“I really haven’t had to deal with any crazy paparazzi, since we usually keep a low profile and sneak in the back door of places,” says local DJ and producer JOEBERMUDEZ, referring to his friend Hilary Duff. “When they do realize she is out and about, she has some rather large bouncers that are pretty effective at making sure they keep their distance.” “Up All Day” caught up with Bermudez before he headed out to Duff’s show at Bank of America Pavilion. The Brighton resident and regular Rumor DJ has remixed two tracks for Duff, “Stranger” and “With Love.” “We are going talk about what single I should remix next. Then probably hit up Revolution Rock Bar later on tonight.”As regular house DJs go, Bermudez is probably the biggest success story in New England. He’s shared the production bed with Pink, Kelly Clarkson, and Sharika as well as the Duffmeister. His work has led to DJ gigs in Mexico City and Hollywood and a memorable New Year’s in Australia. “It was awesome to kick off 2007 19 hours before any of my friends,” he writes via e-mail. “The party was great. We started at 10 pm and went until 2 pm the next day. The club ended up shutting down, not because it was dead — there was a full dance floor and people were still trying to get in — but because the staff was so exhausted from partying all weekend and just couldn’t function anymore!”
Bermudez got started in his home state of Maine but then moved to Brighton. “As much as I loved it up there, I needed to be closer to some sort of nightlife scene and a major airport. I ended up moving in with one of my good friends and absolutely love it. I have a hot tub, off-street parking, and I can be at Logan within 10 minutes.”
He’s been using that route quite a bit. Since getting started, Bermudez has learned something many DJs take years to grasp. “There seems to be a lot of insecurity with DJs, which quickly leads to negativity. My advice is to just hang in there.”
That attitude has taken him all the way to Nervous Records, a label most DJs know well. Next month, he’ll releases a mix CD for the well-known imprint called, of all things, “Mass Movement.” The disc will offer his remix of Duff in addition to heavy hitters like Gabriel & Dresden and Martijn Ten Velden.
“When I started, I was repeatedly told I would never amount to anything as a DJ, and now I have a new CD coming out. And am off to tour Russia and France, while those same DJs who tried to discourage me don’t play anywhere outside their bedroom.” Snap!
In addition to the production work and the DJ gigs, Bermudez has a successful radio show on the XM Satellite network and is currently ranked 18th among US DJs by DJ Times. “I feel like I am just beginning. There is still quite a bit I want to accomplish.”
A new night intends to get everyone involved in the scene, including the furry-lovers. “We plan to have some people dressed up in full costumes like you would see at Disneyland,” writes EVIL (a/k/a Jonathan Rodriguez), the latest Basstown scenester to start up his own enterprise. Called After-School Special, the night debuts September 25 at the Limelight (204 Tremont Street). “I have no idea what I’m doing,” Rodriguez confesses. “But I do feel like I’m onto something.” Rodriguez is an accomplished make-up artist, and in addition to wild costumes, he plans to have glitter fall from the ceiling and to give away money. Yes — give away real, cold, hard cash.
