For this episode I found myself on both sides of a common argument about DJing. In many regards it’s similar to the overdone argument between mac or PC, and it’s based around the idea that puritan DJs will turn their nose up at any sort of mix created using software rather than using the traditional combination of turntables and a mixer.
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Conversely “laptop DJs” will move mountains to hammer home the idea that beat matching is not what defines you as a DJ. I think all sides would agree it’s much more than that; it’s track selection, it’s smooth EQing, it’s about the way you transition between tracks, and it’s ultimately about the flow of the mix as a whole.
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For the rv_cast episodes that I’ve mixed, I’ve done most of them with turntables and my lovely Allen and Heath mixer (sorry for the blatant plug). Some of them turned out great, and others are a little rough around the edges but I think that’s the beauty of it. You can hear the human touch in those mixes but I much prefer to play “records” and consider myself a puritan DJ for the most part, so that’s OK by me. I find sitting behind a laptop a little frustrating, and to be honest it takes longer to do a mix on the computer than simply hitting record and mixing live for an hour.
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All that being said, sometimes it’s nice to be able to work on a mix and not be depend on turntables and mixer. Regular readers of our blog will know that Eddie and I spent last weekend covering the Electric Zoo Festival up in New York City which involved quite a bit of traveling. I also knew that I wasn’t going to get a chance to mix a new podcast episode over the weekend, so I decided to do it on my laptop. (There are plenty of Electric Zoo posts on the blog if you’re interested.)
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By contrast being able to do a mix while you’re on the road is quite rewarding. Time that would have otherwise been wasted can be put to good use, and it’s quite fun to be able to work on music from a cramped airplane seat. It doesn’t come close to the experience of mixing records but you can’t do that at 30,000 feet.
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So, are you puritan DJ, or a laptop enthusiast or a mixture of both?
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Just for the record I think that beat matching is absolutely part of what defines you as a DJ. Unless you’ve tried it you don’t know how tricky it can be! But after all is said and done it’s not important how a mix was put together as it’s the music that should move you. I hope you enjoy this episode.
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Track list:
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1. Adrian Martin and Eliminal – 2 Weeks [Miniload]
2. DJ Hary – The Deepest Dream [UTC Music]
3. Molisian Brothers – 600 Entry [Big City Beats Tec]
4. Doppelt Gemoppelt – Chill Peak [Miniload]
5. Ethyl and Huxley – If the Pope Shits In The Woods [Cécille Numbers]
6. BQi – Offwords (Hector Couto Remix) [SK Supreme Records]
7. Projekt Arlesheim – NoNoNo [Miniload]
8. Cates and dpL – Groucho [Om Records]
9. Pagal, Mihai Popoviciu and Jay Bliss – Eucalipt [Fear of Flying]
10. Ezequiel Sanchez – Super Skunk [Dialtone Records]
11. Yousef – Tribute [Plastic City Play]
12. Sebastian Russell – All The Wrong Loves [My Best Friend/MBF]
13. OK Corral – Pink Shue (Shades of Gray Remix) [Beef Records]
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