The Detroit Techno House

`Diff’rent Strokes’ star Gary Coleman dies

I’m on a mission to find out if it really matters what a DJ spins with. This topic has been going on every since I have been involved in the DJ scene in Detroit. Ten years ago the argument was about turntables vs. cd players, and now it has shifted to digital vinyl systems vs. midi controllers. With the portability and stability of digital vinyl solutions, actual vinyl recordings have found their place in home collections and only being rarely spun at underground events by local die-hards. New technology has made it so a turntable can control music on a laptop in real time. Perfect for scratch DJs that prefer the feel of vinyl. So why carry all those records right? Well now DJs are saying, why carry those turntables also? With a new portable midi controller coming out every few months, DJs have the ability to fit all their music and gear in one bag. Not using turntables is also way cheaper. No needles and less cables also. Amazing right? Here comes the argument. If you don’t use turntables in some way or fashion then you are not a real DJ and cannot mix without pushing the magical DJ button that mixes for you, hence making you a “microwave DJ”. Although it is true that new software will match BPMs for you if you prepare your tracks beforehand, it will not pick songs or mix them at the right point in the song for you. It also will not apply effects, adjust levels, fix itself when it decides to suck, or be creative. Being a good DJ requires way more then what type of equipment you have. If you can do all the things I described then you can be a great DJ no matter what you use. When it comes down to it the only people who care about the equipment are other DJs and older audiophiles. I DJ for young people all the time and the youth definitely couldn’t care less about what I’m using. The key with a laptop system is to not look like your checking your e-mail. In my opinion I think it is wise to use multiple types of systems to be able to adapt to any environment. I might want to use vinyl records at a smaller local venue, or use a midi controller at larger out of town gigs. No matter what you use just keep it creative and practice. Here’s two videos from opposite sides of the issue. The first is of Terrence Parker using vinyl and the scond is of Ean Golden of DJ Tech Tools with the Korg Nano Pad and Traktor.

Sorry for the lack of content lately. We at DTH are going through a slight revamp of our site. We are working hard to come up with new and interesting ideas to inspire the World through Detroit music. We have started traveling around town to find unique vinyl records in attempt to create a wider appreciation of Detroit Techno and House music. With a camcorder in hand we will be capturing the essence of the Detroit electronic culture and delivering it to you via unique video productions. So stay tuned, and I promise you we will soon have some very interesting content for you to fulfill your lives with.

So this weekend ended up being pretty chill. Even though there were a decent amount of things poppin off in the city, I ended up in a mix of blazin wings, spinning records in Mr. Glasshouse’s basement, and watching UFC. Wish I had some more for ya, but I don’t. I’ll leave with a new quote from my weekend.
“Get your babies the fuck out of my bar. I don’t go drinking and smoking in your daycare.”-NinjaChopUh

Oh! Stay tuned for my review of Exchange Bureau’s new release from an old Pubah.

There’s no doubt that social media is the new wave of doing business and promotion. No matter how hard some try not using Myspace,Twitter,or Facebook, they are eventually sucked into it. Especially if you are an entrepreneur. As a DJ using twitter I have found it nice to be able to connect with fans and other artists through this media and with twitter DJ, a product created by Richie Hawtin, I can do that and even more. Twitter DJ uses a combination of Traktor and Twitter to update a DJ’s “followers” of whatever track the DJ is spinning. It looks like this…

“is now playing: CITIZEN KAIN & PHUTURE TRAXX – Cameleon (Pfirter Remix)

9:19 PM Sep 26th from Twitt3r_DJ

is now playing: Julien Chaptal Remix – YAKINE – STICKNEY (JULIEN CHAPTAL’S E DAY MIX) V1

9:18 PM Sep 26th from Twitt3r_DJ

is now playing: 2000 and One – Honey Bush [Tobi Neumann RMX]

9:15 PM Sep 26th from Twitt3r_DJ”

Thanks to Ean from DJ Tech Tools for the heads up. Check out DJ Tech Tools for more info or Richie’s site

Sometimes miracles happen, aliens come to earth, and spirits speak to us. None of this happened last night. I’ve always been the type of person that wanted to find a sasquach and talk about it on the history channel while everyone watching in disbelief is thinking, this dude is nuts. My friends told me that it didn’t matter if I found a sasquatch because everyone thinks I’m nuts anyways. They’ve seen nothing yet. Have you ever done something so good, that if there was a devil, he would shed a tear from the shear beauty and change his ways? A boy discovering something that was created before he was born can be completely blown away by it’s futurism. Kinda like Franklin Thompson’s song, My Money’s Kinda Funny.

Oh yeah! Carlos Souffront is playing at Oslo and it is as free as a soul with wings. I think there is some other shit going on to.