Shambhala, and toured Europe on a swing that included a gig at Fabric in London.
Smalltown DJs have have hosted and played alongside a huge array of talent, including Afrika Bambaataa, Dj Assault, Jeru the Damaja, Diplo, Tommie Sunshine, Spankrock, Chromeo, The Rub DJs, A-Trak, XXXchange, Low Budget, James Lavelle, Z-Trip, Fort Knox Five and more.
On the production side, the duo has released several blends, remixes and re-edits that have been getting play all over the world. Recently they teamed up with Wax Romeo to create Smalltown Romeo, a new production supergroup focused on making fun dance music with a sense of humour. Smalltown Romeo's production style resembles the squad's approach to deejaying — polymorphous, party-focused and pretension-free.
“Pete and Mike (The Smalltown DJs) have left quite a mark on Vail,” said Scott Stoughton of Samana Lounge. “Their three-hour sets combine everything on the musical landscape yet are injected with their unique and energetic re-mixing styles. They are like no other act that rolls through Samana. They absolutely bring the house down with their positive styles and crowd-friendly grooves.”
Doors open at 8 p.m., with showtime at 10 p.m. Tickets are $10.
“We're just out to consistently have the best time possible,” said Pete Emes, who shares space behind the decks with partner Mike Grimes.
The Smalltown story goes like this. Emes and Grimes met in the late ‘90s and discovered a shared interest in funky breaks and baggy pants. Emes at the time was moonlighting as a DJ while working full-time as a geologist for an oil company. Grimes, a former snowboarding prodigy (he's on the inside cover of the very first Transworld Snowboard mag) was toiling in a skate/show shop. Joined by a love of imposing their musical tastes on others, the two started playing records out together.
Before long they had launched Hai Karate, a weekly Thursday smash-up that's still going strong. Now in its 10th year, Hai Karate is a free-for-all dance party that borrows a little from each of the scenes that shaped the Smalltown sound — community hall punk rock, block party hip-hop and early ‘90s rave.
The long-running night is now hosted at HiFi Club, the Calgary nightspot that the Smalltowners opened with a partner in 2005. The HiFi is but one part of the indie empire that Emes and Grimes have built in their homeland. They also own a record label (Bigfoot), a record store (Phonics) and a clothing store (Giant 45).
Aside from weekly residencies at HiFi and EyeCandy Soundlounge in Las Vegas, Smalltown DJs have showcased at SXSW in Austin, toured Canada with Brooklyn's The Rub, played Thievery Corporation's club in Mexico several times, performed at a bunch of festivals including Lollapalooza and Shambhala, and toured Europe on a swing that included a gig at Fabric in London.
Smalltown DJs have have hosted and played alongside a huge array of talent, including Afrika Bambaataa, Dj Assault, Jeru the Damaja, Diplo, Tommie Sunshine, Spankrock, Chromeo, The Rub DJs, A-Trak, XXXchange, Low Budget, James Lavelle, Z-Trip, Fort Knox Five and more.
On the production side, the duo has released several blends, remixes and re-edits that have been getting play all over the world. Recently they teamed up with Wax Romeo to create Smalltown Romeo, a new production supergroup focused on making fun dance music with a sense of humour. Smalltown Romeo's production style resembles the squad's approach to deejaying — polymorphous, party-focused and pretension-free.
