antifm Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 An article from AntiFMTechnology allows DJs to leave secluded booths and join clubbers Jude Kelly is by far the most popular guy in the room. Dressed-to-impressed clientele stop and chat with the DJ perched on a stool at the end of the bar at Muse, a downtown hangout. Kelly, who's dishing out old-school hip hop from his laptop, is one of a growing number of DJs abandoning the traditional booth in favour of mingling with the crowd. Pint-sized mixers, innovative software and never-ending digital music collections make it possible. "I'm trying to decentralize the DJ," says Kelly, who DJs part-time, mostly on weekends. "Normally the DJ is in some booth where he's a God-like figure. I don't like that. DJing is about playing music, being personable. I'm trying to bring the DJ concept down to where people can mill about, see what's happening, request songs and just be part of the excitement." Kelly usually sets himself up at one end of the bar. He's got a laptop that runs software called Virtual DJ. Next to his computer sits a controller with a built-in mixer. As customers shout martini orders to the bartender they glance at his screen where animated turntables are "spinning" the tunes. "When I'm playing vinyl in a DJ booth it's a separate world," says Kelly. "A lot of people have a problem with approaching me. Here, I'm at the bar where people are ordering drinks. They come up to me and ask me what's going on." Like regular music lovers, many amateur and professional DJs started converting their music collections into MP3 files in the mid-1990s. And it was only a matter of time before software came along that let DJs mix and loop songs from a laptop using a virtual turntable. It also means DJs can leave their heavy equipment and milk crates full of vinyl at home. "A lot of professionals are switching, even the old-school ones," says Francis Delage, a vendor of various types of DJ technology at Moog Audio in Toronto. "It can be dangerous to go to a club with your full collection of records . . . instead, they archive all their music in their computer." Hardcore, more purist DJs have slowly started using software such as Serato which allows them to manipulate their digitized music collections using actual turntables and a basic USB cable, he explains. Other software, such as the type Kelly favours, allows users to DJ entirely from their laptop computer using virtual decks and a series of filters and special effects. "Those people don't care about the techniques. They just want to be able to share their music," says Delage of software like Virtual DJ and Traktor. He says both groups are growing but doesn't expect one to overtake the other. "The two will co-exist," says Delage. Evolving technology could make the DJ even more accessible in the near future, says Darren Baptiste, a computer technician who's helped several DJs in Toronto convert to portable setups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stymie Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 lamest thing ive ever heard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicman Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 imagine! tiesto and oakenfold being able to do the Jesus pose with all their adoring fans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxpetersky Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 What's the purpose of mingling with the crowd for a DJ?I thought mixing live was a skill that we got to appreciate and enjoy! Why not just pre-mix, record an MP3 and turn it on in a club then? Clubs won't need DJs at all then! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigpoppanils Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 wow thats stupid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoob-e Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 Yea definately dumb.Danny comes out sometimes to stretch and say hello quick. Usually he'll put on Always Remember to Honor And Respect Your Mother since it is a 10 minute track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troystcharles1 Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 IS THIS GUY SERIOUS??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xlr8ted Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 So hes a dj minus the djing part? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DETROIT Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 Dressed to impress! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xlr8ted Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 The Mingler.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DETROIT Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 Shouting Martini Orders!!!!!!!!!1!!!!1!11!!!!1!!!!111!1!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomembername Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 i don't think it's such a bad idea...you know how many times I sat at the bar and hoped somebody like JP or Boris could come over, even if it was just for 5 minutes during his set so I could maybe buy them a drink and shake their hand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClubbinGuido Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 Save the crowd mingling for after the DJ is done spinning thier set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DETROIT Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 He's trying to de-centralize the dj!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111!!!!!!!!!111!11111!!!1! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomembername Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 Save the crowd mingling for after the DJ is done spinning thier set.yeah but by that time it's probably early morning and I'm sure the dj's are tired and just want to go home to bed...it's a good way to bring the dj and his fans together on a more personal levelIMHO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mateito Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 What's the purpose of mingling with the crowd for a DJ?I thought mixing live was a skill that we got to appreciate and enjoy! Why not just pre-mix, record an MP3 and turn it on in a club then? Clubs won't need DJs at all then!AGREE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcny69 Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 wow, this is retarded. Why don't they take it back to the jukebox days then?They won't need to spend all that money hiring talent at all.It's like going to see U2 and hoping they sit next to you with a remote control and playing pre-recorded sets of themselves. I say fuck the laptops and bring vinyl back. DC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ovrdose Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 im all for technology advancing djing but that's just retarded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomembername Posted August 4 Report Share Posted August 4 It's like going to see U2 and hoping they sit next to you I don't know about you but I would love to have U2 sit next to me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siceone Posted August 4 Report Share Posted August 4 Yea definately dumb.Danny comes out sometimes to stretch and say hello quick. Usually he'll put on Always Remember to Honor And Respect Your Mother since it is a 10 minute track.i love that track Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antifm Posted August 4 Author Report Share Posted August 4 I can understand slightly the point that NMN is making by saying its a way for the dj to get more personal with the crowdor at least a small portion of it, howeverwouldnt it be more accepting to the crowd as a whole to have a partner in the club with the dj...and have that person every few moments inviting people to the booth?everyone including my grandma has seen the rail on a BAR, but to enter the booth for some peope is like a granted pass to forbidden territoryAntiFMThe FM Band has reached its endAntiFMRadio.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavewhore Posted August 4 Report Share Posted August 4 wow, this is retarded. Why don't they take it back to the jukebox days then? They won't need to spend all that money hiring talent at all. It's like going to see U2 and hoping they sit next to you with a remote control and playing pre-recorded sets of themselves. I say fuck the laptops and bring vinyl back. DCLOL!!! I'm with you on this one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slim4life Posted August 4 Report Share Posted August 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deepspell Posted August 4 Report Share Posted August 4 awful....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DETROIT Posted August 4 Report Share Posted August 4 This is better than rejuvination! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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