Veteran vinyl DJ making first Hamilton appearance

Another of New Zealand's veteran vinyl DJs is heading to Hamilton to deliver a selection of quality music.

Auckland-based and England-born Cian O'Donnell, 47, will play at city cocktail bar Wonder Horse on Saturday, December 10 - his first-ever DJ appearance in Hamilton.

O'Donnell is a regular host on dance music station George FM, broadcasting The Earshot - a Sunday morning show spanning a range of genre and taking in some of the newest recordings available.

A record store professional since 1988 and DJ since 1989, O'Donnell is known for his ability switch effortlessly between an eclectic mix of genre to both fill dancefloors and keep heads nodding in club environments, festivals and on his radio show. A typical set may include hip hop, soul, electronica, house, reggae and African and Latin grooves, and his wide network of contacts has him well supplied with a near-constant stream of new music.

He has been a permanent resident in New Zealand since the early 1990s, having come and gone from the country for several years before liking it enough to commit to staying. That commitment led to his launching of Ponsonby-based record store Conch, an essential spot for many of New Zealand's DJs and musicians.

"Stocking everything from Jamaican 7s to electronica and beyond, the shop became the place to go for upfront music and home grown releases for both local and overseas visitors," he says.

O'Donnell is still sticking with DJing vinyl despite the near-endless supply of music available in digital format which he does access. He has never counted his record collection and nearly 25 years after arriving in New Zealand, O'Donnell still has vinyl in storage in England.

"I've always tried to not get pigeonholed into being a certain type of DJ," he says. "In some ways, it hasn't helped as it's hard to know exactly what you're going to get when I play!"

It's that approach which ensures his George FM radio show is distinctly different from the rest of the station's offer, and keeps a loyal - and growing - band of musical followers.

"Music is such an amazing way of connecting with people," he says "I've met the best people in my life through the love of music - girlfriends, closest mates, complete strangers overseas, musicians, writers, hairdressers, kids ... "

Wonder Horse presents The Earshot, with Cian and Jeff Neems, December 10, from 10pm.