Vinyl dj'ing a dying art.

WatMyConditionIsIn said:
i think the main difference, at least for me, between someone spinning vinyl vs cd vs software is that from an audience standpoint, a person spinning vinyl has the appearance that they are doing more. they appear to have a more active involvement in their set, where as someone who spins on cd can do a whole set without ever changing a cd. someone with software just looks like they are clicking buttons on a computer. even if what they are doing is very complex, it doesnt appear that way to the audience. its about showmanship. a set can sound amazing on any medium, but if the DJ appears to be doing nothing much besides clicking with a mouse, it IMO, kills the energy in the room. vinyl feels more hands on when mixing, and it is much more entertaining to watch a great dj tear it up on vinyl as opposed to cd or software. just my opinions as a fan and a dj
Click to expand...

Yeah that is a point. However it really does depend on the DJ. I've seen a few Ableton sets where the DJ is jumping about like a mad cunt and everyone gets into it.

CD's... most experienced DJ's wont burn as MP3, you get too many issues with banged up CDJ's or non-compatability (say if the club has 1000 MK2's), so there is generally a fair amount of movement.

I haven't seen an international act use vinyl (excepting Traktor Scratch/Serato) in a long long time. Breaks, DnB, Trance, Techno, you name it. Last one I can recall was Teebee using a single record for scratching. Oh yes, Chase & Status two years ago was the last time I saw a set on vinyl. (and that was after the airline lost their record bag for a good 2 days, lol)
 
i couldn't care less what it looks like as log as the tunes are good. he could throw on a mix cd for all i care if the tunes a solid.
 
yossarian_is_sane! said:
lol Peter Hook.
Click to expand...

lol justice

unplugged.jpg
 
toa$t said:
if the tunes were solid, yes. that should be the logical conclusion of anyone who claims that all they care about is what comes out of the speakers.
Click to expand...

There is a line between a good set, and simply being taken for a ride. It's blurry to some, but it's there.

But I guess to anyone who doesn't notice, ignorance is bliss
 
toa$t said:
if the tunes were solid, yes. that should be the logical conclusion of anyone who claims that all they care about is what comes out of the speakers.
Click to expand...



ok, thats right. but i claim that i`m coming for good music coming out of the speakers, that has a certain "live"-part. if i just want to listen to good music i can stay at home.




but hey in the end its really all just about having a good party. i have shaken my ass to mixed wav`s & mp3`s; as i did to liveacts and to sets played with vinyl. and when its a good party & youre in the middle of a hot, steamy dancefloor, you cant tell the difference most of the times.
 
Seven Deep said:
There are no "wireless" Akai MPD units, unless they've magically utilized Tesla's invention of wireless power transportation in a device costing only 200 dollars.

/hope you were joking
Click to expand...

If I wasn't I surely would have died by now from sheer stupidity.
 
I couldn't remember the city but I think it was in Manchester. I didn't notice at first, because as you can see I was looking at the computer to launch the next vocal hook and right after I realised that the blue screen went black, so there was no way possible it could work. So I plugged it back in, big deal! And the next thing you know is this picture.
Click to expand...
-Gaspard

heh, he could be lying though. lol
 
Seven Deep said:
Why?

The music thats being played goes through the same stupid argument, but in the end, a good track is a good track, no matter if you're running nothing but 30 grand worth of late 70s/early 80s vintage synths or Ableton and a handful of plugins.

Why should the medium it's played back on have any different a standard?
Click to expand...

why to what part of my post? if its about no difference between vinyl/cdj then the reason is I can do both and they don't really differ in any way other than you have to push against the rotation of the record when backspinning on vinyl.

if the why was for me not liking software djing, well its just my opinion that a dj should be standing behind some turntables, not a laptop. if i go to an event and the dj's extent of performing involves moving a mouse, well thats just not cool.

for the record, i run some channels at digitally imported radio, and i dont care if someone uses software when they submit a mix. after all the music is only streaming over the radio. but when it comes to performing live in front of someone, then you should be able to back it up.
 
PsyGhost said:
if the why was for me not liking software djing, well its just my opinion that a dj should be standing behind some turntables, not a laptop. if i go to an event and the dj's extent of performing involves moving a mouse, well thats just not cool.

for the record, i run some channels at digitally imported radio, and i dont care if someone uses software when they submit a mix. after all the music is only streaming over the radio. but when it comes to performing live in front of someone, then you should be able to back it up.
Click to expand...

yes, this part. we know it is your opinion. now why?
 
PsyGhost said:
why to what part of my post? if its about no difference between vinyl/cdj then the reason is I can do both and they don't really differ in any way other than you have to push against the rotation of the record when backspinning on vinyl.

if the why was for me not liking software djing, well its just my opinion that a dj should be standing behind some turntables, not a laptop. if i go to an event and the dj's extent of performing involves moving a mouse, well thats just not cool.

for the record, i run some channels at digitally imported radio, and i dont care if someone uses software when they submit a mix. after all the music is only streaming over the radio. but when it comes to performing live in front of someone, then you should be able to back it up.
Click to expand...


I'm asking why you think someone running a software setup is doing something any less valid than someone using vinyl or CDs?

at the core, you're only playing back pre-arranged music right?

I mean, your opinion sounds pretty similar to something that people into rock music would say about all electronic music....period. Would you argue that someone programming drum parts has no business using their equipment in a live setting because they're not prepared to "back themselves up" on a 'real' drum kit? I don't understand why people into EDM are starting to get conservative and threatened by new shit and draw their own lines in the sand. Software doesn't just do stuff on it's own. You still need to utilize some sort of skill to create a good liveset.
 
it would be great if the artist threw down on some real drums in a live set, and there are some that do. i don't go into a show expecting a producer to do that though.

But were talking about DJing not producing. A DJ is expected to DJ. If there are no turntablist skills or mixing going on then there is no DJing going on.
 
PsyGhost said:
If there are no turntablist skills or mixing going on then there is no DJing going on.
Click to expand...

people who play on laptops are mixing. am I therefore to understand that there is DJing going on?

bush_04_06_2004_head_scratch.jpg


DJs aren't made or broken by being really good at beatmatching. that's a given. it isn't even very hard once you get the hang of it. it would be like saying "wow, that professional tennis player is really good at holding his racket."

anyway, for as long as there is vinyl, there will be people who have no idea what they are talking about and have never set foot in a DJ booth (even though they may have been in the same room as tiefschwarz) who pontificate about how laptops sets aren't DJing. PsyGhost, you are wrong. Ask ANYONE who has actually DJed what they think (see above for my definition of a DJ i.e. the correct definition). seriously, just try it.
 
PsyGhost said:
But were talking about DJing not producing.
Click to expand...

Most people that do one do the other. The line between the two has blurred so much that it's a workable comparison.

PsyGhost said:
A DJ is expected to DJ. If there are no turntablist skills or mixing going on then there is no DJing going on.
Click to expand...

You're not making sense. Are you implying that someone running software can do neither of those things live?
 
PsyGhost said:
it would be great if the artist threw down on some real drums in a live set, and there are some that do. i don't go into a show expecting a producer to do that though.

But were talking about DJing not producing. A DJ is expected to DJ. If there are no turntablist skills or mixing going on then there is no DJing going on.
Click to expand...

It depends. I DO go to a show expecting some DJ's to run a laptop. Take a couple of my favorite producers: NAPT & Hybrid.

Both of them, in their DJ sets (using laptops) engage in mixing that it would be physically impossibly to do on turntables or CDJ's. This is the basis of why people use ableton live. Semantically you could argue it's live production, but it's still using other people's tracks so I think DJing is a far more appropriate word.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top