Bryan Bergman has collected 7" singles since 1979 and 12" singles since 1984. In 1985, still very young, he was allowed to accompany a family friend & DJ to a local Cairns nightclub (Scandals) in 1985 to learn more as a DJ apprentice. Bitten by the radio bug he began to broadcast music after school via his own neighbourhood pirate FM station, later moving into the more legitimate role of community radio at 4CCR-FM Cairns in 1986 playing non-stop music after school during studio training and maintenance times. In 1987, he commenced announcing on 4CCR's 'Teen Scene' show and soon started operating as a mobile disco & club DJ aound Cairns. Around 1989, Bryan inherited the late night 'Party & Dance' show from his dance music mentor, the late Ron Bridges, playing imported dance music from midnight until 5am before travelling overseas in the early 1990's.
Now based in Melbourne since 1996, Bryan has achieved a plethora of event appearances and venue residencies across three Australian states, along with international residencies and appearances in both Dubai & Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) between 1993 and 1996. Preferring the intimacy and acoustics of smaller venues has kept Bryan (happilly) out of the limelight for over 20 years. Bryan is available for retrospective DJ sets at events and venues on request.
The Music.
Bryan's record collection has been described as a growing encyclopaedia of dance music. Record collecting is just one of Bryan’s passions - he has done so since 1979, but most actively from 1984 when introduced to the 12” maxi single by a family friend. Having already amassed such a diverse and continually growing record collection, Bryan’s sets span house inspirations to lesser known boogie funk gems across 3 decades.
As an avid music collector turned DJ, his musical taste is very broad, yet highly focused within each of his much loved genres. Favourite sounds include disco-funk, fusion & rare grooves from the mid 70's to the mid 80's, classic house, rave & breakbeats between the memorable 88-92 summer of love years, and varied house sounds from the 90's to today.
The Clubs.
His early days behind the decks in Cairns, Far North Queensland saw him in venues such as Cleo's, Scandals, Reno Club International, Tremors, Magnums, Nighthawks/The Nest, Manhattan, Ribbons at The Hilton, The End Of The World, Rustys, Justice Dance Lounge and more, playing the latest dance sounds from around the world.
Popular and at ease with dancers of any persuasion, a holidaying DJ from Sydney's legendary 'Midnight Shift' visited Cairns queer venue 'Rustys' (a controversial 'secret' gay venue due to antiquated QLD law at the time) where 'straight guy for a sometimes queer ear' Bryan had already held a 2 year residency, listened to Bryan play and then invited him to play at The Shift. This was Bryan's first gig outside Cairns, he played a guest spot at Sydney's Shift main room in January 1992 before returning to Cairns to journey overseas.
A 2 1/2 year stint in the United Arab Emirates followed in 1993, with residencies at 'Illusions' Abu Dhabi, 'The Lodge' Dubai & 'Rumours' Dubai. Whist in the UAE, Bryan also played guest appearances at 'Safari' Abu Dhabi, 'Tequilana' Abu Dhabi, 'Trax' Jumeirah and 'Cyclone' Dubai.
The Radio.
Shortly after returing to Australia, Bryan moved to Melbourne. In January 1997 he was offered a regular weekly slot on Melbourne's original Kiss 90 FM grid. His early morning 'AM & Upfront' show was compelling listening for those starving for advance release promos, aired in Melbourne by Bryan often months prior to the vinyl hitting local record stores. The popularity of his on-air presentation and interest in audio tech led to a second weekly show called 'Byte Me'. Both shows continued until December 2001 when Kiss 90 FM was denied a full time licence by the (then) Australian Broadcasting Authority.
His respect for underground dance music is now evident again on “Disco Juice”, Melbourne's top 10 rating Kiss FM / Orbit FM radio show. He created the show upon Kiss FM's relaunch in 2005, airing every Saturday afternoon from 1pm. The show is a weekly crate dig through his diverse record collection and is a never predictable journey through the hedonistic nights of the original disco boogie underground.
The Gearfreak.
Professional sound reinforcement and audio expertise set Bryan apart from most of his DJ peers. A stickler for audio transparency, Bryan for many years has participated in both the installation and launch of near field discotheque sound systems in venues across 2 continents with companies such as Singapore's 'Inova Audio Visual Designs', Dubai's 'Inova International' and the UK's 'London Town Discotheques'. He has also provided independent advice, installation and technical support services to numerous Australian venues for most of his career.
Sometimes featured at special performances is his own sound system featuring Urei’s flagship 1620 mixing console, Italian made FBT speakers using world-renowned B&C drivers, traditional horn loaded bass enclosures and locally-unique JBL bullet tweeter arrays built by Bryan under the guidance and specification of worldwide industry icon, GSA in New York.
Over the past 20 years, Bryan has played at numerous venues and events and continues to do so wherever good music needs to be heard.
Further information and event dates coming soon.
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