DJ Eric and I (DJ Mat) were absolutely honored to spin at Sicky Dicky’s 4th Annual Malibu Invitational Therasurf Benefit After-Party. Pictures can describe better than words so I’ll leave it to your eyes:
DJ Eric and DJ Mat @ The Booth
Our Set-Up:
Mike D. (Beasty Boys) photo ‘op
I’m 23 years (as of July) old and feel that I’ve been on this planet for a long time. Sometimes I even feel that at this age youth begins to wane… but my job constantly proves that idea to be a fallacy, and last weekend’s gig is a prime example. Vicki called me up somewhat last minute to spin some tunes at her 50th birthday party in her Ojai abode. She booked me for 6 hours… which is not common for a birthday party, for starters.
I arrived on that Saturday to a beautiful home in Ojai to get my DJ groove on. Her husband and henchman Jeff had constructed a club/lounge area out of curtains of twinkle lights meant for decorating hedges, cocktail tables covered in white paper for drawing on, and of course outdoor lamps made of concrete post tubing, painted pink, and stuffed with more twinkle lights. It actually looked great, and I’ll probably steal some of their ideas. Anyway, despite the atmosphere, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I played a long set of 60s rock mixed with modern hard rock, and as usual a bit of appropriate current indie rock to prick up the ears. Everyone was very happy with the music mix but there was a good bit of time without a packed dance floor. Then something happened. I’m not sure what song I played, but all of a sudden the dance floor became it’s own life form. So many people were moving that feet spilled beyond the confines of the wooden paneled dancing area. The sound was so loud that my earplugs served little purpose. I saw a dance rendition of “Rock Lobster” that I will forever associate with that song. “Down! Doooooowwwwwnnn! Dowwwwn!” These middle-agers somehow channeled the flowerchild inside them for the next several hours with naught but a sip of spirit to keep them going. The woman pictured in the photo above “giving the horns” is the Energizer bunny incarnate. The experience was nearly religious. A secret ecstatic ritual that outsiders only dream to enjoy confined to this 50th birthday party in the backyard of an Ojai home.
And so I realized: I’m 23. That’s not even half of 50. The life and energy inside this birthday party showed me that even at the age of 50, I’ll still have my youth.
Every once in a while you’ll have a dance floor that’s just hard to pack consistently. This is when DJ’s pull out the big guns and play those quintessential party songs we all know and love. You do the best you can to keep every person tapping their feet and use your experience to guide dancers through the night. However, every party is unique because the people and their environments are unique. Sometimes circumstances are everything. The greatest song on the planet (whatever that is) will not entice a group of average adolescents to strut their stuff while the sun is out and chaperones are plentiful. In the same way, playing “OMG” by Usher isn’t necessarily a surefire way to get tequila sloshed stumblers to do anything but sit down next to the dance floor and chat. When a DJ is really doing their job, this is not reflective of song selection but the situation and personalities around.
Often when, for whatever reason, the dancefloor is not quite full, a concerned party-goer approaches.
Can you play something, you know, like, bumpin’? Like, uh… faster?!
At this point you’ve already exhausted every Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga tune available, along with every coordinated, popular dance known to man. Your “slow” songs are averaging at 120 beats per minute as you go through the bride and groom’s meticulous request list and most guests are sitting down to deep conversation. Your concerned party-goer continues suggesting “some kind of awesome song” that will miraculously cause everyone to abandon their pleasant chatting and jump to their tired feet and rage on the dancefloor and writhe in pure excitement. But I write this article to dispel this myth. There is no magical white stallion of musical composition. Perhaps one day soon, a song will include scientifically researched hypnosis and subliminal messaging techniques to zombify the masses and enslave mere humans to grinding– all the while liquid courage miraculously rains from the sky just as ballers make it rain on so many an evening. But that day is not here. No sir (or madam), there just is not a miracle track. There are just so many reasons that a floor may not be full of dancers, and I find most often it is not because of poor song selection, but because parties are full of friends and family. And sometimes talking with long lost relatives and close friends is the best thing a for a party member to do while simply listening to music they love.
And now for something completely different. This short mix is nothing like my past work; I hope you enjoy it for a relaxing listen. Grab those headphones and close your eyes. Track selection includes multiple samples from the Freesound Project, poetry by Shel Silverstein (which I actually sampled from Bassnectar’s “Beatfreak Bohemia”) as well as Creative Commons Licensed material from the likes of Richard Devine, DigiTube, Julien Mier, Dustmotes, and others. There is quite a lot going on in those 22 minutes. Let me know what you think! I have made the WAV available for download.
Come see Loud DJs spin with Sum 41, Rey Fresco and others at CSUCI this Saturday! Tickets are only $20 (!!!) at the door. For more information visit CSUCI’s website, check out Sum 41 (as if you have not heard of them), and don’t forget about Rey Fresco, they’re good stuff! We’ll see you there, doors open at 3pm. Time to party.
All the noise today is over the release of Apple’s iPad, the small, thin tablet computer that is often claimed to be the “future of computing.” The release hasn’t seen the brawling excitement that surrounded the iPhone only a few years ago, but still with 300,000 units sold by this afternoon, I can say with confidence that people are eating… maybe even gorging themselves on this new product in droves. And while the iPad may be a step in the future of computing, it’s not something anyone needs just yet… just a toy. Even die-hard Apple fans are heard, whilst grasping their new retail therapy fix, “You don’t really need it… if your car dies, or your laptop breaks, you probably need a new one right away. The iPad is not in this category.” And for me, the $500 gadget just isn’t that impressive. It may have a big touchscreen, but I can’t imagine doing a simple task like writing this entire article using only a flat touchscreen. It can only run one application at a time, and the lack of Flash capabilities is a significant hinderance to compatibility with heaps of web content. A $300 netbook is a considerably smarter purchase. However, some of the app’s that are cropping up are elegant and convenient, and many of which are relevant to the DJ and producer world. I’m not going to compile a list of new app’s here, I would recommend Synthtopia’s or CDM’s coverage for such things.
As I’ve mentioned previously, the technology of touch screens make cents of often costly professional audio investments; An important change to the world of user generated media that we are beginning to live in. It’s cheap, pro audio for the masses (sort of). If you snoop around you’ll find a few full fledged DJ, production, and DAW apps with more on the way. I’m sure these are great for playing around but we’ve hit a snag here with Apple. Hardware interfacing with the iPad (or iPhone) has a number of legal and political road blocks that make (for now) professional use not quite a reasonable option. As a midi controller alone however, I can see how the device is a bit exciting. The Lemur, a large multi-touch control surface that so many have grown to love could now be potentially replaced by the less costly iPad. But with the shortage of processing power, a lack of universal connectivity, and of course zero tactile control, ladies and gentlemen, the iPad isn’t going to replace your beloved DJ set-up just yet. Keep a watch on it though, and look out for more competing products. And keep in mind, it’s likely that more and more laptops will be made with multi-touch screens as well!
One of my favorite restaurants since I was not but 11 years-of-age has been the Cisco’s in Thousand Oaks. I probably have payed them visits a hundred times by now, and today I live a short walk away from their home made salsa and “party-time(!!!)” margaritas. Their relatively new Westlake Village location has become a riotous weekend destination for the surrounding dance, hipster, and bro-seph crowd. And I mean riotous. The venue itself is the once Suki 7, revitalized and restyled into arguably one of Ventura County’s best nightlife spots.
This Cisco’s has become a new venture for yours truly. My assumption when I first caught wind of this additional link to my beloved mexican restaurant was that the experience would mirror the family atmosphere present within the Thousand Oaks location. Oh, how wrong I was. Not to say that during the regular week hours you and your children cannot enjoy a quiet meal, but come Friday and Saturday night, on a weekly basis, dancing shoe soles burn holes. The new sound system powered by very high end EAW speakers and racks of floor-to-ceiling QSC amplifiers combined with beautifully designed, high energy LED dance lighting rock the bodies of hundreds of dance floor junkies without even trying. A few weekends ago I spent the evening at the venue tapping my feet to local track-master DJ Bling, and the day after getting my turn in the booth for Daria’s surprise birthday party- a party that she can brag to her friends about for years to come. Check out either of Cisco’s locations and you’ll have a great time. Maybe I’ll even see you there!
You’re at your all-time-favorite spot in Ventura, CA. It’s your birthday. Sitting before you is a perfectly fried egg roll. Simple and elegant, your mouth begins to water at the thought of its inner heat. You’ve waited so long and know exactly the treat you’re in for. This isn’t your first time at Take 2. And just as you begin to anticipate the crispy crunch of hot veggie – a thunderous crash comes charging at you. White knuckled and wirey haired , Metallica bursts forth, shredding your serenity to pieces. Even worse, you hate Metallica! And just as suddenly, the magical connection between egg roll and self is severed. You are left only to glare angrily at the ill-prepared DJ who just-so-happens to be shamefully obscuring eye contact behind a frantic struggle to change the track. If only you had booked a reliable company to handle the ambiance on your special day.
Perhaps if the Dj had played Israel Kama’s “Over the Rainbow” – you probably wouldn’t have even noticed it. Well, not until the splendorous insides of the egg roll had begun to rush over your taste buds! Next thing you know you ARE over the rainbow! Yummy. Well, at least in theory. Had your intention been to stage an improvised food fight; a couple well garnished projectile appetizers and the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s “Give it Away” would be surefire to spawn quite the delectable melee. Either way, we can all agree – it’s about context, preparation.
This is the essential meaning behind “the perfect song for the perfect moment.” Also, it is a mark of expertise you should expect when hiring a premier DJ. You wouldn’t want the Master of Ceremonies to just up and play “what’s my age again?” as your wedding march… WOULD YOU?! And if you did – you should definitely expect to hear it as you march playfully up to the altar. After all, it’s crucial attention to detail that keeps your event moving smoothly. And besides, who doesn’t want their own entrance music?
Blur’s “Song 2″ perhaps?
DJ’s are an interesting bunch. We like people to know we are DJ’s. When the opportunity arrives, we’ll slip it in there if we’re proud of what we do, the same way that a gardener may mention their profession in passing… but I never see gardeners lugging hoes around parties. I’ve met a number of DJ’s amongst social gatherings that identified themselves by the headphones wrapped around their neck. Are you serious? Yes. I am. This wasn’t a time when these people were set to go on stage either. With those big things… they certainly weren’t jogging recently despite the quintessential hoodies often donned by these apparent disc jockey’s. They literally had cans on their head for no reason other than to look like brooding and discriminate music listeners. Do they plan to turn their iPod’s on in the middle of a party? Ignore everyone else? Wait, are they even connected to anything? I don’t understand. Maybe someone can enlighten me.
