New Year's Eve at the Daylesford Theatre was simply fabulous this year! The setting was well constructed, with a generous dance floor, tents to keep the elements out and enough top-notch local DJs to keep the vibes flowing well into the 2-double0-4.

The Butcher opened the festivities at sometime around 9.00 p.m. with some of that sweet sweet Reggae music we all grew up loving.

The vibe was set at laid back and cool for the next few hours when Jake came to the wheels of steel to keep the vintage tunes spinning, and nary a complaint was heard.

Next up was the venerable Beatnik, who dropped the old school funk joints on us like they were bombs over Baghdad (Insensitive? Maybe, but analogies from history will be, won't they Casper?).

Needless-to-say, by this time the party was jumping, and the crowd was swelling by the minute. Beatnik took us close, but DJ Kid Fresh came on to steer us into the harbor with some seriously crunk (meaning nice, good, cool or wonderful) Hip-Hop noise.

Now I know what you're thinking, but it wasn't all about the shaking of our nether regions; this party had a very special twist.

You see, just when the Onion dropped and the metallic silver confetti spilled all over the parking lot, a live performance started at the Daylesford that night.

The group was a very talented underground Hip-Hop duo out of New York City, and they delivered a tightly knit, well constructed thirty minute performance to the absolute delight of at least one member of the 500 plus crowd.

The buzz of the crowd and less-than-perfect microphones made a lot of their lyrics unintelligible, but the duo (comprised of Tru Pro and Phaze Future from Queens and Harlem respectively) exhibited excellent stage presence and noticeably great chemistry.

The rhymes I did hear were decidedly solid and their beats were also very impressive, making this group one to look out for in 2004 for any serious Hip-Hop fan.

Their thoroughly satisfying set included such highlights as the smooth 'Get Back,' the Funk-laden 'The Benz' and the outstanding 'Ultra Ultimate' which can all be found on their debut CD 'Twin Engine' (search for it if you have the means, trust me, you won't be disappointed!).

The response from the highly excited crowd was moderate, but the performance was always better than the response, and the dance thing returned without a glitch right after the Smash Mechanics left the stage. 2004 had officially been started with a bang!

I left the party at around 1.30 a.m. to the sounds of Jake spinning the magnificent Conroy Smith tune 'Dangerous' and the entire Red Productions crew smiling big and feeling good.

Congratulations to Jon Legere, Beatnik and the entire Red crew on a job well done. Eclectic music, live performances and cool vibes will always result in a good time; look for more from the Red crew in 2004 (and remember where ya heard it, you hear?)