FU Update + Veggie Strudel for a Sub-Zero November

Wow, has it really been a month since I last added new material to FU?  Tsk, tsk...

FU's focus has definitely shifted over the past month, as my non-Techno endeavours have had to take the front seat for the time being.  Forgivable, when those endeavours include shiatsu school midterms and getting married!

By no means does this imply that we're lowering Toronto's Techno flag - if anything, we're hearing more and more voices clamouring for a night of BANGING tunes.  From the message boards we frequent, to Rouchos' Fight Club radio show on Energy 105.1, to word on the street, there's definitely a Detroit-and-Chicago born itch that needs to be scratched.

So, as a reaffirmation, here are FU's two central goals:

1.  To continue to establish a client base for the WestsideWax DJ School and to increase the school's profile in the downtown Toronto core.

We've started booking people for lessons already, and interestingly enough, the majority of calls we've been getting have been from adults who have always wanted to learn how to kick it on the ones and twos.  The kids might be a harder sell, as we're trying to work in a market that's dominated by iPods, commercial R&B and Hip-Hop and digital DJing, but we're sure there are enough weird little urchins out there who think that turntables, vinyl and Techno are all pretty damn cool.  We'll continue to put up flyers in the 'hood and we'll also be announcing some sweet December discounts within the next week, including a package deal for kids who don't want to spend their Christmas holidays parked in front of the television!

During the ComeUnity Festival T and I had the privilege of meeting Nalim Sharma, a friend of the organisers, who after hearing the DJ school's mandate, offered to design our website for free.  He's recently graduated from graphic design school and we're both grateful and excited to have him on the FU team!  Nalim's website is here, and he's currently available for both contract and freelance work.

Thanks also go out to Mr. Todd Smith, who sold us 100+ records from his choice Techno collection for little more than a song.  We're talking prime cuts of Detroit-infused computer funk from the mid to late 1990s that a lot of collectors would be salivating small puddles to get their hands on.  Fortunately, we're more into playing music than collecting it, so these tunes will see plenty of time on the decks!  For those who don't know, Todd was a vital cog in the Techno machinery of both Guelph and Toronto during the heyday of the North American rave scene.  He was both a buyer for Guelph's now-defunct Mudshark (a clothing and record store) as well as a resident DJ with Phryl, a company responsible for brining in many Techno and Drum&Bass luminaries to Toronto from 1996 to 2000, when 1000+ person parties dominated the city's electronic music scene.  He's been retired from playing for some time now, but still loves the music and continues to support.  Cheers, Mr. Smith!

2.  To establish a successful Pivot Techno club night.

Pivot is the name of our event production branch, and we've been searching for a suitable venue for our club night since September  (really, since last spring, but we've only concentrated our efforts over the past couple of months).  We've had a couple of near-hits, but for one reason or another, the venues just weren't the right fit for what we had in mind.  We've decided to hold off on starting up a night until 2009, when we'll hopefully be in a better position both organisationally and financially.  In the meanwhile, there's still the chance that we'll throw together a one-off in the month of December - if you aren't on the Pivot email list, drop us a note at PivotTechno@gmail.com and we'll keep you informed of our upcoming events!

WW

----------

Veggie Strudel, as promised...

Ingredients:

Zucchini, kale, potato, broccoli, red pepper, tomato, feta cheese, salt, pepper, oregano, fresh thyme leaves.  Oh yeah, olive oil and about 6 sheets of phyllo pastry (usually in the frozen food section of most grocery stores).

Put all vegetables except the tomato and green onion into an oven-safe dish, pour in a bit of oil, add the salt and pepper and mix well until everything has a fine coating.  Bake covered at 375F for 15-20 minutes, then remove from oven.

Brush a thin layer of oil on a baking sheet, then lay down two sheets of phyllo pastry.  Brush on another thin layer of oil, then add the last two sheets, brushing on more oil.  Layer the vegetables, adding the tomato, green onions and a generous helping of crumbled feta cheese, a few dashes of oregano and the fresh thyme, like so:



All this needs to be done fairly quickly, as the pastry has the tendency to dry if it's left in the open for too long.  Fold the pastry over to cover the vegetables, tucking the ends underneath.  Bake uncovered in the oven on the middle tray at 350F for 35-40 minutes, periodically checking the brownness of the pastry.  Remove from the oven, and serve to 4 to 6 of your friends who believe that salad just isn't enough when mid-winter temperatures decide to pay a visit in November! 

Et voilà!



~fin~ (for now...)