AMERICA’S FIRST MAGAZINE FOR PROFESSIONAL DJs ESTABLISHED 1988
FEBRUARY 2014
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PERFORMS UNDER PRESSURE
REMIX-STATION 500 The REMIX-STATION 500 features a diverse range of effects to change the development of music and produce new rhythms by adding sound sources, etc. It also features a “PRESSURE Controller” with knobs that can be operated not only by rotation but also, in an industry-first, by intuitively pressing to change effects parameters, enabling various musical arrangements to be made with a single knob. The device can also be used for music production and as a plug-in controller when connected to your PC/Mac, allowing you to produce music with the same effects and feeling of control you get when using the device for DJ play. It’s official...the Remix-Station 500 Performs Under Pressure.
Remix music with Rhythm FX, Scene FX, Release FX, and intuitive control thanks to the “PRESSURE Controller”
Can be used as a MIDI controller with support for USB-MIDI standard, and can be mounted on the Pioneer DJ X-Stand
QUANTIZE function analyzes music in real time and synchronizes effects
Soundcard enables connection to headphones or speakers directly
AUTO BPM function automatically measures and follows music tempo
Bundled with VST/AU/RTAS plug-in and builtin soundcard for intuitive music creation
REMIX STATION 500
AMERICA’S FIRST MAGAZINE FOR PROFESSIONAL DJs ESTABLISHED 1988
FEBRUARY 2014
$4.95 US
$6.95 CANADA
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DYNAMIC DUO
The Pioneer DJ DJM-900SRT and DDJ-SP1 are designed to give the DJ the perfect tools for controlling Serato DJ®. Both units feature Pioneer DJ’s classic design, legendary feel and industry leading sound. Control the mix and produce with style and confidence. The DJM-900SRT and DDJ-SP1 seperately are amazing, but together are the perfect Dynamic Duo.
DJM-900SRT | Mixer
DDJ-SP1 | Sub-Controller
Equipped with an internal Serato® certified soundcard providing the user with Serato DJ® software
Slim, compact sub-controller designed specifically for use with SERATO DJ® software
High performance “MAGVEL” Cross Fader w/ adjustable cross fader curve and ultra smooth channel faders w/ adjustable curve
Sixteen “performance pads” on the sub-controller for seven different functions
Built with high-quality input and output circuits to achieve accurate audio reproduction Six types of Sound Color FX for numerous audio effect combinations and arrangements
Dedicated sampler volume slider conveniently located to quickly control the output of the 16 trigger pads Slip Mode function enables continuous music playback in the background even when loops and hot cues are being performed
DJM-900SRT / DDJ-SP1
INDUSTRY EVENTS…NOTABLES…MILESTONES
NEWS
WINTER NAMM 2014: TONS OF NEW DJ-GEAR ENTRIES By Jim Tremayne
Anaheim, Calif. – This Jan. 2326, the music industry’s manufacturers, distributors and retailers will convene at the Anaheim Convention Center for the world’s largest trade-only event—the annual Winter NAMM show. As usual, more than 90,000 attendees are expected to see plenty of DJ-related product debuts. Also, Testa Communications— publisher of DJ Times—will be there with a dedicated exhibition booth. It will also produce Convention TV @ NAMM, which will provide on-thespot show coverage. Onto the Exhibit Floor: Longtime supplier ADJ expects to show 40 new lighting-related products. They include: Dotz T-Par all-in-one LED Wash System; the updated Quad Scan Pro fixture; and the Inno Spot Pro, a compact scanner with an 80-watt LED source. Related company American Audio will showcase the new CPX Series of powered loudspeakers, including the CPX-8A, CPX-10A, CPX-12A and the CPX-15A models. Also in the lighting world: Among many other new products, Chauvet DJ will show: the Geyser RGB Jr. effect fogger; COLORstrip Mini FX wash light; EZ MiN Laser FX and EZ MiN Laser RBX battery-powered lasers; the Intimidator FX 350 moving-head scanner; and the Obey 6 compact, universal DMX-512 lighting controller. Arriba Cases will show seven new lighting cases that accommodate products from brands like ADJ, Blizzard, Chauvet and more. HARMAN’s Martin Professional will show its RUSH Series of lights, which includes the 80-beam RUSH Wizard and effect-filled RUSH MH 4 Beam. Pioneer DJ will expand its family of Serato DJ software controllers with the new DDJ-SZ, which includes CDJ-sized jog wheels, DJM-style mixer, and dual USB ports. Also, Pioneer’s Remix Station 500 will include a diverse range of sound effects and a “Pressure Controller” knob that can be rotated or pressed to change its effect parameters. With free RMX500 Plug-in software for PC/MAC, the device can be used for music production, providing the same effects and control. Distributor American Music & Sound will show products from a
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Allen & Heath’s Xone: 23 mixer. ADJ’s Quad Scan Pro fixture. Novation’s Bass Station II. Nice Fit: Arriba’s lighting cases. Active: Mackie’s SRM series. 4
number of brands, including Allen & Heath, Reloop and Novation. AM&S will show: Allen & Heath’s Xone:23, a feature-filled 2-channel mixer that includes the brand’s renowned Voltage Control Filter system; Reloop’s Terminal Mix 8, a pad-based performance controller that works intimately with Serato DJ software; and Novation’s Bass Station II analog synth, Launch Control compact controller for Launchpad, Launchkey Mini and Launchpad Mini. Stanton DJ will show the SCS.4DJ USB MixStation, which includes a Version 5.0 OS update that includes new syncopations, additional effects, FLAC support, and enhanced analysis. Hercules will show the DJControlWave, a wireless controller customized for iPad. Distributor Mixware will show products from a variety of brands like Electrix, Decksaver, Magma and UDG Gear, which will debut the UDG Laptop Stand—an aluminum laptop/controller solution. Electro-Voice will introduce the ETX family of active loudspeakers, which will include three 2-way models, a 3-way model and two subs. PreSonus will show its new StudioLive AI-Series Active Integration
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Loudspeakers, which includes three full-range models and a subwoofer. LOUD Technologies brand Mackie will show its new SRM Series of 1600W active speakers, which include the SRM55, SRM650 and SRM1850 units, plus four models of the new MRmk3 studio-monitor range—MR5mk3, MR6mk3, MR8mk3 and MR10Smk3.
Yamaha will introduce a new generation of its MG Mixer Series and two models of the MOXF series of synthesizers (MOXF6 and MOXF8). Related company Steinberg will show the UR44, a 6-in/4-out USB audio interface, plus Cubase 7.5 and Cubase Artist 7.5 production systems, which include workflow and editing enhancements.
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VOLUME 27 NUMBER 2
14 Back to the Old School
Playing Tough Techno & Throwing Devoutly Underground Events, Minnesota’s DVS1 Maintains a Quaint, Yet Effective DIY Ethic BY JIM TREMAYNE
20 Say Cheese
Photo Booths Endure as an Upsell That Keep on Paying Dividends to DJs. Will the Fun Never End? BY JEFF STILES
22 Domestic Bliss
Building a Home Studio Requires Some Attention to Detail, But Not as Much Effort as You Might Think BY WESLEY BRYANT-KING
DEPARTMENTS 9 Feedback
As Always, the Answers to All Your DJRelated Questions
26 Making Tracks iZotope’s RX3 Advanced
28 Sounding Off Hercules Goes Air+
30 Mobile Profile
Ohio DJ Uses Art of Acquisition
32 Business Line
Things Seth Godin Says About Business
34 Gear
New Products from Novation, Akai Pro & More
6
SAMPLINGS 10 Dirtyphonics Dirty DJs
12 In the Studio With… Marcus Schössow
Phat Tracks from Vanessa Daou, Duke Dumont & More
40 DJ Times Marketplace
Shop Here for All Your DJ-Related Supplies
41 Club Play Chart
The Hottest Records, As Reported by Our Top U.S. Record Pools
Contents Image By Igor Ribnik
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
38 Grooves
FROM THE EDITOR
Up from the Underground It took awhile, but DJ-driven electronic dance music has fully taken over the American market. International DJs like Armin Van Buuren, David Guetta and Calvin Harris have found success in the clubs and on the airwaves. EDM festivals have overtaken the rock events in popularity with no end in sight. And technology has made it easier to become a DJ and/or music producer. Everything’s groovy, right? Well, not for everybody. Those DJs and fans who remain dedicated to underground sounds, especially those from the techno world, aren’t as interested in radio or the bigger U.S. festivals (beyond maybe Detroit’s Movement). So how do these DJs continue to thrive? What’s it like for the true believers in that world? With all that in mind, we caught up with Minneapolis’ DVS1, a DJ/producer who’s managed to carve out a career through unending passion and—dare we say—an old-school DIY ethic. He maintains a pair of techno labels. He runs his own underground (and private) events at his own Twin Cities warehouse. He’s a resident DJ at Berlin’s Berghain, the world’s most famous techno club. And he still spins his sets using vinyl half the time. We caught up with him at Brooklyn’s Output club to hear his story and, ultimately, channel his inspiration. Interesting in producing music? We know that some of you are, so our Denver-based scribe Wesley-Bryant King offers a very detailed guide to assembling a home studio—furniture, hardware, software, the lot. Also, in our Sounding Off column, Wes puts Hercules’ Air+ controller through its paces. Then, in the Making Tracks column, St. Louis-based Josh Harris reviews iZotope’s RX3 Advanced audio-repair system. In our Samplings section, recent University of Georgia grad Chris Caruso interviews hot Swedish DJ/producer Marcus Schössow, while our longtime L.A. correspondent Lily Moayeri connects with Dirtyphonics’ DJ duo of Charly and Pitchin. In the world of mobile jocks, Iowa scribe Jeff Stiles asks a nationwide group about the future viability of the lucrative photo-booth upsell. In our Mobile Profile section, we visit with Ohio’s Matt Radicelli, who has taken on the art of acquisition. For Business Line, we offer dollops of wisdom from marketing guru Seth Godin. Of course, if it’s the New Year, we’ll be taking a good look at the upcoming Winter NAMM show in Anaheim, Calif. Take a look at our Page 3 News section for a deep rundown of all the DJ-related debuts at the massive trade show. See you on the exhibit floor! Cheers,
editor-in-chief Jim Tremayne jtremayne@testa.com
art director Janice Pupelis jpupelis@testa.com
editor-at-large Brian O’Connor boconnor@testa.com
production manager Steve Thorakos sthorakos@testa.com
chart coordinator Dan Miller dmiller@testa.com contributors Lina Abascal Jody Amos Tom Banham Joe Bermudez Wesley Bryant-King Ally Byers Chris Caruso Shawn Christopher Paul Dailey Reed Dailey Chris Davis Josh Harris Robert LaFrance Michelle Loeb Lily Moayeri Phil Moffa Natalie Raben Scott Rubin Jennifer Shapiro Jeff Stiles Emily Tan Phil Turnipseed Curtis Zack Innes Weir President/Publisher Vincent P. Testa FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE AND TO ORDER SUBSCRIPTIONS, CALL 800-937-7678 VISIT OUR WEBSITE www.djtimes.com
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
Jim Tremayne, Editor, DJ Times
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DJ Times Sound & Communications The Music & Sound Retailer Sound & Communications Blue Book America’s Best DJ The DJ Expo IT/AV Report Convention TV News VTTV Studios
brand design & web development manager Fred Gumm fgumm@testa.com digital media manager Chris Davis cdavis@testa.com advertising manager Jon Rayvid jrayvid@testa.com art/production assistant Douglas Yelin dyelin@testa.com Circulation circulation@testa.com Classifieds classifiedsales@testa.com operations manager Robin Hazan rhazan@testa.com Editorial and Sales Office: DJ 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 © 2014 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 February 2014
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FEEDBACK AMERICA’S FIRST MAGAZINE FOR PROFESSIONAL DJs ESTABLISHED 1988
JANUARY 2014
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DEAD FOR DJS?
(Sept. 26-28), which offers a similar DJ lineup, but actually ups the ante on production. General admission tickets run about $350 for the weekend. If the enormo fests with enormo pric‑ es don’t grab you, there are a few cool alternatives. MoogFest in Asheville, N.C. (April 23-27) will offer legends like Kraftwerk, Chic and Giorgio Mo‑ roder, DJs like Green Velvet, Soul Clap and Art Department and, if you’re in‑ terested, technology workshops and keynote speakers. (GA tix for the mu‑
sic portion run $199.) Also, a couple of my very favorite festivals are Detroit’s Movement (May 24-26) and Denver’s Global Dance Festival (July 16-17). Movement is devoutly techno-oriented and closely curated—lotsa musical quality and not much filler with upstarts and legends alike. And at $120 for all three days, a GA ticket is very affordable. Global Dance Festival’s venue—Red Rocks Amphitheatre—makes the event worth attending before you even
see the lineup. But it’s usually a good mix of house, techno and dubstep, plus hipster and hippie fare. Red Rocks is simply the most inspiring outdoor venue you’ll ever experience. Also recommended: Mountain Oasis Electronic Music Summit in Asheville, N.C. (Oct. 24-16). Tix run $200 and the lineup is super-diverse. There are a lot more events, but those are the ones that get the nod from me. Good luck and have fun. – Jim Tremayne, DJ Times
12/11/2013 3:46:47 PM
This is Feedback, a monthly feature that fields questions from you, our readers, and funnels them out to in‑ dustry 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 ques‑ tion that is not asked.
DEAR DJ TIMES, I’m a new fan of electronic-dance mu‑ sic with a keen interest in DJing—I’m just getting started. Right now, I’m loving Diplo, Flosstradamus, Duck Sauce and Steve Aoki. The music-festival season is fast ap‑ proaching, so I want to know: Which DJ-oriented festival events do you recommend for 2014? Thanks. – Albert Herrera, Phoenix, Ariz.
ALBERT, Congrats on moving into the DJ world. It’s a crowded field for sure, but if you love music, obviously, it can be really rewarding. Festivals? Where to start? By now, there are so many around the world, so we’ll just stick to the ones in our 50 states. By working many of the Ameri‑ ca’s Best DJ festival events, we’ve got‑ ten a front-row seat on what’s what. So, here are my faves and recom‑ mendations: The two biggest U.S.-based EDM fests are Las Vegas’ Electric Daisy Carnival (this year, set for June 20-22) and Mi‑ ami’s Ultra Music Festival (March 2830). Both are massive events with over 100,000 attendees each day and fea‑ turing multiple stages showcasing al‑ most every genre of dance music. The biggest DJs and electronic acts in the world play—from trance star Armin Van Buuren to Diplo’s reggae vehicle Major Lazer. It should be noted that three-day general-admission tickets are pretty steep—about $400 for both fests and VIP tix cost even more. But both events are full-on experiences with mind-blowing stage productions. Speaking of massive events, don’t sleep on Atlanta’s TomorrowWorld
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SAMPLINGS
DIRTYPHONICS: VIEW FROM THE BOOTH
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
Dirty DJ Duo: (from left) Charly & Pitchin.
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Pitchin and Charly—Dirtyphonics’ DJ duo—are poised at the edge of a wobbly table that precariously holds their decks/mixer combo onstage at the Orange County Observatory. After a few prepping shouts to the suburban SoCal audience, Pitchin flies into the fans’ waiting arms to the pulsing sounds of “Stage Divers,” the group’s collaboration with Steve Aoki, himself a well-known human projectile. A little later on, Charly will do some diving of his own, the crowd fighting for a chance to hold him up. But it’s been like that for the Paris-based, DIM MAK-signed act for awhile now—live craziness for the two DJs or the full band that also includes Pho. (A fourth member, Thomas—first names only, please— recently departed the group.) As an electronic-music quartet, Dirtyphonics spent this past spring and summer touring North America and Europe in support of its debut album, Irreverence. Loaded with teethgrinding party tracks that infuse drum-n-bass and drumstep sounds with Euro-rave rhythms, heavy-metal crunches, and even classical piano, Irreverence roars and rages with whop-
ping drops and electro buzzbombs. Currently supporting Excision for a 55-date tour, the DJ half of Dirtyphonics comes armed with four Pioneer CDJ-2000NXS and two DJM900NXS mixers. The setup allows the pair to maintain a musical dialogue. They can play all four decks simultaneously, while employing double drops, quick mixing and effects. Of course, they can also swap time on the decks—one mixing, the other hyping the crowd. The two take cues from each other, but also from other DJs. The inspiration comes from jocks of many genres—Andy C, Laurent Garnier, Marky and especially Sasha. “The way he manages to have this buildup go on and on for three minutes,” says Pitchin of Sasha’s famed extended mixing, “maybe we can find a way in bass music to recreate this.” In the studio, the group employs a mixture of hardware and software, plus traditional instruments. Some of the pieces used on Irreverence include Ampeg SVT bass-amp emulation (via IK Multimedia’s AmpliTube 2 plug-in), Native Instruments’ Massive softsynth, and mono analog synths like
Korg’s MS-20, Novation’s UltraNova, and particularly, Access’ Virus TI. Tons of samples are taken from hip-hop snares, Toontrack EZdrummer, and combustion-reverb noise recordings, which are natural sounding snares sculpted with EQ. On top of all this, details are added with distortion plug-ins and layering over the basic sounds. Of course, DJing helps form the structure of their tracks, as Pitchin and Charly test the material to a live audience. “Bass music’s evolution— how DJs play a tiny little portion of each track and mixing goes way faster with the help of technology and the different genres of music that have emerged—has changed the way we see the structure of the song,” says Charly. “There is what feels right when you listen to the song at home or in your headphones and what you expect the energy of the track to be at a gig.” Adds Pitchin: “Even if we do what we want, so many DJs edit the tracks. We pretty much re-edit all the tracks—even our own. Four or five years ago, especially for drum-n-bass, you had to keep the crowd dancing
and play without a breakdown for a good 10-15 minutes, then have a huge breakdown and buildup again. Now, you better have another breakdown and another buildup soon to keep them interested. Your selection has to be like a rollercoaster, on and on and on.” This is what can be expected from a Dirtyphonics remix as well. The group has put its stamp on tracks from Marilyn Manson, The Crystal Method, Linkin Park, Krewella, Nero, and Kaskade, to mention just a few. “So many remixes take a tiny bit of the vocal in the intro,” says Charly, “and then drop into a track that feels like it was written before the artist even knew they were going to do this remix. The whole point about remixing a track is having a vibe that you originally like and can grab some of the melody or vocals. Then we’ll put our heavy basses, throw a hook in, we’ll even change the key if we feel like the track needs it. We always try to keep a lot of the original, so if you listen to the original and the remix, it makes sense.” – Lily Moayeri
PROFOUND SOUND
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IN THE STUDIO WITH
Big Year: Schössow dropped five hot tracks in ’13.
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
MARCUS SCHÖSSOW: ON A ROLL
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With 14 years of DJ and production experience, Sweden’s Marcus Schössow is no novice—and in 2013, he really put it all to good use. Coming off a year of heavy touring—which included big shows at London’s Ministry of Sound and Hollywood’s Avalon club— Schössow can also look back on a busy studio schedule, which produced several popular tracks. Counting up his soaring collaboration with fellow Swede Adrian Lux (“Wild Child” feat. JJ on Ultra), an electro-leaning solo single (“Reverie” on Axtone), two storming collabs with Sebjak (“Liceu” on Size and “Kemi” on Spinnin’), and his latest collab with Mike Hawkins and Pablo Oliveros (the thundering “Ulysses” on Size), Schössow has cranked out five quality singles. He’s been on quite a roll. Just before “Ulysses” began to climb Beatport’s Progressive House chart, we caught up with the Helsingborg, Sweden-based talent to talk studio and a little geography. DJ Times: How long have you been DJing? How did you get started? Schössow: I started when I was about 14. It all started with that the local school DJ broke his leg on the way to his gig and me and my friend had to jump in as replacement. DJ Times: Tell me about “Wild Child,” your collaboration with Adrian Lux. Schössow: Adrian had started the project and he showed it to me because he felt a little stuck. So we started to totally redo the whole thing together, and we ended up with a few different versions of it. We did some parts in Miami, some parts in Los Angeles and then we finished up the final versions in my studio in Helsingborg. The inspiration for this track is that feeling of being “young and free.”
There are way too many dull things in life that you have to commit to, and we all need to lose ourselves every now and then to get that inner wild child out. DJ Times: And with “Reverie,” what’s it like having it released on Axwell’s Axtone label? Schössow: Being on Axtone feels great. It’s one of the places where the best house music is released and I’m proud to be part of that circle. “Reverie” was produced over a period of one to two weeks. There are several versions—even a dubstep version, actually—and I tried to take the best parts out of each version and put them all together. DJ Times: What producers and/or songs are you into right now? Schössow: Right now, I’m listening a lot to the album
from Washed Out called Paracosm (Sub Pop). It’s a fantastic piece of music that puts timeless into the spot. If you like M83, you will love this record. DJ Times: It seems as though the Swedish dance music community is ver y tight-knit. Is there a specific reason for this? Schössow: We are a small country and we do the best to help each other. Swedes like to work with Swedes, as we think alike, have the same approach, and don’t accept any bullshit. If there is another Swede at a festival that we haven’t met, it’s natural to go and say hi and hang out. There are only a handful of people that do what we do from our small nation, so often, we just speak about life and just have a laugh as we have so much in common. – Chris Caruso
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DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
By Jim Tremayne
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Brooklyn, N.Y. – As I step out of the taxi between the Wythe Hotel and Output—New York’s hottest late-night destination—I notice that the freezing rain hasn’t let up a bit. Still, I can see a line of soggy fans beginning to stretch down North 12th Street, adjoining the club. Tonight, proper techno’s on the agenda—Ben Klock and DVS1—and these crazies aren’t going to miss a beat. Klock is a Berlin legend, an original resident at Berghain, the world’s most vaunted venue for techno. Meanwhile, DVS1 (aka Zak Khutoretsky) is the rare U.S.-based DJ to regularly play the famously fussy club. But his Berlin acceptance shouldn’t surprise anyone, as his approach to the genre is as dedicated as his passions for the art of DJing and the craft of production. And like a lot of DJ/producers who’ve ultimately succeeded on their own terms, the 35-year-old Minneapolis resident has maintained a Do-ItYourself ethic since the good old rave days. In addition to producing and operating a pair of techno imprints—Hush Sound and sub-label Mistress Recordings—DVS1 continues to run renegade warehouse events in the Twin Cities. Oh, and he still spins half of his sets with vinyl. Back at Output, DVS1’s set features rumbling, energetic techno spiced with cuts from his labels and the headliner’s Klockworks imprint. Think Carl Cox in the vinyl days, but with the tracks pitched up to the breaking point. He’s the middle act, but he’s definitely got everyone’s attention. Heads are bobbing, hips are swaying and there’s plenty of, “Look! He’s playing vinyl!” The word appears to be spreading about DVS1, even beyond the techno elites, and the calendar’s filling up. After another New York gig—at Cielo, usually more of a haven for house—he’ll head back to Europe (Russia, Holland, Italy and Germany), do a jaunt to Australia and then take another North American swing. He’s come a long way from those crazy Midwestern raves of the ’90s. We caught up with DVS1 and it went like this: DJ Times: Your beginnings? DVS1: I was born in St. Petersburg, Russia—in the old Soviet Union—in 1978, but I grew up in Minneapolis. My mother and father divorced. My father moved to New York when I was four or five, my mother to Minneapolis, and I would go back and forth between the two. DJ Times: What put you on a musical path? DVS1: It was the radio, mostly. My mother got me playing piano and my father got me into cello, but it was mostly listening to the radio with fellow friends. Wish I’d stuck with piano. But that experience gave me an appreciation for it. I played eight or nine years. I played recitals. DJ Times: And dance music? DVS1: I remember being turned onto what I’d consider dance music of that time. It was music that had synthesis, music that had beats, music that you could shake and twist to. I remember as a kid saying, “Mom! Watch me dance!” DJ Times: DJing? What got you into it? DVS1: Someone took me to a party. I always say that you have a 50/50 chance of being taken to the wrong party, for starters. I was on the right side of that 50, and someone took me to a proper party. It was a rave with good music. It was somewhere in the suburbs of the Twin Cities, in Hopkins. I don’t remember the DJs—but I remember it was a good party. DJ Times: And clubs? DVS1: In Minneapolis, there was an all-ages Sundaynight dance party at our legendary nightclub, First Avenue, the club where Prince filmed “Purple Rain.” The DJ’s format was five dance records, then five hip-hop records, five grunge records—whatever. You’d kind of figured out what you liked from those five records. I always attracted to dance music. I got into hip hop later on, but I liked dance music right away. I saw my share of bands at First Avenue,
Playing Tough Techno & Throwing Devoutly Underground Events, Minnesota’s DVS1 Maintains a Quaint, Yet Effective DIY Ethic
15
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
but my late-night adventures were driving to rave parties with DJs and techno music, electronic music, proper house music. DJ Times: What were the mid-’90s raves like in the Twin Cities? DVS1: It was a place that that had amazing sound systems and this ties into how I make music even now. We were listening to music and sound on 100-speaker-box systems in warehouses, so I was that guy who was sitting on the edge of the sound system where I still felt the pressure of the system, but I was watching the DJ. I was enamored by what the DJ did with his manipulation of sound with how he EQ’d things. I was watching and learning. DJ Times: Your first DJ system? DVS1: After I went to boarding school in Connecticut, I got turntables from a guy who was a hip-hop DJ, who was moving back to Japan. They were Gemini belt-drive turntables, plus a Radio Shack DJ mixer. That’s what I started on. DJ Times: Back in the Twin Cities, how did you progress? DVS1: I was seeing the scene in New York and
DVS1’s Top 3 DJs
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
Jeff Mills: “He has never strayed from his vision. There will never be another Mills.” DJ Harvey: “He just does what he wants and doesn’t give a damn.” Daniel Paul Cortez (aka Ghetto): “He’s a Minneapolis DJ that plays the right music for the right moment and is one of the few that makes all the usual head-nodding DJs in the room dance.”
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I saw it in other Midwestern cities, but in Minneapolis it was body music. It was the pressure, how they presented this music. Every generation learns from the previous generation, so we were all learning from the generation that went over the top with sound and production, not glitz and glamor, but force—speakers and stacks. The sound was at a pressure where you had no choice but to take it in and be a part of it. DJ Times: How long did it take for you to feel comfortable playing in front of people? DVS1: There was about a year or two where I just stayed in my room and did what I did. When I was back in Minneapolis, I got myself a spot at a party opening and then I got to play at a bigger party. I was thrown into a position where I had to do it. DJ Times: How did you advance up the ladder? DVS1: The Minneapolis club culture has always shut down at 2 a.m., so there’s always been a need for underground events. And with underground events, you have to learn how to do things for yourself. You have to put up the sound, do the lights, build the booth, sell the tickets, clean the space. You do everything and you learn all facets. The reality was that there were other people doing things, but they had their own crew, their own people. DJ Times: So you did your own thing? DVS1: Right. If you wanted to do something, you had to do it yourself. So, in 1995 I started to throw my own events. And I put myself on at one of them—not in a prime spot, but I was on the bill. So it was just being around and being respected
for what I did. I always brought my “A game.” I brought a better sound system than the next guy. I found a better space than the next guy. I brought better talent than the next guy. And from going out and DJing, people just noticed, like, “Oh, he DJs, too?” DJ Times: He’s that guy. DVS1: He’s that guy! He’s doing it all. A lot of my friends were taking Friday nights to go to the bar to hang out, but I’d be at home messing with music or record shopping or digging through my records. I immersed myself in this 100-percent. DJ Times: And 1995 was an interesting time for regional dance music, like the Midwest. DVS1: The underground was going full-skirt. The rest of the world had no idea what was going on. I think that was actually the heyday for a lot of those scenes. There was Chicago and Detroit, but in Wisconsin you had the Drop Bass guys. To this day, if you tell people you were part of one of those scenes, you have an automatic bond. DJ Times: You’d have crazy raves out in the woods… DVS1: In the middle of nowhere, they’d just set up parties and 5,000 people would show up. It was completely lawless. That was the same way that I remember New York at the time. I went to these renegade parties that were with the Park Rave Madness guys. Because it was lawless and because it was new, it wasn’t just new to the crowd, it was new to the DJs. So the tracks they were playing and the records they were getting were new. DJ Times: That’s how both DJs and fans got turned onto new tunes back then. DVS1: Right, this music wasn’t in commercials yet. There was no Facebook. So it was special to go out on that Friday or Saturday night to hear this.You felt like it was something new being created at that moment. Now, a lot of times, it feels like a regurgitation of things, but it’s just a different place and time. To be a part of that in 1995 was very special and unique.
beyond people’s expectations at that moment, but I did me. And the fact is that they vibed out with me. They felt me and then I got more bookings from there. And now my reputation is that of a DJ, not a producer. To me, that’s more important. In the end, it’s “a DJ saved my life,” not “a producer saved my life.” DJ Times: What’s it been like for you to play at Berghain? DVS1: As a DJ doing what I do, as someone who plays there six or eight times a year, I would not be as fulfilled if I didn’t have Berghain. It’s the people, the atmosphere, the sound, the DJ booth, the ability to spread out and play eight- or 10-hour sets. And to be trusted by those people… To do that on a regular basis, you just don’t get that anywhere. When I have a bad gig, I take it personally. Other DJs might just collect their check and go to the next gig. I use both the bad gigs and the good gigs as motivation. DJ Times: What’s a typical good night for you? DVS1: It’s gotta be Sunday afternoon or later. From my perspective, midnight to 6 a.m. is the tourist time for the people who’ve heard about Berghain. Then at 6 or 7 a.m,, they start leaving—they’re not ready for a 20hour party. Then the Berlin regulars start to wake up for breakfast—they eat, they come, and party all day. About noon, that place kinda has a crossover switch that happens and by Sunday night, it’s a whole other world in there. It’s lubricated. It’s sweaty. Everyone’s in it, everyone’s a part of it. They’ve fully broken the seal. It just takes on another life at that point. To be DVS1’s Top 3 Venues Berghain, Berlin: “It’s become my second home as a DJ and where able to come in at that hour and play I hold my only residency.” to those people is Output, Brooklyn: “The club not only supports big names from amazing. They’re around the world, but it also supports proper American artists.” My Private Warehouse, Minneapolis: “My own personal party down to do whatspace in my hometown. Friends, family, great sound—you can’t beat that.” ever you want. DJ Times: Nothing really like that back in the U.S.A., huh? story has happened naturally. I didn’t set out DVS1: In America, we live on short attento do this 15 years ago, or even five years ago. tion spans. And the hardest thing around here You put this much into something and it gives is that a lot of DJs are brought up on oneback to you. hour or 90-minute sets. As a DJ, all you can do DJ Times: How did you transition to playing in that time is just show your guns. But when in Europe? you’re playing 10 or 12 hours, you’ve got to DVS1: I had a chance to play in Europe have the skill, the depth and the knowledge to about 12 years ago, randomly. Nobody knew go up and down and left and right. who I was. I played at Tresor [in Berlin] and BelDJ Times: A good number of the EDM-fesfast, but that was as a result of an exchange of tival-goers have never had that experience— me booking some people in the past. But then some have never even been to a proper club. I came as a result of some releases. That was DVS1: Right, and for that, you have to be for Ben Klock’s CD release party at Berghain. down for the journey. If you look at music as It was me, Marcel Dettmann, James Ruskin, Rob Hood and I was the closer that day in Berghain. an example of its generation and you look at today’s generation of short attention spans That was four and a half years ago. with Facebook, phone, text, anything, the DJ Times: How’d it go? popular commercial scene is a perfect repDVS1: I got there and I looked around so resentation of that. It’s a constant barrage of see and hear what they were doing. Except for information. If the track doesn’t change every Rob Hood, they were all playing slow—128 30 seconds or a minute [quickly snaps his finBPM. I play fast—134, 135, 136. My internal gers], people get tired of it. But, to give a great momentum is faster and I looked around and example, the people at Berghain will stay with realized that I can either try to change and you for eight, 10 records while you figure out do what they’re doing, or I gotta do what I do which direction you wanna go. You don’t lose because I can’t hide who I am. I sped it up and (continued on page 42) started playing faster and I opened it up, I think, DJ Times: Most memorable event you threw? DVS1: My biggest party I did in Minneapolis was called 420 because it ran on April 20, 1997. I booked Haiko Laux who runs Kanzleramt Records. I had Electric Indigo, Neil Landstrumm, Tobias Schmidt, Dave Tarrida, Shandy, DJ Slip, me, this guy Apollo from Minneapolis. I mean, Chicago was bragging about this party called United Nations and they had five international headliners, but I had eight DJs from overseas. DJ Times: Favorite DJ set from that time? DVS1: Laurent Garnier in 1996 in Minneapolis. A lot of these guys I mentioned were in the height of their creative and dancefloor periods as DJs. As they’ve gotten older, they’ve changed direction—because your tastes change. But I got to see a lot of these pioneers when they just lived for the dancefloor and it was a really cool time to see them. DJ Times: Let’s fast-forward to production. How did you evolve into making music yourself? DVS1: Let me just state that I’ve always been a DJ first, production has always come second. But, as for making music, I had a lot of gear, but I wasn’t finishing anything. Ultimately, I decided to challenge myself by doing a live set, which I’d never done before. To get ready for my live sets, I sat in the studio and wrote tracks. In the end, those tracks became my first two releases for Ben Klock [“Klockworks 05” EP on Klockworks, 2009] and Derrick May [“Love Under Pressure” EP on Transmat, 2010]. I’ve been really lucky in that everything in my
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By Jeff Stiles When Lisa Vasberg of Cheers Entertainment in Newbury Park, Calif., bought her first photo booth outfit in 2009, she was thinking the fad would only last a couple years. After running all the numbers and thinking it would be a short-term play, she figured her investment would at least pay for itself and possibly be more substantial. Now approaching her fifth year providing photo booths for parties in Southern California, Vasberg admits that, while the booth market has certainly become overly saturated, its popularity hasn’t slowed down at all. “I actually had to buy another booth to keep up with all the demand,” she says. “Yes, prices have gone down because of the saturation, but not too much, and now we use them at every kind of event.” We recently contacted DJs from across the country and inquired about the popularity in their markets of the photo booth—an upsell that doesn’t appear to be going away like others have. It seems even local pubs nowadays have jukeboxes that print out “selfies.” At what types of events are mobile DJs utilizing photo booths? Are we using them more now than three to five years ago? How much are we charging? And do we think this fad might last forever? While JR Silva of Silva Entertainment in Orlando, Fla., says that over-saturation has seemed to spoil the financial impact of the photo booth market in his region of the country, Artem Lomaz of New Jersey’s Ninety-Three Entertainment claims photo booths are one of the top additional elements that clients look for at his corporate events, allowing everyone to gain a sense of interaction. As for Vasberg back over on the West Coast, she is even seeing companies selling photo booths as their sole business. “A lot of these companies built their own booths— some built well and some not so much—and now I see a portion of these companies going out of business because they can’t get enough work to sustain themselves,” she says. “There’s been a huge onslaught of saturation, which created an extremely competitive market for the companies that just sold photo booth packages as opposed to my situation, where they’re an upsell with my entertainment packages. “Even though a photo-booth package is primarily an upsell for our company, this division is technically not a division, but in actuality is like running a separate business. I’ve had to hire someone to maintain this portion of the company, so I can still concentrate on the overall entertainment. Yes, it costs money to have someone else help, but now both divisions are running efficiently and bringing in a nice profit.” Vasberg says she doesn’t foresee the photo-booth phenomenon going away any time soon, and when she’s getting $800 to $1,200 for four hours of providing this extra aspect of her business, she’s quite fine with that, too. Further up the California coast, Patrick McMichael of Denon & Doyle Entertainment in the San Francisco Bay Area says it was the popularity of photo booths that really helped carry their company through the entertainment depression of 2008-’09, a time when they were used mainly for weddings and bar/bat mitzvahs and other various social niches. Although he doesn’t anticipate the photo booth phenomenon going away anytime soon, McMichael says the overall perception of them has certainly changed among Denon & Doyle’s clientele.
say
“Similar to the wave of new photographers that came along after the digital camera became common, the photo-booth industry has
C H become extremely saturated in the California market,” he explains. “As a business model, we’ve had to adjust how we approach providing the product to our customer. “Price points have dipped because the novelty isn’t there the way it was five years ago—guests simply want a ‘photo booth.’ Whether that means a camera on a tripod, a tent with an open-air style machine or a classic hard-walled quality piece of equipment, it’s still a photo booth.” Denon & Doyle has responded by broadening the scope and idea of what a photo booth is. Says McMichael: “Clients will call in asking for a ‘green-screen photo booth’ or a ‘flipbook photo booth,’ so we’ve taken all of our photo products and lumped them into this category.”
In fact, McMichael says Denon & Doyle actu“Photo booths allow for extra revenue for my DJ business, and it’s helped build my DJ business as I’ve had ally is doing even more photo-style services people call about the booth and see I also have a DJ business,” he says. “I’ve done everything from baptism than they did during the recession of ’08 and parties to weddings to corporate functions. The nice thing about the booths is they can be custom-branded ’09, though the definition of the photo booth for events, and they can fit into really any event you can imagine. I’ve even seen booths being used in departhas changed because corporate events and tradement stores to promote new products, right next to a DJ.” shows have also become a huge market in this segNew to the industry, of course, is the green-screen technology that allows the company operating a ment of their business. photo booth to photograph someone appearing to be in a cool location where they might never have “Our team has developed several creative ways to before been—or ever will be. integrate new technology to allow for social media “Weddings represent the majority of my events, so I sit with my couples and design my booth to sharing—Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flickr, etc.—alblend in with their reception,” says Stephenson. “The booth should not be the focus of the wedding or lowing the corporate planner and marketing team of the event, so it’s there to add a little piece of the day that someone can look at later and remember our clients to sell the idea of reaching tens of thousands the event. I give all my customers a copy of all the pictures taken at the end of the event so they can more potential customers via photo-booth branding look at them and enjoy the memories.” campaigns. Up in Ogunquit, Maine, Jerry Bazata of DJ Jaz Music & Entertainment says his perception has “We anticipate this is where we’ll see the most growth always been that offering a photo booth at his events would not be financially beneficial, so he’s over 2014. The photo booth isn’t going anywhere, but the chosen to develop relationships with other vendors in the industry who provide that service. way we sell it will forever be a creative dance.” “In the final analysis of determining if it was beneficial for me to purchase one, the answer was Back over in the Northeast, Mike Weider of New Jersey’s clearly no,” says Bazata. “As a sole operator, I determined the fixed costs of providing this serUltimate Sounds Entertainment recalls first talking with his vice didn’t provide a sufficient ROI for me to dedicate capital, so instead I allocate that money business partner (his wife) at a DJ Expo in Atlantic City about towards what I know best—which is uplighting and DJ equipment. adding a photo booth to their company’s entertainment arsenal. “However, the real opportunity for me was to build upon referrals and a network of ven“While still in the lobby I started approaching other local dors that would help us both increase our bottom lines. I knew that photographers could Jersey entertainment companies and informing them that we now easily integrate this into their company, and it would be a much easier sell for them than for owned a photo booth that they could rent from me, even before me. Therefore, I contacted several photographers and two companies in the Boston and I had actually bought one,” he chuckles. “As someone who loves to Maine markets to begin setting up referrals for photo booths.” pre-sell, the booth was pretty much paid for before the end of that Bazata said a case in point was just this past year, when he was negotiating a contract convention.” for a high school prom and the advisors mentioned the idea of having a photo booth. Weider says his initial thought regarding photo booths was that “I contacted a vendor and they made the sale, which reinforced my value proposithey would primarily be used at weddings and bar/bat mitzvahs, but he tion to the school as a trusted adviser to their entertainment needs,” he explains. “A soon found he had underestimated their popularity. week later that same photo-booth vendor called me and referred a wedding client for “Our booth was going out regularly for not only weddings and whom I was able to book a comprehensive wedding package that included uplighting. mitzvahs, but also for corporate events, Sweet 16s, fundraisers, bar pro“This is just one example of many in which I’ve increased revenue and continued motions and more,” he recalls. “It seemed that just about every call we to build my referral network.” received was an inquiry about photo booths. It became our No.-1 upsell, In the end, at least in his area of the country, Bazata firmly believes that offering usually generating us an extra $1,000-$1,500 per event. services outside of the core business model of a single-DJ operator—providing “My favorite part of it was that we would get calls from other companies music, master of ceremony services and lighting—has not developed the sufwanting to rent our booth—at a reduced rate—as well as direct calls just for ficient value to incorporate into his company’s offerings. the photo booth.” “You can, however, make the case,” he adds, “for those who have successfully Weider claims that photo booths are an upsell in his market that are just as developed a market in parties and corporate events.” popular today as they’ve ever been. “I think the reason for its popularity is it’s a Likewise, Mike Maloney of M&M Entertainment in South Portland, Maine, novelty/favor that’s unique and fun, as well as a great takeaway,” he explains. “To says he prefers to have a working relationship with a local photo booth the young guests, it’s fun, and it transports the older guests back to their youth company. He gets 10-percent of any package they book after he sends a ‘walking on the boardwalk’ or whatever. Whether it’s the props or the keepsake referral their way, which results in $100-$120 per gig. scrapbook, the experience is never the same twice. “It helps them and it limits my risk, though I’ve not found a company “Providing a photo booth is one thing, but then again we don’t just provide a willing to do the same with lighting,” Maloney says. “It’s most popular for photo booth. We provide our clients with a fun, interactive experience as well as fond bar and bat mitzvahs, and about 90-percent of corporate parties and memories for both the guests and the party hosts.” 40-percent of wedding receptions. Dave Stephenson of A Time For Music & Memories in Douglassville, Pa., started a “I think they’re a fad. They’re already less popular at weddings than
E E S E Photo Booths Endure as an Upsell That Keep on Paying Dividends to DJs.Will the Fun Never End?
group on Facebook when he got into the photo-booth business two years ago, and today that they were three years ago. The corporates that have them group boasts close to 1,000 members—including other DJs as well as manufacturers and softlove them, as well as the mitzvahs, but I’ve noticed they don’t ware developers that share ideas and new innovations in the industry. fit every occasion. Companies that have multiple locations, He says the popularity of photo booths is due to the desire for instant gratification—“The days for example, don’t take to the photo booths as well as of waiting for your pictures to come back from a developer are gone,” he says. Also, it’s due to the those who all work in one location.” fact that today’s mobile DJs provide a lot more varied entertainment than we did three decades ago However, Maloney does see photo-booths having the (when he first got into the business). potential to last long into the future for at least mitzvahs. “Photo booths create memories that will last forever,” Stephenson says. “People want their pic“But then again,” he says, “the very nature of teenagers tures right away and want to be a star when they want to let loose. The software and technology is leads me to believe—with no concrete proof, per se— making it affordable and more portable. Add in social media and branding, and you have the ability to that at some point they’ll just start thinking the photo have your marketing all over the product. booths are silly.” “People can now upload to all their social media accounts or email the photos right after they are Then again, since corporate parties and wedding done. There are systems that can fit in the back seat of a car, just like new advances in DJ technology are receptions typically include the alcohol factor, the getting smaller and easier to carry and compete.” long-range potential for increased bookings of By interacting with people from all over the world about photo booths every day on his Facebook pages, photo booths for those events provide more Stephenson says companies are always finding ways to set themselves apart from each other. hope for their long-term viability. n
By Wesley Bryant-King There’s no question that the music industry has, in the last decade or so, changed dramatically. On one front, music distribution has changed markedly in the post-original-Napster era, and the shift from physical to digital is now quite wellestablished. (Along with it, the monetary value of recorded music in the eye of the consumer has declined markedly as well, but that’s a topic for another article, another day.) Distribution has also been fully democratized; anyone who wants to sell a track on iTunes (or Google Play, or Amazon.com, or…) can now do so with a minimal price for admission. But production—more the subject of this article—has also been democratized. While the gear still requires an investment and the means to make that investment, creating the so-called “garage band” and producing music has never been more within the reach of the masses. For those of us in the EDM world, the term “garage band” might not apply, but the principles are much the same, and in this article, I take a look at what’s involved in putting together a respectable, functional home studio from the ground up. My motivation? While I’ve been a musician for most of my adult life, it was just six short years ago that I assembled my first commissioned EDM remix. In the years since, I’ve been commissioned here and there to do more, but it was last fall that I released my first track under my own name (a remake of the ’80s classic “I Love My Radio,” with vocals from Carol Hahn). To celebrate, I decided I wanted a better studio than my home office, with its less-than-ideal, all-hard-surfaces, shared focus. This article documents the journey of setting one up.
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Choosing a Location
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For most of us, space is always at a premium. Whether you rent or own also enters into the equation, as does whether or not your walls are shared with your neighbors. Thankfully, a decent home studio doesn’t really require a ton of space, but it does require a balancing act of compromise between what you have available, what’s the least likely to bother others (in your own home, or your neighbors, as applicable), as well as which space has the optimal acoustic qualities. There is almost never an ideal combination, unfortunately. Aside from other considerations, the ultimate goal is to have a space where audio reflections are minimized. Hard surfaces allow sound waves to bounce around, which will skew your perceptions of your recordings and make leveling and mastering difficult. As a result, you want soft surfaces—not hard ones. So to the extent pos-
sible, choose your space accordingly. Avoid hard wood or laminate flooring in favor of carpet, or at least soft, thick rugs vs. bare, hard surfaces. Upholstered chairs or sofas also help, as can fabric window coverings (like thick curtains instead of blinds, for example). Few of us have the ability to truly dedicate space on a permanent basis to home studio. If you’re one of those who do have that flexibility, installing acoustic foam panels (available online or from music stores) can help acoustically deaden a space. Unless you’ll be recording vocals or live instruments, fully deadening a space is not necessary, and for those of us who have to make the home studio part of a greater living space, it’s a balance of technical needs and aesthetics. For my own studio, the aesthetics trumped other considerations, so acoustic foam panels were not really an option. I chose instead to try my best to nullify hard surfaces with decorating choices involving lots of “soft stuff.” Another aspect of location choice is electrical power. Thankfully, the typical home studio just doesn’t need much actual amperage capacity in most cases; it’s more a matter of sufficient outlets. I’ll talk more about that later, but make sure that there’s at least one outlet pair in close proximity—ideally one that’s not shared on a circuit with noise-generating appliances like fans, microwave ovens, etc.
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Building a Workspace
The amount of workspace you need depends on a number of factors, but given that the typical home studio is a computer and computer monitor, some audio gear, maybe a small keyboard, and a pair of studio monitors (speakers), for most of us, a main work surface or desk 5- to 6-feet wide is sufficient, assuming the monitors will sit on top of it. (Using floor stands will reduce the desk size needs.) Music gear retailers have any number of offthe-shelf options available. One of my producer/ musician friends here in Denver assembled his workspace using commercially available glass-top desk units with metal “Z” legs, and the result is aesthetically striking. In my own case, I wanted a work surface, some desk drawers, shelves for manuals and other “stuff,” and space to one side for a double deck of a MIDI keyboard and a synthesizer. While I looked for ready-made workstation options, I wasn’t happy with either the available options— or the prices (as a notorious cheapstake). As a result, I went with a DIY approach fueled by my local IKEA store. The work surface is a NUMERÄR kitchen countertop, used without cutting (roughly 73-inches wide x 25-inches deep). To support it, I used height-adjustable VIKA KAJ desk legs (to allow it to sit level with only the front two legs on a rug; the back paid on the hardware floor underneath—while providing flexibility in overall height choice). Desk storage came via a MICKE
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Building a Home Studio Requires Some Attention to Detail, But Not as Much Money as You Might Think
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drawer unit, while shelves came via an EXPEDIT shelving unit with a couple of DRÖNA boxes, enabling me to store cables and other stuff out-ofsight on two of the shelves. To add a sturdy keyboard tray, I turned to Rockler (a national chain of woodworking supply stores) for the sliding tray hardware, combined with a standard black, laminated shelf (from the local Home Depot). And to create a system to elevate my computer monitor to ergonomic height, and the studio monitors to ear height, I borrowed some ideas found online, and used still more IKEA parts. CAPITA legs, in brushed stainless steel and available in 4-, 6-, and 8-inch heights, are normally for another purpose, but make an ideal choice for building your own elevated work surfaces when combined with shelving, either as-is, or cut to size. I did some measurements of my needs, drafted a plan on paper, determined size and positioning for cuts and holes, and then using EKBY HEMNES shelving, custom-
made an adjustable desktop-stand system in a couple of weekend hours. Finally, the keyboard and synth are situated along the right side of my work area on standard metal stands available from any major music gear retailer. Lighting choices (also IKEA) completed the workspace, along with an existing Herman-Miller Mirra office chair (comfort and adjustability justify the investment in a premium product here, in my view). The point here is to pick something that works for you, and not to rule-out some creative DIY to tailor the result to your space, needs, preferences, and budget.
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Choosing & Adjusting the Gear: Monitors
Which gear you choose is largely a factor of your workflow and individual needs and preferences. At a minimum, of course, you’ll need a decent pair of professional-grade near-field studio monitors to hear your work, positioned optimally. (I’ll talk more about that in the next section.) In my personal view, monitors with 8-inch main drivers are an ideal choice. Of course, you can pick something larger if you have the space, and you’ll get a tad more low-end from them if you do. It’s not a place to skimp in your investment, in any case; high-quality monitors are a one-time investment worth making if you’re serious about your studio, and you can expect to lay out around $500 each for them typically— sometimes more. Most monitor series from most manufacturers also have optional sub-woofers available. Whether you choose to have one is a personal choice, but I’ve found that they can skew mixing and mastering if not leveled properly, and doing proper leveling is difficult at the very low end of the frequency spectrum, where sound waves propagate differently than higher up in the audible range. Not only is tuning a sub challenging, but so is adjusting the top monitors. Trained audio engineers might be able to make more skilled judgment calls, but those of us who lack that training have to make do. Listen to a wide range of familiar material once the studio is fully set up and everything in place. Does the audio sound bright? It probably
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
is; use back-of-monitor adjustments to reduce the high-end. Does it pound like a nightclub on a Saturday night? Turn down the sub to a more modest level to avoiding skewing your mixes. Room-tuning devices (a couple of which I’ve reviewed in past issues of DJ Times) can be helpful here, but don’t discount using your ears. One of the clearest ways to know something’s not right is simply to try an informal mastering job in your new studio, leveling and EQing carefully until you’re satisfied with the result, then listening to that result in as many listening environments as you can (home stereos, headphones, ear buds, in your car, etc.). Is it harsh? Is there too much lowend? What you hear provides plenty of clues to the adjustments you may need to make to your studio listening environment. Just remember that things work backward, so to speak; are your mixes consistently a bit dull, sonically speaking? The reflectivity of the listening environment may be accentuating the high-end in your studio, causing you to cut those frequencies too much in your mix. Tame the high-end in the studio listening environment, and the net result will likely be a brightening in your mixes as you attempt to make your own ears happy. Similarly, inadequate low-end punch can be caused by having your sub turned-up too high (or the low-end on the top monitors not adjusted properly).
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C
Choosing & Adjusting the Gear: The Rest
Once the monitors are out of the way, the other items that make-up your home studio depend almost entirely on needs and preferences. On the computer front, in my own case, I decided I wanted the ability to work on music on-the-go, as well as in the studio. To that end, a notebook computer—not normally associated music production, per-
haps—was my computer of choice; in my case, a tiny little 13-inch MacBook Pro with plenty of memory and a solid-state hard disk. When sitting in the studio, it’s connected to an Apple Thunderbolt display, which provides power, lots of screen real estate, as well as network, USB and other connections. Essential USB devices (such as my audio interface) are connected directly to the USB ports on the Thunderbolt display, while secondary USB devices go to a separate USB hub (see below). The end result has proven itself in terms of performance; you may prefer a traditional desktop system. One noteworthy item to talk about is the audio interface. If you’ve not invested in a decent, professional-grade audio interface before now, the build out of your studio is a great time to do it. I, as well as my colleagues here at DJ Times, have reviewed scores of audio interfaces over the years, and there are myriad choices across myriad budgets. Beyond the overall quality, as it pertains to your new home studio, choose something with the inputs and outputs you need to support your workflow. On the output side, a pair of stereo outs is nearly essential—one for your monitors, one for headphones. Many producers find that
Neatness may or may not truly count, but the build out of my new studio was an excuse to pull out a couple of rolls of hook-and-loop tape and tidy up all the cabling between and among all the gear, resulting in a finished product that, aestheticallyspeaking, is a source of pride every time I sit down to work on music, or host the occasional visitor here at home.
s
Summary
support for two pair of monitors is useful (which means finding a place for a second set on the worktop as well), allowing A/B comparison in-studio. But beyond output, get the inputs you need. Recording vocals? Live instruments? If so, by instrument cable, or mic? Running external synths? For my own needs, one stereo monitor out, one stereo headphone out, and a pair of mono, switchable inputs (which can, of course, be used as a single stereo input if I wish) was sufficient. I can switch those two inputs among four different pairs of physical connections, and given that I’ll be using them only one at a time, it meets my needs just fine. As mentioned earlier, electrical
needs are a key consideration. Total power draw isn’t the issue—“clean,” noise-free, surge-free power is. Music retailers have an array of power distribution systems that help address both the noise issue as well as the “number-of-places-to-plug-things” issue. Better quality UPS units (uninterruptable power supplies) often address noise filtration in addition to the benefit of taming of surges, brown-outs, and letting you ride through brief black-outs. I personally choose the UPS route. As for everything else—computer, computer monitor(s), USB hubs, etc.—there’s little to say other than making sure you have a place for the stuff you need and use.
Price-wise , it totalled $6,640, breaking down like this: Furniture and Lighting: $420 Chair: $850 Basic Studio Gear (monitors, I/O, etc.): $2,000 DAW (Ableton Suite): $750 Computer Gear (Apple): $2,620 Building out a home studio is not rocket science, but some attention to the proper details, coupled with the right mix of commercially available (and, perhaps DIY) components can help you achieve optimal technical results. And while possessing a nice home studio won’t itself catapult you to stardom, it might very well help foster creativity and put you in the right mindset to help make it happen. n
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MAKING TRACKS STUDIO…HARDWARE…SOFTWARE…
AUDIO REPAIR BY IZOTOPE AUDIO REPAIR BY IZOTOPE
RX3 Advanced: Extra plug-ins solve problems.
Spectral Repair: Algorithms resynthesize audio.
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
By Josh Harris
26
“The Denoiser plug-in can rescue your noisy tracks by simply removing the unwanted noise.”
Audio repair has been around for years, and I remember seeing the old Cedar hardware de-clicker and de-noiser boxes in action years ago. These boxes represented the crème de la crème in real-time audio repair, and I was impressed with how easily they removed unwanted artifacts from a recording. But, they came with a hefty price tag, and so only a few studio people really had access to them. Not anymore. The Boston-based software company iZotope has released its collection of audio-repair tools, called RX3 & RX3 Advanced. For this review, I used the RX3 Advanced suite, which contains some additional plug-ins that the regular RX version does not contain, like Dialogue Denoiser, Dereverb, and Deconstruct. Installation & Set-Up: The process was a breeze, and I quickly opened up a blank session in Studio One. Then, I imported a wet vocal stem from a remix project that I recently completed. Next, I launched the Dereverb plug-in and began tweaking its parameters. This was my first time using a
reverb removal plug-in, and I have to say that I was extremely impressed. I was able to remove the reverb without any issues. I’ve been an iZotope user and fan for years, so I have come to expect a certain level of performance from their plug-ins, and Dereverb was no exception. Imagine a remixing scenario where you received just a wet set of vocals, when you had specifically asked for a dry set. Well, with Dereverb, you have the ability to create that dry set of vocals. I spent some time on a few of the other plug-ins, like the Denoiser. This plug-in can rescue your noisy tracks by simply removing the unwanted noise. If, for example, you happen to have a guitar track that has a little bit of noise in it, Denoiser can remove that unwanted noise—so turning up the guitar track doesn’t introduce noise into the mix! I also enjoyed the Declipper, which works by reconstructing the damaged peaks in the waveform. Every once in a while, I’ll encounter a vocal track where the performance was good, but there was a little bit of clipping on a word or two. Declipper can clean those spots up, and if you hap-
pen to work with dialogue, say, this plug-in can really save the day. Speaking of dialogue, Dialogue Denoiser is a nice tool for cleaning up some of the unwanted room noise, or outside noise that often creeps into a dialogue recording. Spectral Repair reveals characteristics about your audio that a regular waveform won’t show you. I could see this being an important plug-in to have if you are working with live recordings and have to repair certain spots where some unwanted frequencies appeared. Once the problem spot has been identified, this plug-in’s algorithms can resynthesize the audio. While most of us don’t need to lean on an arsenal of audio-repair plug-ins on a daily basis, every once in a while, we find ourselves in an unusual situation where a set of tools like those in iZotope’s RX3 will bail us out. Price Points: RX3’s MSRP is $349, while RX3 Advanced has an MSRP of $1,199. In my book, iZotope scores big points with this latest release. If you have any questions for Josh Harris or Making Tracks, please send them to djtimes@testa.com.
SOUNDING OFF PLAYBACK…PRO AUDIO…PROCESSING
DJ Control AIR+: Hercules’ Latest Affordable Controller.
HERCULES GOES AIR+ By Wesley Bryant-King
One of the first reviews I recall writing for these pages was about a DJ controller from Hercules, the market-facing brand for France’s Guillemot, and the company has been cranking out a varied and expanding line of such controllers ever since. In 2012, I reviewed Hercules’ DJ Control AIR, an affordable, entrylevel controller designed primarily for the aspiring DJ who wants to establish and refine the basics. Since then, Hercules has upgraded the device, dubbing it the DJ Control AIR+ and adding some refinements. (The original Air is still available.) In introducing the AIR+, Hercules gives additional control options, in the process arguably providing a worthy base for transitioning to club or mobile work, while keeping the overall approach fairly Spartan and streamlined. As was the case with its predecessor, the AIR+ departs from most of the rest of the Hercules line in that it exchanges the typical all-steel construction with a plastic case, but it retains the aggressive price point and position in the market that the Air established. With a street price of about $225, it’s within easy reach of virtually anyone who wants to get a foothold in DJ mixing and control. DJUCED: Capable DJ software from Hercules.
Also like its sibling, the AIR+ ships with DJUCED, Hercules’ own DJ software, albeit with an upgraded, higher-resolution audio engine, and a new designation: DJUCED 40°. The original version is now referred to as DJUCED 18°, although beyond the improved audio engine, it’s not entirely clear what other refinements have been made in the process. In any event, the entry price gets you everything you need out of the box to get down and get your fingers dirty with the art of DJing.
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
Set-Up & Use
28
While the DJ Control AIR+ can be used as a controller with most DJ software applications (thanks to its support for standard MIDI), it seems most reasonable to assess its merits in terms of its use with the bundled software. Installation is exceptionally straightforward; insert CD, follow the instructions. Alternatively, Hercules makes available for download both the necessary drivers, and the DJUCED software, and to ensure I had the latest versions of both, it’s the approach I took. Logically, I installed the drivers first, connected the unit, then installed DJUCED. The entire process (including download time) was completed in minutes. For interface, the front panel has both 1/8-inch and ¼-inch headphone jacks. On the back side, perhaps reflecting its target position in the marketplace, there’s a choice of an 1/8-inch stereo jack or a pair of RCA jacks. The front panel also sports a ¼-inch microphone jack, making the unit potentially suitable for mobile applications where a mic is nearly always mandatory. Computer connection is, as usual, via standard USB (which is also its sole source of power). A Kensington lock port is provided as well. Firing-up DJUCED, I was presented with an interface that seems as if it might be a bit more overwhelming to a new user than the older
version. The interface is pretty wellpacked with options and controls and, while it’s attractive enough overall, subjectively, it lacks some of the polish one might expect in this day and age of ever-more-refined user interface and user experience design.That being said, anyone who’s done DJing of any kind in the past will feel immediately at home, and “newbs” will get the sort of industry-standard introduction they actually need from the start. Loading some familiar tracks into the decks, connecting some basic monitors and a pair of headphones, I was off to the races, and it was easy to make a basic mix with relative perfection from the very start. As I began to use the AIR+ a bit more, however, I began to notice a few things that seemed a little jarring as I tried to put myself into the shoes of a new-to-DJing user. While the AIR+ controller has buttons for effects control, the DJUCED software shows knobs for them. Essentially the controller allows you to turn individual effects on and off, but the user has to reach for the mouse to control both the effect parameter, and separately, dry/wet balance. And with the potential to enable four effects at once, mouse-based control shows its weaknesses and limitations quite rapidly. If this product pairing is designed for entry-level users, it would seem smarter in my view to reduce the number of simultaneous effects, and focus more on better control options between hardware and software. The same four buttons I just mentioned can be switched to loop control where their layout seems better suited, providing in point, out point, and loop size (up and down) control. But here too, some polish was lacking; the switch between effect and loop functions is done with a pair of buttons labeled only “Bank 1” and “Bank 2.” The term “bank” has nothing to do with their actual function; couldn’t they have been better labeled? On a more positive note, the AIR+ has a pair of rotary encoders that are solid, beefy, and actually quite enjoyable to use. They’re also huge by most standards: six inches in diameter, in fact. Like a typical CDJ, they can be operated in a normal or vinyl mode, and provide the expected functionality in each mode. The other controls are typical Hercules. The pitch, level and crossfaders all have a nice, solid feel, as do the various knobs (such as for EQ). The buttons are also typical for controllers in this price range: rubberized, drum-pad-like, most with LED backlighting, and not unpleasant to use.
Finally, as with the original AIR controller, the unit is fitted with an infrared sensor that ostensibly translates proximity (presumably of your hand floating above it) into a MIDI message, and according to the marketing materials, accounts for the AIR name (Adjustment by InfraRed). While a potentially novel idea, perhaps, it appears that the standard MIDI mappings out-of-the-box don’t connect this means of control to any controllable parameter in DJUCED, leaving me a bit puzzled as to its potential, and a strange oversight in my view.
“DJ Control AIR+ provides everything the aspiring jock needs to learn, practice and perform the art of the DJing.”
Conclusions
Some of its idiosyncrasies aside, like the original AIR, the DJ Control AIR+ provides everything the aspiring jock needs to learn, practice and perform the art of the DJing. With all the essential controls at hand, coupled with a logical layout, and with capable DJ software bundled in the box, the attractive price point will surely attract its intended audience, while providing the tools needed to carry them in front of a crowd for the first time after honing their chops and style.
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MOBILE PROFILE CAREERS…INNOVATIONS…SUCCESS STORIES
OHIO DJ USES THE ART OF
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
By Stu Silvers
30
Oakwood Village, Ohio—One look at Matt Radicelli’s pedigree and you can see why his decision to pursue DJing as a career was somewhat preordained, in the cards: His mom and dad ran a nightclub, where his dad was the DJ, while mom was the bartender/controller. “All throughout middle school and high school, I was getting paid to do school dances, teen events, and private parties,” says Radicelli. “When I was a junior in high school, I decided to tell my mom that I wasn’t going to go to college, and besides DJing, I opened up an audio/visual installation company.” This was 1997, and it wasn’t until two years later, after he did his first Bat Mitzvah, that his “eyes were opened to the world of possibilities for interactive mobile entertainment.” That was the year Radicelli started his now-multi-op company, Rock the House Entertainment (RTH), and also when he realized that quality of performance and customer service were the keys to success in his Northeastern Ohio market. “I realized early on that I would rather compete on quality than compete on price,” he says. “I also learned that having the right team members in place made growth and competition much easier to manage.” Radicelli lacked a business plan, but he did know what markets he wanted to pursue, and, by adding services like lighting, photo booths, casino and inflatables, he saw steady growth year over year. He added systems and hired DJs, MCs and support staff, and with the exception of a relatively small growth phase during the 2008-09 downturn, RTH has grown consistently, as much as 40-percent, and no less than 20-percent. Over the last four years, RTH has increased the number of bookings each year by 10- to 30-percent. By handling big-market events from Cleveland to Columbus and Pittsburgh, RTH books more than 1,000 events a year. Says Radicelli: “It’s the mentality of taking one step at a time and continuing to increase as we go.”
Matt Radicelli still looks to expand.
THE ACQUISITION One practice that Radicelli believes separated his company from the competition was to snap photos at their events and post them on their website the next day. “As far as we can tell we were at least four to five years ahead of the curve on this practice,” he says. “And it’s one of the things that catapulted our brand to the top of the list locally.” One other leap Radicelli took to separate his business even more from the competition was attending the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business program. “It was a game changer for me,” he says. “When one of my customers cornered me on the dancefloor during his son’s Bar Mitzvah and told me that I had to join this program, I knew he was serious and I needed to look into it. Once I found out that the program had been compared to a masters-level course for entrepreneurs and small business owners, I knew it was a great opportunity.” The accelerated nature of the program—crash courses in management topics like HR, accounting, leadership, marketing, and negotiation, with workshops curated by Goldman
Sachs team members—kept him interested, and provided motivation for him to take the next steps for his business. The takeaways, which all DJ business owners can benefit from, Radicelli describes thusly: * “One of the most important roles of a leader is to spend a considerable amount of time on marketing and sales innovation. The Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program put me in a position where a regimented schedule gave me the opportunity to spend considerable amounts of time on the business.” * “All entrepreneurs have an inner need to create something from nothing or to continuously create and improve those around them. This program has helped to reinvigorate and to remind me of the things that I really enjoy doing and that I need to delegate everything else.” * “The program allowed me to develop new contacts with other Cleveland-based entrepreneurs that also led to the creation of friendships with more than 40 people, including my classmates and the program faculty and staff.”
But it was during one of the financial clinics, when a quote flashed across the video screen, saying, “Anyone Who Can Be Your Competitor, Can Be Your Partner,” that Radicelli had his epiphany. “That ah-ha moment led to me offering to buy one of our competitors that very same day,” he says. “We closed the deal to purchase it before I graduated from the program.” The acquisition of Zone Entertainment reflected Radicelli’s belief that businesses can grow in a multitude of ways. “We realized a few years ago that while we certainly are going to continue to work hard at growing our brand and strengthening our position, if we really wanted to take a leap forward, we had to take into consideration buying portions of our market share. With that said, you generally buy a business for one of two reasons: for market share and for cash flow. In this case, this deal should provide both.” With the purchase, RTH, now billing itself as Rock the House Entertainment Group, gains approximately 20- to 30-percent more market share than they currently have. Jeff Dick, the past and current president of Zone, will continue to operate the brand in parallel to RTH and will not be consumed by the company. Says Radicelli: “He essentially will continue to operate as a competitor,” says Radicelli, applying business laws of scale to his industry. “That’s our plan for future growth,” he adds. “Continue to stay the course with regards to our entertainment division and to grow and scale the production side of our business. We are just now just realizing the potential and growth opportunities for weekday work in the corporate and non-profit sectors, and since we know quite a bit about the DJ business in general, it’s likely that we’ll attempt or continue to attempt to acquire other reputable competitors. The more we can surround ourselves with great people, the more job security and stability we have in all of our futures.”
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BUSINESS LINE SALES…MARKETING…SOLUTIONS…
THINGS SETH GODIN SAYS ABOUT BUSINESS By Connie Kearney
What Facebook and Twitter have
Marketing ninja Seth Godin might be the most famous of the many self-help gurus for entrepreneurs. His many books, starting with his breakthrough Permission Marketing: Turning Strangers into Friends, and Friends into Customers, to last year’s Whatcha Gonna Do with That Duck? And Other Provocations, share one thing in common: they discuss ways in which business owners can add value to people’s lives, not take away. Godin is famous for challenging assumptions, and as every DJ owner knows, banking on assumptions can be dangerous for business. Here are some recent edicts from Godin.
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
How Marketing Strategy Has Changed: Marketing and advertising used to be exactly the same thing in 1965. Advertising was a magical message for turning money into attention, and then you could turn that attention into trust, and you could turn that trust into profit. Most of the culture of marketing is still built around the idea of interrupting strangers and getting them to do what you want. In the last 20 years since I wrote Permission Marketing, that has been turned on its ear, and in fact, marketing is now about storytelling. It’s about ideas that spread. It’s about being remarkable. And it’s about talking to people that want to be talked to instead of yelling at strangers.
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The Growth of Online Engagement: What Facebook and Twitter have taught us is that we crave connection. Ultimately, online connection is a very sad substitute for the real kind. We’ll take it if it’s our only choice, but what we really want are those life-changing interactions that we remember and
taught us is that we crave connection. Ultimately, online connection is a very sad substitute for the real kind.
they miss you if you didn’t mail them? If not, then you’re fooling yourself into thinking you have something you don’t. Blaming the tool. There is a wealth of powerful email tools out there (like Mailchimp). If your email campaign isn’t working, it’s almost certainly not their fault. Don’t waste time looking for a better pencil—learn to write better. Your mailmerge is broken. Dear <first name> is far worse than no mailmerge at all. Here’s the simple test: if you’re not willing to spend 15 seconds per name reviewing the list and cleaning it up (why did you email me six times?), then don’t expect that we have 15 seconds to read what you wrote. If you have 4,000 names, that’s 1,000 minutes. Don’t have 1,000 minutes? Don’t send the mail. Text is what humans send. Corporations send HTML and Handling “No”: The difficult task is to turn around a No. It’s not, “No, I’ve thought about it, but I’m not interested,” pretty graphics. Either can work if expectations are set properly, but, “No, I feel like saying ‘no,’ whatever you’re offering, the but if you’re a human, act like one. Why are you emailing me? If you can’t tell me in six words answer is no.” If the fractious child or the skeptical prospect or the what you need me to do, it’s unlikely I’ll be able to guess. The frightened boss is coming from a place of no, your proposal thing you need me to do better be fun, worth doing and generous. If it’s not, I’m not going to do it, no matter how much you just isn’t going to work. Shaking that rattle or waving that spreadsheet isn’t going need me to do it. When does this end? If you’re going to send me a series to work, because it’s not going to be judged on the merits. The facts are irrelevant... if your partner (and yes, the person of notes to promote something, does it go on forever? Telling you’re with right now is your partner, engaged in a dance me what’s ahead is more likely to earn you permission going that will end with yes or no) is in search of a no, nothing is forward. “Oh good, the next one!” If people aren’t saying that, you’ve failed. going to go right. Pinging everyone, at once. Why on earth would you hit SEND The best path, then, is to first work on the “no,” not the pitch or the facts or the urgent thing you need approved ALL? Send 20, see what happens. Send 20 different ones, comright now. First, talk about the dance, and the goals, and how pare. Send 50. Now send all. If your email promotion is a taking, not a giving, I think you it feels to get to a yes. Then tell me your story. should rethink it. If you still want to take the time and attention Email Failures: Just because you have had a previous re- and trust of your 4,000 closest friends, think hard about what lationship with someone doesn’t mean you have permission that means for the connections you’ve built over the years. to email them. Permission marketing is anticipated, personal There are few promotional emergencies that are worth trading and relevant messaging. The simple measure is this: Would your reputation for. that we can build a career around. I will share with you a recent obsession of mine. If you go to an event and you see they have set the room up with 10-top round tables and they are about to serve a banquet that is designed to feed a large number of people in a short period of time, you have just seen failure. They have tried to industrialize the process and get it over with. No one ever creates a human interaction at a table for 10. No one ever meets a stranger and starts a relationship in that sort of setting. When we start processing people instead of connecting people, we are sacrificing our biggest asset, which is this ability to make chemistry and magic happen.
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AM to RPM Akai Professional/inMusic 200 Scenic View Drive Cumberland, RI 02864 (401) 658-4032 www.akaipro.com The RPM500 and RPM800 are two new reference monitors from Akai Professional.The models offer 90 and 120 watts, respectively, and they come in cabinets that are reinforced to minimize flex, according to the company. Features include Kevlar cones in the speakers, a flared rear-firing bass port, and a monitor isolation pad that the company says will decrease structure-borne resonances and noise. Additionally, both feature HF Trim, Mid-Range Boost, LF Cutoff controls, plus XLR, balanced ¼-inch TRS, and RCA inputs.
MIDI of the Road American Audio 6122 S. Eastern Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90040 (323) 582-2650 www.adjaudio.com The two-channel ELMC-1 MIDI Controller from American Audio is designed to “grow” with the beginner DJ, according to the company. The unit, which plugs directly into a computer via USB, comes equipped with two large jog wheels, an FX/Sampler select and activation encoder, and buttons that access the Play, Cue, Sync and Auto Loop commands. The ELMC-1 comes bundled with Virtual DJ LE software. Additional features include pitch bend, three-band EQ, and one master and two separate gain controls for volume.
Honey, I Shrunk the Launchpad Focusrite Novation 840 Apollo Street, Suite 312 El Segundo, CA 90245 (310) 322-5500 www.us.focusrite.com Novation’s Launchpad Mini allows users produce and perform music with an iPad, PC or Mac. The Launchpad Mini corrects directly to the iPad with the Apple Camera Connection Kit. It comes fully-integrated with Ableton Live, as well as the free Launchpad iPad app, through which users can import samples, play loops and effects, and download professionally-produced sound packs from within the app. Features include 64 three-color Launch pads and 16 three-color performance buttons. A copy of Ableton Live Lite is also included.
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
DriveRack My Car
34
dbx/Harman International 400 Atlantic Street Stamford, CT 06901 (203) 328-3500 www.dbxpro.com Harman’s dbx DriveRack PA2 Loudspeaker Management System is designed for artists who carry their own PA. The system can be set up and operated from a compatible tablet or smartphone thanks to a new Wizard utility that makes setup easier. It comes with an AFS Advanced Feedback Suppression feature, which automatically finds and dials out feedback-producing frequencies. The PA2 also features dbx compression, AutoEQ, a built-in loudspeaker crossover, and dbx’s exclusive Subharmonic Synthesis for enhanced low-frequency response.
GEAR AUDIO…LIGHTING…STUFF
25th Anniversary Moments
All Mixered Up Reloop/American Music & Sound 22020 Clarendon St, Suite 305 Woodland Hills, CA 91367 (800) 431-2609 www.reloop.com The RMX-80 Digital mixer from Reloop comes with 13 performance effects that the company developed with professional DJs for maximum club suitability. The mixer comes with 4+1 channels, two mic inputs, two headphone outputs, one-knob equalizer, mono/stereo switch for headphones, and clear terminal panel for up to nine signal sources. There are two independent beat counters with intelligent tempo detect, as well as time bar buttons that allows for direct access to trigger, LFO, time and pitch effects. The mixer offers a frequency range of 20 Hz – 20 KHz.
LCD SOUNDSYSTEM’S JAMES MURPHY ON DJING: “Dance music has a leg up on other genres because it has a point. If you dance, it works. You can actually measure it.” – James Murphy, July, 2005
Our Miami “Gleason Awards”: And Away We Go!...
Young Geyser Chauvet DJ 5200 NW 108th Ave. Sunrise, FL 33351 (800) 762-1084 www.chauvetlighting.com Chauvet DJ has released the Geyser RGB Jr., a compact version of the Geyser RGB effect fogger. The unit blasts a 15-foot high vertical stream of safe, water-based fog into the air, while simultaneously illuminating it using nine high-power, 3-watt RGB LEDs. The combination of red, green and blue LEDs allows DJs to easily mix the perfect color to transform the fog into a stunning effect.
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DJUCED Up Guillemot Corporation BP 2 56204 La Gacilly Cedex France +33 (0) 2 99 08 08 80 www.guillemot.com
It Takes Two Pioneer Electronics 1925 E. Dominguez Street Long Beach, CA 90810 (310) 952-2000 www.pioneerdjusa.com The DDJ-SB two-channel DJ controller from Pioneer is designed as an all-in-one system for entry-level DJs. The unit utilizes Serato DJ Intro software, which includes such effects as hot cue and sampler. The DDJ-SB has a new Filter Fade function that allows for smooth blending transitions “even with music that has vastly different styles,” according to the company. The unit features large aluminum jog plates, integrated handles, a built-in soundcard, and rubber performance pads that trigger such functions as auto loop, play, cue, sync and shift.
DJUCED introduced a new app for iPad that brings all of the DJUCED software features to the tablet for an on-the-go mixing experience. The app comes equipped with more than 90 features, including BPM analysis, cue points, step sequencer and “realistic” scratching effects. There is an automix feature and a recording feature for creating and sharing tracks, as well as a sampler with automatic loop extraction and cutting features.
L, M-Audio, N, O, P
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FEBRUARY 2014
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M-Audio introduced the M3-8 studio reference monitor, a three-way monitor designed with dedicated low-, mid-, and high-frequency drivers that each come with their own dedicated amplifier. According to the company, the product is specially designed to offer accuracy in the lower midrange frequencies. The high- and mid-frequency drivers are coaxial, while the eight-inch low-frequency and five-inch midrange drivers are made out of Kevlar. The one-inch silk dome tweeter features integrated waveguides and the cabinet sports a wooden veneer, as well as tuned bass porting and internal bracing.
Hold My Hot Hand Source Audio 120 Cummings Park Woburn, MA 01801 (781) 932-8080 www.sourceaudio.com The Hot Hand USB Wireless MIDI Controller from Source Audio controls software with wireless motion control that is achieved with a USB stick receiver and a wireless motion sensing ring that uses a three-axis accelerometer to detect hand movement. It works with PC and Mac, and it integrates with DAW controllers like Ableton Push, Livid Instruments’ Base, or Native Instruments’ S2/S4. The Hot Hand USB works with the company’s Hot Hand USB Editor software, allowing users to assign the X, Y, or Z axes to control multiple parameters.
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GROOVES TRACKS…MIXES…COMPILATIONS
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Above & Beyond
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u Art Department u No. 19 Music The inaugural voyage of BPM Fest’s bi-yearly mix series kicks off with a discerning blend of techno, tech-house and deep house flush with dramatic melody and full-bodied lowend palpitations. Highlights include Tenwalls’ “Requiem,” Deetron’s “Character,” Eric Volta’s “Love Your Illusion,” the nearly 13-minute journey of Ripperton’s remix of “Why Don’t Ya” and Marcus Worgull & Peter Pardeike’s conscioussnatching “Lenoix.”
– Chris Davis
DJ White Shadow
“LOVE IS NOT ENOUGH” (ACOUSTIC)
u Above & Beyond u Anju-
Style of Eye
nabeats Here, the English trio smooth out the fifth single from its 2011 album Group Therapy into a beautiful, string-filled masterpiece of muted trumpets, piano, acoustic drums, harp and featured vocalist Zoë Johnston’s silky, angelic voice.
– Chris Davis MISTRESS 02 u Justa Position u Mistress/Hush This diverse three-tracker kicks off with “Mercy,” a stout helping of super-soulful techno, it then eases into the ominous and building “The Darkness,” a perfect track for 3 a.m. or later. The fave “Mazury” dives more into freak-mode territory—a steady, but skittery beat splashed with a cacophony of twisted synths.
– Jim Tremayne “THE JOURNEY” (REMIXED) EP
u Russ Yallop u Crosstown Rebels Melokoletiv’s remix features slowly layered, eerie and spiritual vocals, ping-pong percussion and evolving synth gestures that segue into a creepy dub mix, perfect for a murderous Santa Claus riding in his evil sleigh. Russ packs a wallop with track 3—“How I Feel
Duke Dumont
(Dub)”—which chugs along to slightly atonal bass-guitar noodling and ample breakdowns punctuated by Belle’s vocals. Peak track, that one.
– Chris Davis “CONCEPTION” EP u Shall Ocin u Culprit “Forgive Me” growls its way through a deephouse forest, the enormous synths snarling back at the apologetic vocals, while Edu Imbernon’s remix kicks up the low end a bit. “Conception” takes an indie turn, sporting quirky synths and striking breakdowns. “Have To Say” gets upbeat and funky, and is the favorite of the bunch.
– Chris Davis “DANGER AHEAD” (THE REMIXES)
u Vanessa Daou u Outsider Music/KID With this tasty remix collection, club DJs are provided with bumping re-rubs from Kenny Summit and Culture Fires, while loungers get slinky efforts like “Vanessa Daou’s Stripped-Down-andGroove Mix.” The fave: “MANIK Rework,” which finds snippets of Daou’s breathy vocals interspersing sweetly with MANIK’s insistent kicks and deliciously wobbly basslines—a late-night house delight.
– Jim Tremayne
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u Duke Dumont feat. Jax Jones u Win Records After the success of his Grammy-nominated “Need U (100%),” Dumont is back with another winner, an equally housey number with an alluring female vocal from Jax Jones. Dumont successfully adds pop flavor here without laying on the cheese. This solid track is guaranteed to encourage immediately happy vibes with just the right amount of soul.
– Natalie Raben “KIDS” u Style of Eye u Ultra Music Continuing in his booming house direction heard in “After Dark,” Swedish producer Linus Eklow’s latest is an electro-space-disco outcry against trendy hipsters. Lightning strikes during a heavy drop that’s decked with zig-zagging synths and circling staccato squeaks.
– Chris Caruso “THE CLOCK IS TICKING” EP
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u DJ White Shadow u Decon Records Paul Blair is back with the second part of his EP trilogy. The cinematic, piano-driven production of the title track shows a surprisingly emotive approach to trap, while the 8-bit bubbling of “Ratchet”—rumored to originally be a duet between Lady Gaga and rapper Azealia Banks—is a simply bonkers experience.
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V-Moda.................................... 13 Winter Music............................ 7
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MP3s in 56
Compiled As January 10, 2014
National Crossover Pool Chart
National Urban Pool Chart
1 Pitbull F/ Ke$ha 2 Zedd F/ Hayley Williams 3 Miley Cyrus 4 Britney Spears 5 Icona Pop 6 Martin Garrix 7 Katy Perry 8 Hannah 9 Ayah Marar 10 Kim Cameron 11 John Newman 12 Lady Gaga 13 Rihanna 14 Jade Starling F/ Lee Dagger 15 Cindy Valentine 16 Madame Freak 17 Empire Of The Sun 18 Cher 19 Sophia May 20 Kwanza Jones 21 Daft Punk 22 Michele Lea 23 One Republic 24 Celine Dion 25 Wesley King F/ Carol Hahn 26 Dj Sammy F/ The Jackie Boyz 27 Dvbbs & Borgeous 28 Fall Out Boys 29 Meital 30 Avicii 31 Amy Weber F/ Sean Kingston 32 MAOR 33 Armin Van Buuren F/ Cindy Alma 34 Foxes 35 Peppermint Heaven 36 Pet Shop Boys 37 Noah 38 Donna Summer 39 Madison Park Vs Beechkraft 40 Sir Ivan
1 Chris Brown F/ Nicki Minaj 2 R. Kelly 3 John Legend 4 French Montana 5 Sevyn Streeter 6 Tamar Braxton 7 Drake F/ 2 Chains & Bif Sean 8 YG F/ Jeezy & Rich Homie Quan 9 August Alsina F/ Trinidad James 10 Lorde 11 Jayz 12 Beyonce F/ Jayz 13 Rico Love 14 Kid Ink F/ Chris Brown 15 T-Pain F/ B.O.B. 16 Eminem F/ Rihanna 17 Raheem DeVaughn 18 Candice Glover 19 Fantasia 20 Leela James F/ Anthony Hamilton
Timber Universal Stay The Night Interscope Wrecking Ball RCA Work Bitch RCA All Night Atlantic Animals Casablanca Unconditionally Capitol Good Feeling Tazmania Beg Borrow Steal Radikal Now You’re Mine Side FX Love Me Again Republic Applause Interscope What Now Island/Def Jam Insomniak Chemikal Ent. Wicked Ways Dauman / Global Groove Ride It Madame Freak DNA Astralwerks Take It Like A Man Warner Brothers Anywhere With You (rmx) Tazmania Vicious Innovative Ent. Lose Yourself To Dance Columbia Cannonball Columbia Counting Stars Interscope Love Me Back To Life Columbia I Love My Radio Moonworks Shut Up And Kiss Me Robbins Tsunami Doorn Alone Together Island/Def Jam Give Us Back Love Human Loves Human Hey Brother Island Dance Of Life Dauman Exit 27 Beautiful Life Armada Youth RCA So Unbelievable Megahit Thursday X-2 Keep On Movin’ Noah MaCarthur Park 2013 Verve Lets Dance BasicLux La La Land 2014 Peaceman
Most Added Tracks 1 Michele Lea 2 Audio Playground 3 Peppermint Heaven 4 Kwanza Jones 5 MAOR 6 Cher 7 Carlos Mojica F/ Asherah 8 Kim Cameron 9 Eddie Amador 10 Amy Weber F/ Sean Kingston
Reporting Pools
Cannonball Hands Up In The Air So Unbelievable Vicious Exit Take It Like A Man Take A Look Now You’re Mine You Better Work Dance Of Life
Columbia Sony/Canada Megahit Innovative Ent. 27 Warner Brothers Tazmania Side FX Citrusonic Dauman
n Dixie Dance Kings - Alpharetta, GA; Dan Miller n Flamingo R - Ft. Lauderdale, FL; Julio n Next Music Pool - Los Angeles, CA; Bob Ketchter n Masspool - Saugus, MA; Gary Canavo n OMAP - Washington, DC; Al Chasen n NW Dance Music - Shoreline, WA; John England n Fusion Radio - Chicago, IL; Manny Esparza n Pittsburgh DJ - Pittsburgh, PA; Jim Kolich n Soundworks - San Francisco, CA; Sam Labelle n New York Music Pool - Levittown, NY; Jackie McCloy n WPTV-Prty 105FM Frd MdMx - New York, NY; Mike Rizzo n MOOD Spins - Seattle, WA; Randy Schlager n Northeast Record Pool - Revere, MA; Justin Testa n Pacific Coast - Long Beach, CA; Steve Tsepelis
Love More Genius All Of Me Ain’t Worried About It Won’t Stop All The Way Home All Me My Hitta I Luv This Sh*t Royals Tom Ford Drunk In Love They Don’t Know Show Me Up Down The Monster Ridiculous Cried Side Effects Of You Say That
RCA RCA Columbia Interscope Atlantic Epic Cash Money Island/Def Jam Island/Def Jam Lava Roc Nation Columbia Interscope RCA RCA Interscope Mass Appeal Interscope RCA J&T
Most Added Tracks 1 2 3 4 5
Beyonce F/ Jay Z Rick Ross F/ Jay Z Justin Timberlake T-Pain F/ B.O.B. R. Kelly
Drunk In Love The Devil Is A Lie TKO Up Down Cookie
Columbia Island/Def Jam RCA RCA RCA
NEW National Latin Dance Pool Chart 1. Mauro Mosquera La Ruñidera Codiscos 2. Grupo Niche Tocando El Cielo PPM USA 3. Jorge Santana feat Aki S. Gracias Madrecita (Remix) The Misha Music Co. 4. J Quiles Orgullo (Remix) Rich Music 5. Wisin Que Viva La Vida Sony 6. Gabriel Coronel Desnudo (Remix) Warner Musica 7. Charlie Zaa Digo Yo Entity 8. Leslie Grace Odio No Odiarte Top Stop Music 9. Juanes La Luz (Remix) Universal 10. Rigu feat Toby Love Y Es Que La Quiero Warner Musica 11. Joey Montana feat Pitbull Love & Party (Remix) Universal 12. Toby Love Hey Top Stop Music 13. J Martin Cada Vez Que Te Vas (Remix) PPE 14. Kalimente Interesada Sueño 15. Los Cadillacs Bom Bom Crossover Promotions 16. Enrique Iglesias & Romeo Santos Locos Universal 17. Brenda K Starr Te Voy A Enamorar The 360 Site 18. Aniceto Molina La Jerigonza AJ Music 19. Prince Royce Darte Un Beso Top Stop Music 20. Tito El Bambino El Carnaval Venemusic
Most Added Tracks 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Victor Manuel Johnny Sky DLG feat. Ricky Luis Daddy Yankee Gloria Trevi feat Yunel Cruz
Ando Por Las Nubes With Or Without You Fuistes La Nueva y La Ex No Queria Lastimarte
Sony Premium Latin Platinum Web. Akela Familia Universal
Reporting Latin Pools n Latinos Unidos Record Pool n Salsamania Latin Record Pool n Lobo/Bass Record
Looking for these titles? You can hear them and buy them at www.dancekings.com. Just click on the links in the chart. DDK has limited memberships available for qualified DJs in the US. We service CDs and MP3s in dance and urban formats. Feedback and membership dues required. 770-740-0356
Pool n Urban Tropics Music Pool n North East Record Pool n Mixx Hitts Record Pool n Ritmo Camacho Record Pool n Ritmo Internacional Record Pool n DJ Latinos Record Pool n Mass Pool n Record Pool Latino n V.I.P. Chicago Record Pool.
DVS1
(continued from page 17)
them after one “bad track” or one left turn. They’ll stick with you to see where you’re gonna come back. DJ Times: Alright, gear-slut time. What’s your set-up? DVS1: Two Pioneer CDJs and two Technics SL-1200 turntables, but I ask for the MK5G’s, which are the plus16/minus-16 decks. The reason? I like to play old house tunes fast and I like to play to play old techno slow. DJ Times: Mixer? DVS1: I don’t like the layout, but I’m getting used to the Allen & Heath Xone mixers because I’m realizing that I’d rather sound good. I don’t need effects—I don’t need to fluff my mixes. The filters are nice. I don’t need a 4-band EQ, but I’m a DJ who’s technically proficient. At the end of the day, I’ll make do with whatever. DJ Times: These days, what’s the breakdown between playing vinyl and CDs? DVS1: It’s 50/50. It used to be all vinyl, obviously. But when I started traveling, I realized being on the road for four or five weeks at a time, I’d get tired of going through the same record bag for four weekends—so I started bringing CDs just to change it up. Then I started road-testing tracks, getting [digital] promos. DJ Times: So you’re fine with digital, then? DVS1: Well, I’ll never switch to all-digital because, to me, I end up playing all straight and linear. The vinyl, sonically, has changes. It has a different momentum—it just feels different. So, the mix of half-and-half is just right for me. I treat my digital organization of music the same way I organize my records. I have three levels of crates—floor crates, secondlevel and back-stock.
DJ Times: But no Serato, no Traktor… DVS1: No. I don’t think a laptop belongs in a DJ booth. Looking at your screen is not necessarily exciting. People forget the feelings you get standing on the dancefloor watching a DJ look through his records. As the DJs would look through their box, you felt this anxiety with them and when they found that record and they pulled it from the sleeve, the crowd would know that… he found it! They’re watching and waiting until he puts that fader up… wooo! Now it’s just some dude looking at his screen. So, for me, going through the record bag or CD book is part of that vibe, and I need it as much as the crowd needs it. DJ Times: Let’s talk about the evolution of your production. DVS1: I once used all-analog gear, but I ended up using Reason early on and I stuck with Reason. Honestly, Reason’s integration is like analog in a digital world, the way you can flip the rack, the way that you can configure wiring and just experiment with it. Now it’s grown to the point where you can work with external machines, so I’m a die-hard Reason fan. DJ Times: And your sounds and percussion? DVS1: Sounds come from synthesis. Other than a remix, I’ve never released anything yet that’s used a sample. Everything’s been proper synths, proper drum machines inside Reason—and me doing the manipulation. There are a couple tracks where I’ve used some sampling, but just for a sound or a noise. DJ Times: What’s it like running a label today? DVS1: I work with Hard Wax
in Berlin, and they’re my worldwide distributor. They believe in my music, they believe in me, and they have a very simple model. It’s no fluff, no gimmicks—if it’s good music, it sells. I believe in the old style of releasing music. You don’t put out an original and five remixes, like people are doing it today. I believe in three or four originals, and maybe one remix that has a meaning or a connection to it. DJ Times: So how do you survive? DVS1: People are struggling to sell more than 200 or 300 units of vinyl right now, but we’ve sold 500 to 1,000 every release. Some have broken 1,500 even—on vinyl that’s not even available digitally. As for the vinyl market, obviously, Germany is at its height because of the number of DJs and the number of clubs and people who use records. There are plenty of record stores in Berlin and plenty more popping up. In America, we struggle, obviously. DJ Times: With the big dancemusic explosion, are you seeing any migration from the festival/EDM world to the underground? DVS1: I think it’s the 3- to 5-percent. I don’t believe that 95-percent of this audience will find its way to different music. I kinda don’t think they all like the music that they’re listening to anyway—they’re just inside of something that popular and fun. I can’t hate on them—they’re all having a good time. It’s just not for me. DJ Times: For you, what’s the upside of this cultural shift, then? DVS1: Yeah, it’s created a situation where “house” and “techno” are no longer bad words. Ten years ago, you had the anti-rave laws
where they were shutting down anything with words like “house” and “techno” and “electronic music” attached to the events. Now, you have the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal writing about EDM’s success, they’re no longer bad words. DJ Times: Tell me about the underground events that you still throw in the Twin Cities. From what I understand, it’s a little bit like your own version of David Mancuso’s famous Loft Parties. DVS1: It’s my version and my vision. Since 1996, I’ve always done parties. Over the past eight years, I’ve done them in a few different spaces. But in the last four years, specifically, we’ve had a space that we don’t advertise on Facebook, don’t advertise publicly. For the events, it’s a private email list hand-picked by us, handchecked by us. Everyone’s a member—we give memberships out. We announce the parties two or three weeks before we do them to only the email list. We don’t allow anyone to re-post it, don’t allow anyone to talk about it publicly. The space holds 300 to 400 people. It’s mostly local DJs and usually one outside DJ—like our next one is with Ben Klock. We only do six to eight events a year. We have an amazing [Turbosound Flashlight/Floodlight] sound system in there—it’s the best illegal club in the city [laughs]. DJ Times: Advice for rising DJs? DVS1: If you give enough to something, it will give back to you—so don’t do this for the wrong reasons. Don’t do this to be popular. Don’t do this to make money. Don’t do this to get girls and champagne. Don’t do this to be cool. If you do this because you love it, ultimately your love and passion becomes quality and skill. n
DJ TIMES
FEBRUARY 2014
Martin Garrix: My Massive Year
42
My “Animals” was 2013’s #1 EDM tune.
You must be sick of it by now, right?
Well, I’m laughing all the way to the bank.
Martin Garrix Next Month in DJ Times
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