[guest]

I've been meaning to get into some DJing, just because I've rekindled my interest in the format and have seen so many stupid rich kids with their fucking mixers going from flat pop-house tracks into another ad infinitum, it just nauseates me. plus I saw ben klock last week, and that was just fucking mind-blowing how would you recommend going about it? ie what would I need, how to get bookings etc.



as for fact mixes, they are constantly brilliant. personal favourites include ae (the finest ever, necrophagist and stephen mallinder), snd, raime, morphosis, silent servant, pangaea, lee gamble, king midas sound, hype williams, russell haswell, justin broadrick, prurient, haxan cloak, ....just off the top of my head. fantastic series.



by the way, very nice set.

[SYRFox]

thanks!
definitely agree about the fact series, which is a good thing since i think the rest of the website is really going downhill, especially the news section which has really become terrible. i find resident advisor a much better place these days.
oh and ben klock is a fantastic dj. some of the roughest sounds i ever heard in a set - only topped by that karenn live show i think. went to a tectonic label night yesterday with shackleton, pinch, peverelist and appleblim, probably the best night i've been to in months.

re: getting into djing. i'd say it depends on where you live, what you're planning to mix, how much you're willing to invest at first, etc. because depending on those factors, you'll have different approaches, different codes, etc. PERSONNALY, i think a good entry point for djing is something like traktor s2, which is a professionnal, but mad cheap controller. i think it's like 400€ brand new these days, including the traktor licence, which doesn't make it such an investment (ponder that with buying 2xCDjs + a mixer...). you get to try djing, see if you like it, without having to spend 2000€. however, you have to know that depending on your style and country, it may be really difficult to get bookings if you're mixing on a controller, cause a lot of people see it as "cheating" - personnaly i think such comments are rubbish, especially as ten years ago people thought cdjs were cheating as well, and i think it's going to change soon, but right now that's how it is in some places -. you'd probably struggle to dj deep dubstep on a controller in brixton for instance... so there's that. if you still choose to go the controller route, i'd suggest not using sync function, or traktor's phase meter: that'll make you able to mix on cdjs later if you want to without having to learn much more.
in the end, record a set at home, send it around to some bars, you'll end up getting small sets, possibly nights in small places.. then it can grow from there. getting into the scene is a good point as well - just going often to nights, etc, you'll get to know people you run nights and stuff and that should ease it as well.

[floatingslowly]

FACT mixes have been extremely disappointing for the last few months. That said, previous mixes are all I pretty much listen to during the day.

Air France is now sitting at about 1,050 plays (haha srsly), but other contenders are The Golden Filter, Silent Servant, Plaid, Blue Daisy, DJ Zinc, and motherfunkin' Shlohmo.

My deck is packed to ship, and I've had little to no free time with my impending move and new child, but I'll be on extended holiday, and hope to be back at it soon.

ps: do yrself a favor and download everything from the Sweet Valley bandcamp site. It's one of the guys from Wavves and his brother, FREE to download, and what I'm listening to when a FACT mix isn't on cue.

Sweetvalley.bandcamp.com/

[guest]

the problem I think I'm going to have is the fact that here in australia djs are very much limited stylistically, ie they're confined to a single genre, which is something that I just could not do, likely because of a lack of deep knowledge in regards to a particular genre. I definitely think that if it can be pulled off (which I must say you did pretty fucking well in that mix, syrfox) then it works so well, and probably better than anything else, but, and this is just a personal proclivity, I often enjoy djs who really make people work, whether that be through long pauses, playing really abrasive or undanceable music or just switching genre with excessive pace, and the problem I think I would have is that you would have to have a certain level of reputation so as to be what is essentially a brazen arsehole. a rookie doing that would find it nigh on impossible to get bookings, I'd assume.

very jealous re: shackleton et al, have always wanted to catch him as he's an all-time favourite of mine but I was like 15 when he came out here so I couldn't go.

I saw ben klock with derrick may a couple of weeks back, it was just an unrelenting barrage of sound and there comes that point where you reach a state of complete immunity to its brutality, it's just beautiful. I had a similar feeling when I saw actress in march, certainly one of the better shows I've seen, electronic or otherwise.


yeah, fact does seem to be on a downhill slide, the only mixes to really catch my attention recently have been untold, lee gamble and holly herndon, the rest have seemed to be pretty pedestrian.


and floatingslowly, dude, 1050 times? seriously? shit.

[floatingslowly]

I'd like to fix that Aussie DJ problem for you.

My deck is a Numark NS6, running Serato software, so I mostly use digital tracks, but the records are boxed and ready to ship to Melbourne (assuming the US Post Office doesn't lose them). Even after picking out LP's that I'm willing to part with, there are four large boxes of them and UPS wanted $450 a box to mail, so I'm forced to dealing with the slowboat, at half the price. Here's to hoping they don't melt into goo on some container ship crossing the equator. Ugh....the price of love.

[floatingslowly]

Imma be the baddest DJ country Vic has ever seen.

[Keeping It Simple]

I know someone who lives locally who DJs all over town. He specialises in progressive trance and house, which I love. I catch him whenever I can. He's DJing tonight. He DJ'd last night, but I missed him. His name is Matt Wakeford. He's the nicest guy you will ever meet. He's on SoundCloud.

[SYRFox]

Originally Posted by floatingslowly

FACT mixes have been extremely disappointing for the last few months. That said, previous mixes are all I pretty much listen to during the day.

hmm, there have been some good ones still - spooky's one comes to mind. l-vis 1990's recent one seems really promising as wel. i really enjoy that thing night slugs artists are doing at the moment..

Air France is now sitting at about 1,050 plays (haha srsly)

dude, how the fuck

guest - i must say i don't really know much about the scene in australia, but i'm pretty certain you could get bookings through an eclectic style. some of the most aclaimed djs at the moment get apraisal precisely because of their ability to draw for tunes in many styles - eg oneman playing dirty south tunes after house tracks, james blake fading digital mystikz into destiny's chid, ben ufo playing some noise track at the end of his rinse mix cd -. someone like gaslamp killer also switches between genres with every single track going from dubstep to rock&roll to soul to hip hop to house to whatever, and that's what people go and see him for - the energy of his mixes (and his own energy i guess).
so i guess you could build your own djing style and still get bookings. if you can pull it off then it can definitely work and you may get people talking about you, perhaps more so than if you were confined to a single style.

oh and actress is on another level recently. definitely one of the best shows i've seen as well. dude can do pretty much whatever he wants and still make it work. his album was probably my favourite record last year (either that or that moon wiring club one).

also - attending a festival today and tomorrow, just look at that fucking lineup:
Friday:
23-01 - Larry Byndon
01-02 - Kassem Mosse (live)
02-05 - Ben UFO b2b Tama Sumo
05-07 - Blawan

Saturday:
Room 1:
12-14 - Francois X
14-17 - Marcel Dettmann
17-18 - Paul Ritch (live)
18-20h30 - Dj Deep
20h30-21h30 - Robert Hood (live)
21h30-00h - DVS1
00-01 - Polar Inertia (live)
01-03h30 - Chris Liebing
03h30-06h - Len Faki

Room 2:
18-20 - D'julz
20-22 - Nina Kraviz
22-00 - Margaret Dygas
00-01 - Copacabannark (live)
01-03 - ZIP
03-06 - RPR Soundsystem (Raresh, Petre Inspirescu, Rhadoo)

still wondering when i'm supposed to sleep, but i can't wait to be there

[guest]

Originally Posted by floatingslowly

Imma be the baddest DJ country Vic has ever seen.

hahahaha, I'm not sure many australian rural inbreds would be too appreciative of electronic music, let alone anything that isn't fucking cold chisel, so I wish you the best of luck!

[Rob Instigator]

cold chisel? Is that a band?

[guest]

Originally Posted by SYRFox

hmm, there have been some good ones still - spooky's one comes to mind. l-vis 1990's recent one seems really promising as wel. i really enjoy that thing night slugs artists are doing at the moment..


dude, how the fuck

guest - i must say i don't really know much about the scene in australia, but i'm pretty certain you could get bookings through an eclectic style. some of the most aclaimed djs at the moment get apraisal precisely because of their ability to draw for tunes in many styles - eg oneman playing dirty south tunes after house tracks, james blake fading digital mystikz into destiny's chid, ben ufo playing some noise track at the end of his rinse mix cd -. someone like gaslamp killer also switches between genres with every single track going from dubstep to rock&roll to soul to hip hop to house to whatever, and that's what people go and see him for - the energy of his mixes (and his own energy i guess).
so i guess you could build your own djing style and still get bookings. if you can pull it off then it can definitely work and you may get people talking about you, perhaps more so than if you were confined to a single style.

oh and actress is on another level recently. definitely one of the best shows i've seen as well. dude can do pretty much whatever he wants and still make it work. his album was probably my favourite record last year (either that or that moon wiring club one).

also - attending a festival today and tomorrow, just look at that fucking lineup:
Friday:
23-01 - Larry Byndon
01-02 - Kassem Mosse (live)
02-05 - Ben UFO b2b Tama Sumo
05-07 - Blawan

Saturday:
Room 1:
12-14 - Francois X
14-17 - Marcel Dettmann
17-18 - Paul Ritch (live)
18-20h30 - Dj Deep
20h30-21h30 - Robert Hood (live)
21h30-00h - DVS1
00-01 - Polar Inertia (live)
01-03h30 - Chris Liebing
03h30-06h - Len Faki

Room 2:
18-20 - D'julz
20-22 - Nina Kraviz
22-00 - Margaret Dygas
00-01 - Copacabannark (live)
01-03 - ZIP
03-06 - RPR Soundsystem (Raresh, Petre Inspirescu, Rhadoo)

still wondering when i'm supposed to sleep, but i can't wait to be there

man that lineup is insane, kassem mosse, blawan and ben ufo in the space of one night is just ridiculous. I saw nina kraviz a couple of weeks ago and while I wanted to hate her, I couldn't, she shat on everyone else that night.

yeah, I think you're right, if I'm going to dj I may as well go all out and just do some nutso shiznittt. something about going from whitehouse into can into autechre just seems so attractive to me, so I might just fuck it and do it. first, though, I think I might start making some stuff of my own. I was messing around on a friend's monomachine and I could just get lost in making sounds on that until my skull caves in, the possibilities are seemingly endless.

along with imikuzushi RIP was my favourite from last year too. one of the more transportative records I've ever heard, I'm fascinated by the way that he can make something that is so seemingly rigid and yet is amorphous, almost like a living organism. cannot wait for ghettoville, the beats he played in melbourne were magnificent (but again brutal at the same time), some of it was marble plexus-esque thumping techno, others were like swarm (dirty electro) and then there was that much more jazzy, improvisatory style akin to let's fly, but it was all in a similar atmospheric realm to hazyville, or even to an extent the more playful moments on splazsh.

[guest]

also l-vis 1990's recent 12" was great, I'm really starting to enjoy that night slugs sound.

[SYRFox]

Originally Posted by guest

also l-vis 1990's recent 12" was great, I'm really starting to enjoy that night slugs sound.

if you're talking about the ballads ep... then yes. ballad 4d is one of my favourite tracks this year, it always stands out in a set because it's so unique. remember pearson sound playing it at the end of his set.. wow. have you heard the keysound compilation, "this is how we roll"? one track on this, mumdance & logo's "in reverse" is the only track that's as unique as ballad 4d this year i'd say.

can't wait for ghettoville either... this guy can do no wrong.
also totally get what you mean re making sounds - when i've got some friends at my place we sometimes get my instruments out (haven't got much gear but enough stuff to jam together - alesis micron, novation launchpad, a midi keyboard, some controls... -) and just play together, like someone will make a drum loop and then play keys on top of that, etc. no tracks coming out of that, but just pure fun and endless possibilities indeed.. cool stuff.

also weather festival was indeed insane. that friday night... wow. kassem mosse live was really percussive, much more so than i would have expected, then ben ufo & tama sumo did an incredible set, lots of evolutions, chill segments going into straight techno and acid, mad rhythms, etc. then blawan came and organized a proper massacre. savage stuff.
the main event on the following day was mad too... some problems (it was way too hot in there, and there was no free water), though some of them were inherent to such a big rave, but the music was really amazing and funktion one soundsystems are totally worth their reputation. it felt like the ground was moving. i missed nina kraviz because i didn't wanna miss robert hood. len faki was insane as expected... zip was also crazy good. still a bit pissed that i missed the after party on sunday (7am-7am on monday), that had silent servant, delta funktionen, etc (because i had other things planned).

[keep poppin pimples]

i've been djing pretty regularly since maybe 2005 i think, trust me if you get regular work things that suck horribly will happen to you a lot. seriously if some dude shows up telling you he's a dj too and holds a drink above yr gear, just kick his ass right away, nothing good ever comes from being diplomatic with people who are apparently djs and are staring at yr gear like they've never seen anything like it before.

[SYRFox]

Originally Posted by keep poppin pimples

i've been djing pretty regularly since maybe 2005 i think, trust me if you get regular work things that suck horribly will happen to you a lot. seriously if some dude shows up telling you he's a dj too and holds a drink above yr gear, just kick his ass right away, nothing good ever comes from being diplomatic with people who are apparently djs and are staring at yr gear like they've never seen anything like it before.

haha - i guess the easiest way to find who really is a dj in the attendance is to look for those you stare at you in the eyes whenever you trainwreck, as most other people do not notice it.
(the drink above gear thing didn't happen to me yet, though last time i had an older woman coming in front of me, staring at me and saying "i've always been fascinated by djs uuuuh... their gear... uuuh the way they... uuuh... tweak buttons..." haha)

what kind of music are you playing man?

[keep poppin pimples]

Originally Posted by SYRFox

haha - i guess the easiest way to find who really is a dj in the attendance is to look for those you stare at you in the eyes whenever you trainwreck, as most other people do not notice it.
(the drink above gear thing didn't happen to me yet, though last time i had an older woman coming in front of me, staring at me and saying "i've always been fascinated by djs uuuuh... their gear... uuuh the way they... uuuh... tweak buttons..." haha)

what kind of music are you playing man?

mostly like funk/disco dub/soca and rap or something. i prefer live things that can't really be beatmatched properly so i don't have to try

[guest]

Originally Posted by Rob Instigator

cold chisel? Is that a band?

dude, you seriously do not want to know. I would rather be crucified than listen to them.

[guest]

Originally Posted by SYRFox

if you're talking about the ballads ep... then yes. ballad 4d is one of my favourite tracks this year, it always stands out in a set because it's so unique. remember pearson sound playing it at the end of his set.. wow. have you heard the keysound compilation, "this is how we roll"? one track on this, mumdance & logo's "in reverse" is the only track that's as unique as ballad 4d this year i'd say.

can't wait for ghettoville either... this guy can do no wrong.
also totally get what you mean re making sounds - when i've got some friends at my place we sometimes get my instruments out (haven't got much gear but enough stuff to jam together - alesis micron, novation launchpad, a midi keyboard, some controls... -) and just play together, like someone will make a drum loop and then play keys on top of that, etc. no tracks coming out of that, but just pure fun and endless possibilities indeed.. cool stuff.

also weather festival was indeed insane. that friday night... wow. kassem mosse live was really percussive, much more so than i would have expected, then ben ufo & tama sumo did an incredible set, lots of evolutions, chill segments going into straight techno and acid, mad rhythms, etc. then blawan came and organized a proper massacre. savage stuff.
the main event on the following day was mad too... some problems (it was way too hot in there, and there was no free water), though some of them were inherent to such a big rave, but the music was really amazing and funktion one soundsystems are totally worth their reputation. it felt like the ground was moving. i missed nina kraviz because i didn't wanna miss robert hood. len faki was insane as expected... zip was also crazy good. still a bit pissed that i missed the after party on sunday (7am-7am on monday), that had silent servant, delta funktionen, etc (because i had other things planned).

yeah, it was ballads. along with jam city, that sound is just fascinating me endlessly. I have never been one for maximalist dance music (I want to scalp rustie and sew his skin over hudson mohawke's face), so the way in which artists like actress, l-vis, lee gamble, jam city et al are just ripping it apart is infinitely interesting. I think it was a writer on the quietus who described it perfectly, something along the lines of "diving between the beats" which is the perfect description.

I have heard that keysound comp, but I can't really recall that song and my computer crashed so all my choons are gone, unfortunately. will definitely give it another listen once I get back to a normal set-up, it was a great comp.

the problem I have with seriously making electronic music is that I am an enormous autechre fan, so I'd go in having unrealistic expectations as to what I can achieve. the sounds they manage to extract from mere pieces of machinery are mind-boggling, and I really can't think of another group or artist who uses hardware (and software) in such an incredible way. I've been really far behind on music this year, but I think exai would be my favourite thus far, really a perfect ae record.

I actually saw silent servant playing at a little basement in the city here a couple of weeks back, with the venue having a funktion system. suffice to say it was overwhelming, they really do shit on everything else. tomorrow night I'm seeing a 100% silk showcase at the same place, so hopefully that will be a beast.

[SYRFox]

here is a new mix i just threw together for fun. house/garage/bass as usual:

https://soundcloud.com/backgroundsounds/julymix

tracklist:

Young Echo - Flying [Ramp]
Klaves - Hope It Gets To Love (JNKP Remix) [Ponton]
Dusky - Truth Capital T [Naked Naked]
Ill Blu - 2nd Nature [MadTech]
No Artificial Colours - Love [MadTech]
youandewan - Be Dark [secretsundaze]
Ikonika feat. Jessy Lanza - Beach Mode (Keep it Simple) [Hyperdub]
Deadboy - On Your Mind [Numbers]
Marcin Krupa - Music of the Marichuana [Ponton]
Pearson Sound - Gridlock [Pearson Sound]
Kingdom - Goodies Remix (Instrumental) [Fade To Mind]
Kowton vs Bashmore - Mirror Song [Broadwalk]
Joy Orbison - Donell [Free]
Dusky - Vanishing Point [Naked Naked]
No Artificial Colours - Crying Wolf [MadTech]
Whistla - Werehouse [L2S]
BLCKSHP - Plum [Ponton]
Justin Martin & Eats Everything - Feather Fight [Hypercolour]
Paleman - Etch [School]
Walton - Memories [Hyperdub]
SOPHIE - Bipp [Numbers]
Dense & Pika - Lack of Light [Hotflush]
Applebottom - Turn on the Faith [MadTech]
Hannah Wants - Call It Fate [Free]
2562 - Final Frenzy [When In Doubt]
Deadboy - Black Reign [Numbers]
Happa - Bring It Back [Church]
Fault Lines & MCQ - Mafunk [Ponton]
Helix - Whoosh Ice Dispenser [Night Slugs]
Samrai - Hear Me Now [Keysound]
Mista Men - Relentless [Unknown To The Unknown]
VVV - Jade Mountain [Fortified Audio]
Boddika - Up & Dance [Free]
Jam City - Real Raw Saturn [Free]
Pearson Sound - Crimson (Beat Ritual Mix) [Pearson Sound]
Boards of Canada - Telepath [Warp]