1st gig question

[dj matt blaze]

If I knew that he knew the basics, I would definitely give him shit for it. If he did it all the time, I would lose respect for the guy. Yes the crowd probably do not care nor will they know, but a DJ should take pride in what you do DO NOT SHORTCUT!!

Will there be times where sync is necessary, probably. But as a DJ, I should be able to mix without using a crutch. Taking on a gig when one is not comfortable with the basics yet is shameful in my book. One is just not ready yet. Its the problem with society today. Everyone wants it NOW, but no one is willing to work for it.

My problem with this line of thinking is, it just doesn't make sense. I could take it a step further and say, as a DJ you play other peoples music, why don't you learn how to play a musical instrument, learn to sing, you are taking a shortcut by just hitting a play button, or dropping a needle, you didn't put the work in to actually learn how to make the music. I don't really know when all these DJ's decided to make the rules and say what is and isn't the so called RIGHT way to do it. A crutch? Its the advancement of technology. I have said it before, if the technology existed 30 years ago, it would have been used 30 years ago, its that simple. Beatmatching isn't rocket science, its not hard, its overrated. Hitting sync still doesn't garuntee that its going to be on point. The grids have to be right and you can still have it synced but not beatmatched correctly if its matched on different beats or in the middle of a phrase.

I have no problems with how anyone mixes as long as they have a clear understanding of what they are doing which would be evident in the mix, it doesn't take a genius to hear a train wreck.

[Mike_Easy]

i've spent hours apon hours beatgridding my music collection. And beatgridding perfectly down to .01 of a beat so sync could work perfectly

[Mike_Easy]

sorry got cut off by my boss while typing my last response... like i said i spend hours beat grid ding and learning my music so i can put out GOOD SETS. and just because i'd rather do the time so sync works fine so i don't have to beatmatch doesn't mean shit. Beatmatching is overrated, i do believe you should know how to though, but do not think it MUST be used. ASlong as you have your beats and measures down, know what sounds good with what, tempos, keys, etc thats the main part of it. PLaying sets people like

[Yuki]

Guys I need some assistance,
So as I have said before im very new DJ, I got mine first gig comming in a month and a half and I will be using mine Novation twitch and midi fighter (Mapped to Traktor)
Anyways mine problem is this.. The music I love and learned to mix is Psytrance.. Not insane 150bpm only bassline and wierd noises dark psy, but kind of "punchy" prog and uplifting full on... I need advice with this.. Here in Japan Psy trance is not really known of, well ofc there is a psy community but in the city I live I have never seen a psy DJ before.. They occasionally go to Tokyo, Osaka and a couple of other major cities along with some electronic festivals but yeah thats beside mine point...
I will be playing in a small underground club.. The usual DJ's that play there usually play kind of top 40 tunes like ROFLMAO and things of that nature.. I not criticize them but from what I have seen they use Pioneer cdj's and have some absolute terrible mixing skills.. Now I am not saying I am a pro or those guys suck its just what I have observed.. They do no Beat matching, randomly switch from one track to another and everyone knows everytime they make a transition some times even leave a 3-5 second silence when switching tracks. But the crowd like the mainstream tunes so they not care so much...
Ok on to mine problem... I it a bad Idea to go in there and do something completely different by pumping out some psy trance? I mean I love it and would have a smile on mine face the whole time I am playing and dancing but is it selfish of me to only play a genre of music I like?
I feel 2 situation could happen.. Situation 1, The people are shocked at the start cos they have never hear tunes like the ones I throw out, they feel the bass deep in there bodies, see me smile and dancing and start dancing and really enjoying the new experience!
Situation 2, the people are confused as to what they are hearing, dont enjoy the fact they have never heard tunes like this before, are disappointed they can not sing along, look at me bouncing around and think I am a fool..
This things make me so nervous.. I dont like just doing what everyone else does, I like to be unique and try new things, hence why I bought the Twitch, but ofc everyone is different and not think like me...
Any advice, experience, thoughts or oppinions would be greatly appreciated..
Thanks heaps,
A very nervous Yuki

[Rowanov]

Grow some and try it! Chances are big it does not work and you have to revert to the usual style played there, but you will know soon enough from the crowd`s response. In that case you can always try later on in the evening again.

[manchild]

What does the promotor or club manager expect you to play? Did they hire you knowing that you really only play psy-trance? If they are expecting you to only play your style of music then I would say there is nothing wrong with it. Be aware, even though you may have permission to play your own style of music, it doesnt mean it will go over well, especially with a Top 40 crowd. General bar/club crowds are not very accepting of songs they never heard before, even worse if it's from a unpopular or unheard of genre of music like psy-trance.

Being a DJ is all about entertaining your crowd. It usually means playing music that the crowd likes, and not only playing the music you like. SO with that being said, if the management is under the impression that you are only playing psy-trance, and come up to you mid-set because they want you to play more crowd friendly music you have 2 options. Option 1, start playing popular music. Option 2, stick to your guns and only play the genre of music you want to play. Option 2 will probably mean that you don't get called back for another gig at the same place. Also if you only intend to play Psy-trance, good for you, but good luck finding gigs.

If you think the club/bar management is probably expecting you to play music that is similar to what the other DJ's play there, then I wouldnt even play a single song that is Psy-trance to a general top 40 crowd. good luck

[DJelixeR]

to your psy trance issues, i would recommend starting off the night with top 40 songs. every few songs slip in a little bit of psy trance. if people seem to enjoy it, go into more and more psy trance but if when you do play psy trance people stop dancing or leave, then stick to top 40's. one of te most valuable skills a dj has is to be able to read the crowd! best of luck to you my friend!

[zestoi]

to your psy trance issues, i would recommend starting off the night with top 40 songs. every few songs slip in a little bit of psy trance. if people seem to enjoy it, go into more and more psy trance but if when you do play psy trance people stop dancing or leave, then stick to top 40's. one of te most valuable skills a dj has is to be able to read the crowd! best of luck to you my friend!

probably what i would do (not that i would take it in the first place if i guessed i had to play top40 stuff, but that's just me). much as i love psytrance... you're not going to do yourself or the punters any favours by playing stuff that makes people leave

[AudioOutlaw]

Growling Mad Scientists
Message From God
1200 Micrograms
Central Processing Unit
Alien Project

If that doesn't get them moving, no Psytrance will.

[PeteWoods]

If I knew that he knew the basics, I would definitely give him shit for it. If he did it all the time, I would lose respect for the guy. Yes the crowd probably do not care nor will they know, but a DJ should take pride in what you do DO NOT SHORTCUT!!

Will there be times where sync is necessary, probably. But as a DJ, I should be able to mix without using a crutch. Taking on a gig when one is not comfortable with the basics yet is shameful in my book. One is just not ready yet. Its the problem with society today. Everyone wants it NOW, but no one is willing to work for it.

Two seconds here mate. Richie Hawtin? Dubfire? Chris Liebing, Speedy J, BK, Sasha, Carl Cox? All defining DJ's of their chosen genres and all have used solely controllers (also for most a mixer) in the past several years, with hundreds of thousands of big names using Ableton or Traktor with controllers. Don't give me that 'I lose respect for them' shit, these are men who day and daily rock the house the world over, and have touched countless lives with their parties. I have nothing but respect for these men. They've admitted that they can do a lot more with controllers and tried to advance their sets by using them. Some stayed with them, some moved back to CDJs because they decided it was for them.


It shouldnt matter how you make people dance, just as long as you do.



...that last bit is completely sig-able if anyone chooses to.