DJ DAN SODA
Washington,DC
(aka-Northeast Direct)
DJ/PRODUCER/AUDIO DE-CONSTRUCTION/Restaurant & Nightclub Manager/Inventor/Wannabe Cage fighter/Part-time blimp test pilot
years DJing: 20
Raised in the deep jungles of Thailand by genetically modified water buffaloes, Mr. Soda is no stranger to weirdness. His eclectic arsenal of music spans globally whether it is from deep within the jungles of his home village, which he thrived in for centuries by the way or an underground warehouse party in his current hometown, Washington,DC.
Regardless of the situation, Dan has made his impact in the area’s DJ/club/party scene for almost 2 decades.
Back in 94 he formed the infamous DJ Collective of the “Drive Safe Crew” which were some of DC’s best and most influential DJ’s in the underground scene. This collective was comprised of DJs- SKETTI (Dan’s mentor & Vault resident), RAY & PAT CASIL, KIER ONE, and KENO. Along with the local favorites 2Tuff Crew & SnowBall Collective.
Dan’s residencies consisted of several legendary DC nightclubs such as RED, State of the Union, Home (formerly the Vault) and CLUBFIVE to name a few. Along with fellow crew members, Dan threw parties throughout the region for over a decade. These parties made a significant impact on the scene bringing the fresh, raw, & energetic sounds of which can be labeled as the Undergound Sounds of DC.
Undeniably, a perfect example of such a party was the critically acclaimed- “FREQUENCY” night (circa95′, Wednesdays@RED) that he threw along with long time friend DJ SAM TAYLOR (HGS CREW/Elite Bookings, NYC). Frequency introduced DC to a whole new world of DEEP, SOULFUL, & Underground house music by bringing for the first time ever- DJs ROY DAVIS JR., Miles Maeda, DIZ, Mark Grant, Marques Wyatt, Derrick Carter, Heather as well as local favorites Sam Burns, Doubleo7, and Ivan G.
After the Frequency party ended, Dan moved to NYC to further his music career. In NYC he had the opportunity to work for Downtown 161, K7 and Halcyon records and held residencies at Leopard Lounge as Central Fly’s Pinkie Room. In 2005 Dan returned to DC with an arsenal of new sounds and ideas to bring to the underground scene. This began the first residency at Club Five, the Abstract Motion party which brought Herbert, Jazzanova, Bugs in the Attic, Koop, Everything But the Girl to just name a few.
At the end of the day, Dan’s has always been known for pushing the envelope beyond the expected. For a city that is always looking for new sounds and flavor you never know what will come next. So, keep you ears and minds open to the future sounds of Underground Sound of DC.
A real DC Underground OG …