How I mix

The delightful Mike, who blogs over at flip4bearz, is thinking of getting in to the DJ game, and given his excellent taste in music, this is something to be applauded and encouraged!

He asks what software I use for my mixes, and while I would not think of myself as a DJ, I guess I have learned a bit about making mixes in the bedroom over the last couple of years, so I’m delighted to have the opportunity to talk about the tools I use.

Here’s my response:

Hi Mike,

I’m really just learning myself, but I’ll tell you the setup I use.

Mixed in Key ($58 PC/Mac) is a fabulous program! It analyses your tracks and tells you the BPM and also what key the track is mainly in. Knowing the key allows you to mix two tracks into each other very deeply (usually) without a horrible clash.

Next I use Platinum Notes ($98 PC/Mac). This ‘repairs’ tracks and makes everything the same level. Some poor quality mp3s can be made to sound a lot better and it can also slightly retune parts of tracks.

When I’m making mixes for posting online, I use Audacity (free, cross-platform). The best thing about Audacity (apart from being free) is the tool that allows you to change the tempo without changing the pitch. So, if you have a track at 129 bpm and another at 127, you can tweak one so that the beats match up properly.

I’ve not done much live stuff yet, but I’m finding my way around DJ-1800 ($80 Mac only). It works from the data in your iTunes library (and displays all your bpm data!). You can pitch and tempo shift too and it’s not a huge resource hog.

So, I hope all that helps! Good luck with the DJing and I ‘m looking forward to the fruits of your labour!

E x

Incidentally, if anyone is in London on Saturday November 1st next, I’ll be doing the funky house thing at Canal 125 Bar, 125 Caledonian Road (near Kings Cross) at the 6th Annual Ebony & Ivory Ball. I’m on from 8pm for a few hours and the whole thing is for a very good cause: The Food Chain which provides food to families severely affected by HIV/AIDS. If you’d like an invite, let me know. Oh yes, it’s also fancy dress….

It’s Mix Time: The Future of Reputation (chilled house)

Wikipedia entry on 'Reputation' when thrown into Wordle

So, my friend Garvan, who celebrated his birthday recently, commented that, while he likes to listen to my mixes in the gym, sometimes he has to switch off as they can be a bit too ‘full on’.

As I always welcome constructive criticism from listeners, I reflected on this for a while and decided not to  cut the brakes on his car and perhaps rise to the challenge of creating a more chilled beast.

So, for your consideration, The Future of Reputation, an altogether more beachy, loungy thing that you can still shimmy to.

Do let me know what you think.

[This post also marks the first of the higher quality 320kbps mixes, so there is much less compression involved and things should sound nice and shiny!]

Tracklist

1. More Than This (Lenny B’s Extended Club Mix) Madison Park vs Lenny B
2. Fade Solu Music feat. Kimblee
3. Glamour Girl Louie Austen
4. Blind (Frankie Knuckles Remix) Hercules & Love Affair
5. Never (12″ Mix) Ray Roc feat. Tina Arena
6. Ride The Storm (Life Goes On) Roachford vs Carl Kennedy vs MYNC Project
7. Don’t Belong (Original Mix) Andy Duguid feat. Leah
8. Mesmerized (Original) Miguel Migs
9. Pop a Cap In Yo’ Ass (Full Mix) Ben Watt feat. Estelle
10. Longing For Lullabies (John Dahlbäck Remix) Kleerup feat. Titiyo
11. Carry Me Away (Original Club Mix) Chris Lake feat. Emma Hewitt
12. The Mercy Drill Enda P Guinan
13. When You Love Someone (Lifelike Remix) NY-Lon feat. Kate Smith
14. Everything (Big Room Mix) Kaskade

Download The Future of Reputation (83mins, 190MB 320kbps continuous mix). [Mediafire link]

DJ Chuck on the decks (ok, laptop…)

DJ Chuck on the decks (ok, laptop…), originally uploaded by Enda P.

Yay! I finally got to perform as a DJ in London! What fun! The people who lived nearby complained about the noise!! Some gay boys kept demanding the Freemasons! Some boys pogoed crazily when I played Destroy Everything You Touch by Ladytron! More!!!

Sorry about the dearth of posts of late. Work is going to continue being exhausting til the week after next, and it’s coming up to a major assignment in my OU course.Normal service should be resumed at the end of the month!