Cassette Tapes Still On Sale

I do NOT for a SECOND believe that cassettes are coming back the way vinyl already has. But tapes do keep appearing on my radar lately, quite a lot actually. Example, right down the street from my house at Laurie’s Planet of Sound there is a cassette tape which actually tempted me–a Chris Connelly release I’d not heard of before due to being either out of touch or the tape itself being…gasp…new?

Then there’s the Ohio-based Everybody’s Records, which proudly displays the mighty cassette tape rack shown above. I don’t know why anyone would shell out four dollars for one, but they advertise .99 cent tapes, too and that wouldn’t be a hard sell if the cover art were intact and you are a completist. Everybody’s Records–from the photos–looks like an amazingly cool place to shop. What is it with Ohio and their excellent record stores? I am always impressed when I go there…it seems to be an endless supply of great indies.

I don’t get the appeal of the cassettes these days, but I suppose nostalgia must be part of it…do the sellers of cassette tapes also sell cassette players, too? If not, they should. Ditto for anyone selling 8-tracks. Otherwise how in the world do you sweeten the deal for someone who has old gear that’s about to die, but still wants to revel in the old-old-OLD school playback experience? Me personally, I do miss that goofy “click/clunk” of the 8 track tape machines as they switched to the next track. I don’t miss having the track change in the middle of a song, however.

Experimenting with Twitter Plugin

Yes, we’ve gone over to the dark side here….but I do love the idea that you can update Twitter and the blog at the same time. I do love the simplicity of Twitter and actually thought it might replace blogging for a bit, but I see now the utter folly of that notion.

In other news, purchased the Criterion version of Border Radio, more on that after it arrives and I can review it. Two months ago I scored the once-rare vinyl LP soundtrack for the movie which features the Flesheaters, Divine Horsemen and Chris D. I love this movie and it’s even more fascinating now in light of the fact that the music business as depicted in Border Radio all at once no longer exists AND is the same as it ever was.

I love contradictions and dichotomies.

Surviving a Marathon DJ Gig

Ever struggled to keep a DJ set tight for six hours? It’s a DJ gig hell-ride, to be sure…but there are a few things you can do to survive a very long set, whether you’re spinning in a club, doing on-air DJ work or playing a party or wedding. I’ve done extended sets in just about every one of these situations–on the air, parties, you name it.

Naturally the setting you’re doing your DJ work in dictates a lot about how you manage a very long night, but there are a few specifics I’ve found apply no matter what. This ain’t a guide to how to make your DJ segues flow or how to keep the club jumping, this is more about keeping your body feeling as close to top form as you can get in hour number four, five and beyond.

Blood Sugar is a huge factor. When you load up with a lot of carbs, sugar or alcohol, the crash is coming, believe it. Your DJ set will be much better if you’ve packed a protein bar or two and keep some kind of carb control snack on hand that’s formulated to level out your blood sugar. You WILL feela difference. The second your energy starts flagging, don’t go for the Red Bull, try eating a small carb control snack or a few bites of a protein bar. Don’t eat the whole thing, try 1/4 of a bar at first and see how you feel.

Foot Fatigue isn’t always a factor in a club or a radio station, but if you’re DJing a wedding, chances are you’re standing on concrete or flimsy tile in those rec halls and reception centers. When I’m on the decks for an extended period, I make sure to pack a small area rug in my DJ equipment box. You can laugh if you want, but it delays the onset of foot fatigue and makes your entire gig much more comfortable.

Hearing Protection seems like a no-brainer to me, but I am shocked by the number of DJs who don’t wear hearing protection during their gigs. If you play longer than two hours you need this more than ever–prolonged exposure to high SPLs is a major occupational hazard for DJs and no club DJ or party spinner should ever play long sets without safeguarding the ears. It saves you in so many ways, but for me personally, a DJ set with hearing protection is much less stressful overall–I find extended high volumes physically draining without the earplugs.

Technics SL-DZ1200 Digital Turntable

by Joe Wallace
Technics says their Technics SL-DZ1200 was the world’s first Direct-Drive Digital Turntable. I don’t care if it’s the hundred and first, the idea that you can carry around your library on a removable SD card is pretty sweet–even if it does feel totally contrary to nature. While digital turntables are no longer hot-off-the-presses front page news in the DJ world, Technics is still one of the warhorse names in the business and it’s no surprise they’d try to dominate in the digital realm as well as with the analog turntables.

The Technics SL DZ1200 supports CD, MP3 and AAC formats. In light of my previous post on Christian Marclay, I do wonder how this DJ gear will enable a whole new crop of DJs who I’d label “post music” performers. Imagine doing a set comprised solely of manipulation of your library of samples rather than actual songs.

Consider that you wouldn’t even need to create a proper playlist if you were skilled enough with the manipulation of a pile of self-created samples. Sounds like a challenge waiting to be taken up by anyone with enough dosh to shell out over $1100 apiece for these digital monsters.

The specs on the Technics SL-DZ1200 digital turntable:

On-board Effects
Vibration resistant
Pitch lock
Free wheel
Adjustable speeds
Cue Point Functionality
Full scratch capable
SL Type Direct Drive Platter with Forward and Reverse Option
CD, CD-RW, CD-MP3, SD Audio Playback
SD Card Storage for Settings and Sample

While we’re on the subject, here’s a clip of the Technics SL-DZ1200 turntable at work.

Christian Marclay and Unwanted Sound

by Joe Wallace

My first exposure to Christian Marclay was though my bandmates in Crevice. In 1999, some of the Crevice crew hooked up with Marclay to do an art show in San Antonio, Texas at the Art Pace gallery. The show, according to Uncle Buzz Records (the label home of Crevice, Pink Filth, Paisley Babylon, and others) to be an “audio/visual event using hundreds of Christmas records (Marclay) collected while in town.

Interesting enough to combine DJing with art galleries; moreso that the idea was to create new music from a collection of thousands of Christmas records. Ever since then I’ve been intrigued by Christian Marclay and his body of work. I don’t think DJ culture has been the same since Marclay, in the same way that tape manipulation art hasn’t been the same since John Oswald.

Marclay has been described as a “Dadaist DJ.” He may be a DJ but is far from a club kid knob twiddler.
For starters, he studied sculpture at the Massachusetts College of Art in Boston Marclay has been involved in a number of collaborations with high-profile names in music. The term DJ or turntablist is really inadequate for Marclay–he’s gone far beyond club DJing and studio recording. His concepts involve the physical manipulation of the recorded music on vinyl as well as the aural manipulation of it.

Christian Marclay has worked with John Zorn, Sonic Youth, Otomo Yoshihide and Fred Frith. His work has been shown at the Whitney Museum of American Art New York among other important galleries around the world. It’s obvious that he’s a name in the business of sound, in the same manner as Eno, John Cage, Harold Budd and other experimenters/pioneers.

Check this clip about Christian Marclay and his desire for “unwanted sound”. It’s a fascinating little glimpse into the world he inhabits. “When we play a record we don’t want to hear the surface noise,” said Marclay,”But those are the sounds I’m interested in. I’m interested in the sounds I can get out of this vinyl record.”