DJ general - Software, gear, your favourite DJs, etc.

[Halo Cipher]

Looking at learning to DJ for a hobby. I really enjoy watching/listening to them on YouTube or Twitch as a remedy to AI slop mixes that are everywhere and I've been introduced to some music I otherwise wouldn't have heard.

Are there any other DJs on Kiwifarms? What mixes have you been working on lately? Anything you came across while learning that surprised you? What pulled you to it as a hobby?

I found this good intro I'm practicing with at the moment. No gear for me yet, just working with software for the basics of beat matching etc and getting tracks to flow nicely. It's quite meditative.

Feel free to post your personal favourite DJs as well, I like discovering new people to tune into.

Here are some of mine:
DJ Kimori
eze
Yousuke Yukimatsu
Nora En Pure

 

[Gravityqueen4life]

Are there any DJ Lolcows?

 

[Sneedmason]

Nora En Pure is a kike (+South African) and got some of the most boring sets I have ever heard.

Are there any DJ Lolcows?

DJ Carnage / GORDO got some S+ tier lolcow behaviour, any EDM fan who familiarize themselves will know what a fraud this nigger is. Slushii is also someone I would say potentially is in that category. These DJ's have already been mentioned on the farms.

 

[törkendreieck]

Are there any DJ Lolcows?

I think everyone that has DJ in his profile is a lolcow.

 

[Idiotron]

Kid Koala is probably my favorite DJ.
Fucker has skills.

6:57

4:03

 

[Fishnumm]

Are there any DJ Lolcows?

cyraxx went by "DJ OTAK" at some point

 

[PovertySprocket]

You're not a real DJ unless you slip the A RIKIKI! sample/track in the mix.

 

[hesaback]

I finished the Mark Ronson audiobook the other day and he is a proper old school vinyl DJ. I never realised that about him. I'm old school. I've got two 1210s and a mixer I never use.

CD decks were interesting when they first came out and I know a load of people were scratch DJs and moved over, but the Pioneers always seemed stupidly expensive. Now you can just put in a USB stick and play with the cuts and filters and pretend you are a DJ. Stanton do things much cheaper but the quality isn't as good.


As for software, I started using Traktor years ago. It is DJing software. Load a track in A, load a track in B and away you go. My old version also had C and D so you could spin 4 tracks at once. I'm not sure if it still does but what was great about that was you could load the same song into all 4 tracks and do a live remix.

These things are tools and it is up to you how you use them. There isn't a wrong way. Everything you think you have done wrong means you have learnt something.
Keep hold of the bits you like.

 

[The Blue Morpho]

Practice makes perfect, OP. Pick up a cheap controller and play around with it, you will eventually get comfortable and find your own way of doing things. Take every opportunity you get to use and learn as much different gear as you can so you are never caught off guard.

The main limitation you will run into as a DJ is the size and organization of your music library. Buy tunes often, and if you can't afford them then bookmark them for when you can. Take advantage of discography discounts. Don't be afriad to buy those cool but odd tunes you can't see yourself using now, you will find a use for them eventually. If you can get tunes for free even better, trading Bandcamp links with fellow DJ's is a great way to build your collection.

A lot of the focus in EDM has shifted away from DJing and live performance skills over to production, sound design, self-marketing and AbletonLive AV sets. But spinning is fun so do it anyway.

I would single out two people as top tier performers, selectors and personal influences specifically in terms of DJing abilities rather than production/etc: Mark Farina and Jim Coles.

Mark Farina is primarily a groove, house, soul and funk DJ who pioneered his own personal style called "mushroom jazz." I don't think I've ever heard him play a bad set, and he perfectly emblifies that groovy disco house sort of sound. It's a sound in the scene that is both more accessible to newcomers while having incredible staying power that old heads are always drawn back to.

If Mark Farina emblifies the groovy club sound, Jim Coles aka Om Unit aka Philip D Kick aka 2Tall is the frenetic sound of the UK underground. Breakbeat, jungle, garage, techno, dubstep, all sound system oriented. Once again, I've never heard a bad set from him. In fact, I'm usually trying to jack tracks from the setlist afterwards.

Kid Koala is probably my favorite DJ.
Fucker has skills.

Kid Koala LiVE Turntable Musician.mp4
kid koala - drunk trumpet.mp4

Turntablists are pretty nuts. I've seen Qbert a couple times, once with the Invisibl Skratch Piklz, Chris Karns as well. Always impressive. Qbert I think got semi-cancelled for being based and MAGA lol

Are there any DJ Lolcows?

I'm almost positive Keffals used to DJ since I recall him posting an old DJ set in an old MATI segment, but I cannot find it now for the life of me

 

[WSPWSPWSPWSP]

Oh man, I got too many favourite DJ's. Here's some of my fav sets:

Jeff Mills - Mix-Up Vol. 2 - Live Mix At Liquid Room, Tokyo​

Absolute classic techno. Pure vinyl mixing on 3 decks.

The Avalanches - "Big Tent Set"​

Most tend to think of Live at Cornerstone as their best, but personally I think this. So fun and heavily revisted.

Watch & Repeat Play: A Warp Records Mix​

Pretty much a greatest hits mix of IDM. Super fun and surprising at times.

Many more but I think that's gotta be top 3 for me. Can't go wrong with 2manydjs/soulwax either.

 

[The Blue Morpho]

Pretty much a greatest hits mix of IDM. Super fun and surprising at times.

You know you're an IDMcel when you look at that tracklist and start complaining about whats missing from it.

 

[hesaback]

Im sat here waiting for a new cage nut tool so I can build a rack of drum synths. Fucking cage nuts. Bastards but useful bastards. The cunting bastards.

 

[WSPWSPWSPWSP]

Are there any DJ Lolcows?

I guess you can probably say Brad Taste in Music could count? He released an hour long freestyle about him whining bout his ex while using Serato stems.

You know you're an IDMcel when you look at that tracklist and start complaining about whats missing from it.

Deffo needed Clipper from Autechre. Great tracklist tho

 

[Halo Cipher]

Found a cheap mixer, picking it up this week, it's a vestax typhoon and apparently quite old but it will do what I need it to. There's some speakers at a charity shop I'm picking up as well to complete the set up. I don't feel the need to get newer laptop yet, I can probably use my current one. I like buying used, refurbished, or open source tech in general.

Discovered that Spotify has allowed playlist imports in software again. Very excited because I've curated music on Spotify since I was a teenager and now I have a reason to get premium again so I can fuck around.

I dunno if I would ever play clubs but I do know I will have a great time by myself at home or with friends. Maybe I'll stream if I think I've got something good happening.

 

[Halo Cipher]

An update. I managed to source everything required (speakers, adapters, controller), for under 100 USD with the exception of headphones as I've had them for a long time.

So far I'm really enjoying beat matching. I know it's very simple but I can do it without thinking too much so it's become engaging and fun to find a good place for dropping into the next track. Transitions are next.

Looking forward to hearing from any other DJs on the farms. I'm optimistic I will be curious enough to produce my own music one day, too.

 

[The Blue Morpho]

An update. I managed to source everything required (speakers, adapters, controller), for under 100 USD with the exception of headphones as I've had them for a long time.

So far I'm really enjoying beat matching. I know it's very simple but I can do it without thinking too much so it's become engaging and fun to find a good place for dropping into the next track. Transitions are next.

Looking forward to hearing from any other DJs on the farms. I'm optimistic I will be curious enough to produce my own music one day, too.

Depending on what you're mixing you'll find different styles work better. Anything with lots of syncopation is good for "doubling" or layering multiple tracks at the same time and dynamically altering the channel levels to avoid harshness since its all groove based. I like to mix fast myself and rarely let a tune run for much more than 90 second on its own before bringing in something new, unless there's a good reason to let it run longer of course.

 

[hesaback]

Found a cheap mixer, picking it up this week, it's a vestax typhoon and apparently quite old but it will do what I need it to. There's some speakers at a charity shop I'm picking up as well to complete the set up. I don't feel the need to get newer laptop yet, I can probably use my current one. I like buying used, refurbished, or open source tech in general.

Discovered that Spotify has allowed playlist imports in software again. Very excited because I've curated music on Spotify since I was a teenager and now I have a reason to get premium again so I can fuck around.

I dunno if I would ever play clubs but I do know I will have a great time by myself at home or with friends. Maybe I'll stream if I think I've got something good happening.

I had a Vestex 4 track years ago, Their stuff was built right.