djbeckanyc

I copied and pasted this - the description was written by Agent: Session: **Agent Orange "Dream What You Want" - Tribal Dancefloor meets Tribal History** This session/project is a tribute to ancient musical instruments, those which are traditional to Armenia and the Middle East. Specifically the Duduk, Srink, Kemenche, Oud, Dumbeg, Dhol, Flutes, Uillean Pipes & Voice. I used these instruments to create many deep atmospheric breakdowns where the beautiful and smooth sounds of these instruments really stand out. These breakdowns then build up into heavy, percussive, modern day, tribal techno dancefloor grooves, which brings the ancient uniquely and powerfully in touch with the new. The mix is mainly centered around the Duduk, a very traditional Armenian Oboe-like instrument, and my favorite by far. It has human voice like qualities and it gives me the chills every time I hear it. It's made in Armenia from the base of the Apricot tree. Although I am not that good yet ;], I played along with one of the small Duduk parts myself, as well as a few of the Dumbeg parts. There are still not to many producers making records in this style so I had to make some of my own original songs and improvise the rest. The first song is one of my originals called "Armenian Gansta." It sets the mood for the rest of the mix. Click Here To Download Thank you and Enjoy! I want to hear people's feedback so I can decided if I should continue to develop this sound further. Drop some feedback if you'd like. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sat. April 7th 2007 Agent Orange & Becka @ Torn De Nit - Tarragona, Spain

Well it depends on where you are in the country, but from Ghent, it's about a 3 hour train ride - you have to switch in Antwerp (another nice city) - and I believe like 1 1/2-2 hours by car. Belgium is very small, so it's easy to go to Holland - and even parts of Germany too. Berlin is supposed to be super cool, and very cheap - lots of stuff happening there too, although I've never been - but a lot of my NY'er friends are picking up and moving there because the music scene is pretty jumping right now. I dont think it's that close if you are taking the train from Belgium - but maybe Munich is closer? (have to look on a map) There are 2 sites you can check out if you want to know about the party scene in Holland and Belgium - livesets.com and partyforum.be I do a radio show on livesets - the guys who run the site are from Holland, so they know what's up - but the site itself is a huge community of people from all different countries - so you dont have to worry so much about people not speaking english on there, and it's cool to see so many different opinions on a lot of different things (sometimes it gets heated though...hehe). The other board is primarily in flemish, but if you post something in english, they respond in english and are cool about it....I go to the other board mainly to see what events are happening though

PS - I forgot to mention that Belgium has a killer scene.....Fuse is in Brussels and is by far the best techno club in Europe - and possibly the world (and if you ever go to Fuse, take a look on the wall of fame - you will see my name on there as I am one of the artists that has graced the decks there). They have I Love Techno every year, and this festival called 10 Days Off, which is 10 straight days of partying in the streets of Ghent and 10 nights of techno parties spread across 2 venues in the city. That's only a small part of what goes on in the country - there are massive parties there almost every weekend - and not just in one city - but you will find mutiple parties happening on the same night on any given week. It's pretty insane....such a small country, but such big things happening

Well I do apologize for jacking this poor guy's thread, but whenever the subject of Belgium comes up, I cant help but share - it truly is my favorite country in the world. I was living in NYC up until 5 months ago.....I'm now living in Barcelona, Spain - a little bit crazy here for me, but still, there's nothing like the european life. I've thought about moving to Belgium once the lease on my apartment here is finished, but I'm getting booked there enough, so I might not have to physically move there. We shall see.....

Moules.....go great with frites......YUMMY!!!!! My gig @ Londonbeat Cafe in Tielt..... I Love Techno 2006

Was a surprise for me too when I was told this bit of information the first time I went to Belgium Some more pics..... Me @ Female Attraction in Putte: Beer.... and more Beer......

Waffles waffles everywhere.....and they are mmmmmMMMMM good. Oh, and btw, 'french fries' really didnt originate from france.....they actually came from Belgium....mmmmm.....me loves some Belgiun frites..... This pic was taken 2 weeks ago when I was in Belgium

Hoi! Hoe gaat het met u? I spend a lot of time in Belgium......as a matter of fact, I just played there for the last 3 weekends......in Putte, Tielt, and Tournai.....Belgium is by far my favorite country in Europa - with the best beer on the planet

Not as many tracks as I usually like to squeeze into an hour set, but I was kinda in a hurry to record and upload this for the show before heading off to Belgium again last week....good tunes all the same, so enjoy Radio Bompe Week 3 1.Agent Orange - Aratu - Unreleased 2.Robin Porter - Fathernature - Immigrant Records 3. Michel De Hey - Jetchi - Hey 4. Gabriel Ananda - Doppelwhipper - Platzhirsch Schallplatten 5. Solieb - Stay High - Maschine 6. Carl Taylor - Voyager - Advanced 7. Marko Nastic - No Hate Allowed - Promo 8. Agaric - Against The Grain - Gotham City Records 9. Deosil & The Rev - Resist - Gotham City Records 10. Pan Tone - Chug - SubStatic 11. DK7 - Where's The Fun - Output 12. Agent Orange - Techtonic - Unreleased Also, here's the mix from week 2 Radio Bompe Week 2 Tracklisting: 1. Abe Duque - What Happened - Abe Duque Records 2. Dan Bell - Phreak yo Body - Logistic Records 3. The Hacker - Moskow Reise - Goodlife 4. Tekel - Cif - Initial Cuts 5. Pan Tone - Chug - Substatic 6. Agaric - Against The Grain - GCR 7. Marko Nastic - No Hate Allowed - Promo 8. Motor - MDXTA - Novamute 9. Solieb - Stay High 10. Mat303 & Josh Love - Princessita (Marco G Rmx) - Promo 11. Agent Orange & Becka - Lemongrass - Gotham Grooves 12. Johannes Heil - Artology 13. Agent Orange & Justin Schumacher - Trapped - GCR 14. Technasia - Silvery Sounds - Fcomm 15. Damon Wild - GPS - Musicman 16. Justin Berkovi - System Recovery - Musicman

Enjoy! Not all of the sets are up yet, but if I come across any more links, I will put them up here Marco Nastic http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UCZ39H3M Miss Djaxx http://www.megaupload.com/?d=6PRFVF9W Technasia ''live'' http://www.megaupload.com/?d=50TEESWT Dave Clarke http://rapidshare.com/files/192456/...0-2006.mp3.html another DC link 68.43 MB 75:00min http://www.megaupload.com/de/?d=JZH9R3FB Justice http://www.megaupload.com/?d=A2O80IJ0 James Holden http://www.megaupload.com/?d=TT9RTO57 Tiga http://www.megaupload.com/?d=1H2HO04N Joris Voorn http://rapidshare.com/files/200557/...006-HOLLAND.rar Dr Lektroluv http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UFATXMUC Digitalism http://rapidshare.de/files/37474115....2006_.mp3.html 2 Many DJ's part 1: http://www.filefactory.com/file/6f0714 2Many DJ's part 2: http://rapidshare.com/files/234664/soulwax2.mp3 Shinedoe: http://rapidshare.com/files/269452/...belive.mp3.html Valentino Kanzyani http://rapidshare.com/files/297573/...alive-mnkbt.mp3 Ellen Allien vs.Apparat & Phillipe Zdar http://www.megaupload.com/de/?d=7QKS8LG1 Dave Clarke & 2 Many Djs @ I Love Techno 2006 http://www.megaupload.com/fr/?d=3CU99FKC Boys Noize http://rapidshare.com/files/286539/...06-078plus1.mp3 PLUS::: I LOVE TECHNO 2006 - Live Video (6hours) Format: asf (600 Kb/s) Size: ~1.6 GB http://6uqhjtquoa.rapidsafe.de/ More later

Actually came here because of the almost non-existant techno scene in the States. (no offense) As an artist, there is a lot more opportunity here - and I just wanted a change for a while..... Definitely diggin the european vibe - much more relaxing here

This mix is from the premier of Radio Bompe on beradio.net. Thought I would share Live On Radio Bompe 1. Crowd Theory - Reality Dont Care About Nuthin - CT 2. Pascal Faos - Synaptic - Leven Non Zero 3. Agaric - Against The Grain - Gotham City Records 4. DBX - Losing Control (Carl Craig RMX) - Peacefrog 5. Joel Mull - Untitled - Promo 6. Electrik Circus - Escuchamele - Permissive 7. Extrawelt - Titleheld - Cocoon 8. Eric Sneo - Slave To The Beat (Sascha Krohn RMX) - Terminal M 9. Michel De Hey - Jetchi - Hey 10. Adam Beyer - Untitled 01 - Mad Eye 11. Mark Broom - Twenty Nine - Bpitch 12. Pascal Faos - Brooklyn Style - Level Non Zero 13. Joel Mull - Untitled - Promo 14. A.R.A. & Becka - Aida - Unreleased Enjoy! I also host another show on Saturday afternoons on Livesets.com, so anyone wishing to check it out - the show starts at noon and airs until 3pm

It's been a while since I've posted on here, so I figured I'd reintroduce myself..... My name is Becka - I am a techno dj - originally from NYC, but I am now living in Barcelona, Spain. Wouldnt recommend coming here to live - this city is absolutely nuts. (would elaborate on that, but it would take too long) Definitely a great place to party though....lots of clubs and stuff happening here - so if you like to party, outside of Ibiza, this is the place for you. So, that is all.....anyone planning any trips here, let me know....I'll tell you all the good places to check out Adios amigos!

Here are a few mixes for your aural pleasure Live On Gotham City Radio Track Listing: 1. Ryski – Spellbound – Gotham Grooves 2. Nico Awtsventin (Vince Watson) – The Final Techture – Superbra 3. Greg Gow – Trigger Mode – Uppercut 4. Greg Gow – No Hockey – Restructured 5. Marco Bailey – Blurt – Pornographic 6. Space DJz – Whitelabel Promo – Potential 7. WJ Henze – Bio Science – Federation Of Drums 8. Cave – Ancient – Promethean Recordings 9. Ben Sims – Whitelabel Promo 10. Axel Karakasis – Life – Pornographic 11. Becka & Agent Orange – Lemongrass – Gotham Grooves 12. Zzino – Op T Gemaskske – Pornographic 13. Blake Baxter – Sexuality (Ben Sims Rmx) – Sonic Groove 14. Zoran – Automatic Update – Pornographic 15. WJ Henze – Bird Strike – Ascend Recordings 16. Kehso – The Stick Up – Ingoma 17. Killa Productions – Good Life (re-edit) – K.B. Records Inc. 18. Kid Corona – Snap To Zero (Mark Broom Remix) – Pleaser Records 19. Cave – Dynamic – G-Force Records Touch Your Soul Track Listing: 1. Intro 2. Jel Ford & Oscar Charlie “New Beginnings†–Jericho 3. Felipe & Nicolas Becher “Cha Rumba†–Primevil 4. Paco Osuna “Tornado†– Zenit 5. Mark Broom “Missing Link†–King Of The Snakes 6. DJ Misjah “Cocaine†–Rerun 7. Marco Carola “11th Question†8. Reinard Voigt “Spice†–Kompakt 9. Michel De Hey “ Do You Want Me?†–Hey 10. Panic Attack “The Rage†–Corachi Records 11. Alex Bau “Here It Comes†–Ascend Recordings 12. Aphrohead “In The Dark We Live†(Dave Clarke Rmx) –Bush 13. Cortex Thrill “Persistance Of Time†(Petar Dundov Rmx) –Deep & Dark Recordings 14. Sascha Barth “Safari†–Terminal M 15. Joris Voorn “Lost Memories-Pt. 2†-Sino Beauty & The Beats Tracklisting: 1. Agent Orange "Got That Swing" -Terminal M 2. Felipe & Nicolas Becher “Cha Rumba†–Primevil 3. Aphrohead “In The Dark We Live†(Dave Clarke Rmx) –Bush 4. Ben Sims "Tribal War" -Ingoma 5. Paco Osuna “Tornado†– Zenit 6. Mark Broom “Missing Link†–King Of The Snakes 7. Michel De Hey “ Do You Want Me?†–Hey 8. Joris Voorn “Lost Memories-Pt. 2†-Sino Enjoy!

Sat. September 24th-Gotham City Radio One Year Anniversary Airing This Saturday from noon until 5PM (EST)/18:00-23:00 (CET) Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing this Saturday, from 12:00pm – 5:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 23:00 CET(central european time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. September 24th marks the one year anniversary of Gotham City Radio - and to celebrate, the entire Gotham Grooves crew will be in the studio for a 5 hour 2x4 extravaganza. Some of our friends and fans will be also joining us for the festivities- their support this past year has meant a lot to me, as well as the rest of the crew. To start, I would like to thank everyone from the Livesets crew – for without you, the show would not have been possible. Even though we are on opposite sides of the Atlantic, I have come to think of you all as not just my partners in broadcasting, but my friends as well. You guys believed in my vision and for this, I thank you. We started out a year ago-and in that first year, we have had cutting edge international artists, along with some of our local talents, grace the decks. Some of you may remember the first week with Joris Voorn, and subsequent weeks with Tim Xavier, The Horrorist, Adam Beyer, Preach, just to name a few. We’ve also hosted a special broadcast of our New Year's Eve party, and successfully recorded the main stage of the Fuse-In Festival in Detroit for rebroadcast on Livesets. I want to personally thank each and every Gotham Grooves member for all of their help in making the show a success-from playing, to running the show when I was unable to, to helping obtain permission to record sets, sitting in a recording booth to obtain sets for broadcast.....everything we've accomplished this year would not have been possible without all of their hard work and help. And finally, I would like to thank our loyal listeners for tuning in-we hope you’ve enjoyed Gotham City Radio this past year and thank you once again for your continued support! To view the bios for all the Gotham Grooves artists, please check out our website: www.gothamgrooves.com Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 21:00 CET(central europan time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. For our special Christmas treat this week….our guests are The Horrorist and Satronica from Things To Come Records. His vision defines the underground electronic music scene. He runs one of the most respected techno labels in the world. His live performances are infamous. His fans are beyond loyal. His music is awe inspiring and genius…. The Horrorist has recorded a set exclusively for our broadcast this week. Satronica (Matt) started playing with the Horrorist (Oliver Chesler) on New Years 1998 in Nante, France. He now works with Oliver at Things To Come Records and produces and performs as part of Acrosome (on Things To Come). Recently returning from Africa, we are excited that Satronica is paying a visit to the studio for this very special set. Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City……. Happy Holidays from Gotham Grooves and the Livesets crew!

Join me this Saturday, December 4th to celebrate my BIG 3-0...... DJS for the evening: Special Guest TBA Agent Orange (Gotham Grooves, Terminal M) Becka (ISOS) - special Birthday set Deosil (ISOS) The party will be at Seho - 113 Ludlow Street Between Delancy and Rivington 10pm - 4am Cover: $5 See you all there

Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 21:00 CET(central europan time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. This week, Becka is off on a mission and will be handing the reins over to 2 very special guests. Returning once again on the decks will be DJ Deosil of NYC, and the Rev will be coming in to preach his own groovy sound. The Rev has been preaching the techno gospel for almost 6 years. A lifelong student of music with a formal classical training, he has worked with Simply Bangin' and Gotham Grooves, as well as his own project Underground Funk Initiative, to spread the good word of Techno to New York City and beyond. A sermon by the Rev can include anything from pounding hard techno, to funky techno, to minimal all the way down to deep funky house, whatever it takes to move your body and twist your mind. Now residing in NYC after years of playing clubs and parties in Canada, Deosil’s energetic beat-blending skills have also rocked dance floors in countries like Sweden, Poland and of course the USA. Playing alongside artists like Deetron, Tobias Von Hofstein at such prestigious events like Tronic Treatment, Homegrown, and Gamer’s Night Groove, he has also done numerous Radio show appearances both FM and online and looks forward to many more years of laying down eclectic blends of danceable rhythms for techno fans everywhere. Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

Due to some technical difficulties last week with the livesets server, we had to cancel the show last week.....Dan Physics will be playing tomorrow-11/13-same bat time (noon until 3pm EST)....same bat channel (www.livesets.com)

Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 21:00 CET(central europan time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Joining Becka this week will be her very special guest, Dan Physics. Dan Physics has been quietly making a strong impact on the world. Both as a DJ and as a producer, after strong outings on such cult labels as Hidden Agenda and Remains as well as Creme Organization in Holland, He continues the quest in new directions of sound.. As a DJ he is eclectic and eccentric, spanning many genres of Electronic music, from Acid to Techno to Industrial EBM.. His upcoming releases on Sonic Groove, Conrail Records and Weave Music in Germany are sure to help define the new direction being explored by such artists as Thomas Heckmann, Terence Fixmer, Richard Hinge, and Adam X, among others. Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you our special Halloween edition of ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 21:00 CEST(central europan standard time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. Our feature guest this week has accomplished more in a brief period of time in the dance music industry than some have accomplished in their whole career. In just 10 years, Tim Xavier has gone from supporting early sounds of acid house and techno at US raves, to djing globally, and now producing his own techno sounds that are played at dance events worldwide. On top of the growing list of affiliations, Tim also manages and operates his own label 773Tekno with the mission to independently release and represent his particular techno sound. With his signature production and extraordinary dj skills, Tim Xavier has firmly rooted his place in the dance industry as one of the top artists to watch in the years to come. Tim Xavier…..one beat at a time…….. Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 21:00 CEST(central europan standard time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. This week’s guest is one of New York's top Techno DJs. Our very own Agent Orange! Agent has performed across the globe (Greece, Holland, France, Belgium, Italy, S. Korea, Colombia, and Venezuela), side by side with some of the biggest techno artists, including Christian Smith , Adam Beyer, Misstress Barbara, Cristian Varela, Deetron, and Ben Sims, (just to name a few) . He has also toured across North America, held numerous residencies, and was a regular at Christian Smith's Tronic Treatment. He strives hard to add creativity, originality, and a new sound to his own musical productions, and his DJ sets. His foundation is Funky and Hard Techno, but by using his refined DJ skills, he takes his sets to the next level by presenting many different elements, such as Tribal, Latin & Jazzy, and is well known for dropping in a classic tune as well. After huge success with his summer smash ‘Got That Swing’ on Terminal M, Agent follows up with his new release ‘Ready To Fight EP’ which also features a remix by Danilo Vigorito. It will be released on 10/28/04, on his own label Gotham Grooves. Join us this week for the exclusive world premier, and as we warm up for the big record release party that will take place later that night in New York! Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

Once again, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com. Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST(eastern standard time) 18:00 – 21:00 CEST(central europan standard time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. This week, Becka will be handing the reins over to 2 very special guests-DJ Deosil of NYC, and Neil V of Concealed Recordings in Detroit. Now residing in NYC after years of playing clubs and parties in Canada, Deosil’s energetic beat-blending skills have also rocked dance floors in countries like Sweden, Poland and of course the USA. Playing alongside artists like Deetron, Tobias Von Hofstein at such prestigious events like Tronic Treatment, Homegrown, and Gamer’s Night Groove, he has also done numerous Radio show appearances both FM and online and looks forward to many more years of laying down eclectic blends of danceable rhythms for techno fans everywhere. Tight mixing with quick technical skills has given our next guest, Neil V, the opportunity to play from the East coast to the West. After 5 years of running the label Techno City Records with his close friend Jimmy Hunt… they recently moved on to a new project called Concealed Recordings. Coming all the way from Detroit to New York City, Neil plans to lay down some proper techno on the world wide web airwaves." Tune in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

With a warm reception, DJ Becka and techno label Gotham Grooves of NYC are back to bring you ‘Gotham City Radio’ on Livesets.com Airing every Saturday, from 12:00pm – 3:00pm EST (Eastern Standard Time) 18:00 – 21:00 CET (Central European Time). Alongside Becka's weekly tune selections, we will be featuring international and local guest dj's and performances for your enjoyment. We hope to help kick start your day or evening, depending on where you’re tuning in from. Just go to www.livesets.com and follow the links at the top right. Our special guest for this week originally hails from the Midwest-where the scene was world renown for its hardcore and acid party's. Mark Verbos grew up there and started out playing live and DJing at that time, which led him to tours with DJ Rush, appearances around the world as well as releases on many top techno labels, including Reload, Planet Rhythm, Wavescape, Drop Bass, Djax-Up-Beats and his own Simple Answer. His version of techno still holds true to all the ideals he came to appreciate during this seminal time in underground electronic music. Both his solo records and DJ sets are hard and unique, pushing crowds into a frenzy and setting him apart from the droves of other DJ/producers. Tune In, sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds from Gotham City…….

I just want to make a few comments here.....first of all-who the hell is this idiot to sit there and talk shit about my man Gabe like that? Gabe, you are a sweetie-I can only assume that this chick tried to kick it to ya and you blew her off, so now she's pissed As for the stupid ass comments about partying in Europe....yea, so what? You come here and try to start a pissing match on this board??? I've been to Europe too-as have a lot of other people on this board....and I can say that while the parties there may be better (only a matter of opinion), NYC still is a wonderful place to party-which is why we all choose to live here. You think Europe is so much better, then get the hell out of NYC! Not once has Gabe come off as a know-it-all....he just is a purveyor of fine funk and simply recommends places for people to go and have a good time.... Oh yea, and your comments about how 'old skool' you are are just gay and have nothing to do with anything in your arguement.....who cares how long you've been going to parties-I've been going out just as long as you (sure a lot of others on here have too)- but in the grand scheme of things, it doesnt matter, so get over yourself-puleaz!!!! Apologies to anyone here who finds my comments offensive in any way.....only sticking up for my friend here