I don’t really know much about the process of remixing a song but I can imagine it is a process that is like editing a video – layering tracks, adding beats, etc. They are clearly not doing that kind of editing live so they are basically playing something that’s already had some amount of that already done.
So what are they doing live besides maybe mixing between songs?
I just don’t understand what all the knob fiddling is about.
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>They are clearly not doing that kind of editing live so they are basically playing something that’s already had some amount of that already done.
Not always true. There’s many DJs who do in fact are doing live editing of their music. One of my favourite DJs have a keyboard out during his performance and he would be composing and playing it live (recording a melody line and then remixing it on the spot into the music layers).
Taking your money and dancing. He’s as involved in what’s coming out of the speakers as he wants to be at any given moment which can mean he’s actually working hard or not at all.
Matching the beats/rhythm of two songs so they flow together seamlessly. Possibly slowing down or speeding up one of the songs in a creative way to merge them.
Steps of being a DJ
1. Selecting good music – the DJ builds up a catalog of tracks they like, usually in a particular genre, and picks a track to suit the mood of the audience and that compliments the other tracks their playing
2. Beat matching – the DJ matches up the tempos of the tracks (their often recorded at slightly different tempos) and does fine tuning to keep them in sync (assuming they’re using vinyl records, which will have slight imperfections in their timing). Additionally, the DJ will sync the tracks by their song structure. Most dance tracks will only have major changes every 8 or 16 measures and you want those changes to happen together on both tracks.
3. EQ levelling – two tracks are louder than one, so DJ has to adjust the volume of the tracks being played to make sure the volume stays consistent. This can be expanded to adjusting the EQ of the tracks seperately. For example, playing the bass of both tracks together will sound awful, so they cut the bass of the incoming track until a transition point where they can cut the bass of the outgoing track. Playing with EQ mid-track can also be done for dramatic effect.
4. Scratching or beat juggling – the DJ can quickly transition back and forth between two tracks to mix together different elements of each track, for example a vocal snippet from one track and a beat from the other. Scratching does this mixing while the record is being spun by the DJ.
5. Effects, samples, and drum machines – a good mixer includes a variety of effects ,such as reverb or an echo, to add layers to the tracks being played. Samplers or drum machines allow a DJ to add short repeating elements into the mix and allow for live improvisation.
Ritchie Hawtin is a great example of a highly technical DJ. Because his genre is Techno, the mixing favours a more in-your-face, aggressive approach that’s easier to appreciate what he’s doing behind the decks. The challenge with his sets is telling the difference between what’s a track and what’s live from a drum machine.
I saw DJ Shadow live back in 1997 or so. I’m fairly certain he was just playing his own album and doing basically nothing but collecting the check. He wasn’t even dancing around. They didn’t even lower the house lights in the venue.
Honestly depends on the DJ, but sadly most these days make a master mix in their home studio and basically hit play and mime live.
Most DJs have a very important tiny knob that they have to keep their hand on at all times. This knob needs to be very minutely tweaked clockwise or anticlockwise during the course of a set, this adjustment requires great concentration as can be seen from a lot of DJ videos since time immemorial. When the knob is perfectly adjusted you can see great satisfaction on the face of the DJ, and the most capable disc-spinners can nod quite enthusiastically while performing this task.
I went to see Hot Chip, and it was clear most of them were doing busy work while playing songs. If you watched a certain member you would see them play a certain synth part, then look really thoughtful as they carefully moves knobs around while nothing changed.
I’m sure there’s stuff going on I’m not aware of but there’s no way 5 guys need to be that busy to make that music live. Fair play though I’d do the same in their situation.
Some times they are actually mixing tracks live. Often they are pretending. Moving knobs that won’t do anything as the track is already mixed.
A great DJ isn’t just fiddling knobs to look cool (although they do that too). By reading and understand the mood of the crowd you can dial up or down the emotional content of the music, making drops bigger or smaller, emphasizing vocals or deep bass, etc.
It’s why I prefer to listen to a full DJ mix with carefully chosen, mixed, and played songs over simply listening to a playlist.
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