No other time of year evokes a bigger buzz in the entertainment industry than Christmas and New Years. Months in advance promoters book out venues, booking agents’ phones ring off the hook and Djs pre-emptively save up as many hours of sleep as they can before touring. It is their time to shine.

This begs the question;  is this time of year celebrated or is it dreaded by them? Surely the amount of work the industry heaves on its employees is stressful and uncanny?

It seems this is not the case according to Michal Schwa, DJ and owner of Sydney based record label BEEF Records.

What’s your favourite thing about the Christmas and NY period in the entertainment industry?

It is definitely chilling out. It’s good to have a bit of a break from the studio and office. I still have a lot of gigs but that’s all fun “work”. It is also a great time for thinking about new projects and goals for the following year. I really like being in Australia. A warm and sunny Christmas is so much better then spending this time in cold Europe.

What gigs do you have coming up over Christmas and New Years periods?

X-Mass party at the Civic on 24th then private party on NYE and SPICE Afloat on NYD. I am really looking forward to SPICE Afloat and warming up for Milton Jackson who recently remixed one of our (Shades Of Gray) tracks for Reckless Republic records. He did a great job.

Are BEEF Djs generally busier during this year?

I think that every DJ is busy around New Year.

Are you normally as busy as this during the rest of the year?

 
In this industry you never know. Sometimes it’s hectic, sometimes it’s slow. I don’t think that has much to do with Christmas and holiday. This industry is sometimes very unpredictable.

Whats on the agenda for yourself and the label next year?

2011 will be a huge year for Beef Records with a number of major releases in the pipeline. First up we will be launching a new compilation series called After Hours. As the name implies the series will focus on deep underground house cuts. Featuring industry luminaries such as The Timewriter, Pezzner, Scope, Alland Byallo and label heads Shades Of Gray.

We are also proud to present Uone’s second ep on Beef titled Some Like it Hot. Featuring Nicone and Gabe remixes.

Also in 2011 Shades Of Gray will be releasing their debut artist album Soul Machine.

For the latest happenings check out www.beefrecords.net/.