The DJ booth is a glamorous place. Top DJs spin the records, groupies congregate in the corner, coke is it and the drinks flow freely and all night long. Except when the DJ booth is made out of milk crates...

Geraldton, WA, proudly calls itself the lobster capital of the world. Conveniently located a leisurely 450 kilometers north of Perth, it is home to twenty-five-thousand people and one of its biggest attractions is a bright yellow submarine permanently parked in front of the local museum. Every year or so, Geraldton is one of hundreds of ports of call for GT, the artist formerly known as Groove Terminator, and now known as one of Australia's most talented producers and DJs. Spending up to six months of each year on the road, GT tours regional Australia more than any other DJ. And it's an oh-so glamourous life on the road.

The first thing you notice when you arrive in Geraldton is that all stops are pulled out when superstar DJs come to town. The roads are swept, the street signs polished, and the welcome muffins baked. The station wagon slowly chugs into the parking spot, out of the back of the pub, reserved exclusively for rockstars like GT. The concierge comes out to greet us. Her name is Marybelle; she is 72 and is carrying glasses of refreshing lemonade to welcome us to town. Working our way out the back of the pub, down the winding red velveted corridor, through the communal bathroom and past the fire stairs, we arrive at our room. GT lays his record box on the bed and begins to thumb through the records. I cautiously step onto the edge of his bed to climb up to the top bunk. If I strain my neck, I can see a view of the car park framed by the light pink ruffled curtains on the window.

GT is no stranger to the luxury seen in Geraldton, and over the years of touring has stayed in most of the top accommodation regional Australia has to offer. "There are a couple of signs of a really good country hotel," begins GT, "You know you're not in Kansas anymore when the receptionist gives you your UHT milk for your tea in the morning. And there's one particular brand name of bathroom goods, called Country Life, that seems to be stocked in all the bad places. If they have that at a motel, I get really, really scared. Some of the places I stay in on regional tours make a Kings Cross backpackers look like the Four Seasons."

With the impending release of his album, 'Electrifyin' Mojo', GT is gearing up for a couple of long months on the road promoting the album. Not that the journey around Australia is not without its excitement. "We have games we play to make it more exciting," says GT of the long road trips between gigs that can mean up to a full day of driving. "Like, if we go past a group of sheep, we beep the horn as loudly as possible to scare the shit out of the animals. Or the time we were driving and saw a huge group of cows. We heard that if you go into the middle of a paddock and sit there long enough, eventually every single cow will turn around and face you. So we did exactly that, and it works! We have photos to prove it!"

Add this to stolen items, everything from street signs to Shetland ponies, and you've got the perfect antidote to boredom on tour. "One time we came across this Shetland pony tied to a fence. We drove past it a couple of times and at the end of the day it was still there, so we decided to steal it. We were going to take it on tour and keep it in our hotel room. We tried to catch it, but it kept running away. You can imagine bringing someone back to your room, and there's a Shetland pony in the corner - they'd be like 'riiiiight.'"

After the release of his previous album, 'Roadkill' in 1998, GT spent hours refining his sound into a sharper, more multi-layered production. As a DJ, he often takes his music out of the studio and onto a dancefloor to test crowd reactions. And, according to GT, it's the crowds outside the major cities that party the hardest, especially the young local DJs that support him when he's touring. "99.9% of the DJs we meet in the regional areas are the biggest caners you have ever met in your life. As soon as you rock up they go - right, you're from the city, you must be a bigger caner than me," recalls GT. "They go, there's an after party at a mates shed down the road. You go, okay no worries. You drive for two hours after a gig, rock up to a giant shed in the middle of nowhere and everyone is off their tits dancing to some crazy guy playing psy-trance." Doesn't sound too far removed from an average night out in the city. So what should one do if they find themselves in a situation like this? You look for a drink or any other mind-altering substance."

Whilst regional touring around Australia may seem like a hard slog at times, it was nothing compared to the regional tour GT undertook in December last year - East Timor. As part of a morale-boosting series of concerts, GT shacked up with Killing Heidi and Something for Kate for a two-week "band camp with guns." Despite tough conditions and a lack of five-star hotels in the war-torn country, GT fondly remembers the reaction of the troops to his music. "The soldiers carried glowsticks to get around the camp at night, so when we played, I remember them dancing around, waving their glowsticks. It was like a club, only they had guns strapped to their backs." Flying straight into Brisbane for a gig after the fourteen-day ordeal, there was a poignant display of culture shock at the airport. "East Timor was a complete dry zone, so by the time the plane landed, I was begging for something. As soon as I got into the car, the guy who picked me up hands me a cold Heineken and opens up the dashboard to reveal six big rails of coke. Talk about welcome home."

Despite the difficulties of life on the road, it is always an adventure. Back in Geraldton, after the locals have been satisfied for another year with the back-thumping sounds of GT, the after party is in full swing. One of the support DJs rocks up to GT. "One of my friends is having a party at his shed. You want to come?" GT has to be up in a couple of hours to begin the long drive to his next regional gig, so he looks at his watch. He breaks into his trademark grin. Before he even says a word, you know what his answer is going to be.

GT'S TRAVEL TIPS

Other than thieving shetland ponies and annoying sheep, GT recommends the following on your next big trip:

1. Buy a GPS system. Ideal for getting home after being out on the lash.
2. If you score, write her name down. Trust me, you forget
3. Wear a shirt and tie, girls just dig schoolboy chic
4. Remember your lawyer's phone number