DJs

sweetie

As said before there is a skill in track selection aswell as the mixing part. Anyone who doesn't appreciate this will find out if they go the ipod route for a wedding or birthday party. 20% of the time it will work because they know the right music to choose and have a good up for it crowd, 30% of the time it will be 'meh' and not add anything to the night, 30% of the time it will be bad and take away from the occasion and 20% of the time it will be awful and kill the atmosphere. Its this 80% of the time that a good pro dj will be earn his wage and turn a bad/average night into a good/great night.

TURRICAN

Crooked Jack wrote: »

You have yet to say anything other than "you dont understand."
At leas the dark Jager guy made an effort to present an argument.
And i wasnt specifically asking what DAW and midi are, I was using them as an example of the waffle that surrounds DJing to make it sound like something that requires a huge amount of skill.

it does take skill and i aint explaining to you.
Your just looking for an arguement.:)
Anyway it would take ages and it has to be shown practically also,so a waste of time really.

Anyway why all the interest?

VEN

VEN wrote: »

its the serious sweaty look on their faces trying to turn those 'so difficult to turn' knobs, so damn hard :pac:

LOL, depends on what type of knobs they are trying to turn.:pac:

VEN

leggo wrote: »

We're hardly rockstars or saving the world, but we're still doing a job. And I always say that DJ-ing is easy to do, but very difficult to do well.

ah but i bet you thought it would pull the berds
once upon a time...

Crooked Jack

TURRICAN wrote: »

it does take skill and i aint explaining to you.
Your just looking for an arguement.:)
Anyway it would take ages and it has to be shown practically also,so a waste of time really.

Anyway why all the interest?

Just interviewed a couple of "big names" play at Joy in Drogheda.
I'm not looking for an argument I was asking what the perception is and asking some actual DJs to explain to me why it is more than hitting play.
Some have tried and made some great points and perhaps slightly softened my view on it.
You have not. You have spoken a lot but said nothing.

Crooked Jack

RVP 11 wrote: »

DAW & Midi have nothing to do with DJ'ing whatsoever.:pac:

We really need to get past DAW and midi, someone said it earlier and i used it as an example. I could care less what DAW and midi are

Skylinehead

Crooked Jack wrote: »

I could care less what DAW and midi are

So you do care?





Pedantry, but I really, really hate that term :mad:

Crooked Jack

Crooked Jack wrote: »

We really need to get past DAW and midi, someone said it earlier and i used it as an example. I could care less what DAW and midi are

Well you should really be informed about stuff when you post about it.:p
It's NOT DJ'ing.

Crooked Jack

RVP 11 wrote: »

Well you should really be informed about stuff when you post about it.:p
It's NOT DJ'ing.

I am posting to ask about it (DJing, not DAW and midi)
If that's the case you could say that to every single person who starts a thread.

Crooked Jack

Skylinehead wrote: »

So you do care?





Pedantry, but I really, really hate that term :mad:

I cant really argue, I'm the first one to correct someone when they say their head "literally" exploded, or they "literally" died

MistyCheese

My dad's a DJ. I'm not going to give out his name though.

dj jarvis

Rabidlamb wrote: »

Never had an ounce of time for them, a playlist would do the job as well.
Acting like their mixing live on the decks when we know it's all been done months previous with expensive software.
Worse than Hitler, the lot of them.

well sorry to bust your bubble , but most decent club dj's i have worked with DONT have a playlist let alone pre-mix with software , if a "dj" brings pre mixed music then hes not really a dj is he?

i use 1210's and also use scratchmix with a laptop , all mixed live using old school and new tech
because i can get ANY music or mix in hi quality MP3 format , i choose using both - only so much you can get on vinyl these days , but still mix live

you are mixing some bed room hacker up with a top notch club dj , tons of skill need just to use the equipment properly let alone choose your music so it will make the crowd dance and make the night

how many times have i heard tone deaf punters remark " the dj ruined the night " , yet on the flip side can a dj not make the night ?

a good dj makes it look and sound effortless because they are skilled at what they do
a bad one will make it sound like a bag of cats falling down a stairs

as for worse than hitler .................. you could have a point

MistyCheese

MistyCheese wrote: »

My dad's a DJ. I'm not going to give out his name though.

DJ Stilton?

old cheese?.....wheres me coat....

leggo

VEN wrote: »

ah but i bet you thought it would pull the berds
once upon a time...

Haha, no not really. If you saw me playing live you'd know otherwise, I'm an anti-social bastard when girls (or lads) come up to the DJ box and try to start chatting. I'll take requests, but no time for the "I'm a DJ myself actually..." speeches or the "Can I get in the DJ box and dance?" ****e.

TURRICAN

Crooked Jack wrote: »

Just interviewed a couple of "big names" play at Joy in Drogheda.
I'm not looking for an argument I was asking what the perception is and asking some actual DJs to explain to me why it is more than hitting play.
Some have tried and made some great points and perhaps slightly softened my view on it.
You have not. You have spoken a lot but said nothing.

This is a very basic run thru.
firstly the dj must setup correctly.
2 record players/cds or whatever connected to 2 /4channel mixer.
that is then connected to the pa system.
sound checks etc so we dont burst eardrums.

Music selection which will change over the gig.

2 records must be selected to start by means of genre bpm.
speeds can be within plus or minus 8rpm,this wil vary but the industry standard in technics plus minus 8

dj plays 1 track over pa while listening to the other over headphones..big ones so you can hear it over the pa system.some djs use monitors.
now you have to judge which track is faster than the other.this is where you adjust the pitch of the track on headphones to match the one on pa.

once that is done and you havent ran out of time you must pick a point where you can join the tracks seemlessly,without having vocals from 2 tracks at once..this is where creativity comes in.you either have it or you dont. you could use eqs to mix,faders,punches,kills,crossovers,buildups from other tracks you werent even playing.theres just so much.
All this has to be done within say max 5 mins or else your mix will sound likegalloping horses if you dont get it right,couple that with a hot environment and you will understand why some djs get hot under the collar.Maybe 3 or 4 hours of it.

Anyway thats a basic idea.

Fupping Grasshole

I don't see the point of them

TURRICAN

Fupping Grasshole wrote: »

I don't see the point of them

yea id rather go to a club with no dj and listen to lads fartin.

Lumbo

Fupping Grasshole wrote: »

I don't see the point of them

No music in a nightclub makes for a bad night.

dj jarvis

Fupping Grasshole wrote: »

I don't see the point of them

because we provided the sound track to your youth - majority of people pre- internet ONLY got to hear of new music and bands because of dj's

or would you prefer a music company (s) select your music ?
they decide on what chart sh1te you hear ?

no - a GOOD dj will always have their finger on the pulse of music

i can empty a dance floor in 3 tracks - i can also fill it in 3

still dont see the point ?

Sea Filly

Some are skillful. Some are David Guetta. It varies.

Fupping Grasshole

Lumbo wrote: »

No music is a nightclub makes for a bad night.

Throw on an ipod, what difference does it make. Far cheaper too than paying someone

TURRICAN wrote: »

yea id rather go to a club with no dj and listen to lads fartin.

Sure whatever you're into :rolleyes:

dj jarvis wrote: »

because we provided the sound track to your youth - majority of people pre- internet ONLY got to hear of new music and bands because of dj's

So they're no longer needed then.

dj jarvis wrote: »

or would you prefer a music company (s) select your music ?
they decide on what chart sh1te you hear ?

Robot dj's ftw.

dj jarvis wrote: »

no - a GOOD dj will always have their finger on the pulse of music

i can empty a dance floor in 3 tracks - i can also fill it in 3

still dont see the point ?

Nope

dj jarvis

Fupping Grasshole wrote: »

Throw on an ipod, what difference does it make. Far cheaper too than paying someone

Sure whatever you're into :rolleyes:

So they're no longer needed then.

Robot dj's ftw.

Nope

what ever - you dont understand the original question
if your happy with a i pod, then well done you - most people prefer a dj

i suggest you open a club, and use just your i pod for the sounds - see how long you stay open

i suppose the 10's of thousands each weekend who go to listen to dj's are all just fools

as the OP asked - is it skillful ? if your good it is

TURRICAN

Fupping Grasshole wrote: »

Throw on an ipod, what difference does it make. Far cheaper too than paying someone

Sure whatever you're into :rolleyes:

So they're no longer needed then.

Robot dj's ftw.

Nope

1.as if
2.what about the future.
3.robots break down.(GET IT)
4.IPODS dont accept requests
:pac::)

Father Damo

Rabidlamb wrote: »

Never had an ounce of time for them, a playlist would do the job as well.
Acting like their mixing live on the decks when we know it's all been done months previous with expensive software.
Worse than Hitler, the lot of them.

And even Hitler would not play jungle music at three in the morning.

Fupping Grasshole

dj jarvis wrote: »

i suppose the 10's of thousands each weekend who go to listen to dj's are all just fools

I don't know anyone who goes to a club to listen to a dj. We go to clubs to pick up the easy girls, simples.

Oh and the music is too loud. Turn it down a bit, thanks.

Fupping Grasshole

TURRICAN wrote: »

1.as if
2.what about the future.
3.robots break down.(GET IT)
4.IPODS dont accept requests
:pac::)

Technology is ever improving, I'm sure there's even a boardsie among us who could write a bit of code to make a disc jockey automaton accept requests.

Highcontrast1

anyone can be a dj these days...
lots of clueless kids playing 128kbps on night club rigs
banging the beatport top 10 tunes before the headliner
sound engineers failing to monitor levels
badly produced or mastered tracks being played in clubs (piercing hi hats!)
there is no quality control with the labels as they just release anything these days

i stop djing last year because of tinnitus
*** all those that still go out i advise u to get a pair of ear plugs

TURRICAN

Fupping Grasshole wrote: »

Technology is ever improving, I'm sure there's even a boardsie among us who could write a bit of code to make a disc jockey automaton accept requests.

Maybe.
it wouldnt feel right though imo.

dj jarvis

Highcontrast1 wrote: »

anyone can be a dj these days...
lots of clueless kids playing 128kbps on night club rigs
banging the beatport top 10 tunes before the headliner
sound engineers failing to monitor levels
badly produced or mastered tracks being played in clubs (piercing hi hats!)
there is no quality control with the labels as they just release anything these days

i stop djing last year because of tinnitus
*** all those that still go out i advise u to get a pair of ear plugs

could not agree more - i have even heard grabs from you tube being played

but all you have said apply's to poor dj's - a good one will have it all sorted

as for tinnitus - i also have roaring tinnitus - getting close to stopping myself
sounds like a car alarm going off in my head 24/7 - not good :mad:

TURRICAN

Highcontrast1 wrote: »

anyone can be a dj these days...
lots of clueless kids playing 128kbps on night club rigs
banging the beatport top 10 tunes before the headliner
sound engineers failing to monitor levels
badly produced or mastered tracks being played in clubs (piercing hi hats!)
there is no quality control with the labels as they just release anything these days

i stop djing last year because of tinnitus
*** all those that still go out i advise u to get a pair of ear plugs

Have to agree with the piercing high hats.

buried

The OP has missed another section of DJ's that exist out there, namely, those that do it as a hobby and for pure enjoyment for themselves. I myself would be in that category.
I've been DJ'ing purely as a hobby for nearly 16 years now and my main reason for getting into it was DJ Shadows first album "endtroducing" and The Chemical Brothers first album "Exit Planet Dust".

Both those albums blew me away by making hip hop beats into a highly visual and cinematic sound that i never expierienced listening to any other form of so called "Big beat" music from the 90's. When I listened to those albums they produced and opened up vista's of my imagination that no other type of music did at the time. Thats when I decided I wanted to do this for myself so i bought 2 turntables and a small mixer and just went at it, mixing all kinds of music to try to create the same effect for myself.

I have never played in a pub or nightclub full of drunken mongs in shirts and mini skirts, badgering me to play the latest generic muck that 2fm and the like force down their throats. I never went out to be some sort of local mini celebrity thick, a pathetic show off in some pub where everyone is completely ****faced (theres plenty of guitarists and local bands that fall into that category too) F**k that nonsense. I DJ for me and me alone, to get the same feeling of visual and cinematic sounds through different beats and melodies that I got when I was younger. If somebody wants me to do it at their house party or a rave in the woods then I will, but I dont fall for praise or anyone hyping me up or do it as a career, I do it for the fun.

There is a lot of "DJ's" like that. Dont put us in the category of the likes of David Guetta or DJDamo's magical laptop or whoever, just because Guetta and his pathetic ilk are the ones that brought DJ'ing to your attention by 2fm, MTV and your local sh!thole nightclub forcing that sh!te down your throat.

If you don't like DJ's today, it is because you have allowed that **** to infest your ears. Thats your problem.

Bringthethunder

Guys using Laptops have no skill? Well whats the point in carrying around your entire CD collection when you can have all your music on your laptop? Its more conveniant, a person would be stupid not to. Nightclub DJ's is handy out all your playing is chart music and sure not one cares anyway cause most people are on the pull. Its the wedding or party DJ that is a tough job, you have to be good on the microphone and have a good all round knowledge of music because of the various age groups that would be there. In saying that theres some terrible Wedding DJs around but they dont usually stay in work for long.

darced

This post has been deleted.

davenachill

DarkJager wrote: »

A real DJ will take his time planning a set and the tracks he'll play. This also involves actually doing the beatmatching yourself (which is something I dare any of you slating DJ's to try and see how **** hot you are it). Track selection needs to be arranged by BPM, having tracks together that keep a nice pace for the dancefloor and maybe 1 or 2 depending on preference to chill it down a bit. And of course they need to blend seamlessly, which is why you'll know from a totally out of time car crash happening in the speakers that it's a poor DJ playing.

A laptop DJ in the majority of cases will have software that does all of that automatically. This is the "DJ" you are confusing with an actual DJ with skill. he presses play, the software does the DJ'ing. I should point out that manual DJ'ing can also be done with a laptop and there are plenty of "proper" DJ's that use this for the ease of having their entire collections of tracks digitally available.

To simply call DJ's talentless because Anthony down the pub is sitting there with his laptop and doing jesus christ poses, is ridiculous and completely ignorant of what DJ'ing actually involves. It's like saying a drummer is just a talentless guy who likes banging things.

Couldn't agree more!

Real Life

you cant possibly answer this, there are so many different types of dj's. some are incredibly talented others dont have to do much at all.

Crooked Jack

buried wrote: »

The OP has missed another section of DJ's that exist out there, namely, those that do it as a hobby and for pure enjoyment for themselves. I myself would be in that category.
I've been DJ'ing purely as a hobby for nearly 16 years now and my main reason for getting into it was DJ Shadows first album "endtroducing" and The Chemical Brothers first album "Exit Planet Dust".

Both those albums blew me away by making hip hop beats into a highly visual and cinematic sound that i never expierienced listening to any other form of so called "Big beat" music from the 90's. When I listened to those albums they produced and opened up vista's of my imagination that no other type of music did at the time. Thats when I decided I wanted to do this for myself so i bought 2 turntables and a small mixer and just went at it, mixing all kinds of music to try to create the same effect for myself.

I have never played in a pub or nightclub full of drunken mongs in shirts and mini skirts, badgering me to play the latest generic muck that 2fm and the like force down their throats. I never went out to be some sort of local mini celebrity thick, a pathetic show off in some pub where everyone is completely ****faced (theres plenty of guitarists and local bands that fall into that category too) F**k that nonsense. I DJ for me and me alone, to get the same feeling of visual and cinematic sounds through different beats and melodies that I got when I was younger. If somebody wants me to do it at their house party or a rave in the woods then I will, but I dont fall for praise or anyone hyping me up or do it as a career, I do it for the fun.

There is a lot of "DJ's" like that. Dont put us in the category of the likes of David Guetta or DJDamo's magical laptop or whoever, just because Guetta and his pathetic ilk are the ones that brought DJ'ing to your attention by 2fm, MTV and your local sh!thole nightclub forcing that sh!te down your throat.

If you don't like DJ's today, it is because you have allowed that **** to infest your ears. Thats your problem.

Well I dont listen to 2FM, watch MTV or go to my local **** hole.
I'd say the reason I dont like DJs today is because I think dance music is the biggest pile of shite.
But that's beside the point. I didnt start this thread to discuss my opinion on "beats" (although i do agree with the Dylan Moran school of thought on the issues, that it sounds like somebody next door putting up a lot of shelves) it's to discuss wether it is an actual skill or talent.

Father Damo

99% of regular Joes in Ireland with no real interest in electronic music have likely never even seen a real DJ. Pretty much every club in Ireland is a lad in the booth with a laptop playing the top 20 chart on a pre made playlist. Irish nightclubs are for the most part awful music wise.

Real Life

Crooked Jack wrote: »

Well I dont listen to 2FM, watch MTV or go to my local **** hole.
I'd say the reason I dont like DJs today is because I think dance music is the biggest pile of shite.
But that's beside the point. I didnt start this thread to discuss my opinion on "beats" (although i do agree with the Dylan Moran school of thought on the issues, that it sounds like somebody next door putting up a lot of shelves) it's to discuss wether it is an actual skill or talent.

theres so many different types of electronic dance music, you cant just generalise them all like that.

Real Life

if you have time look at this, maybe you will understand what a real dj is.

Sky King

Don't mix up a DJ with a turntabilist.

Anyone can learn to beatmatch and mix in a couple of days. Turntabilism like below takes years, like any musical instrument.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlA8nk24Ti0

Crooked Jack

Real Life wrote: »

theres so many different types of electronic dance music, you cant just generalise them all like that.

I really can. All electronic dance is awful. Hard house, trance, rave etc... it goes on and on. It's all tripe. Dead, soulless tripe.
But again, this isnt about my opinion on dance music

kunst nugget

Crooked Jack wrote: »

I really can. All electronic dance is awful. Hard house, trance, rave etc... it goes on and on. It's all tripe. Dead, soulless tripe.
But again, this isnt about my opinion on dance music

But your opinion of electronic music is going to colour your opinion of DJing innit!

Some people go to cattle markets like Coppers to pick up a classy boird and so music is secondary to the quest of finding some tail, failing and weeping while you drunkenly have a **** in your parents bathroom when you get home.

Some people go to clubs like the Twisted Pepper with the primary purpose of hearing what dead, souless tripe the DJ decides to play.

Different scenarios being served by different DJs for different clientele. Broad generalisations about DJs are pretty absurd.

tdv123

HoggyRS wrote: »

What really matters is this weekend i'll make the equivalent of 40 hours minimum wage work from djing for a total of 6 hours over 2 nights. Cushty

Maybe if you did more work in school you'd have a better job.

NS77

This thread is pretty much summed up here:

Seriously though.. there are as many types of DJs as there are types of bands.

And as for beatmatching - trying doing it with records that have a live drummer

es-cee

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_FFe7lmPuA

Jesus Shaves

tdv123 wrote: »

Maybe if you did more work in school you'd have a better job.

That was a fairly pathetic response

buried

Crooked Jack wrote: »

I really can. All electronic dance is awful. Hard house, trance, rave etc... it goes on and on. It's all tripe. Dead, soulless tripe.
But again, this isnt about my opinion on dance music

What is your opinion of electronic music that does not involve dance music or beats?

DJ's and artists exist, and have existed for decades, that play or perform electronic music without the requirement for you to dance to it.

When it is done well, with musical skill, it is far from soulless, well its far from soulless for the hundreds of thousands of people who listen and enjoy that form of music around the world anyways...

Crooked Jack

Crooked Jack wrote: »

I really can. All electronic dance is awful. Hard house, trance, rave etc... it goes on and on. It's all tripe. Dead, soulless tripe.
But again, this isnt about my opinion on dance music

Ah go to bed ye oul gob****e.:pac:

stovelid

Somewhere in between.

Good DJs have skill and creativity but putting them on par with somebody that actually creates music...no.

Lumbo

stovelid wrote: »

Somewhere in between.

Good DJs have skill and creativity but putting them on par with somebody that actually creates music...no.

The DJ at the Rovers game is entertaining