I think Claude Von Stroke is following me. He just seems to be everywhere I go these days and it sure as hell ain’t me chasing him! It started several months ago when I first saw him play live at Fabric. I had never even seen what the guy looked like, but had bought ‘The Whistler EP’ on a whim when I saw it on sale at HMV. Something about the track made me feel good inside every time I heard it and so on the strength of this musical bait I was keen to see him spin live.

I arrived in the swamped room that night and elbowed by way to the front to give him a once over – to absorb the real deal as it were – before returning to my mates doing the Villalobo’s in Room 1. He didn’t look at all like I expected, not that I’m entirely sure how that was. His serious-sounding name and his being American might have suggested a skin-headed soldier or a Detroit-style gangster type (or it did to me at least) but Instead he had this fuzzy beard and jolly way about him; this presence that enveloped the audience even though he wasn’t trying. And his live playlist is not a reflection of ‘The Whistler’ at all, which was a relief as I’d unfairly pinned him down as a bit of a sell-out. How wrong one can be!

So, two weekends ago I make a Sunday morning mission to check out an event launching at a new venue. I’m almost there when I get a call telling me to detour to Shoreditch as half our friends couldn’t get into said launch and so we were all relocating. Don’t you just love the dedication of the crew? I arrive at the alternative party place and my eyes are still adjusting to being thrust into pulsating darkness when I hear the news: Claude Von Stroke and Tiefshwartz have rocked up, off the cuff, to play.

Earlier that week, his name had flashed up several times on my PC while floating aimlessly around the dance-loving web. Seems the boy’s got his hand in many bags at the moment. He’s been picking up serious international demand with regular gigs in the UK and Europe, is soon releasing a Fabric mix album, as have so many greats before him, and has several hot new tracks doing the dancefloor rounds with a vengeance. Oh and he seems to have developed a bit of a crush on London. Nothing wrong with that!

So while dancing to his unexpected Tech beats again and having now firmly separated the words ‘Claude’ and ‘sell-out’ from my conscience it occurred to me: ‘What a brilliant dude!’ In the current clubland-climate where DJ’s are pounding for their every promised penny and PR’ing the hell out of themselves in a stagnating storm of over-exposure, these two guys rock up and get 100 pleasantly surprised punters raving their hearts out just for the hell of it. And all without the usual post-hype-self-appreciating kudos from their press people (I checked). Now that’s so in with the spirit of things! It’s good to know there are guys out there still doing it for the love of the party and making our unfaltering dedication worth the while. Reason enough to whistle while you work, if you ask me!

Details are dropping about this year's Garden Festival, taking place in Petrcane, Croatia.

Among the live acts playing this year are Faze Action, Henrik Schwarz, Lindstrom and the Sunburst Band. Meanwhile, those confirmed for DJ sets include Ame, Ashley Beedle, Benji B, Crazy P, Dixon, Doc Martin, Gilles Peterson, Greg Wilson, James Priestly, Jazzanova, Joey Negro, Maurice Fulton, Norman Jay, Phil Asher, Prins Thomas, Rainer Truby, Rub N Tug, Stuart Patterson, Terry Farley and Todd Terje.

There will be a Faith party, celebrating the crew's 10th anniversary on the Sunday night, while Mulletover will be hosting a boat party. It all happens from July 3 to 13 on the Petrcane peninsula, with a full pass costing you a reasonable 120.

You can get there by flying to Zadar (just 20 minutes away), Split (90 minutes) or Zagreb (three hours).

For more information, check out www.thegardenfestival.eu

The line-up for Peaches' Ether 09 show at the Royal Festival Hall on Friday 10 April has been confirmed.

Every Little Defect Gets RESPECT will see Canada's premiere electro sex terrorist debuting new material from her forthcoming I Feel Cream album. Support is coming (sorry - it's the Peaches effect) from 16-year-old Hertfordshire synth songstress Charli XCX and London drag-scene queen Jonny Woo.

The aftershow party in the RFH's Clore Ballroom (admission free) will feature Jodie Harsh bringing her Circus club night south of the river with additional deck duties performed by Kris Di Angelis. There'll also be performances from the cocknbullkid, vaudeville act Pustra and Vile-een, and from the potentially terrifying performance artist Scottee (just have a look).

Tickets for the show are priced between £22.50 and £25, and can be bought here. Peaches' album I Feel Cream will be released through XL on 4 May 2009.

DiS is the online media 'friend'/partner/whatever for Ether 09. Expect special content in due course.

Laurent Garnier will headline the last ever New Year's Eve party at legendary London club The End. The French techno mainstay will play for most of the night, with support from The End resident and co-owner Layo.

Up in the AKA bar, Freerange will be in charge, with sets confirmed from Jimpster, Milton Jackson, Pash Ostovar and Matt Masters. In other news, the club has hooked up with fashion label Eio to create a fitting range of t-shirts to commemorate the club.

Emblazoned with the legend 'Til Death Do Us Party', they cost 29.99 (inc. free delivery to anywhere in the world) and are available from www.endclub.com. The club closes for good on January 24. Details of the line-up for the closing weekend are to be confirmed.

Source : www.defected.com

One of London’s legendary house hangouts, The End, kicks off its ‘closing down’ festivities in less than a month now. German techno-meister Sven Vath touches down December 6 for the club’s 13th and final ever birthday celebrations. Dancefloor emotions are expected run high on a night also featuring sets from Mr C and Layo & Bushwacka!

The End confirmed its dramatic intention to sell up back in September – a decision apparently borne out of circumstance as much as deliberate boardroom choice. ‘An opportunity arose that made us think even more deeply about what we wanted for The End in the future,’ explains Zoe Paskin, Director. ‘We discussed with the people that make the club what it is behind the scenes whether we wanted to carry the club on, and whether we could all continue to be as engaged. It was inevitable people would eventually want to move on….’

Layo, fellow Director, adds: ‘We’ve had offers for the club before, and yes, this was the best one. But I wouldn’t say that it’s so good that it makes this a purely financial issue – it’s a circumstantial issue, coupled with financial. It’s a lot to do with the timing. The loss will be huge – it’s my life, but you can stay in something too long. I think it’s wonderful to be able to open a place, run it, and close it all on your own terms.’

The End’s major farewell parties will take place in January, some of the venue’s closest promoters and DJs being given special one-off platforms to say their sonic farewells. A final closing weekend will follow January 24-25 with a busload of special guests.

‘We may be closing but I see the final parties as one long celebration’ Paskin teasingly concludes. Line-ups, we hear, are set to be announced in the next fortnight but keep in with us or www.endclub.com for the breaking news.

Source : www.defected.com