I'm super excited to be here at Tweed Heads for the 2019 Beat Mix Australia Conference.
No matter how experienced you are at what you do, you can always learn from those around you. Over the next 2 days I'll be doing just that from some of Australia & New Zealands best.

​Armada DJ Services would like to wish everyone a very happy new year and thank all of our amazing clients for their support during 2018.

2019 is already off to a great start thanks to a fantastic New Year’s Eve event at Eildon Riverside Holiday Park. We welcomed in the new year playing every kind of party music from Roar (Katy Perry) to Runaround Sue (Dion) to a capacity crowd of families and holiday-makers spending the Christmas and New Year period at Lake Eildon.

To manage such a successful event would not be possible without the professional management of Eildon Riverside Holiday Park . Thanks to Yvette, Craig and their team for their amazing hospitality.

We’ve been ringing in the New Year at Riverside since 2013 and we’re very proud to announce that we’ve already confirmed our return to rock-in the new decade 2020! Be sure to book your cabin or camping spot for 2019. It’s going to be huge!

Glam Photobooths - Let Us Take Your Selfies
Throughout the night the photobooth was inundated with guests creating fun and hilarious mementos of their Christmas / New Year holidays. This year we took our open-air Selfie Station. The digital party-props and social sharing were a huge hit. Although there were some issues with mobile data reception on the night, which meant a delay in guests receiving their images.

Glam Photobooths will be back in 2019 (from 17:30pm) along with Armada DJ Services to provide the exciting entertainment program for you to ring in 2020. We look forward to seeing you all then! Happy New Year!​

Special thanks to all of the guests at Eildon Riverside Holiday Park who sang in the New Year to our mix-up of Aussie Classics, Party Anthems, Top 40 and Retro Hits. YOU helped create a wonderful atmosphere underneath the stars.
Here's a short video of the night. 

On Thursday night I found myself doing what I love at the beautiful Riverstone Estate in the Yarra Valley. This was my first visit to Riverstone. I was really impressed with the attention to detail and level of service at this venue. Plus the stunning panoramic views of the Yarra Valley.
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While the weather wasn’t ideal, there was still a little magic to be found. Photographer Rick Liston did just that by capturing Lea & Katrina under a full rainbow overlooking the valley.

Big thanks to Lea & Katrina for trusting me with such a special occasion. And thank you Matt and all the friendly staff at Riverstone Estate. It's a really is beautiful place to have your special day.

A few weeks ago a had the pleasure of Djing & MCing another wedding reception at The Old Cheese Factory in Berwick. Don't let the name mislead you. Amongst the beautifully landscaped grounds you’ll find a homestead, cheese factory and other buildings dating back to 1860.
It’s the perfect backdrop and location for your special day. You can have your ceremony, wedding photos and reception all in the one spot. For more about this amazing location click here.

Huge congratulations to Chris & Sally-Anne for tying the knot and for putting on such a great night's entertainment for their family & friends.

And a special mention goes out to Jess from Eventful Horizons for doing such a magnificent job of transforming the space.  Great work!

Last Saturday I had the honour of Djing & MCing the Wedding Reception of Lavy & Danielle On at Morning Star Estate, Mt Eliza. I was there nice and early to set up the sound for their beautiful ceremony and managed to snap these shots without getting in the photographer’s way. Big thanks to Mr & Mrs On for entrusting me with their special day; And thanks to Kate, Irina & all the staff at Morning Star. Hope to see you again soon.

Morning Star Estate is a stunning century old venue set amidst 22 acres of exquisite gardens. The perfect place for an intimate wedding reception. www.morningstarestate.com.au

This Saturday just gone I had the pleasure of Djing and MCing for newly-weds Jimmy & Michelle Loader at the stunning All Smiles venue at Melbourne's Docklands. It's a brilliant venue for a cocktail style wedding reception. Great service, great food and a view over the harbour is stunning. Especially when the sun goes down and Melbourne begins to sparkle.

Jimmy & Michelle decided to have their ceremony right there at the venue overlooking the harbour. This was such a smart move. Rather than having to deal with logistics and limousines, they could relax and spend time with their photographer.

One added advantage of being so close to the city, is that should you be looking to party on after the reception, you're just minutes away from the CBDs many venues, and there's no shortage of taxis and accommodation.

I can't thank Jimmy and Michelle enough for trusting me with their wedding reception. This was my first time at All Smiles (Docklands) and I hope to be back soon. (Check out the picture of the candy bar and you'll see why).

Big thanks to Nicole from Nicole Williams Photography for the awesome shot of Jimmy & Michelle by the water at Docklands. Please be sure to check out her work should you be looking for a truly professional photographer for your next event.

Last night I had the pleasure of Djing and MCing for the newly wedded Ray & Joy Webster, along with their fun-loving/crazy family & friends. They danced like it was 1999 and laughed like there were no tomorrow. Even the Father of the Bride's speech was hijacked by Sean (his son) and turned into a family roast, mostly targeting Raj & the Bride. Everybody including myself had a great big laugh at antics of this beautiful zany fun-loving family.

The Venue:
Kimberley and the crew from Poets Lane in Sherbrooke were outstanding. They showed me the same hospitality as the guests of the reception. In fact... I don't think I've been called "Sir" quite so many times by venue staff. The only thing better than the service was the food. It was like I was on an episode of My Kitchen Rules and the judges were handing out 10's all round.

The Styling:
Big thumbs up to Levian Events. They really transformed the room into a work of art. My photographic abilities really don't do them justice.

The Challenge:
There is one negative worth mentioning here. And that is the fact that there is a sound limiter on the Djs power supply at this venue. If the sound level in the room reaches a certain level for a sustained period of 5 seconds then the power gets cut off. The venue must have really annoyed some neighbours. The cut-off level is set brutally low. I was running at about a 5th of my normal volume with most of the bass turned down. Fortunately there is a rest switch within easy reach. I've worked in nightclubs that have had similar devices connected to the amps that would cut the sound temporarily, but not the power to everything. No drama... There's more to an event than just loud music right! Unfortunately, I was still caught by surprise when the crowd made sooo much noise as the Bride and Groom entered the room that the power cut towards the end of their entrance song. I spent much of the night playing from my laptop instead of my CDj-900s just in case the power cut again. My Pioneer decks don't have a battery backup such as on a laptop, so chalk one up for all the laptop Djs out there. It did happen again during the first dance, but only due to the crowds enthusiasm. Ray and Joy put together a fun routine of 3 different songs and the crowd rightfully so, went nuts. I had to explain the situation to the crowd and we got through take 2 okay.

Final Words:
I know all of us wedding industry people love to strut our stuff on blogs & social media. We tend to share mostly only the positives and go on and on about how special all of our events are. Truthfully though, this is definitely a wedding reception I will not forget in a hurry. Not because of the sound problems, but because of the crazy, wild fun that everybody had regardless. I've never met a bigger bunch of extraverts. I just played my part and let this beautiful nutty family take center stage.

Mission complete. :)

Congratulations to Mr & Mrs James & Christie Curry. Yesterday they had a garden wedding at the beautiful Ashcombe Maze & Lavender Gardens on the Mornington Peninsula. And then they had their wedding reception by the sea @ Doyles Bridge Hotel, Mordialloc. It's no accident that we (Armada) are a preferred service provider there. We're constantly recommended to their customers because we deliver every time. From the first contact with the customer, to the last song on the dance floor. We deliver perfection.

Huge congratulations to Jessi & Mark. It's been an absolute pleasure working with them towards this big day. Speeches are almost done. Time to pump it up some!