DJ Harvey interview. What do you think?
Recently read this interview with DJ Harvey, and I largely agree with him in his approach to DJing.
But what do you think? Is it ok for a mix to have sloppy transitions, and where should the focus lie when Djing?
http://www.djbroadcast.net/features/featureitem_id=398/DJ_Harvey_I_Give_A_Damn.html
very down to earth and realistic
Great DJ and great read, and 100% for me it’s all about the music, letting tracks breath, at the end of the day isn’t that why we all started djing, because of our love for music?
No matter what Harvey says, he’s right. He’s right even before the words come out of his mouth.
Best DJ I have ever seen. A true inspiration.
Those are 2 very different questions.
As for the first…consider also where he came from and the greater context of what he was saying. Disco has live drummers. Live drummers groove (or sometimes just suck at keepng time). Without warping the tracks, it’s damn near impossible for a mix to be perfect.
I’ve heard somebody do it once. He was spinning an 80s night at a local bar/club, and he’d been doing it since that music was current. He’d played those records thousands of times, and he knew them well enough to ride the pitch…because he knew which tracks had drum machines and which ones had live drummers…and how the drummers played, when they dragged behind, when the pushed…it was an impressive thing.
I couldn’t mix like that. Then again, I also coulnd’t mix the same 100 or so records every week for 25 years, either.
So, taking that into consideration, I think there’s a limit. A night of all trainwrecks isn’t good. A drift here or there…meh. But, if it’s possible for you to be perfect (e.g., if you have a sync button) and you’re not, I kind of just think that’s disrespectful to your audience, the party as a whole, and the music. It screams “look at me, I’m not using that new-fangled technology and this mistake is proof…applaud my mistake!”. It puts you above the music when it should be your job to put the music first.
If you’re spinning disco with vinyl, there are going to be some stray hats no matter how good you are. If you’re spinning techno with traktor, there won’t, no matter how bad you are.
As for the focus…it should be on the music. Booze gives people something else to appreciate (if it’s crafted well, which is rare in clubs), and booze/drugs (if you’re into it) can help people enjoy something that they might be too restricted or self-conscious or closed-minded to enjoy without it.
I’ve seen (heard?) some fantastic DJs. And universally, the ones who either looked like they were enjoying themselves but also concentrating were the best…the ones that acted like the center of attention…were the center of attention…and the party suffered for it.
Play the right track at the right time and your job is 90% done. Don’t ruin the groove by mixing it well (the track will tell you how it wants to be mixed) and avoiding trainwrecks, and you’re 99% there. The last 1% is up to you if you want to do something “special”, but make sure it doesn’t ruin the rest of the work you put into it.
And after 10 years of doing this mostly for myself, at a handful of successful parties/events, and a few not-so-successful ones…picking the right track is still the hard part. It always has been, and it always will be.
This
and This
All that needs to be said, well deserved legendary status.
I’d way rather see DJ Bone and agree with his attitude far far more:
He also says that he plays for himself first, when he’s on the decks he’s doing what he loves and sharing his love with anyone who cares to listen. He doesn’t play for the crowd, he plays for himself.
This guy mixes non-stop on three decks and destroys it. everyone notices. Simply amazing.
[quote]
What the general public and far too many DJs don’t realize is that Bone spins as much for his own enjoyment as he does for the audience. It’s a compulsion that only those who live for what they do possess and those who don’t can never understand: Bone lives to spin-it’s a necessary part of his existence. His dedication to the art of dance music and DJing is so untainted and intense that the tales of his confrontational encounters with flashy booking agents and “big name” djs are already the stuff of legend. No hype or trends, just a relentless drive and passion to take the party to another level. That’s why he’s one of the few spin masters other DJs hate to follow.[/quote]
I think there’s a balance there, but it also seems like that’s most easy to achieve when you cultivate the right crowd.
That being said, I’d rather DJ for my cats playing music that I like than DJ for thousands every weekend playing music I detest.
Liked this interview a lot. Makes me want to get a pair of TT’s. When I search for music online, I separate my bookmarks into several categories, one of those being Vinyl Only. Every month or so I go back and listen to that section of my bookmarks and those tracks are so much better than anything I have digitally. I’m just too cheap to spend $10+ on a record. So I see how Harvey selecting 300 records for a tour makes perfect sense. I go through at least 100 tracks a month, most of which I don’t even remember their names.
That is the truth. I don’t think I ever owned 300 records, and I definitely like getting things for less money. But, I still remember a good number of tracks based just on their sleeves. There are things to miss about vinyl.
I don’t remember the names of the tracks, but I do remember sleeves, I know where my favorite tracks are on the record. I personally would rather have less tracks and on vinyl than have hundreds of digital tracks. I don’t see myself stopping buying vinyl, I like having that physical object, and the associated memories that go with them. Plus generally there is less wading through crap to find good records.
When you visit record shops (if you do), do you find that you have the DJ sixth sense Harvey alluded to? How do you know what to buy without hearing the record (assuming you don’t listen to the record)? A lot of assuming here. 
I don’t visit record shops that often, the one that I go to most, I don’t need a sixth sense the guy who works there has it for you, seriously his knowledge is amazing, but I always know I’ll find something good in there.
And I always listen before buying, and I always spend more than I planned on.
The only record shops I’ve been to that don’t have listening stations are used/vintage record shops that don’t sell dance vinyl (new or used) except maybe the occasional famous release.
When I’ve bought things at those shops, it was always a non-dance record that I just wanted (like my copy of dark side of the moon) or a label/artist that I recognized and was willing to take a chance on. One of my favorite records (of the day) came that way…I just noticed a bright orange sleeve in an antique shop next to their suitcase record players and decided it was worth $8 to hear it. And the gamble paid off, at least for a while.
I couldn’t tell you for the life of me what the track name was, but I know where it is at my dad’s place (the big expedit, top row, second slot, about 1/3 of the way over).
Speaking of which, I picked up my turntables today. I didn’t grab the vinyl because the TTs were heavy enough by themselves for one day (they’re like 30lbs each with their cases). I’m trying to figure out how I want things laid out before I go buy lumber & stain and borrow a jigsaw.
Sorta like when I heard a guy in a seaside club/bar 12+y ago spin some progressive/latin house (Ronaldo’s Revenge - Mas Que Mancada, still remember it)…when I walked to him to ask him for a track name I realised he was using two deck cd players, one without a pitch and a studio mixer 
On the other hand, you my friend are 100% right 
Isnt that the truth, have said on these forums before that I wish Traktor could have some sort of overlayed, translucent color bar for tracks to be highlighted with of your choice? maybe in software to take the cover art and make a psychedelic version to highlight the name. 
MORE to the point I can easily look at the sleeve of any of my 12" and tell you what they are. So much easier to play out. Now though, yeah selection is just too confusing with Traktor. 
Youtube video of said performance for the cats plox. 
Do cats prefer old or new Deep House?