Tonal spices waft through the air on vibrations of the beats. The forward-forging nature of them, by pushing the limits of music, enables these to be regarded as intelligent sound. This is progressive house, and it strokes the heartbeat into moving the body.

To the inquisitive and aware ear, it is a vastly complex arrangement of tones, beats, rhythms, sounds…goes beyond language, and it is this that brings such a diversity of cultures and persuasions out to the chic, newly renovated 66— the swankest place to be when the wolves howl the bewitching hours of the night into life. Here lives the mix.

The newcomer either feels the magic and flows into it, or feels the strange under-vibes, and is overwhelmed. Gary Dubbs is sensitive to the magic. He has always been one to play for the crowd, and with such varied musical style preferences amongst the assortment of people at 66, he says the DJ has to work twice as hard to keep everyone happy. Although his roots are in Southhampton in England, Gary now calls the chaotically intriguing city of Bangkok home. With a musical background in everything from drum and bass, hip-hop, to dance music, he is one who believes in the evolution of music and appreciates the infinite amount of sounds that can be produced.

A traveler at heart, Gary has been all over the world. And he sees Bali not only as being a place with wonderful people and rich culture, but he also sees the newer side of things. It’s the first place he has been that, as he sees it, has the potential to match Ibiza. He sites 66 as a top venue and as being one of the best to bring in world-class DJ’s. A lot of effort has been put into keeping an Indonesian cross-over feel to the club, while offering luxuries including air-conditioning and an imported Australian sound system. The Grand Opening is coming next week, for a week, from July 9.

Justin, the promotions manager, gives a shout out to other bars making a mutual effort to push the clubbing scene in Bali to the next level, including Kudos, Globe, Liquid, Ku De Ta, and De Ja Vu. Bali as Asia’s Ibiza? Why not? At 66 Gary filled the role of DJ on Saturday night to add on to the shows he already had booked in Bali. His style of playing is one at a time. He never maps out a set, and feels the vibe around him to know which direction to push the music. “When you do get it right, it really does feel electric.” Playing a mixture of house and progressive house, he tries to maintain “a hard-driving edge” on the music. “The better DJ you are, the more you make people dance.” And did they ever dance when he was on! “I do it for the buzz of it…it gives an amazing feel.” And when the people of the night slip out with the dawn, Gary says if he’s played a good show, he “always goes home feeling good.” Gary is primarily, however, a record producer. With nearly a decade of producing under his belt, he has now started the company Vinyl Black in Thailand. He has been working on his album, along with doing a string of recordings for the UK-based Coldtap Recordings and Hype Music, amongst other things. As a record producer of progressive house, he handles not only the engineering but the recording, and brings in whatever elements are necessary to breathe depth into the music, including vocalists and percussion.

He creates his music beginning with an idea in his mind. He credits a natural progression from what he has heard before, and combines this with a rough idea of what kind of energy he wants to create. “I like to see beautiful things and write beautiful music from it.” Some trax of his to look for are Underworld, Chrome Refix on Stripped Inc., and Another Slice of Life, to be released in January 2005 on Hype Music. Check out Gary Dubbs’ new album when it launches in September and you can see him live this Saturday at 66 July 3. NEE