So I don’t really know what the point of this post is other than I just got back and am not to happy. Tonight was my first night at this particular bar/club and I was doing the closing set, kind of just did it for fun. The promoter had a family emergency and wasn’t there when I got there so I just set up and went on after the other DJ who was meh. The problem was I effed up and forgot my little lights and was really struggling to see the mixer. That and the fact that these girls wouldn’t stop trying to talk to me while I was mixing lead to a few mistakes in my set and its really driving me crazy right now. Nothing to awful (stuff like the incoming song fader being only partially up, and transferring the bass badly) but its really killing me now. Simply put I just could’t see well with no light. The guys before me were using rane 57s with like 6 knobs and 2 faders and were fine in no light, but it effed me up on a 4 channel mixer with shit everywhere. Regardless, I did fill the dance floor and played good tracks and had some good mixing but man, those mistakes really really sucked. uhgggggg. This is really the first time this has ever happened to me, I always have those lights (not this time…). Also.. the monitor speakers sucked, useless.
What exactly do u want to hear from us? That you are the first DJ ever who has made mistakes? That you could learn from this evening to bring a light with you in case the club is too dark and don’t letting you be distracted by conversations in the wrong moment is a good idea?
I think you don’t need us to see this
not being perfect is very human. as long as you didn’t cleared the floor and the girl which has distracted you from a good mix is still talking to you, the situation can’t be SOO bad ^^
Yeah thanks. I have no idea what the point of my post is. Funny enough the one girl has been at the last three of my sets at three different venues and always begs me to play the same song Levels (Scene Edit). She’s like a broken record.
Spare lights in your bag maybe? Would help in future.
You also need to develop your death stare…I have perfected it!
The expression on my face when I mix is not a good one. You either with me…SLAMMING it down…or you think I am demonic.
Maybe its my metal background…but I play with a scrawl on my face…VERY angry looking…dunno why.
When I realize it…i smile and try to make eye contact with someone on the floor to show I am just concentrating…but i get LOTS of people telling me to smile or asking why I look so angry.
on private-, squat- or freepartys with no “management” and no “organisazion” and too many craving bedroom dj’s all wanting to “show off their monumental skills” you will learn how to defend your concentration for the dancefloors needs from being pulled away from the ego-desires of someone else
especially when you have pushed the floor up to a good mood and the people having fun with the thing you do in the booth and you KNOW that the dj who try to get you away from the booth will be crushing all the mood and will clear the floor and YOU KNOW that he will not listen to you if you tell him this because his ego is in his way between him and reality, you have to train how to deal with this to rescue the actually good mood of the party people on the floor
when you can deal with this sort of “threatment” the nice girl trying to talk shit into your head while you make an transistion is no problem anymore ^^
grin at her while don’t removing your headphones so you can’t hear anything she says is a good idea for instance ^^
@ OP … dont let it get to ya man, shit happens! also, once you pass 30, you dont think with your “other brain” so you dont feel guilty telling the girls to F* off ;p
Thanks man, am I honestly on my own with not being able to play in the dark? There’s just to much going on with four decks and things happening constantly for me to know it well enough to play in the dark, I usually always glance at it to double check stuff. I think it was more of a frustration thing and just threw me off mentally, ruined my flow. Also, the thing with the monitors was that they were so different than the floor speakers they were useless for EQing, I would turned the effing things off if I wasn’t struggling in the dark haha.
Get a flashlight application on your phone too. At least you can turn it on for 5 to 10 minutes and get a good look at the mixer before you go lights out.
You just got to be a dick to the girls rubbin’ there boobies into your back asking you to play shitty music. That’s what there looking for anyway haha.
Dont get caught up in mistakes.
Its what makes or breaks a good DJ. Its not the mistakes you gotta worry about its what you do after you make a mistake.
Its different for you when your watching the seconds on the screen/cdj and mucking up compared to a person who’s intoxicated and dancing on the floor.
Like others said, your “worst” performances might actually be your best in someone else’s opinion
A lot of times I hate to wonder if the crowd can tell mistakes as a trained DJ can. For example I have seen many occasions where I have F’d a mix up and I talk to someone and they say “Man that sounded great”. I just shake my head and wonder how much other mistakes a common DJ can get away with. But it does drive ya batty, I feel ya.
