23.01.12  

There has been much outcry at the recent video footage that emerged in the media of a quartet of US marines urinating on the bodies of dead ‘Taliban fighters’ in Afghanistan. It’s an undoubtedly despicable act, one which has been roundly condemned from most quarters and rightly so.

The US military have been quick to distance themselves from the incident but in the midst of widespread global outrage, one pertinent point seems to have evaded the mainstream media and public at large. Namely, that in the pursuit of their globalist imperial policies over the last fifteen years, the US army have killed hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Libya, Serbia and Somalia to name just a few, sometimes in the name of ‘democracy’, more often to supposedly protect the West from the concocted threats to freedom posed by these media-maligned nations who have ceased to be useful to the Western military-industrial complex through any form of self-determination.  

Where is the outcry over this scandalous fact? Where is the anger from the West at the systematic butchery and slaughter being perpetrated in the name of citizens from New York to Dublin against fellow human beings as part of the so-called ‘War On Terror’? Why is a single leaked video of yet another group of brainwashed, meat-headed, trained killers deemed more morally reprehensible than the constant stream of atrocities that is rapidly gearing the globe towards global conflict?

To me it is classically symptomatic of the continual Bernaysian treatment of the masses in Western society. Most people are only too happy to ignore the reality of what is actually going on in the world around them in favour of media-dispensed propaganda condensed into comfortably absorbed sound-bites, thus freeing them up to spend their rare time away from debt slavery, contentedly living their lives vicariously through their favourite pop stars, sportspeople and cultural icons.  It shows the selective high moral ground that the majority of people seem happy to apply to the world around them.  In short, the type of surreptitious social conditioning envisioned by Aldous Huxley’s ‘Brave New World’ prevents the majority from seeing the wood for the trees, while the rest are kept in check through the increasingly Orwellian culture of fear that has permeated everyday life.

These wars have nothing to do with freedom, real or perceived, quite the opposite in fact. If and when the US and Israel engineer war on Iran, we are about to find this out for ourselves whether we realize it or not at this point. Indeed, it is highly probable that our individual freedoms will be curtailed dramatically as conflict in the region escalates to a global level. 

Then to the question of war and how it can be allowed to happen? We all know it is not the individuals who wage war who must fight them. This is left to the ‘patriotic’ drones that make up armies the world over. Good, honest, salt-of-the-earth men and women, out only to earn an honest crust. But these people surely cannot be held accountable for the decisions of their warlord puppeteers?

Bullshit. There’s no excuse. It’s really quite simple - don’t join the army. Fighting in wars is a disgusting way to ‘make a living’.
What would happen if the next time some imperialist suit in Washington decided to start another war to boost opinion poll ratings or the balance sheets of his big-business paymasters and everybody decided not to turn up? Exercise your humanity. Take back your power and refuse to co-operate in the megalomaniacal games of big business, finance and geo-politics.  We are many, they are few. Without the co-operation and consent (including tacit) of the many, the few have nothing.

I have the power. You have the power. We have the power…

JG

 

20.01.12  

Symbolism is powerful but it is neither good nor bad. It is the intent behind the symbolism that results in the effect.

I have the power. You have the power. We have the power...

JG

 

25.12.11  

Lately there has been much talk in the mainstream media about ‘democratic values’ with particular reference to NATO’s imperialist invasion of Libya and heightening tensions in the Middle East. Personally I have little problem with true and fair direct democracy such as that practiced in countries like Switzerland and most recently Iceland. Where I have an isuue is when the media use ‘democracy’ as a blanket term to imply high moral values and all that is ‘right’ and ‘just’ in our world. We are urged to support the unilateral warmongering action of Western governments under the ‘democratic’ banner and woe betide those who do not respect this agenda. Indeed it appears that most people unquestioningly swallow this rhetoric while giving in-depth scrutiny to whatever scripted distraction is currently beamed through the oblong box in the corner of the living room.

However it must be asked, why is one obliged to respect so-called ‘democracy’?
The Nice and Lisbon Treaty farces in Ireland, whereby the people were forced to vote a second time on each referendum in order to ensure a pro-European, federalist outcome, proved that we do not operate under any such thing in this country.
Being permitted to vote within a narrow left-right paradigm to elect a different puppet government, guided by the same shadowy hand every few years does not constitute democracy and the word is bandied about as if it’s some sort of moral safeguard against all that is ‘evil’ (substitute ‘non-Western’ to taste) on the socio-political map. Nonsense. Until someone can demonstrate true and consistent application of the democratic model at the highest level of our current power structure it deserves no respect.

Also deserving of our contempt I feel, are the crippling austerity measures being foisted upon the people in Ireland (and around the world) in order to pay for the economic mess left by politicians, bankers and ‘big-business’. To pick just one which is currently topical in Ireland, the impending household charge, the solution is really rather simple - in the absence of a bilateral contract there is no legislative jurisdiction over the individual and absolutely no obligation to pay. Just because we are told otherwise, does not make it the case and the truth does not cease to be so just because it doesn’t have the approval of a majority.
Basic contract law supersedes the media rhetoric and legislative structure of corporate controlled politicians and the sooner we educate ourselves and begin to use the tools at our disposal, the easier it will be to open our collective consciousness and force change through peaceful means. We have the power should we choose to take it back. Mahatma Gandhi once said, “In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place.” Do not co-operate, do not pay. We are many, they are few - there is nothing to fear.

I have the power. You have the power. We have the power...

JG

 

07.12.11  

I'm just back from an excellent tour of New Zealand, the highlight being the superb Debajo in Queenstown on the beautiful south island. What a night and what a wonderful country. I'm already looking forward to returning in March. So what have I come back to? Well, on the day of my return, the Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny performed the most amazing impression of Mario Rosenstock imitating Enda Kenny I've ever seen in my life. Probably the best comedy our national broadcaster RTÉ have produced in decades, my favourite moment being when our trusty and truthful leader, flanked by the Irish and European flags for a 'State Of The Nation (note the singular)' address, announced that our national woes will be eased by the withdrawal of the mobile phone allowance for former Prime Ministers. In other words, he's taking back five mobile phones. Incredible stuff. Except it wasn't comedy. It was real. Real scary.

This amazing display of idiocy was swiftly followed by our latest crippling national budget, spread over two days which has prompted kneejerk calls from certain quarters of the media for another election to overthrow the politicians who are ushering this nation to our economic apocalypse. For all the good that would do within our current electoral paradigm. These commentators would be far better advised to begin pointing out to the general populace that something far more significant has taken place over the last years and decades, in that we have blindly experienced a coup d’état in this country. It may have been performed economically rather than militarily and by private corporate interests and big business as opposed to another state, but that’s what has happened nonetheless and we are undoutedly currently witnessing the final rapid stages. If people took the time to really understand the Lisbon Treaty, they would realise that we are now part of a European Federation in all but name and our constitution is no longer worth the paper it was written on. Forget flag-waving, pseudo-patriotic rallying calls from detached political schills and balonic bluster about collective 'pain' and eventual economic and sovereign redemption - this is undoubtedly the endgame.

Only a collective, conscious awakening can reverse this, a realisation that WE have the power and that only by ceding our power to the so-called 'paymasters' can they have any hold over us. Peaceful, mass civil disobedience is the ONLY possible way out for Ireland. Alas I feel the people of this island have been sleepwalking for far too long and are unlikely to do anything at this stage about the rape and pillage of our once proud nation, preferring instead to focus on trivialities and point fingers while largely refusing to accept any individual responsibility for the mess we’re in. I am of the opinion that until we free ourselves from fear and begin to take personal action things will continue to worsen.

I have the power. You have the power. We have the power...

JG

 

14.10.11  

Well, we're in a right national and global pickle lately or so it seems. What can anyone do about it.

Recently I've heard many people question how and why the bankers, politicians and behind the scenes puppeteers who have run and continue to run our country on a seemingly inexorable course towards sovereign and economic catastrophe are allowed to walk free among us with their massive personal fortunes and are jailed or held accountable in any way for the filthy mess they've created?

Well, they're not in jail because disgusting as it is and incredible as it sounds, they haven't broken any criminal law. If more people had knowledge of contract and civil law in the way that these people and their Law Society cronies do, we'd have forced a shutdown of the corrupt banking cartel that we allow to pillage the people of this land long ago and embraced the introduction of a fair and equitable, standard backed monetary system.

Unfortunately this is not on the agenda of the succession of puppet governments who purport to represent our people and the mainstream media will continue to toe the line. Forget political upheaval, the current archetypical left-right paradigm in which we're trapped will not allow for change. Democracy is dead in this country (and all other so called democracies), as demonstrated by the farcical Nice and Lisbon referenda, therefore we must take individual responsibility for change - nobody will do it for us.

As Albert Einstein once said, "we must be the change that we wish to see in the world". We have many tools at our disposal, the same tools in fact that are continually used to paralyse us with uncertainty and fear. Simply complaining is futile. Self-education and positive personal action is the only solution and this is what many people need to wake up to.

Remember, no individual, group or organisation has power over us unless we cede power to them. Take back that power.

I have the power. You have the power. We have the power...

JG

 

01.06.11  

I've had quite a number of e-mails from people with regard to my opinion on the upcoming'Slick DJ Irish Dance Music Awards'. So, how do I really feel?

Before I delve into this, I'd like to state that in no way do I wish to take from the professional achievement of any past, present or future IDMA winners and I have the upmost respect for anyone who applies the amazing level of skill, commitment, creativity and professionalism that so many people do within this industry, but I feel that I should finally and honestly address the question that literally hundreds of people have asked me over the last few years, "What is up with the Irish Dance Music Awards?"

I'm aware that I'll no doubt be castigated by many people for my views, with any kind of outspoken opinion often treated as outright blasphemy, but I've attempted to be diplomatic for quite some time in the face of obvious malfeasance and nepotism. Put simply, these awards are something that I've never felt totally comfortable with since their inception a few years ago, despite being presented with one myself. In fact, I fail to see the value of awards in general, which in my opinion are frequently divisive, agenda-driven exercises in unfounded backslapping with little net value to the areas that they purport to champion or represent. However, I was willing to give the IDMA's a chance. Unfortunately, having done so and having also been in a position to observe at close quarters, I feel the IDMA's are no exception.

These are the awards that ejected at least one particular nominee from several categories in the past in a fog of scurrilous, improperly investigated and totally unfounded accusations.

These are the awards that continue to black-ball one of the most active and successful club-nights in the country due to personal differences between the awards organizer and the promoter in question.

These are the awards that reduced the number of nominees in the Best DJ category this year from ten to nine, after the nominations had closed, because several of the nominees tied with the same number of votes. The organizers preferred to exclude the individuals in question "in the interests of fairness", rather than include those who tied for tenth position. Personally I fail to see how exclusivity over inclusion is a worthy message to send out from an event that claims to be for the betterment of the Irish dance-music scene.

These are the awards that nominate people to certain categories when, by their own admission, the nominees themselves have no expertise in, or experience of the category in question.

These are the awards that make much noise about the fairness of the judging/voting process when the organizers openly admit that selected votes from certain members of the nominating panel are routinely discounted, while in the past, nominees have been deemed worthy of inclusion based on lobbying, online presence and the fact that they have "loads of hits on MySpace".

These are the awards that are half-heartedly promoted, relying almost exclusively on a small number of websites and forums, populated by tiny number of regularly active members, with little or no-effort made to engage the majority of the club-going populace, most of whom are less occupied with discussing the scene than with actually attending gigs. For this reason, the awards largely exclude the north of Ireland.

These are the awards that reek of cronyism and tokenism, are driven by the agendas of the organizers and in my opinion have a negative and divisive influence on the Irish dance-music scene.

The continued self-martyrdom of the organizers, allegedly inducing huge financial and personal losses for the 'good of the scene', is particularly distasteful as is the implied suggestion that anybody owes these people something for their 'toil and hard graft'. An award ceremony does nothing for the scene. People were hardly crying into their drinks berating the lack of these awards pre-Slick-DJ.
Life will go on with or without the current incarnation of the Irish Dance Music Awards and this small corner of the global dance music world will undoubtedly continue to produce world-class DJ's, producers, artists, performers and others involved in the industry whom I, for one, will be proud to be associated with.
As a DJ and producer, my loyalty is to the people who continue to fill clubs, buy music and demonstrate their passion for the 'dance-scene', not to a self-congratulatory event which contributes nothing. From speaking to many peopIe about this issue over the last number of years I know that my views are shared by a large number of my contemporaries from within dance-music in Ireland, from DJ's and promoters, through to clubbers.

Some credit is due to those who run the IDMA's for an attempt at acknowledging the people involved in Irish dance music . However, in my opinion it has become a pointless vanity project, corrupted from inside and it is currently of no discernible value to the scene that so many of us love. As someone who is lucky enough to make my living from dance music, these awards are in no way representative of me or what I do and in my opinion do not represent the Irish scene as a whole.

JG

21.02.11  

Hi everyone and welcome back to the monthly diary of all that's new in my world.
I’ve had some great gigs since last month’s Asian adventures, with the undoubted highlight being my dates last weekend in Russia. Following my shocking emergence from the comfortable wamth of my Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt into the full-force of a minus 25 degree Moscow winter, I acclimatised with the steadfast advice of my wonderful hosts, Leon from Israeli trance-duo ‘Noel Gitman’ and his manager Yevgeny and braced myself for all things eskimo! First up was the superb Up_Great club in Saratov, an amazing venue which included the most extrordinary chill-out area I’ve ever seen, containing six full-size snooker tables, bar with full restaurant menu (stunning food!) and incredible luxury. On support duty was the superb resident Sasha de Neef and the venue was at fever-pitch by the time I took to the decks.

Next up was the outrageous Bezdha Project in Balakova. Situated in a regular, outwardly drab building that looks like an apartment block, on the outskirts of the city, the club was a seething, sold-out mass of audibly up-for-it locals. I was awoken at 6pm following an overnight drive in treacherous conditions by the sound of resident DJ Mario Twist in full flight – the club was already open! At this point I must mention my proximity to the club. My hotel suite (legendary host and promoter Valyrie doesn’t do things by halves) was the most astonishing accomodation I’ve ever seen. Luxuriously appointed with a North-African theme, one end of the suite opened directly onto the upper level of the two-tier club, placing me literally yards from the DJ box! The other end contained a kitchen, huge dining room, lounge area, bedroom replete with a delicious four-poster bed, bathroom and – wait for it – swimming pool! Yes, the lounge opened out to a private 20 metre pool with water-slide, sauna, jacuzzi, bar and TV room. I can safely say I’ve never seen anything like it in my life.  The gig was amazing too with Mario Twist and Alex Mavr playing superb support sets before me. An unforgettable experience and one to which I’m glad to say I remembered to bring my camera - for once!

Other notable events included sold-out gigs at Illumi-Naughty in Barcelona;  Solaris in Tenerife; Dragonne in Frejus, France; Trance 11 in Bucharest and the superb Art Of Noiz event in Szeged Hungary. Special mention also goes to Letrik’s first 2011 outing. Housed in a new venue, The Button Factory in Dublin, alongside Scot Project, Jon O’Bir and Orla Feeney, a full-house so early in the year is great encouragement for the period ahead in Ireland and the club makes for a very special atmosphere.

Many people have asked me lately about whether or not the club scene globally has taken a hit in these so called ‘recessionary’ times and while I think club attendances are on the rise in many areas such as Asia and the US, in parts of Europe and particularly the UK and Ireland things have taken a hit recently. Most of the larger club nights and brands are holding steady but many of the mid-size and smaller nights have disappeared as clubbers appear to be reducing the number of nights they can feasibly attend and are instead saving for the big events. This is far from an ideal situation as the small nights and venues are the lifeblood of any club scene. However, nightlife seems to currently mirror the capitalist global oligarcy, favouring the 'big-business' that so many economies are bearing the brunt of around the world, none more-so than my ‘democratic’ home country of Ireland.

'No' to Nice. Oops, we made a mistake, let's try again - there we go, 'Yes'. 'No' to Lisbon. Oh wait, that should be a 'Yes' too - pesky voters!
So here come the IMF to the tune of 80 billion. And there go Exxon, Royal Dutch Shell and Statoil to the tune of 400 billion. So where goes our 'sovereign' nation state? Straight down the rabbit hole.
Our politicians have put big business and the global agenda before human beings while we have stood by and looked the other way. Bertie Ahern, Ray Burke and their corrupt political offspring should hang for their cowardly treason. I'd include 'don' Charles Haughey in that category also if his escape hadn’t been timed so conveniently.

So with a general election looming later this week in Ireland and the outgoing Fianna Fail and Green Party government set to fall to the sword of 'change', what does this really mean for my home country? Well, about as much as it did when Barack Obama swept to the US presidency on the crest of a wave of anti-Bush sentiment; continuation, indeed inevitable expansion, of existing government policy, control and regulation; with a distracted and politically unaware (through careful media manipulation) populace duped by the illusion of the great left-right paradigm - the provervbial wolf in sheep's clothing if you will... With Ireland on its knees economically and seemingly bound by the chains of our European masters through the hideous acceptance of bank and bondholder bailout, why are people of this once great nation not mirroring the example of countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Bahrain and taking to the streets with consistency, in order to force our self-serving and corrupt leaders to bow to the will of the common good? Are we so coseted in our comfort-zone of commuter-belt occupation and mass media myopia that we cannot see beyond the smokescreen of daily ‘responsibilty’ to jobs, banks and the established order and realise that we need to take full individual responsibilty for our current predicament and mobilise to prevent our headlong rush towards soverign obliteration? What should we do; what can we do? I welcome your suggestions (power@djjohngibbons.com) - let’s give voice to your ideas because it’s patently obvious that our politicians and ‘leaders’ won’t. For example, how many people are in mortgage arrears and suffering due to more self-serving and despicable interest-rate hikes by the banks? What would happen if EVERY mortgage holder simply stopped paying? Think about it…

So, to clubs. The coming month is busy as always with some great gigs on the way, most notably a return to the US west coast for Vibrate in Sacramento and Lost in Reno on March 26th and 27th respectively.  
I’m also back in Dundee, Scotland for DV8 on the 19th, Digital on the Isle Of Man on the 12th and closer to home there’s a date in Horan’s, Tralee to look forward to on the eve of St. Patricks Day. I’m alongside Eddie Halliwell and Jordan Suckley on March 25th in Dublin for the massive ‘Fire It Up’ event at Tripod which is already heading for a sell-out show and Letrik is back in the Button Factory, Dublin on the 11th with myself, Lisa Lashes, Stoneface & Terminal and Scimon Tist providing the aural anarchy. I’m also set to announce the launch of a brand new monthly Club Educate night in the midlands very soon so watch this space!

My Club Educate record label has had an amazing first six months, with four hugely successful releases to date and massive support from the international DJ elite. Many thanks to you all for getting behind the label and this year promises an increased output of top-quality releases for your dance-floor delectation! The next release is set for March 8th and will be my collaboration with Dutch DJ and producer Setrise, ‘The Lead We Lost', with remixes from Scimon Tist, Mark Young & Damo Kay and Vast Vision. Previews are available from the Club Educate website here.

Also out now is my remix with Belfast powerhouse DJ Mog for Robbie Nelson. Entitled, ‘Shangri-La’, the track has received massive A-List support including a play on Tiesto’s Club Life radio show and is available on Solar Stone’s ‘Crashing Waves’ label from the usual download stores. To clear up some confusion, the remix has been incorrectly credited to DJ Mog and Angus Gibbins on some download portals but rest assured, this is a mistake and I can assure you it is indeed myself and Mog on duty!

My radio show 'Club Educate' continues its regular Thursday and Saturday night slots on Dublin's Spin 1038 at 23.45GMT and can also be listened to on www.spin1038.com and NTL Channel 934. The show is also available as a podcast from i-Tunes. Tracklistings, downloads and details of all shows are available here. ‘Club Educate Global’ continues it’s weekly syndication to over 100 radio stations around the world also, with recent guests including Armin van Buuren, Marco Bailey, Eddie Halliwell and Above & Beyond. Keep an ear out for some juicy surprises in the coming months!

Until next time - see you somewhere... Bass Is Pumping!
JG