Which DJ skills are most important for you

[John Clees]

She used to be a pron star too, if someone wants some oldskool Belucci action...

so she is multi talented - and a marketing company's dream.


great poll : however I think the results will be obvious....

imo: beat matching is THE HUMAN ELEMENT... it's not vinyl vs. digital

it's mechanical/machine vs. human..

you decide.... hahaha...


~ in the end it's still the dj's selection of music, but beat matching is taking even more human element out of the approach. it works for some, some welcome the freedom, for others it may take years to obtain acceptance. ::: not to mention the 1000's of hours it took a DJ to learn how to beat match only to have (that) element dismissed on grounds of artistic freedom may take (another) decade for some to accept.

[upekah]

She used to be a pron star too, if someone wants some oldskool Belucci action...

go on...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niki_Belucci
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/443899/ni ... _the_best/

http://www.tnaflix.com/view_video.php?v ... 0a9d1b33a7
NSFW

Knock yourself out...

29 Hardcore Movies - 6 Months.. not that bad!

[trak660]

beatmatching is pointless.. it adds nothing to the mix, it's not something that people hear... we only do it because of a limitation of the technology, which we're slowly overcoming....

Jog wheel scratching is not my idea of a technological improvement. That stuff wouldn't even exist if turntables hadn't come first. Why such hostility towards the art of turntablism?

[PsyTox]

beat matching is a skill that a monkey can learn, which in my book is so elementary that if you can't do it then chances are when it comes to mixing you probably will suck azz at it.

And yet every week we hear even big names do trainwreck mixing...
Beatmatching isn't that easy at all, there's a reason why a lot of producer-who-want-to-dj-because-that-makes-money are such big fans of the auto-sync function. Cut the crap.

[PsyTox]

there's also the fact not everyone can beat match. one of the guy from orbital can't beat match and he's been trying for years!

don't want to sound sexist but female deejays are also not famous for beatmatching..

wow wow wow, check out Estroe, or the dutch dj Anoesjka (who plays on three decks vinyl), she can whoop all of our male asses technically. Wouldn't mind either

[ChrisCV]

beatmatching is pointless.. it adds nothing to the mix, it's not something that people hear... we only do it because of a limitation of the technology, which we're slowly overcoming....

Jog wheel scratching is not my idea of a technological improvement. That stuff wouldn't even exist if turntables hadn't come first. Why such hostility towards the art of turntablism?

woah... i didn't even mention turntablism... i have the utmost respect for turntablism.. i even pretend to have a go myself.. turntablism is an art derived out of the "limitations", maybe boundaries is a better word, of the technology...

beatmatching however is not an art.. its a function a task we have to carry out due to the technological limitations... i want my tracks to be in time.. yet the technology only allows me to do this manually...

but at the end of the day... beatmatching doesn't really add anything to the mix... you can either beat match or you can't.. and if you're in the former group, there is nothing to differentiate you between one dj and the next.. the beats are in time or they're not... what does differentiate a dj from another is the quality of the mix. the transition between two tracks plus the tracks they've selected either side of the mix.. they're the most important parts of the mix for the listener... having them in time is a given, but it doesn't really matter if its done by computer or manually... no one can tell...

i'm triyng to think of an analogy, but can't think of a good one.. maybe automatic and manual cars...

[revy]

anyone (well, any dj at least) listening closely can usually notice the subtle difference between a beatmatched mix and a beatsynced one. i played vinyl for 5 years before switching over to a laptop and understand the importance of that human element, connecting more with the listener.
but i think there are ways to compensate for it while still mixing digitally....by seeking out tracks with more personality, more soul, more drifting beats, less quantizing, MORE INTERESTING. in the end machines are still doing most of the work, think about what made the sounds on your record. which comes back to track selection. of course this is important for beatmatching djs too, but perhaps when someone with a laptop is playing boring stuff, it becomes more exponentially boring, further compounded by the "checking their email/pale blue light on the face/not looking at the crowd" image that often comes through.

i've also found other ways to sound more "human" with ableton...I'm certainly not satisfied with letting the software do everything for me automatically. you can still let so many wild and unexpected things happen in your mix with the right settings and controls utilized...and i'm not talking about messing with more fx and loops...

but maybe i'm in the minority of laptop djs that seek imperfection in their digital mix...

[JackNine]

Think of it like a book:

Track selection and programming tell the story (i.e. they are the "words"), but proper beatmatching and EQ are like grammar; they help the listener get through the set with ease rather than slowing them down and taking them out of the moment.

Is it possible to tell a good story with bad grammar? Absolutely.

Does perfect grammar mean you tell an interesting story? Absolutely not.