Play Co. & Friends profile picture

Play Co. & Friends

You can't tackle the HacLe

About Me


"All matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration. That we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively. There is no such thing as death, life is only a dream. We are the imagination of ourselves."
-Bill Hicks
" coords="0,0,225,50" target="_blank" / Techno Club @ Public Life, London
Aural Therapy @ 51 Tehama, San Francisco
Opening for James Zabiela @ Vision, Chicago
Play Co. & Friends is a monthly internet radio show hosted by Hac Le & Caliendo featuring artsist, both known and unknown, who pushes the boundaries of electronic dance music from all over the world. Past guests have included Pier Bucci, Phil Thompson (aka Moonface), Taylor, Sean Miller, Brian Ffar, Dave Twomey, Jason Short (aka Sattva, Biogenesis) and Domingo Castillio. Click Here for more information about the show and for submission inquiries.

About Hac Le

Ever since he took control of his Catholic High School’s dance committee and started spinning the new wave and early electronic music he loved, Hac Le has been exhorting audiences to dance, and audiences have listened. listed resident & Auralism’s multi-talented Creative Director is a man of many hats, from world-traveling DJ, to promoter, to up-and-coming producer.

The Vietnam-born Le spent the ’90s kicking around LA, absorbing the spacey, mind-warping West Coast sound and putting in a three-year residency at Melrose’s Kontrol Faktory party. After relocating to Chicago, giving up on and subsequently rediscovering DJing, he began producing his own dark, tech-y tracks under the name Kyaro with new ally and future Auralism founder Jason Short. (Le currently has several solo and collaborative projects in the works.)

In 2000, Le co-founded Global Trip, a Mexico-based company that has imported everyone from Lee Burridge to Deep Dish to Dimitri from Paris; he also forms the heart of Play Co. & Friends, a cadre of producers, artists, and DJs who promote Chicago’s underground scene through parties, radio shows, and podcasts. Still, the turntables remain Hac’s true passion, reinforced when John Digweed chose Hac’s mix as the winner of FutureMusic’s Next Big Thing DJ contest and James Zabiela in the recent DJ Mag poll named him "Breakthru DJ of 2008". Le’s sets, which will carry him around the globe in the coming year, are where his longstanding infatuation with dance music comes alive. "On one hand, I have the Chicago house influence, on the other, the nearby Detroit techno, and my West Coast background. It all comes together in a very nice fusion which people enjoy and seem to have a hard time categorizing!"

About Caliendo

With a new generation of up and coming DJ’s to hit the electronic dance music scene, Caliendo’s sound of progressive house, assiduous track selection and flawless mixing has helped him stand out from the crowd. He single-handedly turned his dreams into reality with persistence and by staying true to himself rather than jumping on the next popular bandwagon. After experimenting his first two months on the decks he found the underground sound he was looking for: a fusion of chunky hard hitting Progressive with Tribal and Techno waves surrounded by an imagination of outer space manifests Caliendo’s style.

During his childhood, Caliendo’s love of electronic music started within various industrial genres. Some of his current inspirations still include music by Ministry, Meat Beat Manifesto and Skinny Puppy. His passion for dance music didn’t develop until he discovered the Chicago music scene in 2000. “I have always had a love for music and wanted to be part of it. Growing up as a kid, I was always mesmerized with distorted and warping sounds that seemed to mimic outer space and the possibilities of what only the mind could fathom. It was these mysterious sounds that gave one a feeling of tranquility and peace. These visions of the mind motivated me to use my music to energize and manipulate the crowd into a journey. Mixing the imagination of the future with a chunky bass line and hard hitting beats defines my goal.”

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 3/28/2007
Band Website: playcomusic.com
Band Members: Hac Le, Chris Caliendo
Sounds Like:Electronic Dance Music, from House to Techno and everything in between.
Record Label: myspace.com/auralismrecords :: auralismrecords.com
Type of Label: None

My Blog

Fear & Loathing California

Well friends,It's that time of the year again when Chicago gets cold. I hate to say this, but this place is getting to me. I think I'm getting the fear. It's time to find warmer pastures. Off to the ...
Posted by Play Co. & Friends on Wed, 16 Jan 2008 03:51:00 PST