pie-eater 207 Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 OK. Hookie from New Order. "Legendary" bass player who seems to be liking the pies of late. (Can't blame him). Anyway, he's getting stick on the web for "faking" a dj set. Here's the evidence. What I want to know is - what exactly is he doing, and what exactly is he supposed to be doing (ie. what is he faking?) I saw Fatboy Slim once doing a "concert" and he seemed to do nothing other than gurn, dance and drink beer other than twidle some knobs. ?? Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 He was in Japan recently. He's definitely fiddling with EQs but it's waayyy over the top. At least there's a chance he'll play some intersting music, not like the majority of self-indulgent tosspots who call themseleves DJs these days. Link to post Share on other sites
BagOfCrisps 24 Posted January 29, 2008 Share Posted January 29, 2008 The only time I've heard of Hookie of late, he has been being a bit of a dick. Like when he said NO were over. He looks a bit the same here and some of the comments I've read. Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Coming from someone who plays.. you can tell he isn't doing anything. Even when he is tweaking the High / mid / low range knobs that there is no visible sound effect and he seems to be claiming stuff way too late! He isn't even mixing the next tracks in and they appear! MAGIC! Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 He looks like some kind of grandad trying to be cool parody. So this is the 'legendary Hooky'. Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Originally Posted By: Indo Coming from someone who plays.. you can tell he isn't doing anything. Even when he is tweaking the High / mid / low range knobs that there is no visible sound effect and he seems to be claiming stuff way too late! He isn't even mixing the next tracks in and they appear! MAGIC! Yeah, but you should know as a DJ that you're not going to hear changes in pitch and effects through a recording on Youtube!! Also, how many DJs today carry their "performance" around on a laptop or DAT tape? It's a scam and has been for a long time. From a long suffering punter and music fanatic, 95% of DJs should be shot!! At the very least Hookie has musical credibility to fall back on. Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Hang the DJ, as Mozzer said. I must admit, I just do not "get" this DJ stuff at all...... Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Originally Posted By: tripitaka Yeah, but you should know as a DJ that you're not going to hear changes in pitch and effects through a recording on Youtube!! Yeah sure the sound quality ain't good but you should be able to hear some effect. Especially with his knob turning style! Gotta laugh at all those hard core Dj's now using their laptops. My son can do that. Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 I agree scouser, none of it makes much sense to me. Whats the difference between a DJ from 15 years ago and one now? Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Better music then perhaps? Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Originally Posted By: veronica I agree scouser, none of it makes much sense to me. Whats the difference between a DJ from 15 years ago and one now? Can I take that back 15-20 years ago? Perhaps the biggest difference is that club culture still had an underground element and people didn't put up with mediocrity. These days, club culture and/or music is part of the mainstream so everything's watered down. People have latched on to DJ'ing as a fashion or a way of "being someone." Every man and his dog is a DJ these days, regardless of whether they have any taste or not. The original Jamaican DJs didn't a fancy mixing desk or trendy turntables to move party. Link to post Share on other sites
ProbablyaCrazyPerson 2 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 But didn't DJs just to play other peoples records? And say cheesy things inbetween? What is it that they do now that is so different? Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Well, they push more buttons than they used to. And get paid much more (presumably because of all those extra buttons they push). Link to post Share on other sites
spook 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 ok, i dig a bit of electronic music but it's not really my bag. i'll listen to it now and then, but i'm not very knowledgeable about this genre can someone explain whats with electronic acts that are advertised as performing "live". on a festival poster there'll be 20 acts and 2 or 3 or them will have live next to their name. does that mean they create songs from instruments, computers etc on stage? and if so, they what are all the other acts doing - just playing their cds? Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 They start up their computer and then press a few buttons and then dance along with everyone, sometimes taking a swig of beer. They are "live" (ie. alive) on stage! I'm not sure if that means the ones that are not live are not alive, but... It's all very confusing isn't it. Link to post Share on other sites
samurai 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 I was playing some Oakenfold from Oslo Norway several years ago in my mom's jeep. It was a trancy cd, but quite mellow and not very housy or bassy or hip-hoppy. She compared him to a modern maestro the way he integrated sounds together into a compilation. I quite liked that analogy. Many techno-heads who are much more into electronic music than myself may not be a huge Oakenfold fan, but he is in the guiness book of world records for being the world's most successful DJ. whatever that means. Nonetheless, I dig it. I think he also did the music for the Matrix. (but I'm quoting someone else's words there.) I don't like clubby, bassy, housy, heavy trance. I like precise sounds nicely integrated that build up to a climax over several minutes. I also like wondering what in the hell made that sound. I like how it's often difficult to identify. (unlike bassy yada yada.) Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 The biggest difference has been the move from records to digital. In the old day when I started spinning records there were no BPM displays on mixers which meant you had to be pretty good to get the BPM matched. These days with mixers and CDJ's showing the bpm and different high/low points in the track it's much easier for someone to put together a good set (but still easy to F up!) Software such as tracktor allows you to sync the tracks to the BPM and as I said before... my 4 year old son can do that. The live thing means that rather than just a person spinning usually you'll have a group (or just 1 dj) who are putting all their samples and creating the music right there, rather than just spinningCD's or records. Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Originally Posted By: spook ok, i dig a bit of electronic music but it's not really my bag. i'll listen to it now and then, but i'm not very knowledgeable about this genre can someone explain whats with electronic acts that are advertised as performing "live". on a festival poster there'll be 20 acts and 2 or 3 or them will have live next to their name. does that mean they create songs from instruments, computers etc on stage? and if so, they what are all the other acts doing - just playing their cds? I'm sure you've heard of Kraftwerk. That's pretty much the best example of a band that plays pure live electronic music. If it's created with a synthesizer and performed like you would with a musical instrument, that's "live electronic music." Then you have bands like LCD Soundsytem who meld synths with guitars and drums. You then have electronic producers such as System 7 who use their electronic gear We have developed to create live beats and echo loops. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Hooky's not a dj and is basically a celeb cashing in. Anyone going to see him deserves what they get. Unless they're stuck with him at a festival or summat. Wikipedia says its a mix CD from a magazine! I think he's always been a bit of a knob tbh. New Order fans hype him up as some kind of bass god, but he's never been very good. Bass playing is all about feel, and he's not really got it. Just that echoey effects box he plays with. To show that I'm not completely against the band, heres my favourite. I wonder would have happened if it had sold big before Blue Monday. Its the keys that drive the tune, not the bass that only plays a kind of floaty lead. Over 25 years old now. DJing of a computer is fine so long as its all not preprogrammed. People like Richie Hawtin really push the boundaries with it. Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Originally Posted By: Mr Wiggles DJing of a computer is fine so long as its all not preprogrammed. People like Richie Hawtin really push the boundaries with it. Amon Tobin also uses a computer to fine effect. I believe that there are a lot of live trance acts, but I'm not sure what they're actually doing to create a live expereince. Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 I'm sure tons of DJs play pre-prepared sets every weekend and content themselves with a little off-the-cuff knob-tweaking. Who would be able to tell these days, and should anyone really care? Unfortunately, the deification of DJs probably won't go away as long as there are crowds of endorphin-fuelled punters waving their arms in the air. Even amateur DJs seem to have a wildly inflated notion of how much credit they deserve for a lively night. Seriously, would it make any difference if the bar or club managers just stuck on some excellent mix CDs and set up some cool lighting and visuals? Are people such sheep they need a "conductor" to prompt them to chat or dance? Maybe they are. Link to post Share on other sites
spook 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 i dunno, good djs can make or break a night (whether they're playing dance, mashups, rock, whatever). we've all been somewhere playing innapropriate music which just kills the mood it's wicked putting a few tunes on at a party and watching everyone go bananas. good djs do this on a much larger scale Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 A good Dj can read the crowd and work off them. The type of music makes a difference too. A few of my mates play minimal and when we have our parties in the Mtns it didn't go down that well with everyone, so I popped on and threw down a good set of Progressive house and the place lifted. That's not because of me, it's from the music, but I can't imagine being in club or at a party where we are going off to just a mixed CD! Link to post Share on other sites
spook 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 i actually know some girls who can happily put on a mix trance disc and dance around the loungeroom like they're in a club. i've seen it at least a dozen times and it's pretty weird then again, i just sit on the couch and watch a bunch of girls dancing with each other, so it could be worse Warning, spoiler! maybe next time i should pretend to tweak with the cds, and claim dj status Link to post Share on other sites
tripitaka 0 Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Originally Posted By: Indo A good Dj can read the crowd and work off them. The type of music makes a difference too. A few of my mates play minimal and when we have our parties in the Mtns it didn't go down that well with everyone, so I popped on and threw down a good set of Progressive house and the place lifted. That's not because of me, it's from the music, but I can't imagine being in club or at a party where we are going off to just a mixed CD! Sorry Indo, sometimes I find it very hard to accept this "read the crowd" BS. I will repeat that I find most DJs quite boring these days because, in my experience, it's more about them than the music. The club experience is becoming 6 or 7 tracks of mediocre nonsense, followed by then one killer track that's mixed into more mediocrity. That's kind of why I like the Aphex Twin when he DJs. He will occasionally do things completely off the cuff, just to mess with people's heads. As long as it's interesting. I do know that I bitch and moan about the "how it used to be," but I'm not the first to suggest the whole movement is contrived these days. Link to post Share on other sites
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