Alex Moschopoulos

The only thing I could agree on with Troxler is that I think all DJs who do the kind of beatmatched/blending mixing normally seen all over should try to learn basic beatmatching. I went into it here…

http://www.digitaldjtips.com/2015/06/your-questions-why-is-sync-a-dirty-word/

I just think that sync will fail. Not possibly fail, but will fail. You’ll be in an event where your beatmap might be off, or the song arrangement isn’t conducive to the sync, and thus you’re stuck either skipping or going manual.

NOW…I will NOT say a DJ should never use sync. I’ve been a DJ for 24 years and while I had to learn manual beatmatching, I do love how sync has made the job easier, allowing me to focus on solid EQ blending and programming. I like how looping and cue points now let me extend a break or rearrange a song on the fly to work with my flow.

I just think any DJ does a disservice to himself/herself if they skip tunes or pass on blends because the sync failed them, or they allow a trainwreck to happen. Believe me, with all the gigs I played where monitors were crap (or not there at all), I like that sync makes sure I won’t have trainwrecks.

I love the technology we have now, and how I can be a hobbyist making mixes at home with an inexpensive setup. I just think that our goal as DJs should be to get better more innovative music into the scene, and to elevate sets beyond just straight A-to-B.

I say it over and over…it’s time for the old school “purists” to let the past go and embrace the future. Innovate your sets and stand out beyond the amateur who can’t do much more than A-to-B with sync…rather than bash them for not embracing the old ways.

I agree with Vintage. If you want things to be where the beat never stops for a breakdown or what not, then it comes down to the music you pick. I had one promoter in the past (who I honestly thought was a bit clueless) tell me how he felt good DJs do not play anything with breakdowns or stops of any sort. Bear in mind this is when minimal techno was in fashion, thus you had subsets of the scene into basic beats.

Frankly, I don’t like blending in new tunes when there is a breakdown. Seems like the cheap/easy path. I’m more into actually blending the beats and sounds, thus making them meld. It takes practice and learning music, as well as patience and a drive to program sets. Practice and work hard, and you’ll get there. 🙂

Interesting notion.

I’ll never forget when I saw articles in 2000 or 2001 about some college students trying to create a method to play MP3s off a computer using turntables. It wasn’t until 2003 when I saw Final Scratch in action that I was in awe. Made me run out to buy a laptop and Final Scratch. I remember how many DJs were intrigued or laughing at the notion…then a few years later I’d see loads of DJs with laptops.

I also found it funny how Midi controllers for DJing were seen as “eh” compared to timecode, but now I see things going the opposite direction, as timecode seems to mainly be loved by those into turntables.

Now when you look at it all, it seems the goal is to get the laptop out of the booth. We have controllers with screens, and Pioneer’s gear which lets you get much of the joy of DVS without a computer. It’s rather cool one could come to the club with a flash drive and headphones…but not much more.

Now we’re seeing the MP3 stores look into moving away from downloadable files (which I love) and more going into a streaming licensing ideology, where you pay a monthly fee for full access, or buying rights to use tunes, all of which comes from the cloud. I’m still not sold, as clubs and venues would need to have solid fast internet on hand. This is especially difficult for outdoor events and such.

If anything, I think that while many loved the “tradition” of vinyl, I think more DJs and especially producers liked being free of carrying heavy crates of wax or books of CDs. Wildly though, some of the best tips on shopping and organizing digital music come from using an analog mentality…of treating files like vinyls, where you have budgets and limits.

We were in Slovakia. My MiL is getting better, but she’s got a long road ahead. It’s the hard lesson we all need to adhere to not to let our diet/health go in older age. It’s so easy to fall into the lazy trap where you sit around all day eating/watching TV, and thus you wake up 100 lbs heavier with added health issues.

Seems to be a rampant problem with the elderly. My uncle and my neighbor both had the same issue. I think it’s why I’m happy I have hobbies/interests, so I don’t fall into such trappings.