maybe i should clarify my reasoning in pointing this out. as mentioned, i’m not trying to shit on open format djs - i don’t think they are inherently dim or dull. four color zack and dj scene are two big deal “open format” DJs from seattle, and both are as good of people as you can hope to meet. incredibly talented too - they bring an energy that admittedly i couldn’t replicate.
that said, that style of DJing is not for me.
there’s always been a “battle” culture in hip hop and maybe the original post is hip hop in spirit. it’s certainly clickbait. and maybe i’m just a few too many years removed from that sort of competitive culture - i was like “oh shit are we doing this now?”
you’re missing the point. Mills djing is about taking the most interesting bits of techno records and only but only throwing them in the mix. It isn’t some game about how much records you can power through, which you would know if you’ve ever listened to a Mills live set where he will repeat certain tracks. It’s about a percussive groove momentum. It really is antithetical to the dna of rock and roll culture (including its djing) which necessitates a beginning, middle and end. It’s way closer to DAF, fripp/eno, Fela etc. The changing same.
99% of house djs are incredibly boooooring though. I don’t even mean in terms of the music, but even in terms of mixing. I often feel that all this fear about digital djing a decade ago was not so much about the art of djing but that segue djs could be rendered redundant. Especially in the European context where seemless mixing is an unofficial standard.
haha oh yeah, I’ve never gotten involved in that stuff. It’s liberals who get fixed on the battle of culture, not good historical materialists. the musical form is only a reflection of the social content.
nah. there’s nothing political about clubbing. people can pretend there is, but in reality a lot of it is people reading their own projections onto a culture which is mostly entirely in conformity with the dominant society/politics of the time. Even in the 80s, the dominant sound in clubs was eurodisco, and in the 90s european derivatives of house. Chicago house, detroit techno, jungle, we love this stuff to da bone, but really we emphasise their historical importance precisely because of the power to generate myth, and myth is essential to the human condition. You can’t really say the same for hi nrg or hand bag house.
I couldn’t do either House or meaningful “open format” for any length of time. Occasionally, if I really think about it or get inspired, I can mix up some fairly varied tunes and it can be fun and challenging - but I’ll agree that “open format” sounds like a branding of what has to end up as anodyne mishmash. I began my DJing over forty years ago doing something like this - except I wasn’t very anodyne.
Ultimately, there are two forms of DJing; one you play whatever you like and hope to take the floor with you, the other is to submit to popular taste and all that goes with it, i.e. no personal style, no exploration, just a job. Perhaps that’s a bit harsh. Of course, mostly if one is to get anywhere, you have to take a bit from both sides and read the room at the time. The trick is getting those who like you and your taste through the doors. “Open format” might really mean no format if you haven’t done your publicity right and just any fool can walk through the door.
Back in my day, there was always that moment of difficulty when someone would request Bob Marley or Prince (as he was still called back then). Really, there’s nothing wrong with either of those musicians and I’d play them every so often, even after a request, but it wasn’t what it was about for me.
I’ll confess that reading about this now really makes me feel sorry for those who fall for such hype.
I should have said something about the technical DJ issues of all the quick mixing as well as the selection. I’m a big fan of the Coldcut/Solid Steel type mixes, plus Steinski of course - but those mixes do have taste and style as well as being technically impressive. “Open format” rather sounds as though it’s just wham bam thank you mam. I suppose some DJs must be better at it than others.
☭