CTRL-ALT-DANCE: My musical dream: DJ Ankytrixx

From the time I can remember, I had a dream, a musical dream. Those years when I wondered where I should go from here, the wonder years of being a gypsy, mind in one place, heart in another. I was just embarking on my musical career.

I recall that this country didn’t really have a local scene except that pop and commercial music was the thing no matter which club we went to, and DJs back then were each for his own and so on and so forth. On the other hand, people back then were quite starry-eyed about international artists and all of us would wait for an overseas act to grace our shores and we’d be excited for days at end.

Making everywhere home came easy, and so a DJ residency took me away from my home country to a place where I could be me, play music, find myself and find new friends who thereafter became family. After that substantial stint which turned out to be one of the most enriching phases of my life, I decided to get back to India and explore opportunities in a bigger way and suddenly, I found myself in the concrete jungle Mumbai and my work kind of just exploded from there. 

Meeting like-minded people from the Mumbai cross cultural society who were looking for a cutting-edge music experience and fellow colleagues from the profession, it started to dawn on me, how there happened to be a massive void for this music and lack of togetherness, where we all as a collective should in an ideal scenario work towards creative satisfaction and make this sound boom. 

It wasn’t just about me playing gigs, it was about a bigger picture, where I wanted to reach out to a global platform and tell the world that this country boasts of a treasure trove of talent and that needs to find a place in the sun.

AFE was created with that mindset wherein I could get all my friends and music fraternity together to celebrate underground dance music, no matter how hard it may be to push in an unaltered commercial market. 

Enter CTRL ALT DANCE, a result borne out of that time, where I must say everything happened organically. The Indian scene was ready to take off, in a different direction and I was fortunate to gather the strength and support of my friends, music industry professionals, family and get them all under one sky to create a no- holds-barred music extravaganza. My idea was to make a platform from where no matter who or where you are in India, when you got all that talent it has be given a chance to bloom.

This annual event is in its third year largely due to the love and acceptance we feel from the people connected to the business, who believe in the core essence of the idea itself. This edition features 75 DJs, some of whom are renowned worldwide, performing alongside the rising talents who are pushing the underground music envelope on a global scale currently. The production this year will be managed from a team coming down especially from Amsterdam to create that feel and mood.

The venue needs no introduction; Hill Top (in Goa) is as good as it gets with generations of clubbers having feasted on their musical desires in the very same grounds. Not only are the three days and nights dedicated to bringing everyone a pure music experience that showcases different styles of electronic dance music, we have introduced Drum&Bass and Live Electronica specialists in the line-up as well.

The mantra, as always, remains to celebrate, cherish and put the spotlight on the amazing talent and wizardry nestled in every corner of India, a concept that is immediately unique. I am very happy to be on the CTRL ALT DANCE ship which tells different musical stories and has no boundaries, all this even better when we are as one.

You can attend CTRL ALT DANCE in Goa at Hill Top, Vagator between Dec 28-30.