As Atlanta acts as a major hub for the entire US it came as no surprise to find the connecting flight was monopolized by devoted electronic music listeners on yet another Winter Music Conference pilgrimage. So, despite still being over 1000 kilometres from Miami the business cards were already out and the excited chatter began. With an hour delay thanks to foreboding thunderstorms there was plenty of time for stories from previous year's conferences to be exchanged.

Once finally on the ground in Miami, and after a brief taxi ride, the shining lights of Collins Ave. signaled the beginning of this year's chapter. With the flight delay adding to the already inconvenient arrival time it meant that there was not a lot of choice left out of the days activities. However, quantity does not equal quality and there were still some choice events with lineups to pique the interest of any weary stragglers.

Beachfront real estate combined with a sprinkling of celebrity patronage has afforded Nikki Beach a lot of success over the years and with ten exotic locations worldwide, including clubs in Marbella and Sardinia, it isn't hard to guess why Defected decided to make this the home of their In the House party for 2006. With a live video feed planned for their website and satellite TV, the brains behind the massive house label could leave nothing to chance. Therefore, with the location secured the only thing remaining to consider was the line up, but with an artist roster like Defected's this isn't exactly a hard feat. Unfortunately, the one thing even out of Defected's control is weather. The storm that had kept many grounded at airports earlier in the day had unfortunately not spared Nikki Beach. Thanks to the torrential rainfall the ordinarily picturesque outdoor section of the club was reduced to nothing more than a soggy sandpit. So, with spirits and crowd numbers dampened, Claud Monett had his work cut out for him. Regardless of these less than perfect conditions the French born mix meister managed to have everyone in genuine summer party mode owing to some jazzy house melodies. No tabletop was safe, as hands were raised and scantily clad buxom beauties mounted the furniture with their equivalently proportioned beaus for appropriate amounts of rump shaking.

One street over at B.E.D the crowd was doing anything but sleeping. Label boss, James Holden, had everyone in a frenzy at the Made Event presents Border Community showcase. Surprisingly the luxuriously comfortable bedding that surrounded the dancefloor, which is obviously where the club takes its name from, was mostly empty. Although the numbers in attendance were slightly lower than expected, the empty beds were predominantly due to the fact that it was almost impossible not to dance to Jame's darker stripped back sound that has replaced his progressive persona in more recent years. Alongside the DJ booth with beverage in hand and nodding approvingly in time to the beat was label mate Petter having a well deserved rest from his set earlier in the evening. While not 100% technically sound, Holden's set was the perfect remedy for those dogged by a day of rained out events and unwelcome extra hours spent in aircraft.