I notice that everyone who is pro-PA seem to be producers themselves. So the question becomes, are we discussing the merits of live PAs as an audience member (who is presumably there to be entertained) or as a performer (who is there for more 'egotistical'- though not in a bad way, reasons)
Please keep in mind that I am not anti-PA. But I have definately had more amazing nights with DJs. There are definately some stigmas attached to PAs. I remember at the Area 616 party, there was a live PA by a group called Bios, who went on after Surgeon and before Jeff Mills. I can't tell you how many eyes rolled when we realized that we were going to have to sit though a live PA (by a group we didn't know- no less) before getting to the reason we were really there (Mills). Well I was happy to report the next day that Bios rocked. So there are exceptions to every rule. On Sat, 16 Mar 2002, Phonopsia wrote: > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Tosh Cooey" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <313@hyperreal.org> > Sent: Friday, March 15, 2002 9:24 PM > Subject: [313] live vs. dj > > > > uh....... > > > > A DJ can play the best music from many artists for a long bloody time, a > > LIVE artist can only play a couple of their good tracks and a bunch of > > their boring stuff for two hours MAX... *you* decide what you want to > > pay for. > > And who decided this was an either/or proposition? > > One would think this was a corps of HPDJs waiting in the wings, ready to > swipe gigs from "real DJs" with impeccable taste. God forbid someone would > want to showcase their music in a format other than vinyl... > > One of the most gratifying experiences I've had as a DJ was spinning a set > of my own music from CD, although the technical element was nearly boring > for me (because my music is very structured and doesn't leave a lot of room > to mix). Is this what I want to do every time I spin? God no. Was it a good > time for all involved? Yes. Sorry in advance for being a producer (who was a > DJ first) that likes to see people get off to his music sometimes. Sorry for > exposing music in a way that would otherwise never be heard. Is it still OK > to play unreleased tracks from Reel-to-Reel as was done once upon a time? If > I just made music for my own pleasure, wouldn't that be elitist? If no one > liked it that would be one thing, if it's challenging people's > preconceptions about what performance is, or exposing unheard music that's > another. Or if it's just a good time, and this is the method a producer has > chosen to vocate in, that should be enough. If seeing five of fifty people > go crazy to your own stuff for an hour is not adequate, what is? Isn't this > what most underground DJs contend with most of the time anyway? I've heard > endless stories about the "method" of reading a crowd as a DJ (which is > generally a lofty idea aggrandized for effect) and in almost every case that > DJ says they focus on a few people and try to drive them to new heights. How > on earth could a DJ view an entire crowd and move them as one unless they > had the hype-of-license-to-do-so or the hype of the party in advance? Isn't > crowd reaction based on hype 90% of the time anyway? Let's demystify this > discussion for clarity's sake. Don't you think some of the negative response > to PAs is because there's a stigma against them? Wouldn't you like to > showcase something that's entirely your own if people would respond to it? > Isn't that the key, not method but response - assuming the music is quality? > I recall a number of pro-Final Scratch arguments that would lead me to > believe this is how you feel. Why is Final Scratch so much more legit than a > PA, or a CD mix of unreleased material, or a vinyl mix of one's own > dubplates (as is approximated with drum 'n bass)? Why the method fascism > from someone who is so keen on driving into the "future of DJing" with Final > Scratch? For the record, I have no beef with Final Scratch and would rather > not see a rehashing of that debate. > > God knows there are an assload of bad PAists. SO WHAT? There are even more > bad DJs. The rarity of good performances does not equate to a dismissal of > all of them. > > Tristan > ------------------- > Upcoming Gigs: > 3/16/02 - Centripetal Force @ The Edge, DC > 4/6/02 - The Basics @ The Abyss, DC > 4/14/02 - Filler @ Blue Room, Adams Morgan, DC > http://www.mp313.com <- Music > http://www.metrotechno.net <- DC techno + more > http://www.metatrackstudios.com <- DC DJ/Production studios > http://phonopsia.tripod.com <- Hub > [EMAIL PROTECTED] <- email > > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
