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WMC: MIAMI ’08 OUR GLEASON AWARDS
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Mobile Regrets
DEADMAU5 The Mouse That Roared
WIRELESS WONDERS
The World of Mics
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PLUS:
Are You in the Moog? Adultnapper’s Terrifying Techno Juno Reactor’s Live Switch 5/14/2008 4:53:59 PM
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5/14/2008 10:24:14 AM
ind u st r y ev ent s…no t a bl es…mil est o nes
NEWS
Grammy Winner: Benny Benassi spices Movement’s lineup.
Movement: DJ Times Drops In for Detroit Electronic Music Fest Detroit—Movement, it seems, is moving up.
We’re reaching our arms out further. We can never forget that these acts are the ones who create EDM fans.” T he ’08 festival will feature ve different sponsored stages.T hey include: the R ed Bull Music A cademy Stage; the Beatport Stage; the R eal D etroit Stage; the vitaminwater Stage; and the Pioneer Pro D J Stage with its
adjacent Pacha VIP A rea. For the very latest festival information, including artist set times, please visit the Movement website (demf.com).
Techno Titan: Carl Craig set to rock his hometown.
JUNE 2008
this year, Movement will further involve hip-hop jocks like Pete R ock and Peanut Butter Wolf and include more crossover-oriented artists like recent Grammy winner B enny B enassi, mash-up king Girl T alk and the multi-Platinum seller Moby. “T he most exciting thing is that we’re widening our scope of audience,” says Jason Huvaere, the festival’s director. “Hart Plaza can hold 40,000 and we have room to grow by bringing in crossover acts, some hip-hop D Js, and other artists that Paxahau may not otherwise book. B ut the festival is bigger than that.
Philadelphia—Josh Wink drops another floor-moving bomb at Fluid, his resident club, this past April 30. The gig was the rst of America’s Best DJ Summer Tour Presented by Pioneer Pro DJ and drew an energetic crowd, which partied and cast votes for their hometown hero. For the latest on ABDJ and the tour, please visit americasbestdj.net.
Jeff Heart
Wink Kicks Off ABDJ Tour
DJ TIMES
Now in its ninth incarnation, Movement ’08—billed as D etroit’s Electronic Music Festival—will broaden its reach in a variety of crucial areas. Set for May 24-26 at Hart Plaza in D owntown D etroit, Movement and its organizers Paxahau Event Productions have booked a wider range of talent than in years past and they expect to upgrade the festival’s production values as well. DJ Times will be at Movement with a booth representing the magazine and A merica’s Best D J (americasbestdj. net), the online vote/promotion that seeks to crown the top U .S. jock. A dditionally, the three-day festival and one of its afterparties (Stacey Pullen at St. A ndrew’s Hall on May 25) will serve as stops on A merica’s Best D J Summer T our Presented by Pioneer Pro D J—eight of the 100 A merica’s Best D J nominees are scheduled to play at Movement. A s always, Movement will present a sparkling slate of D Js and live acts. Its lineup includes: Motor City talent like Pullen, Kevin Saunderson and Carl Craig; A merican stalwarts like Josh Wink, Mark Farina and D ubre; international favorites like R ichie Hawtin, Joris Voorn and L ee Burridge; and hot upstarts like D eadmau5. But
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Volume 21 Number 6
12 The Mau5 That Roared
How Does a Press-Shy Tech-Geek Go from Graphic Designer to Dance-Music’s Hottest Talent? Deadmau5 Tells His Story. By Robert LaFrance
SAMPLINGS 8 Adultnapper
Techno, American Style
Mobile DJs Can Learn Hard Truths At Any Gig—And Any Age. By Jeff Stiles
10 In the Studio With…
Juno Reactor
DEPARTMENTS 6 Feedback
America’s Best DJ Tour Presented by Pioneer Pro DJ may be headed to your town.
24 Making Tracks
IK Multimedia’s SampleMoog
32 Gear
New Products from Audio-Technica, Edirol & More
36 Grooves
Phat Tracks from Metaform, Josh Wink & More
26 Sounding Off
38 DJ Times Marketplace
28 Mobile Profil
41 Club Play Chart
American Audio’s SDJ1 & Pioneer’s CDJ-400 Memphis Mobile Sells Soul to His Clients
18 “I’ll Never Do That Again!”
Shop Here for All Your DJ-Related Supplies
20 Mobile Mics
Wireless Microphone Systems for Mobile Entertainers Offer Options Aplenty. By Ron Bryant
22 Miami ’08 Wrap
The 4th Annual Gleason Awards—South Beach Tales of Door Drama, Cell Hell, DJ-Booth Accidents, Boat-Party Swingers & More. By Jim Tremayne
The Hottest Records, As Reported by Our Top U.S. Record Pools
30 Business Line
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Contents Photo By Drew Ressler/rukes.com
A Recession Strategy: Expand Your Business
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
5/14/2008 10:24:27 AM
F
The Answer. What’s the right amp for my loudspeakers? Which amp can fully power and protect my speakers at the same time?
Is there an amplifier with all the connectors I need for my system? How can I get real QSC quality and performance on my budget?
What amp will power my rig without all the weight? What’s the easiest way to drive a subwoofer and tops at the same time?
Passionate About Sound ©2008 QSC Audio Products, LLC. QSC and the QSC logo are registered trademarks of QSC Audio Products, LLC in the U.S. Patent and Trademark office and other countries.
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DJ TIMES
JUNE 2008
For the answer to YOUR question, visit www.qscaudio.com
5/14/2008 10:24:28 AM
from the editor
editor-in-chief Jim Tremayne editor-at-large Brian O’Connor
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
The Man, The Mau5
For us, Joel Zimmerman’s story is not a typical one, certainly not anything we’ve come across much in our 20 years of featuring DJ/producers. But somehow, Zimmerman—recording and performing as the mercurial Deadmau5—has gone from code writer and graphic designer to one of global dance music’s hottest talents. And, um, he likes to wear a big, red mouse mask with big, red mouse ears. His sound straddles lots of lines—underground and crossover, electro and trance— so a variety of top DJs have added his work to their sets. The big-room sound of “Faxing Berlin” bears little resemblance to his crunchy, electro work with BSOD or WTF?, but it all rocks the dancefloor with equal purpose. So with all the recent adulation, you think his cartoonish, rodent nose might be stuck in the air? Far from it. What’s refreshing about Zimmerman is that he’s not terribly attuned to press coverage—in fact, he tends to avoid it. He doesn’t do all this for the glory, but for the music—hey, there’s an idea! Our Robert LaFrance managed to brie y cage Deadmau5 in Miami for an apparently rare interview and he detailed his path to clubland success. Also from Miami comes our Winter Music Conference report, complete with the 4 th Annual Gleason Awards. Distributed to DJs, venues, parties and the freakiest only-in-Miami occurrences, the Gleasons allow those who made the trip to South Beach the opportunity to bestow kudos on the deserving and, in their own way, punish the guilty for crimes against clubland. We think it’s a lot of fun—we hope you do, too. On the mobile tip, we take a look at microphones, Memphis and misgivings. For mobile entertainers, wireless systems are as vital as tuxedos, so we take a quick romp through retail to see which products are available and for what price. We also go to Memphis and meet DJ Wes, who’s not afraid to bare his soul. Additionally, we ask mobiles about the
chart coordinator Dan Miller
notion of regret. We ask, “What lessons have you learned over the years? What’s something you’ll never do again?” We think this wealth of experience will help you view your business in a new light. Additionally, we take you to Detroit for a preview of the upcoming Movement festival and to Philadelphia for the rst stop on America’s Best DJ Summer Tour Presented by Pioneer Pro DJ. And on the latter note, we’d like to send out an enormous thanks to all those who made our inaugural gig at Philly’s Fluid club—the rst of 40 ABDJ dates—such a success. To America’s Best DJ nominee Josh Wink and Matt Brookman from Ovum Recordings—as always, we appreciate your efforts and, most vitally, the music; to Tony Schiro, owner of Fluid and The Latest Dish restaurant—we still love your club and The Dish’s Winkitinis; and to fellow road trippers Natalie Raben of System Recordings and Lars Schlichting of Pioneer and DVJ Vision—clubland camaraderie obviously goes a long way, especially on the New Jersey Turnpike. We’d love for you to participate in voting for America’s Best DJ and to make yourself eligible for our prize packages. So, in order to vote for your favorite nominated DJ and for the latest info on the Summer Tour and prizes, please visit our site (americasbestdj.net). Hopefully, we’ll be coming to your town soon. Cheers,
Jim Tremayne, DJ Times Editor
contributor s Jody Amos Joe Bermudez Shawn Christopher Paul Dailey Justin Hampton Josh Harris William Johnson Robert LaFrance Lisa Loco Lily Moayeri Phil Moffa Scott Rubin Thopmas Schryver Rahav Segev Jennifer Shapiro Nate Sherwood Jeff Stiles Emily Tan Phil Turnipseed Curtis Zack
graphic designer/ar tist Janice Pupelis production manager Steve Thorakos promotions/web designer Phillip Taylor
advertising manager John Grecco circulation dir ector Linda Emanuele advertising & mark eting assistant Irene Sawyer marketing & new media manager Peter Wohelski classified sale Linda Inglima
operations manager Robin Hazan
President/Publisher Vincent P. Testa Editorial and Sales Office DJ
For cust omer ser vice and t o order subscriptions, call 800-937-7678 visit our website www.djtimes.com
DJ Times Sound & Communications The Music & Sound Retailer Sound & Communications Blue Book America’s Best DJ Award The Music & Sound Retailer Clubworld International DJ Expo IT/AV Report The Club Show Convention TV News VTTV Studios
Times, 25 Willowdale Avenue, Port Washington, New York, USA 11050-3779. (516) 767-2500 • FAX (Editorial): (516) 944-8372 • FAX (Sales/all other business): (516) 767-9335 • DJTIMES@TESTA. COM Editorial contributions should be addressed to The Editor, DJ Times, 25 Willowdale Avenue, Port Washington, NY, USA, 110503779. Unsolicited manuscripts will be treated with care an d should be accompanied by return postage. DJ Times (ISSN 1045-9693) (USPS 0004-153) is published monthly for $19.40 (US), $39.99 (Canada), and $59.99 (all other countries), by DJ Publishing, Inc., 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 110503779. Periodicals postage paid at Port Washington, NY, and additional mailing offices POSTMASTER: Send address changes to DJ Times, PO BOX 1767, LOWELL MA 01853-1767 Design and contents are copyright © 2008 by DJ Publishing, Inc., and must not be reproduced in any manner except by permission of the publisher. Websites: www. djtimes.com and www.testa.com June 2008
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vid Morales, for example, don’t play in the United States at all during that time period. Like other top DJs, they have residencies in Ibiza or in other global hotspots. Fans can still vote for these jocks at americasbestdj.net, but they simply aren’t available for the tour. As for the clubs and DJs, it’s always helpful if DJ Times and/or sister publication Club World have existing relationships with them. It’s not essential, but it is certainly useful. For example,
we’ve been working with Josh Wink’s Ovum Recordings and his resident club, Fluid, for more than a decade. It’s not a coincidence that, for the past two years, we’ve asked Wink and Fluid to kick off our tour. So, if you have a club that’s suitable for the tour, feel free to contact us at djtimes.com. But, if you’re a fan of America’s Best DJs, we’d love for you to cast your vote and support the tour. – Jim Tremayne, DJ Times
Don’t Miss the Int’l DJ Expo Aug. 11-14
@ Trump Taj Mahal & Casino For details, visit www.djtimes.com
This is Feedback, a monthly feature that fields questions from you, our readers, and funnels them out to industry professionals. If you have any questions about DJing – marketing, mixing, equipment or insurance, any at all – drop us a letter at DJ Times, 25 Willowdale Ave, Port Washington, NY 11050, fax us at (516) 944-8372 or e-mail us at djtimes@testa.com. If we do use your question, you’ll receive a free DJ Times T-shirt. And remember, the only dumb question is the question that is not asked. How can my club host a date on the America’s Best DJ summer tour?
DJ TIMES
DEAR VARIOUS, In booking the dates for America’s Best DJ Summer Tour Presented by Pioneer Pro DJ, there are always several variables to consider. First of all: Of course, the DJ you book for your club must be nominated for America’s Best DJ. Each year, DJ Times and its readership nominate 100 U.S.based jocks. From that 100, we attempt to get the top-ranking jocks from the previous year’s voting to participate in the tour. Each year, we’re looking to nail down 40 dates in as many different cities as we can. However, because most of our nominated DJs are of a certain stature, most of the cities they play tend to be larger markets for dance music. And in the United States, these hotbeds tend to be: in Northeastern towns like New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, and Baltimore; regional hubs like Chicago, Atlanta or Denver; the various Florida cities (Tampa, Miami, Orlando); and the major West Coast areas like Los Angeles and San Francisco. We’d love to hit a couple of the less-populated markets, actually, but it’s not often that they host our nominated jocks. The DJs’ schedules are of importance, too. This year’s tour runs between April 30 and August 9. Some of the nominated DJs, like Satoshi Tomiie and Da-
JUNE 2008
– Various Emails from Several Venues
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sa mpl ings
A d u l t na pper : Techno , A mer ica n St y l e
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
Minimal Mover: Francis Harris aka Adultnapper.
hero of sorts with a nutty political edge. I nd it fun and interesting to ctionalize oneself when creating. It’s something I’ve always done, as writing is a way of stepping outside of your identity. DJ Times: How did you approach your latest mix? Harris: It was a back-and-forth sort of thing, but I nally decided A dultnapper is the alter ego of Brooklyn to go the digital route. I recorded it in A belton, so as to use additional D J/producer Francis Harris, maker of some loops and effects in order to give it more of a live-set sort of feel. I’m of the darkest, most menacing techno you’ll very happy with it and hope it is evident for those who hear it. DJ Times: Who are some producers you currently admire? ever hear. Harris: I’m a tremendous fan of A udion—his music is always an O n Audiomatique Volume 2.0, the latest mix comp on Steve Bug’s Berlin-based label, Har- inspiration. I’m also a big fan of the work of T im Hecker, Ben Frost, ris drops a urry of pulsing, electronic avors. Fennesz, and Solo A ndata. DJ Times: A nd D Js? Highlighted by minimal movers (Martinez’s Harris: Steve Bug, Eddie R ichards, Mr. C, A ndrew Weatherall, and “Kansas City Shuf e”) and ominous A dultnapper productions (“Madeleine” and “Juror #9,” Ivan Smagghe are all fantastic D Js. T hey have a real understanding of which is expertly remixed by M_nus producer how a groove works and, more often than not, realize the true potenGaiser), the CD tickles the brain and main- tial of dance music as a force of real emotion for its audience. DJ Times: Favorite venues? tains a stark, hypnotic groove. Harris: T he End [L ondon] for its people and its intense vibe; Cielo A 2008 America’s Best DJ nominee, Harris also occasionally teams up with L ondon legend because it’s my home here in New York and I love its sound; Fabric Mr. C to form Sycophant Slags, one of techno’s [L ondon] for bringing upfront and innovative music to the masses. DJ Times: Your preferred D J setup? most capable duos. We caught up with HarHarris: Mixer, two turntables, two CD Js and I’m good to go. A nd ris as he nished another round of European yes, I can play on a rotary [mixer]. dates. DJ Times: I really like that off-kilter, almost-evil vibe on “Juror #9.” DJ Times: Explain your imprint, R ansom Explain your approach to a track like that. Note, and the concept behind it. Harris: T he process has many different stages. It usually starts with Harris: R ansom Note is essentially the voice of A dultnapper, who in my mind is more making a groove I love, then I begin to hate it and myself, then a little like a character in a graphic novel—an anti- fairy sprinkles some angel dust on my shoulders and it somehow comes
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together. In all seriousness, I think that track was inspired by the claustrophobic feeling I had being on the Grand Jury here in Brooklyn—that, and I had just bought a Studio Electronics SE-1 [synth], my musical savior. Some things were just meant to be. DJ Times: Your primary studio setup? Harris: Mac G5 running L ogic Studio 7 and Pro T ools L E, Pro T ools D igi002, Nord L ead, Studio Electronics SE-1, Casio R Z-1, Elektron Machine D rum, two dbx 160-A compressors, Korg effects unit, Fender T elecaster D eluxe 1973. DJ Times: For up-and-coming D J/producers who want to create more minimal-sounding tracks, where should they start? Harris: I think starting with the fundamentals of music and production is the first step. Maybe buy a keyboard or another instrument and really get into what music is all about. Get a feeling for it. I think this is essential—otherwise, you really miss out on all the real potential. – Jim Tremayne
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JUNE 2008
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iN t HE St u d io Wit H…
Ju No r Ea Ct o r ’S So NiC St it CHWo r K
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
Trance-formed: Juno Reactor’s Ben Watkins loves his live approach. by now, Juno r eactor’s ben Watkins can be considered the grand old man of hard, Goa-style trance, but his artistic output has transcended typical Ed m fare for a while now. beyond the club, he’s applied his dark, multicultural synth textures to the lm soundtrack for The Matrix Revolutions and anime features by Koji morimoto and yoichiro o no. His cinematic music also has graced several PlayStation and Xbox video games. a nd while Juno’s previous album, 2004’s Labyrinth, displayed the lessons learned from the cyberpunk discipline of Matrix series makers, the Wachowski brothers, it is the expansive inclusion of live instrumentation that bears most on the sound of Gods & Monsters (metropolis). While in Japan working on his anime features, Watkins performed several Juno concerts and began to further appreciate the organic pleasures of working with proper band. it put him on a new path, but he never had the luxury of recording with the 13-piece out t for the Gods & Monsters sessions. r ather, Watkins would bring trusted hands like Steve Stevens (guitar), Ghetto Priest (vocals) and Greg Ellis into r idge Farm Studios in Surrey, England, and construct the tracks piecemeal. “it’s not really like a band in a studio, just sort of bashing out the tunes,” says Watkins. “it’s more, you get people to come in and do loads of different tracks and then have to go away and be a bit like Frankenstein and start sewing them up.” Watkins conducted his sonic stitchwork on mo t u ’s d igital Performer after recording the tracks onto an a mek media 51 surround-sound console with a r upert
Neve EQ. a s far as plug-ins and software packages are concerned, Watkins points to the Sony o xford line of EQs, dynamics and compressors, as well as the crystallizers and tremolos offered by soundtoys.com. a side from this and his own homemade synths on r eaktor, the Native instruments emulators and the string samples on GigaSampler used for all the string sections on the album,Watkins still clings to his outboard synths for all the album’s “heavy” sounds. He’s particularly fond of the a lesis a ndromeda a 6, a vintage piece which provided for the dramatic arpeggios at the beginning of the opening track, “inca Steppa.” “i was using the sequencer inside the a ndromeda, and running that [sequence] in mid i clock,” he says of this effect. “a nd then i kept going through some sort of different presets that i made up the day before that were based on the sequencer, and it just kicked in and i went, ‘Wow!’” in addition to the a ndromeda, he also employs the SCi Pro-o ne and Korg mS-20 synths. For compressors, he uses the Fairman t mC and a custommade unit based on a u niversal a udio design. u sing these pieces allows Watkins to maintain his tracks’ characteristic polish, even if he’s altered his artistic direction. Songs like the ethereal “mind of the Free” and closing ballad “Pretty Girl” certainly suggest a new focus for Juno r eactor. “i’m really happy with the diversity of the album,” says Watkins. “it’s the biggest changing sort of album, i think, from the albums that have gone before.” – Justin Hampton
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S I O P X E J D THE
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JUNE 2008
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HOW DOES A PRESS-SHY TECH-GEEK GO FROM GRAPHIC DESIGNER TO DANCEMUSIC’S HOTTEST TALENT? TORONTO’S DEADMAU5 TELLS HIS STORY.
Miami Beach, Fla.—if the Ed m world saw one breakout artist within the past year, it was undoubtedly d eadmau5. t he t oronto native—pronounced “d ead mouse,” born Joel Zimmerman—seemed to spring up from nowhere as his name suddenly began to dominate the playlists of a diverse group of top d Js—t iësto, a rmin van buuren, Pete t ong, James Zabiela, and Chris l ake. t o give you an idea of his suddenly skyrocketed status, d eadmau5 had, at one point in a ugust 2007, produced or remixed ve of the top 10 tracks on beatport.com. t he d eadmau5 signature style is immediately recognizable for its bass-heavy analog grooves that incorporate elements of minimal house, electro, and trance—hence, the relatively wide appeal among divergent-sounding d Js. most importantly, his tracks destroy dance oors wherever they’re heard. His remix of d aft Punk’s “Harder, better, Faster, Stronger” and his ethereal vocal remixes (like “Not a lone” by Gianluca motta feat. molly) demonstrate d eadmau5’s unique ability to produce material that maintains underground credibility, yet can still attract a wider audience. a long those lines, in fact, d eadmau5 recently won a Juno
5 AT U
M E TH
E R A O
A M H T AU5
ce
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ran F a L t ber o R y B
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Rock The Hou5: Deadmau5 at Miami’s Ultra Music Fest.
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JUNE 2008
DJ TIMES
Photo By Drew Ressler/rukes.com
D E R 1 5/14/2008 10:25:17 AM
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
A ward—A nglo-Canada’s version of the Grammy. His crunchy, electro take on Billy Newton-D avis’ “A ll U Ever Want” took the trophy for D ance R ecording of the Year. But, don’t pigeonhole the man in the mouse mask—he still does the down-and-dirty for D Js seeking such things. A long with sound designer/studio wiz Steve D uda (Nine Inch Nails, Methods of Mayhem, R ob Zombie), he’s formed the manic techno/electro duo, BSOD . A nd his collaboration with D uda, T ommy L ee and D J A ero—collectively known as WT F?—pushes the limits of banging electro-house to new extremes, as witnessed on his lively and unpredictable YouT ube videos (search for “WT F Chicken,” a squelchy electro stutterfest). [Editor’s Note: Four new tunes, including “Chicken,” have been released on Beatport.] So, from Canadian computer geek to global sensation, it’s been quite a ride for D eadmau5. DJ Times caught up with man and mouse on a sunny afternoon in Miami Beach this past March during Winter Music Conference. He explained how he went from the world of software coding and web design to world traveler and much-sought-after producer. L et’s dive into the weird world that is D eadmau5. DJ Times: You don’t seem to have done a lot of press. D o you intentionally avoid it? Deadmau5: No, I just want to work. I don’t want to do any of the media shit. I don’t want to do interviews. I don’t even really want to gig. I just want to do the thing in the studio, pay rent and make money. DJ Times: How did you come up in the scene? Deadmau5: I’ve always had a knack for music. I started out real young, like 14 or 15. My parents put me in piano boot camp, where I played from 3 to 5 after school. A nd this was the dawn of the personal computer music era. PCs that were under $1,000, you could load in tracking programs [that] make this video-game-sounding music. I was on the computer all the time anyway, so it went hand-in-hand. I was pretty fortunate because I got to see the development of personal computers and music. It was exciting times and I got to see it all happen from D ay 1 until where we are now–crazy-ass software at a very reasonable price point which was impossible three years ago. A nd that’s where I think I owe a lot of my success—because I got into the development of these applications. I did a lot freelance for FXpansion, ImageL ine, etc. DJ Times: Were you doing coding? Deadmau5: V ery poorly. I won’t take credit for being an awesome coder, but I could make a mean U .I. [user interface] because I was also a graphic designer. I’ve only ever had one real job in my life and I was a graphic designer for a software company in T oronto called S.I.T . We developed a “Made-toMeasure” clothing application for tailors. T he president of the software company was also a beta tester with me for the early versions of Fruity L oops back in the day. He met me through there and said, “Hey, you’re a Flash coder genius. Why don’t you come over and work for me?” A nd I said, “Sure, I’ll put on a suit and go do this because its guaranteed pay every week.” I did that for a year and half. DJ Times: What did you do for Fruity L oops? Deadmau5: I was doing some U .I. stuff and I developed two of their plug-ins–like the really shit ones, T he Crusher or something–I don’t even remember. But, the real bene t to having me on the team was doing content. I did a good portion of the demo content and sample packs that they’d sell on their web site. It was really good working with them because it introduced me to other developers who were doing more forwardthinking programming. DJ Times: A nd this whole time you were messing around with computer audio? Deadmau5: Yeah, it was an amalgamate of music and graphic design because I was doing all these U .I.’s. I was a freelance web developer and did a lot of Flash stuff. Even though I sucked at au-
dio code, I really excelled at Flash. I’ve never been that passionate about making something work better than I can make something sound. I kinda always thought I would pursue a career as an artist doing my own music, but, safety net-wise, it would better to stick with the programming, Flash, and graphics. So, it was a dream come true when S.I.T . called me and offered me a job as a lead designer. T hat was rent. DJ Times: Was that a problem? Deadmau5: Before that, the only way I was making money was selling loop libraries to a stock music company called KillerSound. T hey sold music packs, like construction kits for songs, to be used in Flash. Flash was all the rage and they were making a killing selling these packs. T hen the whole Flash thing was a “ ash in the pan” and people were over it. A nd like making music, new technology was coming out every minute and you gotta learn it. So, during my nal days at S.I.T ., it was getting over my head. I couldn’t catch up and my contract was up. So, I moved back to Niagara Falls to chill with mom and gure out a new plan. So, I was back at home getting back into the music thing. DJ Times: So it was a blessing in disguise? Deadmau5: Well, at the time I was gutted and pissed—almost suicidal. But, I got back into the audio thing and did some freelance gigs for another web-design company. I did that for about a year. T hen I met up with Mellee Fresh in T oronto. She wanted me to help her grow her label, Play R ecords. I got her web site going, but I really wanted to do music—so I also did a couple remixes for her. A nd they came out proper bangers! T he rst good house track I did was the “Beautiful, R ich, & Horny” record [D eadmau5 R emix by Melle Fresh N’ D irty 30 on Play R ecords,
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Drew Ressler/rukes.com
released A ugust 2006]. It actually “broke” for me because Pete T ong got a hold of it somehow. But, it wasn’t like, “O h, this is the next big thing.” It just spat my name out a little bit. DJ Times: Were you working under the D eadmau5 name at that point? Deadmau5: Yeah, I’ve been working under the D eadmau5 name for six or seven years. I was developing my talents way before Play. DJ Times: Was it released digitally? Deadmau5: Well, I mentioned to Melle that we need to go digital on this. So, I started up Play D igital with her. We started putting out a couple releases here and there and they started to get a little attention. A nd let me tell you, I owe my entire career to Beatport! T he ease of being able to put something out digitally at such a low cost and low risk…not everyone has $5,000 to front out to press 500 vinyls, which was the way to go only like four years before that. DJ Times: What came next? Deadmau5: T hen I did “Faxing Berlin” and Max Graham was the rst guy I sent it to. I wanted to work out a deal with him but it fell through. So, I gave it to Johnny Williams who gave it to Chris L ake who gave it to Pete T ong. A nd that’s what kinda started it. I was getting money from Play to do my own thing. So, I decided to do this full-time, rent out a shitty little basement apartment with what little gear I have and just do this. DJ Times: Was “Faxing Berlin” released on Play? Deadmau5: Well, we kinda had a falling out. T hey wanted to go one direction and I wanted to go another. So, that’s how Mau5trap [D eadmau5’s digital record label] came to be. “Faxing Berlin/Jaded” was the rst release on Mau5trap. Now, I am self-sustained and I couldn’t be happier, because I oversee everything. I do all the artwork, the mouse logo is mine, the helmet, everything! It’s so cool to have that kind of creative freedom.
DJ Times: You have a very distinctive persona. D oes that come from doing everything yourself? Deadmau5: Well, I’m not the pioneer of that. T here are plenty of guys out there all doing their own show. But, I bring in additional help because I’m not an accountant or a lawyer and these things are very vital from time to time. T hat’s something I’d like to see more in the music industry–labels or identities of artists that are encompassing all of the person, not so much just what their sound is. I am very satis ed with the way D eadmau5 is [perceived]. DJ Times: How would you describe your sound? Deadmau5: Well, to some, I guess D eadmau5 would be eighth notes. But, that’s not true. O ther people are like, “No, dude, this guy was doing IDM shit three or four years ago,” or “I love his dirty electro house with BSOD ,” or “I love his uffy, oaty shit with Glenn Morrison,” or “I love his hard banging shit with T ommy L ee.” I love to be able to differentiate with different groups. But I don’t want to pin the D eadmau5 persona to that half-house/half-trance sound. It’s just what worked. A nd it was the breakout. A lot of those type tracks that I’ve done were all done in the same month. I think I even have one more of those coming out that has been done forever. DJ Times: A re you going to break away from that style in the future? Deadmau5: Yes and no. Sample CD s pushed the electro house movement up to the front and people got so tired of it so fast. Now, it’s going more minimal or progressive. A nd this shit’s hot right now, so I’ll write some tunes like that. But, I’m gonna play around and see if I can come up with a more original idea. I don’t want to say I invented the D eadmau5 sound–that type of composition was coined in the ’90s. I’m still putting a kick on every down beat with a syncopated hit-hat. But, that’s dance music for you. How much further can you go without breaking into some other genre? DJ Times: So, you’re not hung up on house music. Deadmau5: I’m not hung up on house music. I’m not hung up on electro. I’m hung up on music of the electronic variety–music made with computers. DJ Times: D o you draw from speci c in uences when composing the D eadmau5 material? Deadmau5: Not really. A dmittedly, I’m not really an avid listener of what’s out. Not because I can’t keep up, but it’s just not my thing half the time. I wouldn’t write a track with the mindset
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of, “you know who’s hot right now? t his guy, and i should go that way.” in the back of my mind from time to time, i’m like, “i do like the way he did that.” a nd, i’ll try to play off it, but not too much. DJ Times: So it sounds like you didn’t really come up as a d J? Deadmau5: No, but i did come up in the club world, though. When i was 16 or 17, i was a light tech at a naconda Nightclub in Niagara Falls, which has changed names more times than any other club–same space, same owner, same failing club. i was also helping this radio show called “Party r evolution.” a nd i was learning the computer stuff at the same time. i was generally known around the club land of Niagara Falls as the tech, the wiz kid, the computer guy. a nd that happened in the studios with computers as well. i was a handy guy to know in the scene because i was the only one who knew anything about it at the time. i was always messing with music–never with the idea of being an artist. i was all over the place, but they were all interconnected—doing lights goes with the clubs, which goes with the music and computers with Flash. i took the total shotgun approach to life. but, there is some uni cation behind it all and it’s helped me because now no
matter what i do, i can pick it up like that! DJ Times: a re you leaning more hardware or software in your studio now? Deadmau5: i’m getting into hardware now because i can. but, there is no difference between hardware and software now, people! t here is hardware that blows software away and software that blows hardware away. but i like tactile feedback. i like turning a knob and hearing the analog sound. Whatever sounds good, really. t he moog voyagers—i love them to bits. GForce does make a minimoog emulation, but it’s great to have the actual hardware— i t m ay b e
half vanity, but who cares? but we’re not purists. Sometimes you want that shit-can sound. it is what you make of it—you don’t have to have the most pristine gear to make the most pristine tracks. DJ Times: What does your studio setup consist of now? Deadmau5: Kind of a bit of everything really. but, the main program is a bleton l ive—just for speed. i’m a keyboard-shortcut ninja. i just get fast and comfortable with it. a ll my early tracks were done in [Fruity l oops] for the same reasons. b ut, it’s a combination of everything—a little bit of r eason. a lot of rendering from app to app and i use a bleton to tie it all together. i try to keep it real exible, though. in a lot of my newer stuff, you’ll hear sounds you won’t get out of anything because of the way i patched up modules—like two minimoogs to moo-
gerfooogers patch randomness. a nd the only way i could get that sound back would be to take a picture of it. a lot of those are happy accidents that just work. DJ Times: When you d J, are you using a bleton as well? Deadmau5: yeah. b ut what i’m trying to do now is take it out of d J mode and add more live elements to it. in my current setup, i have a l emur [by Jazzmutant] and a monome going at the same time. t his monome is a matrix of 256 buttons with no labels on it—no manual, no software. but it makes you have to be creative. i make a lot of pre-made content—one- or two-bar loops, little snippets, a cappellas—and i re them off with the monome. a nd i have a l emur that d aft Punk made famous. i use it as a mixer before the mixer. i run four channels into a Pioneer d Jm-800. a (continued on page 42)
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Los Angeles—a nother d eadmau5-related studio project? Wt F? Exactly. Consisting of d eadmau5, t ommy l ee, d J a ero and Steve d uda, the quartet known as Wt F? cranks out crunchy electro-house of the dirtiest order. r ecorded at l ee’s l .a . home studio, lthy analog whoppers like “Chicken” and “you Can’t a fford t his” are set to stun—think Justice on Jäger. We caught up with d uda, a longtime programmer/studio wizard, to discuss the project. DJ Times: What principal studio components were used for Wt F? Duda: a ero’s customized d oepfer a -100 [analog modular synth], minimoog voyager [synth], t ommy’s big freakin’ speakers, and the Jägermeister machine with its abrasive analog tone, which makes an appearance in the track, “you Can’t a fford t his.” DJ Times: What does each member bring to the project? Duda: t ommy brings a lot of ideas for parts and starting points for tracks. People know a ero as a d J/turntablist, but he knows his way around the studio—he’s a mad scientist on the modular synth. i tend to listen for simple harmonies, short melodies and syncopations that complement existing stuff, simple parts that add something. but d eadmau5 is essential—without him we would quickly spiral in to mediocrity. He makes it not suck. DJ Times: Can you describe your l ucifer plug-in? Duda: i made it for manipulation of audio from a keyboard. it allows for stutter/ scratch/ lter/gate type effects, which you can perform or visually sequence. it can do a lot of different things—even some v Js use it for generating mid i to manipulate video. DJ Times: your latest developments? Duda: i’ve been working on software i’ve made for the monome and l emur. i’m really excited. i have all of the pieces in code to do a lot of neat stuff, like gather data from a bleton l ive—clipnames, song duration, r mS levels, just about anything—and display it on the l emur. it’s essentially an alternate interface for a bleton l ive from a touchscreen, geared towards d Jing. DJ Times: t he Wt F tracks have an enormously crunchy feel. How did you get that sound? Duda: it’s really simple—put d eadmau5 on the controls and get him liquored up. Have fun, turn up the volume, repeat steps one and two. – Jim Tremayne d rew r essler/rukes.com
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
SO…WTF? NEW DEADMAU5 PROJECT GETS CRUNCHY
WTF?: (from top left) Deadmau5, Steve Duda,Tommy Lee & DJ Aero.
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Mobile DJs Can Learn
Hard Truths
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And Any Age.
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again guarantee a date for an event without a signed contract and deposit. “I know it’s not a funny story, but as much as I like to take peoples’ word, when they tell me the check’s in the mail, along with a signed contract, I’ll never again hold the date for them if weeks later I still haven’t received anything,” he says. “I learned early on that the ‘ rst come/first served’ phrase works in this business as well.” In the early years of his D J service Paciorek says it seems like he averaged two times every annum when he would be stiffed by a client who made a verbal promise, but never followed through with their promised booking. “I still get that sometimes now, but I just don’t hold the date till the money comes in with a signed contract,” he says. “Now, I just simply tell the bride and groom that the sooner they give me the deposit the better, because I can’t guarantee I’ll still be available for that particular date. T he only thing I can guarantee is the price for 30 days. “I tell them I will try and contact them if I get another inquiry for their date, but I would need to get a hold of them right away or, again, it’s rst come/first served. You simply can’t hold a date for someone who is in L imbo L and.” Paciorek says he’s had many potential clients tell him he’s the best D J they’ve ever met and were going to send a check right away, only to never see anything in the mail. “T hey’d say they were going to send the check in, but two weeks would go by and still nothing, so I’d call,” he says. “T hey again would tell me they are booking with me but forgot to send the check or something, but another two weeks would go by and I wouldn’t be able to get a hold of
the person. “Finally, I ’d nd out they went with a ‘friend of the family’ or found a cheaper D J. O ne excuse that really gets me upset is when a bride says that such-and-such-a-D J will do her reception for such-and-such-aprice, and can I beat that?” T wo things come to mind when Scott Goldoor of Signature D J’s is asked if he has ever tried something he would never attempt again. “O ne was about 10 years ago, when I made a bad decision to advertise in a Yellow Pages-type book,” recalls the Plymouth Meeting, Pa.-based jock. “It cost me $800 and I only got one lead for the entire year. Consequently, I’ve not done print advertising or anything close to resembling a Yellow Pages ad in over 10 years.” T he other regret Goldoor has was the one time he once made an actual house call. “Ever since Signature D J’s has been in business, and since it’s a full-time business with an office, we’ve always offered consultations in the office during business hours from Monday through Friday, as well as making several evening appointments available,” he explains. “T his one potential customer got the best of me, for whatever reason, stating that all my competitors had come to her house, so why wouldn’t I?” It was A pril of 1999, and Goldoor decided to make the 45-minute trip to the bride-to-be’s residence in Bristol, Pa. “T o sum things up, there were multiple distractions. T hey had the television on the entire time I was there, and even when I arrived they were right in the middle of dinner and asked if I could come back in half an hour to 45 minutes. “T o make a long story shorter, when we nally did meet it was raining and we ended up haggling over the price. I didn’t get the job, and—to make matters even worse—I found out later they chose someone who didn’t even come to their house, but were rather booked through the recommendation of a friend.” Goldoor says he knows of some D J companies that charge $50 or $100 to make house calls, and then deduct that price off their deposit if the client-to-be eventually books him. (continued on page 42)
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pen again…and fortunately, the bride never knew. “I gure it’s all part of the business,” Porter continues. “I don’t change the time if I start earlier than the contracted time due to the guest arriving early—I simply start when the guests arrive. Some local D Js either charge for that extra 20-30 minutes or they simply wait until the contracted time, but on both issues I think that’s very unprofessional.” A s much as he likes to trust his clients, Tim Paciorek of T im’s T unes D J Ser vice in West Hat eld, Mass., says verbal bookings can be a challenge—and therefore he’ll never
DJ TIMES
Jeff Greene of Party T ime D Js is quick to answer when asked if he has any regrets from his years spent in the D J business. “Besides not buying vinyl records…the Macarena,” the South Florida-based jock says with a chuckle. “A fter introducing that song to D Js of A merica and having to endure too many variations of the dance, I will never do that again. “A lso, I’ll never instruct a groom, as a gag, to pull panties—or any other item—out from under the bride’s dress. A fter watching perhaps 1,000 wedding videos that we produced, I’m more sensitive to the importance of wonderful memories that we help orchestrate. O f course, those gags were only fun in their day.” What ideas have we ever considered, and then attempted, that we have promised ourselves to never try again? It may be true that “the customer is always right,” but according to Kevin Porter of South Carolina’s Elite Entertainment, this mobile will never again trust a bride when it comes to the starting time of her reception. “Years ago, probably back in 1999, I had a bride hire me from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.,” he explains. “She had booked the venue from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., so I arrived at 5:30 thinking I had plenty of time to set up.” In fact, Porter had exactly one half-hour to be ready to rock-n-roll, and he was not at all happy to be put in such a strenuous situation. “From that day on I’ve instituted a personal guarantee that I’m set up by the time the bride walks down the aisle for her ceremony,” he says. “T hat way I’m never late or rushed. It turns out I was set up and changed in 30 minutes that day, but I promised myself that wouldn’t hap-
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e li s b c i om m By Ron Bryant Wireless Microphone Systems for Mobile Entertainers Offer Options Aplenty
a mobile entertainer without a wireless microphone system? Can’t happen. No, every mobile entertainer must have at least one reliable system (and probably more) to make announcements and get the party started right. Which type of system—handheld or headset—is certainly up to the d J. but now more companies than ever offer credible solutions for mobile applications (including karaoke). Here’s a quick rundown of the latest from companies that manufacture and/or distribute wireless microphone systems. Some companies—the ones which aren’t principally in the wireless business, like behringer or Peavey—only offer a few systems; however, companies like Shure and a udio-t echnica are knee-deep in options for mobile d Js. We’d encourage you to visit their websites for the incredible range of product offered by these out ts.
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
AKG Acoustics (akg.com)
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At the most recent Musikmesse show in Frankfurt, AKG announced upgrades to its range of WMS 40 wireless systems. Look for a sleeker design and reduced handling noise on AKG offerings like the WMS 40 Pro 444 UHF Headset Wireless Mic System ($350 list). The popular mobile system includes the SR40 single receiver, PT40 Pro transmitter and the C-444l headset mic.
American Audio (adjaudio.com)
The L.A.-based company offers affordable solutions for all professionalDJ needs. Newer releases from American Audio include the WM-64 HH wireless handheld system ($179 list) and the WM-700 HH wireless handheld system ($279 list). Both are capable of 700 UHF frequencies and ranges up to 150 feet.
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Audio 2000 (audio2000s.com)
Audio 2000’s AWM dual-channel, true-diversity series includes the AWM6546, which includes several variations (handheld, headset, and combination packages). The AWM6546DU rack-mountable UHF 100-frequency 2channel system ($299 list) includes two handheld microphones.
Audio-Technica (audio-technica.com)
A-T offers a slew of options to mobile DJs, including the 700 Series Freeway systems. From that range, jocks might want to check the ATW702 ($399 list) handheld wireless package, which includes the ATW-R700 receiver and ATW-T702 unidirectional dynamic mic/transmitter, and features eight selectable UHF channels and automatic frequency scanning.
Behringer (behringer.com)
Behringer makes almost every pro-audio product under the sun, so naturally it offers a pair of wireless solutions. The Ultralink UL2000B highperformance UHF true-diversity headset system ($289) offers 320 selectable frequencies, while the similar Ultralink UL2000M ($249) comes with handheld microphone.
Gem Sound (gemsound.com)
The budget-priced Gem Sound offers several wireless systems, including the UMA-250HM ($249 list), which includes two handheld mics and features two independent frequencies and a 400-foot range.
Gemini Sound Products (geminidj.com)
Veteran supplier Gemini manufactures four wireless ranges, including the UF, UX,VH and UZ systems. The UZ series allows up to 12 channels to be used simultaneously with multiple systems and it includes the UZ-1128, which features 128 channels and 400-foot range, and is available in lavaliere ($389), microphone ($389 list) and headset ($399 list) versions.
Nady Systems (nady.com)
The longtime maker of wireless products for all applications offers a full range of options—from the single-antenna DKW-3 Handheld system ($69 list) to the 1,000-channel UHF U-2000RX ($1,439). Upstart DJs might want to check out the UHF3HT handheld system ($179 list).
Peavey (peavey.com)
Peavey is another company that makes products for every pro-audio segment. It offers several wireless solutions, including the PVi VHF system ($129 list). It includes a receiver, a handheld mic and a soft-shell carrying case. For DJs with a bigger budget, Peavey also offers the Pro Comm PCX U-1002 handheld wireless UHF system ($799 list).
RSQ Audio (rsqaudio.com)
Known for its karaoke and wireless solutions, RSQ offers a pair of newer systems—one VHF and one UHF. The VHF-22 karaoke system ($119 list) applies tone code squelch design to avoid interference from outside signal and noise. The UHF-77 wireless system ($179 list) includes a receiver unit that features a quartz-controlled xed frequency UHF high band. Both systems include two handheld mics.
Samson (samson-tech.com)
Samson manufactures VHF and UHF systems for mobiles. The former includes VHF Stage 5 single-antenna system ($159 list) and the dual-antenna, true-diversity Stage 55 ($229). It also offers the Concert 77 ($289 list) UHF true diversity handheld system and headset system
Sennheiser (sennheiser.com)
Sennheiser makes wireless solutions for almost every application. The Evolution Series includes the durable EW135PG2 handheld wireless system ($798 list) which features the MD835 dynamic cardioid capsule and a receiver with over 1,400 frequencies.
Shure (shure.com)
Known for its legendary SM-58 microphone, Shure offers microphone choices for all ve wireless systems—Performance Gear, PGX, SLX, ULX, and UHF-R. The SLX24-SM58 handheld system ($850) with 960 operating frequencies is just one of many, many solid choices from the Shure family.
DJ TIMES
Offering karaoke and wireless products for KJs and DJs alike,Voco Pro recently introduced the UHF-6800 wireless system ($499), which features 100 frequencies. ■
JUNE 2008
Voco Pro (vocopro.com)
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Miami Beach, Fla.—Every march, the d J and dance-music worlds hit South beach for Winter music Conference week, which offers a mixture of the formal and the freaky. t he relatively formal comes with WmC itself—a genuine weeklong conference with exhibits, seminars and awards that target the dance-music industry. t he unquestionably freaky can be found just about everywhere else—from the parties on Sobe and those downtown to the terraces and streets, even the parking garages. WmC week turns miami into a freak zone. So, as usual, DJ Times did its post-WmC survey and this year we were overrun with nearly 100 responses. DJ Times was busy pushing its a merica’s best d J promotion (americasbestdj.net) and sister pub Club World presented its Club World a wards—for a list of winners, please visit clubworldawards.com—but our spies were all over the area’s clubland, experiencing the good, the bad and the freaky. a s always, instead of stars, we rate the week’s standouts with Gleasons, in honor of the late Jackie Gleason, the bacchus Emeritus of miami b each—i.e., like many of us, a party animal with issues. Enjoy. – Jim Tremayne
1. Danny Tenaglia with SIRIUS’ Emily Tan & A-Lo. 2. Tedd Patterson in the mix. 3. Three @ the Hallucination party. 4. SOS’ triple threat. 5. Above & Beyond’s Tony McGuinness. 6. François K @ the Wave party. 7. Cobblestone Jazz @ Pawn Shop 8. Richie Hawtin @ M_nus party.
BEST PARTIES NO. 1: AM ONLY PARTY AT KARU & Y (W/ ANGELLO/INGROSSO, WINK/STEVE BUG, MAGDA/MARCO CAROLA & MANY MORE) ■ Club World editor Kerri mason: “For those of us with WmC a d d , this event is always a great way to
see a lot of d Js quickly.” ■ r on Slomowicz of dancemusic.about.com: “a bsolutely incredible venue with three rooms of great d Js. my highlights were Second Sun, a ngello & ingrosso and benny benassi—i was like kid in a candy store.”
NO. : JUICY BEACH PARTY AT NIKKI BEACH CLUB (W/ ROBBIE RIVERA & FRIENDS—AXWELL, STARKILLERS, SERGE DEVANT, DEADMAU & MANY MORE.) ■ d J Scotty boy: “i loved the lineup and the vibe at Juicy—lots
of fun in the sun.” ■ d J r ap: “Juicy was born from love, not money, and r obbie r ivera is a nice guy with a nice team—it makes all the difference”
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
NO. : OVUM VS. POKER FLAT AT VAGABOND (W/ JOSH WINK, STEVE BUG, MARTIN LANDSKY) ■ Says DJ
Times’ Peter Wohelski: “Josh, Steve and martin delivered a serving of what the next progression from the berlin minimal sound will be—deep, stripped-down, groovy house music.” ■ Honorable Mentions: ■ Tommy Boy Sunset Sessions at Hotel Victor ■ d J t edd Patterson: “it was industry, but intimate. it reminded me of the old poolside gatherings when we the d Js and record promoters would share music in the early days of the conference.” ■ Sirius’ Area 33 Broadcasts at Raleigh Hotel (w/ Danny Tenaglia, Junkie XL, BT & more) ■ Klubjumpers’ d an mathews: “Every top d J was there, all under one roof!” ■ Photographer mikey mcNulty: “Even though i was working, for four hours a day, i could enjoy the company of the world’s best d Js—plus the free food.” ■ The Beatport Pool Parties at the National (w/ François K, Richie Hawtin & many more) ■ Pioneer Europe’s d an t ait: “a continuous ow of great d Js—the focal point of WmC week now.” ■ masi & mello’s d ean masi: “So nice to be at a party with mostly industry people. isn’t that what that week is supposed to be about? by the way, François killed it!”
BEST DJ SETS NO. 1: CHUS & CEBALLOS AT SURFCOMBER ■ l ong island’s d J t heo: “t he boys came on and turned it out.”
■ DJ Times’ Jen Shapiro: “t hey threw down some chunky, high-energy, tribal tunes—a killer set, absolutely amazing.” ■ d ean masi: “t hey really controlled the event, while maintaining an amazing crowd reaction.”
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NO. 2: ERICK MORILLO AT CAMEO FOR SUBLIMINAL SESSIONS n d arryl von d aniken of tillate.com: “Just pure enter-
tainment—and that’s what people queue up and pay for.” n t om n ovy: “erick is de nitely on form at the moment and back into great house music.”
NO. 3: ANJA SCHNEIDER AT NIKKI BEACH n DJ Times’ n ate sherwood: “she played some of the most forward-thinking minimal house imaginable. she gradually built her set until everyone was throwing their hands up in the air, screaming.” n Honorable mentions: n Louie Vega at Tommy Boy Sunset Sessions at Hotel Victor n r on slomowicz: “a n amazing party with lots of great d Js, but Louie’s set really stood out.” n Magda at M_nus Party at Nocturnal n “t erri c set,” says Plus 8’s Paco o suna: “she always surprises me with her music.” n François K at Beatport Pool at National Hotel n speakerbox’ a nton Bass: “h e played current and edgy. i’ve never heard him do a set like that before.”
BEST CLUB NO. 1: NIKKI BEACH CLUB n DJ Times’ Jen shapiro: “w here else can you listen to great music with such an unbelievable atmosphere? if you’re not dancing, you’re lounging on the beds or in the cabanas—a chic place with fantastic music, vibes and atmosphere.” NO. 2: NOCTURNAL n h idden r ecordings’ d eepak sharma: “t here’s something special about having a beer at 9 a.m. on the n octurnal terrace in miami.”
NO. 3: (TIE) KARU & Y/PAWN SHOP n d VJ Video’s d J Lars: “k aru is a gorgeous venue.” n Promo o nly’s n ick h ahn: “i loved Pawn shop’s back room with its banging, yet crisp sound system.”
WORST CLUB NO. 1: SPACE n maybe we should retire this trophy. o k , so there is de
nitely a difference between w mc week and the rest of the year—only then, apparently, will the space staff treat clubbers like human beings. d uring conference week, you’re on your own. w hile space is the most notorious miami venue (for its lack of respect for customers and general shadiness), it certainly is not alone. n t om n ovy: “t he miami door policy is a joke—you get bad treatment everywhere.”
BEST EXPERIENCE NO. 1: PARTIES ON TOP OF GANSEVOORT HOTEL n stanton w arriors’ d ominic B: “t he Vital t alent booking agency party at the pimpin’ g ansevoort h otel was outstanding, with as much free sushi and champagne as one could get with.: n VJ r oonie g : “d Jing on top of the g ansevoort—with its ocean view—was really cool.”
WORST EXPERIENCES NO. 1: LOOK OUT BELOW! n “a fter delivering mixers downtown at Pawn shop,” says a llen & h eath’s n ick mcg eachin, “i heard a massive bang, followed by sirens. a 20-ton block of concrete had fallen at a construction site, killing two workers and demolishing a historic building. o uch.” NO 2: BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO n “saying goodbye to g abriel & d resden,” says d ave d resden, formerly of the hitmaking duo. “i’m proud of our work and excited to move on, but it’s always hard to end something good.” NO. 3: CELL HELL n “a t &t ’s lack of reception was a drag,” says d J Lars. “seems like everyone and their dog was on an
iPhone.” n “if you sent a text message through an a t &t phone,” says mikey mcn ulty, “chances are it wouldn’t arrive until the next day. i mean, who uses the actual phone in a club?”
MOST FREAKY, ONLY-IN-MIAMI EXPERIENCES NO. 1: FOR DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY, HE GETS A 9.5 n “w hile d Jing at k aru & Y,” says d ean masi, “i accidentally fell out of the booth and right into a pond.”
NO. 2: SWAP YOUR PARTNER, DOE-SEE-DOE. n “my girlfriend and i got invited to a private boat party,” says speakerbox’s n Honorable Mentions: n Peter w ohelski: “a t u ltra music f est, i found that rave’s not dead. it’s a live and well and living in south f lorida.” n d J r ap: “my freaky experience? h ow much my dress cost for the id ma a wards!” n d ixie d ance k ings’ d an miller: “a fter all these years, nothing in miami freaks me out.” n n ative instruments’ Pablo La r osa: “a ll the freakin’ jelly sh in the ocean.” n d ave d resden: “Being asked for an autograph by a homeless man—he even had his own sharpie.” n t ommy Lee & d J a ero: “w aking up at 3 a.m. to go out is freaky in any city, but it’s just normal in miami.”
DJ TIMES
NO. 3: AND BOY, ARE MY ARMS TIRED. n Lee Burridge: “i woke up in t ampa, not sure how i got there.”
JUNE 2008
a nton Bass, “and it turned out to be a bunch of swingers!”
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ma k in g t r a c k s
St u d io …h a r d w a r e…so f t w a r e…
By Phil Moffa
An Air of Analog Heaven IK’s SampleMoog: Over 1,700 sounds from 16 classic synths.
As the most influential company in the history of electronic music, Moog is synonymous with innovation, quality, and incredible analog sound.
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
Since the rst Modular Moog synthesizers were built in the early 1960s, the late D r. R obert Moog and company have manufactured 19 different models of synths. T o own just one of these is a dream for many considering their high prices and rareness. But now, Sunrise, F la.-based IK Multimedia (ikmultimedia.com) has placed a tremendous library of Moog sounds within reach of any producer with the SampleMoog virtual instrument. S ampleMoog ($329 full list) loads standalone or as a VST , AU , or RTAS plug-in on Mac and PC . It is a sample-based instrument with an extensive collection of over 1,700 different presets that are accurately recorded from 16 different Moog models. T hey include: the MiniMoog; three Modular Moogs; PolyMoog; T aurus I; Prodigy; Vocoder; Source; R ogue; Little Phatty; and even the Etherwave T heremin. Each loaded instance is a 16-part multi-timbral
“The SampleMoog virtual instrument is perfect for anyone who wants an arsenal of sounds.”
synth with 256-note polyphony.T hese features alone are worth the price of admission, but the layering possibilities here are pretty staggering. T he S ampleMoog interface includes the preset browser, synth controls, and effects section. I should note that navigation through the different sounds was accomplished with considerable effort. It involved a lot of mouse clicking and the QWERT Y keyboard is not capable of scrolling through the patches. T he synth controls vary per instrument and offer lters, two LFO s, envelopes, velocity modulation, pitch bend parameters, and much more. It is very important to note, however, that synthesis is not possible. W hat you do get here are pre-recorded sounds and the user is further processing them. S ampleMoog’s 32 different beatsyncable DS P effects are available and up to four of them can be used per part. T hey include standards like reverb, delay, ange and chorus, but also the very interesting effects like FM Modulation, AM Modulation, tone, slicer and lo- , to name a few. I found that these were most useful in reshaping the sounds into something totally new. Some of the effects sounded great and others left something to be desired, but when you consider that you are most likely in the digital domain
already, any sequencer should have plenty of effects to make up for it. N ow all of these features are great, but how does this bad boy sound? F or starters, the recordings are very well produced and extensive. T he release times sound natural and convincing, as if a Moog synth is in your rig. T he various leads, basses and basic waveforms all sounded top-notch. T o my ears, the weakest link in this instrument is the lter. T he patented Moog lter has one of the most classic sounds in electronic-music history. T his instrument doesn’t even take a crack at emulating it because it exists in the S ample T ank format and the user is stuck to use those lters, which sound, well, not like a real Moog. T hat being said, with a little craftiness (and a slightly higher budget), it is very easy to run the outputs into a Moogerfooger pedal. I went that route and it sounded just like the real thing. T he S ampleMoog virtual instrument is perfect for anyone who wants an arsenal of sounds from some of the best synthesizers ever made. A gain, it is not capable of in-depth synthesis. But to be fair, to do that requires that you have 16 different emulation programs or a budget that would make the most accomplished producers inch. T here are also some decent effects here and with a little tweaking, the SampleMoog will keep you busy for a long time and your tracks lled with an air of analog heaven. If you have any questions for Phil Moffa or Sounding Off, please send them to djtimes@testa.com.
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DJ TIMES
JUNE 2008
For extra input flexibility, the MSR250 features dual input channels, each with its own low and high EQ controls and level control. The signals from the two inputs can be mixed through the MSR250s, as well as the rear-panel output connector, allowing convenient linking to other speakers or audio devices for easy system expansion.
(Back panel shown)
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www.yamaha.com
5/14/2008 10:30:48 AM
so u n d in g o f f
D ig it a l…pr o a u d io …pla yba c k
New Digital Directions This month, it’s a distinctly digital direction with a full-on New England flavor. Connecticut’s Nate Sherwood tests out American Audio’s SDJ1, while Boston’s Paul Dailey plays with Pioneer’s CDJ-400.
American Audio SDJ1: Durable digital solution.
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
American Audio SDJ1
A s mobile-D J technology advances, there are more and more alternatives for people moving away from records and CD s and working exclusively with digital MP3s. L.A .-based A merican A udio has developed a new solid-state control device called the SD J1. T his simple, yet powerful unit gives the D J access to a ton of music, while still having advanced features which expand creativity. A t rst glance, the unit looks just like a rack-mount CD player. D on’t be fooled, however; this controller uses digital media cards (similar to the type found in digital cameras) to store and access MP3 les. T here are a few major bene ts—the D J does not need to lug around an expensive laptop, nor do these D Js need an external MP3 player or hard drive. T his makes being a mobile D J quite economical. W ith the user-friendly search functions, it’s a breeze to navigate through thousands of songs to nd the right track, at the right time. T his controller is surprisingly easy to use—it’s a true plug-and-play audio device. H ook up the two RCA outputs to two line-in channels and you’re good to go. T here is an optional 1/8-inch plug for each output, which allows the controller to engage F ader Start when used with any A merican A udio mixer. W hen powered up, the LED screen glows bright blue, while the buttons sport red and green lights, making this unit a cinch to use in a dark venue. T he rest of the layout is virtually identical to any rackmount CD player with a jog wheel, a section dedicated to looping, buttons to control the tempo features, a play/cue button, and a pitch slider. T hough you don’t need a computer to D J with this unit, you will need one to actually load your MP3s onto the SD cards. I started by copying 320K bs MP3 les, which I purchased from download sites, onto one of the two included 1G igabyte SD cards. I was able to t about 70 songs, which translates to over seven hours of music. I was amazed with how much music you can actually t on such a small card. F ortunately, the SD J1 accepts two cards at once—both can be up to 4G igabytes each, meaning that D Js can have over 56 hours of music at their ngertips without ever having to insert a new card. A nd, the user can even play two tracks off of the same card simultaneously—wow! A s soon as a card is inserted, the LED screen jumps to life—the song titles scroll across the middle of the screen, while the remaining time, folder name, and BPMs are all clearly visible. T here is also a timebar indicator which gives a visual interpretation of your position in the track that’s playing—a surprising feature to nd on such a reasonably priced unit ($249 MA P). N ow, onto nding the right track. I was able to use the search function, which works with a small knob allowing the user to search tracks individually, or you can scroll through pre-planned folders. T his is a fantastic option for D Js who coordinate their sets ahead of time. T he SD J1 is lightning fast and there is virtually no load time between tracks. T his is the most responsive rackmount unit that I’ve ever used. T he SD J1 also features a tempo lock feature, allowing the D J to play tracks at virtually any tempo without altering the tonal pitch. T he tempo lock worked great with minimal distortion, even when adjusting the pitch up to 8-percent. T he pitch slider is fully adjustable, it can be used
at 4-, 8-, or 16-percent. A fter using the controller for a couple of hours, it’s evident that A merican A udio has focused on including options that are dynamic and useful. My only quibble is that it doesn’t operate in “instant start mode,” meaning that songs have to be cued up in “stutter mode,” where the user scrolls through stuttering audio frames to nd the place where they want to cue up a song. It’s really not a big deal, but after using CD players which simulate vinyl, it was a bit of an adjustment. But let’s face it: T he SD J1 is really geared toward mobile D Js. T he controller is incredibly light, very durable (I couldn’t get it to skip or stutter after harsh testing), it’s packed with usable features, and it allows the D J to have oodles of music. W ith its reasonable price tag, it’s a viable option for any entry-level D J or an experienced jock looking to take the next step toward the technological future.
Pioneer CDJ-400
F ew would argue that the Pioneer CD J-1000 is the undisputed, industry-standard CD player. F ound in the world’s best clubs and demanded by the world’s top D Js, they rule the roost with a tactile feel and a robust build. T he good folks at Pioneer are smart enough to realize that not every D J can afford to shell out that kind of cash on their set-up, so they offer an entire
Pioneer CDJ-400: Versatility and features aplenty.
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ash drive. T his isn’t a huge deal, but master/slave US B is old technology and something that I am sure Pioneer will be adding soon. Like its little brother the CD J200, the 400 has on-board effects, three of which are accessible in CD J mode and three more are accessible in S cratch mode. A nother cool feature is PC Mode, which allows you to use the CD J-400 as a MIDI controller, where you can map nearly any function in your software program of choice to knobs and buttons on the CD J-400. T hrough an agreement between Serato and Pioneer, the CD J-
400 will have even more advanced functionality for S erato users. T ruly exciting stuff for digital D Js. O verall, I was very impressed with the CD J-400. It has a bunch of cool features and new additions, and the implementation of USB accessibility is truly the beginning of a new wave of D Jing, where you don’t need a computer or a book of CD s to rock a party. F or jocks looking to push the envelope and incorporate a great interface into their digital D Jing set up, the CD J-400 ($750 list) is just what the doctor ordered.
DJ CONTROLLER WITH 4-IN/4-OUT AUDIO INTERFACE Accuracy and roomy layout of the controls: 2 jog wheels, 12 rotary buttons, 46 push buttons, 6 faders – including a convenient general volume fader. Built-in audio interface: 4 inputs including 2 stereo analog inputs and phono/line-level selectors to connect vynile turntables, CD or MP3 players, ryhtm boxes… and 4 audio outputs (+4dBu and -10dBv) Sturdy metal casing. Delivered with its carrying case. High end software - VirtualDJ® 5 DJC Edition and flawless drivers. Mix all music files in MP3, AIFF, WAV, WMA, OGG, CD Audio formats, as well as iTunes® library (according to your PC or Mac® OS). Compatible with other MIDI controllers.
18 years of expertise in digital sound 6 years of experience in computer DJing Creator of the 1st dual-deck DJ controller with computer audio interface in the industry A worldwide leader in this category
Distributed in North America by : Kaysound © 2008 Guillemot Corporation S.A. Hercules is a registered trademark of Guillemot Corporation S.A. All rights reserved. Microsoft®, Windows® XP and Windows® Vista™ are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. VirtualDJ® is a registered trademark of Atomic Productions. Apple®, the Apple logo, Mac OS® are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. All other trademarks are hereby acknowledged and are property of their respective owners. Photos and illustrations not binding. Contents, design and specifications are subject to change without prior notice and may vary from one country to another.
JUNE 2008
AVAILABLE AT THESE FINE RETAILERS:
DJ TIMES
line of less-expensive players—from the budget-minded CD J-200 to the CD J-800, the 1000’s little brother (so to speak). W hile Pioneer retained its title as the best in the business, its competition has been working hard, chipping away at their lead by adding featurerich players. Enter the CD J-400, with a variety of new abilities and functions. T he CD J-400 offers a mix of the entry-level CD J-200’s size and the high-end 800/1000 units’ features. If you are an experienced Pioneer user, the layout of the CD J-400 will be immediately familiar to you. T he 400 can read CD -R and CD -RW discs burned as audio CD s, data CD s, or loaded with MP3s. Being a CD J1000 lover, I really was hoping for some limited wave form display, but considering that the more expensive CD J-800 doesn’t have it, I guess my expectations were too high. H aving said that, the LED is bright and does what it needs to do, including the ability to display full CD text. A lso on display here is a further advancement of the silky smooth, slot-loading CD mechanism that Pioneer is famous for. Pioneer didn’t forget the image freaks either, with the inclusion of six different selectable lighting effects that chase their way around the platter. Pioneer also included the D enon-esque ability to remove the plastic top of the wheel and insert your own logo, picture or any other graphic you choose. T o me, the piece’s most important new element is its ability to read USB media. A fter testing out hard drives, ash drives, and SD cards, I am happy to report they all worked awlessly in this unit. It is easy to switch between USB and CD modes, and the load time going back and forth was surprisingly fast. O nce you have your US B device hooked up, there are fairly intuitive controls (the select knob and back button) for finding what you are looking for on your storage device. I did have a couple issues with the USB functionality, however. F irst, if you are using two CD J-400s, you need multiple mirrored versions of your storage device, in order to really take advantage of your material. It would be nice to have one hard drive or flash drive—with 3,000 songs, for example—that you could use on either of your CD J-400s. A s it is now, you can only designate one drive per CD J. A nother issue is the inability to use a US B hub to control multiple sources. F or example, you have a hard drive loaded with music, but you also have a ash drive your friend just handed you with his three hottest tracks. You will have to unplug your hard drive in order for the CD J-400 to successfully access your friend’s
27 5/14/2008 10:30:56 AM
mo BiLe Pr o f iLe
c a r eer s…in n o Va t io n s…su c c ess st o r ies
By Jeff Stiles
MeMPHis MoBile sells soUl to His clients
Memphis, Tenn.—DJ Wes’ Mobile DJ Service is understandably influenced by the music that has made this Mississippi River city so famous. Elvis, B.B. King, Al Green, Isaac Hayes and Justin Timberlake have all called this
city home, and the funky shops, back-alley barbecue joints and impromptu music along historic Beale Street draw worldwide tourists to this “birthplace of the blues.” “i’ve
always loved memphis blues and soul music from the rst time i ever heard it, and for years i played bass guitar in a blues/rock band here in the city,” says w es f lint, who got his d J start performing for his daughter’s end-of-the-season softball party in 1999. “since i owned my band’s Pa equipment, i thought, ‘i can do that.’ w ell, it went great and i had a lot more fun than i expected. Later, i mentioned this to the drummer in my band and he suggested i start d Jing professionally. h e introduced me to a friend who owns a multiop d J business in town, i started subcontracting for this guy, and after four or ve years i eventually went out on my own as a single-op d J in 2004.” t he influences of this former music i a n — n ow a par t-time d J working during the week as a senior aircraft maintenance planner for f edex—don’t come from the typical club-d J scene, but rather more from the roots of his hometown. “Being from one of the best music cities in the world, many people here expect more than a basic understanding of memphis music,” f lint says. “memphis goes way beyond elvis. w e had sun, stax and h i r ecords—just to name a few—pumping out hit after hit back in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s.” o f the 20 or so mobile companies that consistently advertise in the greater memphis area, only a handful feature multiple units. meanwhile, w es claims to own the only d J business in the city
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
DJ Wes takes pride in his hometown’s music roots.
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to fail. f lint recalls performing a few years back for a 60-year-old doctor’s wedding reception in a small town two hours outside of memphis. “h e was a very nice guy, but he had his ideas about what music he wanted played—and he was very involved in picking the music,” he remembers. “h e was a big doo-wop fan and, although i made the best of the situation, the party did indeed start to zzle early. “my doctor client came up and asked what i could do to ‘pick it up’ a little, so i asked him if i could play
Presented By
songs that were not on his list. h e said, ‘Yes,’ and the rest was history. “i knew they wanted oldies, but not doo-wop all night long. i mixed some early rock-n-roll like elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis, along with some great soul songs like ‘h eatwave’ and ‘r escue me,’ and the party turned out great.” f or a typical event, d J w es says a standard ballad such as elvis’ “u nchained melody” or “c an’t h elp f alling in Love” are good show starters for the memphis party crowds, followed by a good oldies set including
hits like “i c an’t h elp myself,” “Build me u p Buttercup,” “mustang s ally,” “s oul man,” “r espect,” “Jailhouse r ock” and “g reat Balls of f ire.” f ollowing that tried-and-true method to pack a dancefloor and appealing to the musical history of memphis, f lint says the future for his business contains anything but “the blues.” “t he future looks great,” he says. “i usually average about 40-45 events per year, and i’m already rmly booked for a record number of events for 2008.”
2008 NOMINEES FOR
D:Fuse (2007 #33) Dieselboy (2007 #29) DJ Rekha (2008 New Entry) DJ Dan (2007 #24) DJ Irene (2007 #27) DJ Craze (2007 #38) DJ Icey (2007 #14) DJ Shadow (2007 #34) DJ AM (2007 #39) DJ Sneak (2007 # 78) DJ Crème (2007 #73) DJ Theo (2007 #7) Donald Glaude (2007 # 31) Dubfire (2007 #8) Erick Morillo (2007 #16) Felix Da Housecatt (2007 #32) Filo & Peri (2008 New Entry) Francois K (2007 # 69) Frankie Bones (2007 #59) Frankie Knuckles (2007 # 67) Funkmaster Flex (2007 #53) Gabriel & Dresden (2007 #8) Garth (2007 #79) Grandmaster Flash (2007 #43) Green Velvet (2007 # 54)
Hector Romero (2008 New Entry) Ivano Bellini (2007 #48) Jeff Mills (2007 # 56) Joe Bermudez (2007 #20) Johnny Vicious (2007 # 58) Jonathan Peters (Winner, 2006. Re-entry for 2008) Josh Wink (2007 #28) Junior Vasquez (2007 #26) Kaskade (2007 #18) Louie Vega (2007 #64) Mark Farina (2007 #35 ) Markus Schulz (2007 #23) Martinez Bros. (2008 New Entry) Matthew Dear (2007 #70) Micro (2008 New Entry) Miguel Migs (2007 # 51) Mixmaster Mike (2007 #52) Moby (2008 Re-entry) Monk (2007 #6) Nick Terranova aka Starkillers (2008 New Entry) Peanut Butter Wolf (2008 New Entry) Oscar G. (2007 #15) Q Bert (2007 #37) Quentin Harris (2008 New Entry)
2007 Winner George Acosta can not win 2 years in a row.
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?uestlove (2007 #72) Rachael Starr (2007 # 45) Rapture DJ’s (2008 New Entry) Reid Speed (2008 New Entry) Richard Vission (2007 #30) Robbie Rivera (2007 #25) Roger Sanchez (2007 #22) Roonie G. (2008 New Entry) Saeed Younan (2007 #66) Sandra Collins (2007 #36) Satoshi Tomiie (2007 # 40) Scott Henry (2007 #80) Scotty Boy (2008 New Entry) Serge Devant (2008 New Entry) Sharam (2007 #8) Skribble (2007 #5) Stacey Pullen (2007 #65) Steve Aoki (2008 Re-entry) Steve Porter (2007 # 49) Sticky Boots (2008 New Entry, Top Online Votegetter) Three (2007 #19) Tommy Lee & DJ Aero (2008 New Entry) Tommie Sunshine (2007 #63) Tony Touch (2007 #71) Victor Calderone (2007 #17) Z-Trip (2007 #42)
JUNE 2008
A-Trak (2007 #74) Adultnapper (2008 New Entry) Armand Van Helden (2007 #13) Baby Anne (2008 New Entry) Bad Boy Bill (2007 #3) Bassnectar (2007 # 46) Behrouz (2007 #41) Boris (2007 #4) BT (2007 #2) Carl Craig (2007 #68) Cedric Gervais (2007 #11) Charles Feelgood (2007 #61) Chris Fortier (2008 New Entry) Christopher Lawrence (2007 #9) Claude Von Stroke (2007 #50) Colette (2007 # 57) Crystal Method (2007 #21) Cut Chemist (2007 #62) Danny Tenaglia (2007 #12) Dave Aude (2007 # 60) David Morales (2007 # 47) Dean Coleman (2007 #77) Dennis Ferrer (2007 #75) Derrick Carter (2007 #55) Deepsky (2007 #44)
Presented By
DJ TIMES
that markets itself as a true high-end wedding/corporate entertainment service. “i’m picky about the appearance of my setup and i work hard to give it a clean professional look,” he explains. “i’m the only local d J i know of who wears a tux to formal events, and i’m also the only d J using higher-end lighting fixtures. many d Js around here don’t even have lights—and of those that do, many of them are using the old ‘spin-n-puke’ type lights or maybe four small scanners.” d J w es’ mobile d J s ervice uses martin mania series d mX programmable lighting and other d mX fixtures to help create an elegant, classylooking lightshow for his clients. f or sound, he takes along Yorkville speakers, n umark c d players and mixers, and a sky amp. w hile f lint performs almost exclusively for weddings and corporate events, the occasional school dance helps fill his weekend calendar. d epending on the event, f lint says he can be either extremely interactive or quite laid-back. a ccording to this mobile, it all depends on the client. “a t weddings during dinner, i will go around and perform up-close, slight-of-hand magic for the kids,” he says. “it’s a great icebreaker and the adults enjoy it just as much as the kids. if requested, i’ll lead everyone in the ‘c hicken d ance’ as a way to get people out of their chairs and on the dance oor, and later on i’ll lead dances like the ‘Ymc a .’ “i use the microphone to help motivate people to dance, too, but i try to be careful to not stay on the mic too much. People don’t like to listen to a d J who appears to be in love with their own voice.” f lint also takes candid photos at all his events and later uploads them to his website for viewing. “i create a custom page on my site for every event i work, and this has proven to be a real hit with my clients,” he says. “a nd using my camera can also be a great interactive tool, as people love to ham it up in front of a camera.” f or a typical s aturday-night wedding reception, a base charge of $795 includes four hours of what f lint refers to as “performance time” for up to 300 guests. a dd-ons include a basic d mX light show for $195 or a larger truss-style setup for $295. “w e can also provide ceremony services for our wedding clients, and a second system runs $295,” he says. “i’ve done many weddings that have earned me over $1,200, but i expect my 2008 average per event to be around $900, which is on the high end for memphis.” w hile some claim the d J entertainer is the most important aspect of making a party successful, others know that if the crowd’s response to the music isn’t right, an event is bound
29 5/14/2008 10:31:01 AM
Bu sin ess Lin e
sa Les…ma r k et in g …so f t w a r e…
By Jerry Bazata
recession strAtegY: eXPAnD YoUr BUsiness t he r ecover r ebates and economic stimulus for the a merican People a ct of 2008 provides a temporary set of incentives for business owners to rebuild the health of the economy, stimulate job creation and encourage business investments in capital expenditures. a provision of this act is section 179 of the ir s c ode, allowing a business to fully expense tangible property in the year it is purchased and placed in service, subject to certain limitations. in 2008, the amount a business can expense has been increased from $125,000 to $250,000—for this tax year only, until it reverts back to its original level in 2009 and eventually to a limit of $25,000 in 2011. u nder section 179, equipment, furniture, storage facilities and off-the-shelf computer software may be immediately expensed in the year the asset was placed in service, rather than recovered over time. t his is allowed in full, even if the eligible property is placed in service on the last day of the year. t he deduction can help lower your adjusted gross income, which could help you qualify for various deductions and increase your earned income credit.
Business loan rates have dropped 4- to 6-percent over the past three years, resulting in greater
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
each morning we open the business section of our morning paper, read the nancial news and then decide we shouldn’t have gotten out of bed. t he economic outlook has been dismal at best, and the nancial performance reports of major corporations are reading like obituaries, with closings and layoffs announced every day. t he subprime mortgage market and the so-called credit crisis has many homeowners concerned about making the mortgage payment or having access to home equity loans. f or businesses, underwriting standards have tightened signi cantly and riskier loans are being looked at more diligently than in prior years. You say to yourself: with all this talk of a recession and the withdrawal of the credit markets, why would i even consider expanding my mobile d J business? i’ll give you three reasons why it is a good time to expand or re-equip your mobile d J business:
1) Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 2) Lower interest Rates 3) Financing deals too good to pass up.
t o better understand, let’s set up a mobile d J company that’s contemplating the purchase of two new video systems, providing for the opportunity to capture an untapped market. t he cost of the new systems is $30,000 and the company has been in business for ve years. is it the right time to make this investment for the company?
buying power and reduced interest expense on the bottom line pro tability of your company. in June of 2006 the commercial loan rate for a ve-year equipment loan was 9-percent, as compared to today’s rate of 5-percent. if we purchased the equipment in 2006, the monthly payment would have been $618.32 as compared to today at $563.78—with an overall savings of $3,272.00 over the life of the loan. manufacturers and retailers are offering a variety of incentives that provide both reduced acquisition costs and attractive nancing packages. w ith inventory levels high and companies looking to bring new products to the market and move out last year’s models, many d J equipment dealers are offering measurable savings on new equipment purchases. industry leading equipment dealers such as id Jn o w .com and musict rends.com are worth talking to about updating your systems and acquiring the latest in lighting technology. a way to stretch the dollar further and keep cash in the bank is to take advantage of any special nancing offer. id Jn o w .com is offering “0%” f inancing o ptions on selected purchases up to one year through their private label credit card program. k eep in mind that with any of these programs it may require a minimum monthly payment and that the balance must be paid in full by the expiration date or your will incur nance charges back to the original date of purchase.
Financially, should the company make the investment in new equipment? Yes!
a potential savings of $3,000 in interest expense, the ability to fully depreciate the equipment in the rst year resulting in a lower tax liability and the potential savings on the cost of the equipment all make sense. t he real dollars you saved can now be used towards a marketing plan that will generate new revenues for your company and ultimately grow your business. Join me at the d J expo 2008 in a tlantic c ity (a ug. 11-14) as i will again present another series in strategies for success for your business. maximizing the potential of your cash and turning a pro t in your business. see you at the t rump t aj mahal as i guarantee the advice i provide will be better than the odds at the tables. Jerry Bazata is a Vice President Global Business Banking, Bank of America and has been a DJ for over 20 years.
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JUNE 2008
DJ TIMES 31 048JU08_p001-044.indd 31
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g ea r
A u d io …lig h t in g …st u f f
Fit to a TT American Audio 4295 Charter Street Los Angeles, CA 90058 (800) 322-6337 www.americanaudio.us
A merican A udio’s TT R ecord is a belt-driven turntable that turns 33 and 45 R PM records into MP3 les without the need for a computer. U sers insert a USB memory stick or SD card into the unit and the MP3s are recorded onto it. T he TT R ecord features a needle cartridge with headshell, a 33/45 rpm selector, +/–10-percent pitch slider, an adapter for 45s, headphone adapter, and a slip mat.
COLORstrip Tease Chauvet Lighting 3000 N. 29th Court Hollywood, FL 33020 (800) 762-1084 www.chauvetlighting.com
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
T his LED - tted strip xture is 38-inches long and 2.5-inches wide. Programs are built in with both automatic and sound-active triggers. T he unit can be controlled via four DMX channels, control panel, or optional LED -FS1 controller. It comes with with pre-programmed ash, color chase, sequential color chase, color mixing and color fade patterns. A mong the preset RG B mixed colors are yellow, purple, white and cyan.
One for Edirol
Ableton Comes A-Live
Scratching the Surface
Roland Corporation U.S. 5100 S. Eastern Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90040 (323) 890-3700 www.edirol.com
Ableton 43 West 24th Street, 12th Floor New York, NY 10010 (646) 723-4552 www.ableton.com
Native Instruments USA 5631 A Hollywood Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90028 (866) 556-6487 www.native-instruments.com
T he Edirol V-8 is an expansion on the company’s V-4 four-channel video mixer.T his eightchannel mixer has all of the V-4’s features plus two selectable RG B inputs, monitor outputs, and additional effects, including feedback, afterimage, emboss, find edge, and picturein-picture. T he unit offers internal processing with more than 500 lines of video resolution, as well as a built-in scan converter. U sers can key in logos or text from their computers into the background of videos using the luminance key or C hroma key.
Based on A bleton Live, its newest incarnation, Live 7 LE, offers more than 20 built-in effects—including delays, lters, EQs, distortions, and studio compressors—as well as presets for the program’s instruments and effects. T here are 64 audio tracks and unlimited MIDI tracks for each project. T he program offers recording up to 32-bit.192 kH z. A dditional features include real-time tweaking of controls with any MIDI controller, real-time time-stretching and warping, and two software instruments—S impler for sample-based synthesis and Impulse for sampled drums.
T raktor Scratch users can now download a free software update, T raktor Scratch 1.2. A mong the features available in the update are extended iT unes integration, improved time code tracking, an upgraded effects section, and new looping capabilities such as the manual-loop function that lets users set loops in tracks without beat grids.
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g ea r
a u d io …Lig h t in g …st u f f
Got Your Namba Namba Gear P.O. Box 544 Monrovia, CA 91017 (626) 840-5173 www.nambagear.com
t he k ava Laptop s tudio Bag from n amba g ear is designed to hold laptops measuring up to 17 inches, the vertical-style messenger bag comes in three color combinations—mayan brown with blue interior, charcoal grey with red interior, and olive green with bronze interior. t he bag comes with a “secret stash pocket,” cable ties, carry handle, and adjustable shoulder strap. d ue to a partnership with Broadjam, the bag also comes with a free one-year membership to Broadjam’s online musician’s community.
In Bloom MBT Lighting and Sound PO Box 30819 Charleston, SC 29417 (800) 845-1922 www.mbtlighting.com
Skin Deep Style Flip 3 West 15th Street Minneapolis, MN 55403 (612) 874-8892 www.styleflip.com
o ne red, one blue, and one green Led work together to create up to 120 colored beams of light in mBt Lighting and s ound’s Led f lower. t his compact moon ower effect has built-in programs that allow patterns to rotate, pulse, and color-switch to the music. f eatures include a hanging bracket and audio sensitivity control knob.
t his online service lets users customize their d J and pro audio gear with custom skins. t he skins are made out of vinyl and coated with a clear laminate coating to offer an extra layer of protection for the gear. a ccording to the company, these skins don’t leave marks on the gear when removed. t he w eb site has a “style it” function where the user can upload, move, resize, and preview images.
JamLoop is an online search engine for finding new and used musical instruments and equipment, including d J equipment. t he company said that the site “aggregates over 250,000 musical gear listings from across the web and makes them available to musicians through a simple keyword search box.” t he site “layers geo-coding and mapping information onto listings so that users can search for items locally,” and is able to apply searches even if the text is misspelled.
g emini sound Products, a division of g c i t echnologies, has introduced the mm-4000 a udio f X mixer. Billed by the company as a “cost-effective karaoke and club d J mixer,” the rack-mount unit is especially suited for vocal manipulation and mixing. equipped with four ¼-inch channel inputs (unbalanced), the mm-4000 also features one balanced XLr master microphone input, plus a rotary-control f X selector with dry/wet rotary control, allowing the user between 16 different effect choices, including room reverbs, chorus, ange and delays. t he unit also has an assignable user-replaceable r ailg lide crossfader, balanced XLr master output, and master, zone and record r c a outputs.
JUNE 2008
JamLoop (415) 336-2555 www.jamloop.com
Gemini/GCI Technologies 1 Mayfield Ave Edison, NJ 08837 (732) 346-0061 www.geminidj.com
DJ TIMES
Stay in the Loop
FX for DJs & KJs
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g ea r
A u d io …lig h t in g …st u f f
Big Mackie Mackie/LOUD Technologies Inc. 16220 Wood-Red Road N.E. Woodinville, WA 98072 (425) 487-4333 www.mackie.com
Mackie’s FRS Series consists of the FRS-1300, FRS-1700, and FRS-2800 lightweight power amps. T he company describes these amps as combining a modern switching power supply with F ast R ecovery circuitry. Each model comes with a six-segment LED meter for each channel, as well as defeatable clip limiter, subsonic lter, and on-board protection circuitry. T he FRS-1300, FRS-1700 and FRS-2800 offer a rated output of 1300W , 1660W and 2800W , respectively, at 4 O hms bridged.
Need a Lift? Gator Cases, Inc. 3421 N. Lakeview Drive Tampa, FL 33618 (813) 221-4191 www.gatorcases.com
G ator’s G -T our Lift C ase uses a non-electric hydraulic assisted technology to lift and retract to heights of 70, 64, 58, and 52 inches while holding a load of up to 125 pounds. A retractable electrical cord is built into the multi-position lift case and it features a threeoutlet power strip. A dditional features include a removable laptop shelf, black case drape, and universal mounting bracket.
Pixel Dust American DJ 4295 Charter Street Los Angeles, CA 90058 (800) 333-0644 www.americandj.com
A merican D J’s Mega Pixel LED is a long, thin color bar that creates an indoor chasing effect with 384 red, green, and blue LED s. T he bar is one meter long and features its LED s arranged in groups of 16 in 24 color banks. F eatures include 0-100 percent electronic dimming, strobe, chase, and color-mixing effects. T he Mega Pixel LED can be operated in a variety of DMX channel modes—3, 4, 7, 10, 16, 24, or 28 channels. A n AC outlet is included for daisy chaining.
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
Let’s Get Digital Audio-Technica U.S., Inc 1221 Commerce Drive Stow, OH 44224 (330) 686-2600 www.audio-technica.com
T he AT -LP2D -USB LP-to-digital recording system lets users transfer their vinyl records to CD s and MP3, WMA , and WA V les with a turntable, phono cartridge, and USB connection. T he unit can play full-length albums, 12-inch singles, and seven-inch singles. It also comes with software for both PC and Mac users— C akewalk PYRO for the former and A udacity for the latter.
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JUNE 2008
DJ TIMES
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g r o o ves
t r a c k s…mixes…c o mpila t io n s
Standing on the Shoulders of Giants Metaform Just R ecords R ocking a soulful, but edgy approach to vinyl digging and production, Metaform drops an eminently listenable, head-bobbing excursion here. Sweet sax drops, chest-thumping bass and whomping percussion direct the buzzy, crackling grooves. C inematic and addictive, like D J Shadow at his best. C hoice cuts: “Bricks and Mortar,” “C rush” and “H eaven C an W ait.”
Metaform
– Jim Tremayne All These Things Kuniyuki Takahashi Mule Musiq T his versatile 11-track CD includes everything from ultra-smooth, organic jazz with deep-house undertones to blissful downtempo, cool-grooves with captivating and soulful vocals by Josée H urlock. A lso, check the outstanding cameos from H enrik Schwarz and A lex from T okyo.
– Shawn Christopher “Feel Alive” Layers of Sound & The Demetrios Project Layers of Sound A great, uplifting, soulful-house record with a funky, energetic groove. T he “F unked U p C lub Mix” serves up a wicked bassline and some cool, melodic keys, while the “Jackindabox 3AM Mix” is a peakhour take with a tougher edge.
Anja Schneider
Jeff Heart
– Shawn Christopher
Josh Wink
Schneider’s music lives were minimalism and sexiness meet, and it’s a lovely place to be—full of acoustic percussion rhythms, world instrument samples, and beautifully haunting melodies. T he CD ’s standouts include the random noise bursts of “Mole” and the melodic minimal of “Belize.”
“Stay Out All Night” EP Josh Wink O vum T aking a detour from the hypnotic, techno thing he does so well, Josh W ink brings the vibe back to his housey roots, with three relevant and soulful mixes that work on multiple levels. R ock-solid, but what else would you expect? A nother W ink winner.
– Paul Dailey
Marc Romboy
“He Loves Me” Dario D’Atiss feat Kaysee MA P D ance D eep, bouncy, G arage-in uenced house. T his fresh and vibrant female vocal with a powerful hook has a hands-in-the-air feel and an infectious groove that won’t give up. T he dub is hot and the single includes a wicked a cappella that works as a brilliant D J tool.
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
– Paul Dailey “It Doesn’t Take Much” Sarah Atereth Beguile W ith talented remixers such as Mike R izzo, Josh H arris and Solassio on board, this track really rocks the dance oor. T racy Young’s version provides a hauntingly favorable sound to A tereth’s angelic vocals. A nd check the superb club mix by Solassio—a real winner.
– Dave Fairman Space Miami Terrace Cedric Gervais Yoshitoshi A fter some celeb shout-outs, CD 1 gets deep and sexy with standouts like Backdoor’s “Patch Park” and Semi’s “D ubboso.” D isc 2 serves up the Yoshi artists, including Sharam’s hot new “Secret Parkway.” It’s easy to see why G ervais is considered one of A merica’s Best D Js.
– Joe Bermudez Transitions, Vol. 4 John Digweed R enaissance F ull of D igweed’s re-edits and his expert layerings, this CD includes 22 records constructed into 10 tracks. F aves include H enry Saiz’s “F rom Empty Lands,” G uy J’s “G eko” and, Jerome Sydenham and T iger Stripes “Evolution.” Brilliant.
Beyond the Valley Anja Schneider Mobilee
– Robert LaFrance
36
abolage”; and the true bomb of the pack, “F ly A way,” featuring old-school legend Blake Baxter. T op release from one of my favorite producers.
– Shawn Christopher Contrast Marc Romboy Systematic R omboy drops 10 tracks of techy goodness. Standouts include: the tripped-out “T he Beat” featuring C helonis R Jones; the dance oor slayer “K aram-
– Joe Bermudez “Serious Moonlight” EP Perc C L-R ecordings O n the title track, Perc drops a hard, minimal vibe with erce beats and unreal bass drops. T he ip, “C ylinder Swing,” brings the heat, with shuf ing beats, dark stabs, and a ton of compelling energy. If harder techno is going to make a come back, C hris Liebing his C L-R will lead the way.
– Paul Dailey Boneback Remixed Jeff Bennett K ung F u D ub O ne of the most consistent producers in the EDM world, Bennett hands the remix reins over to three friends on this release. H akan Lidbo does the glitchy, minimal thing, while Montreal-based Mateo Murphy adds a funky, trippy stamp. T he real standout here is the T erry Lee Brown, Jr., mix, with its deep, laid-back, dubby vibe.
– Paul Dailey “Overcome” Drea K ult D rea returns strong with remixes by G iuseppe D and R ooster n Peralta. G iuseppe transforms the tune into a likely crossover record. T he R ooster n Peralta version throws the occasional vocal snippet to whet your appetite—great for late-night sets.
– Dave Fairman
Cedric Gervais
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g r o o ves
Jeff Bennett
“Like A Star” Kim Sozzi U ltra T he original radio edit is sure to become a dance-radio staple with a satisfying pop sound featuring Sozzi’s strong vocals. Peter Luts (Lasgo, Ian Van D ahl) exhibits a less traditional version, a club-in uenced style that also showcases vocals.
—Dave Fairman “Grace” Brother Sonorous A smokin’ d-n-b track fully equipped with chunky bass and dope beats. Plenty of punch here, and check the subtle male vocals. Sure to raise your set’s energy level. – Jen Shapiro
“Trainspot” (Misanthrop Remix) Chook F ull F orce Luxembourg C ombining fast, rolling beats and bass in your face, this one has peak-hour feel. You’ll love Misanthrop’s basslines—a solid, oor-friendly d-n-b release.
t r a c k s…mixes…c o mpila t io n s
Sarah Atereth
Live & Direct Mark Brown & Micky Slim C r2 R ecords O n this dual-CD , Brown’s disc offers a nice blend of melodic minimal tracks (Pryda), big-room monsters (Steve A ngello) and underground techy tunes (Paul W oodford). Slim’s CD -2 will test your subs with big bass sounds including remix styles from D ave R obertson and Stupid F resh.
John Digweed
– Joe Bermudez This Changes Nothing Ready Fire Aim Expansion T eam T his sharp CD kicks an infectious electro-funk vibe, but also includes its airy ambient moments. Smooth-kickin’ beats meld with synths, samples and vocals to create one dreamy sound. A funky blend of D epeche Mode, NIN and Pink F loyd.
– Jen Shapiro Drea
– Jen Shapiro
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JUNE 2008
Each month in this space, DJ Times digs through the virtual crates to give you a quick sample of the plethora of extraordinary tracks available exclusively on legal download, care of our favorite next-generation “record” stores (e.g. Beatport, T raxsource, iT unes, etc). “Washmachine” (Original Mix) by Workidz [Toolroom]: T his track is all about the break. A subtle tribal beat with heavy percussion works its way into a dropout that builds forever with white noise swooshes and pitch-rising synths then slam into a bass-heavy, techy groove. F ound at beatport.com. “Sineless” (Original Mix) by Marascai & Dusty Kid [Systematic]: A hhhh – melodic minimal that still moves the dance oor. G et things moving early in the evening or provide some late-night trippiness. Beautiful melody with just enough punch and a breakdown that builds back up from almost nothing. F ound at beatport.com. “Mole” (Original Mix) by Anja Schneider [Mobilee]: D espite its title, “Mole” somehow exudes raw sexiness. N ot sure if it’s the acoustic percussion accents or the seemingly random bursts of melody and noise. Either way, it’s a perfect appetizer for a sultry night. F ound at beatport.com. —R obert La F rance
DJ TIMES
Download
Corner
37 5/14/2008 10:31:55 AM
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RECORD CLEANERS
Ad Index
Company
Pg
AMERICAN DJ
35
AMERICAN DJ
CIV
BEHRINGER
17
CHUAVET
3
DIXIE DANCE KINGS
37
KAYSOUND
27
MACKIE
C III
MEGASEG
7
NUMARK
9
PIONEER
C II
PROMO-ONLY
31
QSC
5
SIRIUS SATELLITE RADIO 15
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
YAMAHA CORPORATION
25
DJ EXPO (HOUSE)
11
DJX20 (HOUSE)
39
TOP 100 DJS (HOUSE)
40
While every care is taken to ensure that these listings are accurate and complete, DJ Times does not accept responsibility for omissions or errors.
38 048JU08_p001-044.indd 38
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JUNE 2008
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39 048JU08_p001-044.indd 39
5/14/2008 10:32:13 AM
Profile: Colette 4 of 20 Real Name: Colette Marino Home: Los Angeles, CA
Alias: DJ Colette
Age: 32 Profession: DJ/Vocalist Hobby: Cooking. I’ve become somewhat of a foodie in the past two years. Last Book Read: Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire Last Film Seen: Wristcutters Claim To Fame: Singing live while deejaying, one of the founding members of the Superjane collective. Latest Accomplishment: My second artist album, “PUSH” on OM Records Greatest Accomplishment: I put together a band last year with three of my writing partners. We’ve been working on music for the last eight years and to be able to perform on stage together has been incredible. I’ve always wanted to be in a band and to finally have that experience is thrilling and frightening all at the same time. Why I Do What I Do: Music is my greatest addiction. I’ve been enthralled with music since the age of three and thirty years later I can’t picture myself doing anything else. One Tune That Never Leaves My Record Box: “What Will She Do For Love” is probably the only track of mine that I have performed at every single show. It’s one of my favorite songs to sing and is usually my most requested track to play. tour this year.
I’m doing a bigger band
Best Party Moment: Coachella 2006. I’ve always been a huge fan of this festival and having the opportunity to be a part of it was phenomenal. Worst Party Moment: I played a rave in Detroit and 30 police officers in riot gear stormed the DJ booth and yelled at me to shut the music off. Definitely not a fun way to end a party.
DJ TIMES JUNE 2008
Profile: A founding member of the female DJ collective SuperJane, Colette has toured the world as a singing DJ and scored chart-topping hits (like “What Will She Do For Love”) and best-selling albums (“Push” and “Hypnotized”). Her music has been licensed for national ad campaigns (Motorola) and film projects (“The Devil Wears Prada”).
I STARTED READING DJ TIMES IN: 1994
DJ Times: Fits every Profile C E L E B R AT I N G 2 0 Y E A R S
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5/14/2008 10:32:16 AM
Compiled As Of May 10, 2008
National Crossover Pool Chart 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
Janet Nemesis Rising Spencer/Vamprockerz Tamia Robyn Idina Menzel Rikah Seal Cascada Madonna Brooklyn Bounce Stephani Krise Lenna Lauren Hildebrandt Mariah Carey Fio Justin Timberlake Mary J Blige Janice Grace Jordin Sparks Blue Man Group Sarah Atereth AmberRose Marie Altar F/ Jeanie Tracy Octave Kitten September Dj Russ Harris Snoop Dogg Jupiter Rising Jenna Drey Leana Erika Jayne Batista SK8 Velvet Cam Tyler Lil Mama Tegan And Sara Elena Cary August
Feedback Fool If You Think Its Over Zombie Me With Every Heartbeat Gorgeous Out Of Time The Right Life What Hurts The Most 4 Minutes Sex Bass & Rock ‘N” Roll Fallin I Can Hear The Money My Life Again Touch My Body Gimme Your Love Until The End Of Time Just Fine Frequency Tattoo (RMX) Canta Conmingo It Doesn’t Take Much Destiny Everybody Up Come Back To Me Can’t Get Over Unsealed Sensual Seduction Wicked All Out Of Love Pack Your Bags Stars Dame Tu Amor Amnesty Fix Me Feels Like Heaven Shawty Get Loose Back In Your Head Before I Sleep Bizzare Love Triangle
National Urban Pool Chart
Def Jam Curb Capp Plus Interscope Warner Brothers Capp Warner Brothers Robbins Warner Brothers Capp Dauman Dauman Red Wallet Island F-Active Jive Geffen Jaguar Jive Blue Man Group Beguile Catz Tommy Boy Physical sun Robbins EsNtion Silver Geffen Chime Robbins Swedish Diva R.M. EsNtion Tommy Boy Robbins Robbins Jive Sire Reprise Robbins Capp
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
Lil Mama Janet Snoop Dogg Charlie Wilson Mary J Blige Mariah Carey Asia Cruise Pitbull Cherish F/Yung Joc Sean Garrett Nicole Scherzinger Wiz Khalifa Chingy F/Amerie Scarface Sonny Rich Lil’ Zane Yo Gotti Soulja Boy Dem Franchize Boyz Ne Yo Fabolous Madonna Heavy Vee Mike Jones Beast The Reverend Mary J Blige Jay-Z Khia F/Gucci Mane Kc Jockey Talib Kweli Shawty Lo V.I.C. Mistah B Tamia Them Concrete Boyz Trip Throttle Beast The Reverend Lil Haze F/ Ying Yan Cherish Elephant Man
Most Added Tracks 1 Velvet 2 Jenna Drey 3 Seal 4 Jupiter Rising 5 Madonna 6 Mariah Carey 7 Tamia Plus 8 Elena 9 Cary August
Shawty Get Loose Feedback Sensual Seduction Supa Sexxy Just Fine Touch My Body Selfish The Anthem Killa Grippin’ Baby Love Say Yeah Fly Like Me Girl You Know Stunners Like This Let’s Vibe Yahhh! Talkin Out Da Side Go On Girl Baby Don’t Go 4 Minutes I Don’t Need A Hook Drop & Gimme 50 Don’t Work You Won’t Eat Work That I Know What They Do Talk Of Da Town Country Cousins Dey Know Get Silly Gurl Me Plus Crank That Roadrunner Future Four She Lus-cious Whut It Iz Amnesia Let’s Get Physical
Jive Def Jam Geffen Jive Geffen Island Jive TVT Capitol Interscope Interscope Warner Brothers Def Jam Rap-a-lot Keeplock Hollywood Fame TVT Interscope Virgin Def Jam Def Jam Warner Brothers Razor & Tie Warner Brothers SOW Geffen Def Jam Big Cat Sweet Sadies Warner Brothers Asylum Warner Brothers Sincore Pro 2 Bold EsNtion SOW Birmingham Capitol VP
Most Added Tracks
Fix Me Jenna The Right Life Wicked 4 Minutes Touch My Body Me
Robbins Robbins Warner Brothers Chime Warner Brothers Island
Before I Sleep Bizzare Love Triangle
Robbins Capp
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Mistah B Cherish Kandyce Jones Janet Pusher Deville Soulja Boy Cyco Elephant Man Chris Brown Plies
Gurl Amnesia Get Your Dance On Rock With U Fred Sanford Yahhh! Supa Freak Let’s Get Physical Forever Who’s Hotter Than Me
Sincore Pro Capitol Camp Carter Island Emmobiliare Interscope Trackmobb VP Jive Slip ‘N Slide
Reporting Pools ✦ OMAP R - Washington, DC; Al Chasen ✦ Central Ohio - Columbus, OH; Fred Dowdy
All Titles Available Through Dixie Sound Works NOW TOLL FREE: (888) MIX-JOCK, On-Line: www.dancekings.com Charts & Picks Compiled by DME Inc. Dan Miller, Chart Coordinator
048JU08_p001-044.indd 41
DJ TIMES
✦ Soundworks - San Francisco, CA; Sam Labelle ✦ Long Island - Levittown, NY; Jackie McCloy ✦ Dixie Dance Kings - Alpharetta, GA; Dan Miller ✦ Hawaii DJ Association - Honolulu, HI; Kevin Okada
JUNE 2008
✦ Philly Spinners Assoc. - Cherry Hill, NJ; Fred Kolet ✦ Long Island - Levittown, NY; Jackie McCloy ✦ Pittsburgh DJ - Pittsburgh, PA; Jim Kolich ✦
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D eadmau5
N ever A gain!
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lot of that mixing could be done on the 800, but it just seems so awkward and it’s no fun! It’s still a work in progress because you can’t really do good dance music live. You can do really terrible dance music live for hours! But now we have all this new software and new plugs-ins. It’s all about nding a kick-ass control surface so you’re not looking at a screen and without clicking a mouse. S o it’s not, “W hat’s he doing up there? Is he making music or checking his friend requests?” T hat’s been a huge stumbling block for me. R ight now I have it to where people say, “W hat the fuck is he doing?” which is better than, “H e’s not doing anything.” But my ultimate goal is, “I see what he’s doing.” DJ Times: H ow’s that? Deadmau5: I want to be able to put on a show that can exploit all of my skills sets. Me and Steve D uda are, not so secretly anymore, working on a live rig. W e have three computers up there—one sending master clock to two A bleton machines—and it works perfectly! S o that’s “BSOD .” Me, S teve, D J A ero and T ommy Lee is “WTF ?” DJ Times: H ow does that work with the four of you? Deadmau5: It works well when we’re not drinking our asses off.W hat happened is Steve introduced me to T ommy before I was even making dance music. I used to do a lot a hard, grindy, IDM, glitchy, madness beats. T ommy wrote me an email telling me that S teve sent him my stuff. T hen he emails me again and says, “I’m coming to C anada—come backstage and check out the show.” It was the
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Mötley C rüe show. I’d never been to a rock show in my life, but I’ll go so I can go backstage and be the cool guy for a day. DJ Times: W hat did you think? Deadmau5: In the middle of the show, he gets hoisted up and plays an electronic kit with full-on breaks that I would’ve played—I was really impressed. H e was the nicest dude—he makes you feel welcome even though you’re nobody. A nd we just hit if off. T hen we would hang out every time he came to T oronto. T hen he started D Jing, so I gave him some more of my stuff. So, it was years and years of us saying, “Bro, we gotta do a track.” So, like, four months ago I had a couple shows in L.A ., so I came a week early and we did four tracks in ve days. A ero was naming the files “WTF 1” and “WTF 2” because we were like, “W hat the fuck is it?” A nd, that’s how that all came to be. DJ Times: OK , so where did the D eadmau5 name come from? Deadmau5: T here was a stink in the apartment. I couldn’t gure out what it was. Me and my girlfriend at the time cleaned out the whole place and we couldn’t nd it. A couple days later, it goes away. A bout a month later, I had to change the video card in my computer. A nd a mouse must’ve crawled in the back where the fan is when I had it shut off and then got zapped. I was on IRC all the time and telling people the story, so every time I go in they would be like, “O h look, it’s the dead-mouse guy.” S o I changed my name, but you’re limited to eight characters and the “5” is geekspeak for “SE.” It was just a joke that went way too far. n
“T hat is one option and a consideration, but I would still never make a house call again,” he says with a groan. “A nd if I lose a party or two a year because of it, then so be it.” Meanwhile, the operators of Solid S ound Entertainment in C olorado say they will never again move their equipment at a gig without charging an additional fee. Scott and Diana McKinney were once hired to perform for a wedding reception on the uncovered wooden deck of a mountain subdivision clubhouse. It started raining soon after the party started, so the bride asked the D Js to tear everything down and move all their equipment inside. “A fter about half an hour it stopped raining,” D iana says, “so she had us tear down again and move back outside. A nd yep, you guessed it, about 45 minutes later it started raining again, so we tore everything down and moved it back inside.” Mind you, she says, this was back in the day when mobile D Js carried around big, heavy speakers. T oday the contract for Solid Sound Entertainment reads that they will only move their equipment one time before charging an additional fee. F inally, many D J companies have policies against their employees drinking, and David Hanscom with Y? Entertainment in Jacksonville, F la., has always stayed away from alcohol at his events as well. But when a guest at a corporate party on a local charter yacht persisted in asking if he wanted a beer throughout the night, H anscom noticed that everyone else at the party
was pretty hammered and nally accepted one. “T o be honest, I really did not have any intention of drinking it, but as the night went on I said to myself, ‘W hat will one or two sips hurt?’” he recalls. “F inally, I gave in and took one sip—not a gulp, not multiple sips, but one sip!” F ast forward to the last 30 minutes of the event. “Everyone—and when I say everyone, I mean everyone—was completely drunk and out of control,” he says. “T he only thing that didn’t happen, thank goodness, is that no one was thrown overboard. People, however, were turning the restrooms into ‘couples’ restrooms, several ghts broke out among the guests, and the overall mood went from happy-go-lucky to what-in-theworld-just-happened in a matter of about 10 minutes.” T hen, a couple days after the event, H anscom got a call at his of ce from the client. N ot knowing that he was the same person who was the D J at the event, the client proceeded to tell how the party was completely ruined because people saw his D J drinking and the D J had therefore allowed the party to get out of hand. “N ow, I’ve never felt as the entertainment that it’s also my responsibility to be crowd control or security guard, but I do agree that we should keep an eye on things we can control,” says D avid. “T he sad part is enough people at that party saw me take that one sip and from there just assumed that I was drinking all night long.” N ever again,he says today.“Ever since then, I only drink bottled water.” n
Moby’s Last Night on the Dancefloor Grooves! Beats! Diva vocals!
What? You expected another rock record?
Photos by Deidre O’Callaghan
My new CD returns to clubland…
Moby, next month in D J T imes
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