I am not moving forward with skills

[Bassline Brine]

I agree with Xonetacular on almost all he's said in this post.

K.I.S.S.

Keep it simple, stupid.

Good rule to live by, and it is also really applicable here. Just keep things simple, spend hours practicing, finding new tunes to mix together in new ways, and just don't make it overly complicated.

That's one reason why I like using DVS over Ableton for my sets, and why I've chosen Serato over Traktor. No prep work means just getting into the mix, rather than fucking around getting things ready TO be mixed.

[Arbite]

There is something to be said for using your ears and playing what sounds right for the moment, especially as a beginner. If he thinks he is not progressing and his mixes aren't up to par, I doubt mixed in key is helping him. There is no need to over complicate things early on.

As a beginner if you are looking at a key tag field and a camelot wheel then you are training your eyes and not your ears.

I see what you mean now, and I agree. The best thing a beginner DJ needs to learn is to let his ears become his eyes for visualising the music. Programs like mixed in key are handy for ID3 tags, but they don't tell the whole story.

I've listened to songs that coudn't be more different, but when put together, they just work (had a few holy shit moments at gigs). Some really good advice has been handed out in this thread. Get to know your songs, listen to them until you know every beat, every phrase. Be able to play the entire song in your head.

[Bl4ck3n3D]

Mixed in key is overrated. Xonetacular is absolutely correct. Mixed in key should be saved for later as an advanced technique and left untouched especially as a beginner.

You need to train your ears, eventually you should be able to naturally pick songs that are in the same or similar key. If you let your sight do the work in the beginning, you end up relying on mixed in key which is not good as it then becomes a crutch. You don't lean on crutches to mix do you?

[Ross]

There is something to be said for using your ears and playing what sounds right for the moment, especially as a beginner. If he thinks he is not progressing and his mixes aren't up to par, I doubt mixed in key is helping him. There is no need to over complicate things early on.

As a beginner if you are looking at a key tag field and a camelot wheel then you are training your eyes and not your ears.

Amen, admittedly I do tag all my tunes. But if I ever feel that there's a tune that would go with another, I wouldn't not play that tune just because it's not in a specific key.

[wrong chris]

keep practicing. nobody is very good after a year, but at least you have the personal insight to tell you need improvement - which is more than a lot of newcomers have.


what i've found has helped me get a lot better is practicing individual transitions and techniques over and over and over again until it sounds exactly how i want - versus just mixing songs willy nilly for an hour or 2 once in awhile. that means alot of listening to the same two songs for hours on end, doing the exact same fx and transition type, over and over for hours on end.


if you're a hobbyist it might sound too much like work, but if advancing is something you really want to do you need to challenge yourself.

[sarasin]

Look at how the pro's do it.....and Practice!

Practice some more....and then some.

It might sound condescending and what not....but that really is what makes the REAL greats....great!

[jkim89]

Thanks guys.

ya what i have found is that even if it's the same key and it's supposed to go together, if it's one song from avicii and afrojack, it's different style right, so they won't go as smooth as of saying afrojack and chuckie.

so to sum up

no mixed in key, although i am afraid what if i waste my time mixing wrong ones you know

other than that, I will try to figure out the beat. my buddy said it's all about the beat than actual keys....agreeesss

I will post my mixes and you can tell me:P

thanks

[wrong chris]

keep it up brotha

[Xonetacular]

no mixed in key, although i am afraid what if i waste my time mixing wrong ones you know

Then you might practice, train your ears, and learn something.

[jkim89]

MY REMIX...plz spare 20min and listen...it's just boring...doesn't have up and down like i feel with actual Djs....

I tried to use the keys and change the dramatic key so that it has ups and downs...but i fail...

what's wrong?

thanks

http://soundcloud.com/jay3kay/why-ca...e-as-exciting#