By Max Lorber

Talented, creative people oftentimes have difficulty applying their craft to something tangible. Dreams continue to be only dreams that never transpire into a reality. Connor Holmes, an accounting major here at SMCC, was stuck in that artistic no-man’s-land a short year ago.

His medium is music, producing and mixing house is his passion, doing a set for huge crowds is his dream. Recently that dream is becoming a reality as his name begins to circulate around the country. In the house music scene he goes by Cholmes, and he’s booking gigs that seemed impossible not too long ago. “It’s always been a dream of mine to play in New York,” he said with a childish sort of excitement, days before he was set to spin at FTB in Brooklyn on February 1st. That was a paid gig, by the way, in another state; a huge step for a DJ.

He got that job by networking, playing shows at different places around Maine and New Hampshire and meeting as many people as possible. Cholmes also joined up with a music collective called the Rhythm Alliance — a conglomerate of around 15 DJs around the New England area — a connection that has helped him network further.

Cholmes’s music is interesting. He likes to blend funky voice-over samples that hover over the mix before the beat drops. He is also good at combining a vibrant, happy, energetic drum beat with some spicy, earthy tones and samples. But whatever he plays always depends on where his set is, and what time he is going on. This is the mark of a good DJ: someone who acknowledges the audience and recognizes what their needs are.

“It always goes back to house, I always play house,” he says. “When and where changes the tone of the music, but I stay true to my sound regardless.”

Rocking at FTB is a small, yet significant step. The music business is a tough nut to crack, but Cholmes seems to be up for the challenge.

Stay tuned.