Jono Grant of Above and Beyond. Courtesy of Above and Beyond
Jono Grant of Above and Beyond. Courtesy of Above and Beyond

Q&A: Above & Beyond’s Jono Grant on playing NYE and Paul Oakenfold



On December 31 Above & Beyond will help Dubai see in 2015 with a DJ set at Eden Beach Club – exactly three years after an award-winning gig at Sandance NYE. A few hours before he takes to the decks, we caught up with one of the trio, 35-year-old Jono Grant.

Hi Jono. Right, I’m a little confused, because according to reports Above & Beyond are playing in Australia tonight, where there’s a bet on what tune you will play at midnight....

The other two guys are in Sydney – we’re splitting up for New Year’s Eve. Above & Beyond is a bit like a marriage, so it’s nice to have some time apart. It works best DJing with two people or one person – with three, things can end up in uncharted territory.

What do you remember of your last gig here, for NYE 2011?

That was great – up to that point it was the best show we’d done in Dubai. We’d been a few years earlier, and I think when Dubai started being big for dance music there was a lot of money being thrown around, but it felt a bit... but then things get consolidated. In Dubai and Vegas, the commercial stuff works really well, but I was really surprised how well we went down with a crowd who maybe didn’t know our music.

So what’s your ideal New Year’s Eve?

For me the ideal is to be working, and if I wasn’t I would be at a house party with family and friends – I don’t enjoy the big night out thing on New Year’s Eve, there’s always that pressure. I remember in 1999, on the eve of the millennium, driving around trying to find a friend’s house and spending midnight in the car.

What was the highlight of 2014 for you?

Just finishing the album – we spent about three years working up to it, and now we’ve finally closed the door and said it’s done. The second would be playing Madison Square Garden in New York – that was amazing to do. America right now is having its moment for dance music – and when Americans get into something, they get into it a lot.

So how long do you think the US’s love affair with electronic music will last?

I change my mind on this every week or month. Maybe it’s like rock ‘n’ roll in the 1950s and 60s – that particular sound that was big in 2013 and 2014 can’t last, but maybe electronic music is here to stay for another five, ten, 15 years. We might have a vinyl-style resurgence of bands, but electronic music is here to stay – the question is what style will it be?

So, predictions for 2015?

I think it’s going to be more of the same for a bit – America’s electronic music scene is going to keep growing. They’ve just brought Tomorrowland festival over, although they’ve had to call it TomorrowWorld...

Your new album We Are All We Need comes out on January 19. What can we expect?

I was talking to someone who has heard it, and he said “it sounds a lot more clubby than your last album, Group Therapy” – which is ironic because our approach was to make something less clubby and more song-based. I would say it’s club-influenced music rather than being club music – I feel like dance albums shouldn’t just sound like a dance compilation, if you do that, it’s going to be tomorrow’s fish and chip paper.

The band turns 15 next year, any celebrations planned?

I am sure our management will say “you must do something” and we’ll nod our heads. I don’t like nostalgia, I like moving forward, but we’ll probably have to do something.

Do you see yourself still DJing when you get older?

It’s funny – I was sat next to Paul Oakenfold on the plane over here [Oakenfold performs at #DXBNYE] and had a really good chat with him. He said “I’m at the end of my career now”, and I respected him for saying that. It was interesting because he’s a big influence on me – it was his Goa Mix [1994] that got me into dance music, I taped it off the radio and played it over and over. One of the first records we did, we gave him a acetate vinyl outside a club in 2000, and he remembered it well.

He’s always tried to do different things, and he was really one of the first [big DJs] – he really opened doors for people like us. Now he’s picking the gigs he wants to do, rather than milking it for all it’s worth. He seems to want to wind his career down quite gracefully, and leave the right legacy.

Any New Year’s Resolutions?

To stand up straight and sort out my posture.

• Jono from Above & Beyond performs a DJ set at Eden Beach Club, Rixos The Palm, 055 277 1477.

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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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If you go

The flights Etihad (www.etihad.com) and Spice Jet (www.spicejet.com) fly direct from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Pune respectively from Dh1,000 return including taxes. Pune airport is 90 minutes away by road. 

The hotels A stay at Atmantan Wellness Resort (www.atmantan.com) costs from Rs24,000 (Dh1,235) per night, including taxes, consultations, meals and a treatment package.
 

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The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

The Specs

Engine 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 582bhp (542bhp in GTS model)

Torque: 730Nm

Price: Dh649,000 (Dh549,000 for GTS) 

Cryopreservation: A timeline
  1. Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
  2. Ovarian tissue surgically removed
  3. Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
  4. Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
  5. Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
Profile of Tarabut Gateway

Founder: Abdulla Almoayed

Based: UAE

Founded: 2017

Number of employees: 35

Sector: FinTech

Raised: $13 million

Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.

Other workplace saving schemes
  • The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
  • Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
  • National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
  • In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
  • Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
Emergency

Director: Kangana Ranaut

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry 

Rating: 2/5

Infobox

Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier, Al Amerat, Oman

The two finalists advance to the next stage of qualifying, in Malaysia in August

Results

UAE beat Iran by 10 wickets

Kuwait beat Saudi Arabia by eight wickets

Oman beat Bahrain by nine wickets

Qatar beat Maldives by 106 runs

Monday fixtures

UAE v Kuwait, Iran v Saudi Arabia, Oman v Qatar, Maldives v Bahrain

The specs

Engine: 2.9-litre, V6 twin-turbo

Transmission: seven-speed PDK dual clutch automatic

Power: 375bhp

Torque: 520Nm

Price: Dh332,800

On sale: now

Paatal Lok season two

Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy 

Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong

Rating: 4.5/5

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Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

SPECS

Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 235hp
Torque: 350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Price: From Dh167,500 ($45,000)
On sale: Now

What is a Ponzi scheme?

A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.

Results

Stage three:

1. Stefan Bissegger (SUI) EF Education-EasyPost, in 9-43

2. Filippo Ganna (ITA) Ineos Grenadiers, at 7s

3. Tom Dumoulin (NED) Jumbo-Visma, at 14s

4. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE-Team Emirates, at 18s

5. Joao Almeida (POR) UAE-Team Emirates, at 22s

6. Mikkel Bjerg (DEN) UAE-Team Emirates, at 24s

General Classification:

1. Stefan Bissegger (SUI) EF Education-EasyPost, in 9-13-02

2. Filippo Ganna (ITA) Ineos Grenadiers, at 7s

3. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin Fenix, at 12s

4. Tom Dumoulin (NED) Jumbo-Visma, at 14s

5. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE-Team Emirates, at 18s

6. Joao Almeida (POR) UAE-Team Emirates, at 22s

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'How To Build A Boat'
Jonathan Gornall, Simon & Schuster

Biog

Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara

He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada

Father of two sons, grandfather of six

Plays golf once a week

Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family

Walks for an hour every morning

Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India

2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business

 

German intelligence warnings
  • 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
  • 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
  • 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250 

Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution

How to avoid crypto fraud
  • Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
  • Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
  • Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
  • Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
  • Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
  • Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
  • Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.