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Damn i've been thinking about this issue all day today...damn you

Ok a example, say your a HARD or UPLIFTING trance Dj, and they tell you to do the warm up, what happens then??

quote:

Originally posted by Dj_Psygnosis Damn i've been thinking about this issue all day today...damn you Ok a example, say your a HARD or UPLIFTING trance Dj, and they tell you to do the warm up, what happens then??

Are you meaning that since the hard or uplifting tunes would be probably some of the most energetic and powerful tunes, that if say a house Dj was the headliner, his or her set would be kind of boring compared to the openers??

I don't think it would be a problem. Probably 99% of the people in the club would be coming there to see the house Dj play, since he is the headliner and the show is based around him. So for them I would think the house would be of more interest to them and would be the music they would be more into even if the openers music was louder and faster and more energetic.

quote:

Originally posted by Dj SHO Are you meaning that since the hard or uplifting tunes would be probably some of the most energetic and powerful tunes, that if say a house Dj was the headliner, his or her set would be kind of boring compared to the openers?? I don't think it would be a problem. Probably 99% of the people in the club would be coming there to see the house Dj play, since he is the headliner and the show is based around him. So for them I would think the house would be of more interest to them and would be the music they would be more into even if the openers music was louder and faster and more energetic.

Hey there folks.

Sorry Sho, it must seem like I am picking on you and believe me that's not what I want to do.

The house crowd would care, they have paid to come to a house night and that means they don't want to hear trance.
On the other hand if the promoter was worth anything they wouldn't have a hard trance DJ warming up for a house DJ. That just wouldn't happen and if it did it would not be very well thought out. You would get a massive drop in energy levels and tempo that would just not work. You could for example get away with building a funky breaks/house set into a lighter trance set on the other hand but not the other way around.

If you hammer the anthems out and so on with only a half filled club and an empty dance floor it also makes the club look bad. People are a funny bunch and you get different types on the dance floor. You will always have those monsters who will dance to anything. But most people need to be persuaded or get a little tanked up or whatever before they make a move.

Dj_Psygnosis
With regards to what happens, basically in the first couple of years as a night club DJ you will have to get used to the idea of not playing the music you like and get used to playing what you are told. Once you get past that stage you may be asked to close a night and that's a lot more fun, especially if the guest has had a good night and the dancefloor is still packed. Build your rep. It takes time but it's worth doing right.

And besides even when you are like me, although you are freelance and get to travel to play places, you would be surprised the amount of clubs that try and pin you down with a music policy. Lately my sets have drifted towards more funky techno with a bit of trance thrown in simply because that's what people are looking for at the moment. It might not be %100 me but if I want to keep working then that's what I have to do.

Cheers
Nem

hehe, depending on whether or not you want to open for a certain dj again, play wat you want!

Lots of good advice here, but i think you guys are overthinking it...

I don't know how it works in countries were big events are common,
but here, Dominican Republic, 3000 peopl is a HUGE FUCKING event,
and 400 people is a packed ass club. And here, the headliners rarely
listen to the opener's sets. They normally arrive 10-30mins before
they are to get on. Normally it's because of delays at the airport
(shit is always happening). But say, Digweed spun here a month ago,
and a great DJ an friend of mine was given the warm up slot, then
Jimmy van M would spin, then Diggers and finally my friend would
close. van M missed his flight, so the warm up was forced to directly
open for Diggers. Yes, they did chat for a while, Digweed is his
idol, but it wasn't about what tracks he was going to play. And he
did not refrain from dropping a new release or two.

There was really no clash between the sets, the only repetition
was when Digweed finished his set, then dropped Heaven Scent, and
my friend opened his closing set with Heaven Scent.

Also, when it's bignames we're talking, do you really think they'd
bother to be pissed if an opener fucked up? One more opener in one
more club in one more city in one more country. Some might not even
remember, others might not care, others might not give a shit and
work around it. When James Zabiela spun here, he was given a rookie
ass DJ for an opener, who couldn't select tracks for shit, mix for
shit, program a set for shit or consider WHO she was opening for
in order to spin. When he walked in, she started dropping some hard
techno. Zabiela noticed the crowd seemed to be feeling a lot of
energy, so he just didn't let the track finish up, and mixed some
twisted ass techno right behind it, and started scratching at it
and effect-ing it to hell. Then he did a wind down effect, gave it
till silence, and dropped in an acapella, and started his set from
there (best fucking set ive ever heard).

Weeks later, when Anthony Pappa spun here, and was given that same
shit DJ to open for him, he just dropped in a track and looped it
as soon as it came in, while still in a kickless intro, only a
haunting fading synth. He slowly faded from the current track into
this completely, and then let it go, and gave us an amazing set.
I can imagine he wasn't too happy with the warm up, but he didn't
sweat it much either.

I don't know, could be talking out my ass, I'm not a proper DJ,
but that was just my $0.02

Seems to me you have to play it in between being ignorant and playing whatever the fuck you want, and being completely not yourself.

You guys crack me up.

If it every happened to me, I'd spin what I want. After I get done with my set, it's not my baby anymore. If I happened to spin something Tiesto or whoever wanted to spin, tough (except for brand new releases by themselves). They'd just have to spin something else.

And if my set ends up being more powerful and energetic then theirs, and the crowd dies out during their set, then they sould've been the ones opening for me.

Hey Inertia,

Not really overthinking it just speaking from what I know to be true.

It's not so much about new and old and more about energy levels. Whilst most DJs may well have the abbility to adlib and get out of situations (heaven forbid if we didn't, then we shouldn't be playing out), but it's still not quite the point. While that techno track may well have sounded great etc. The fact that he played it out is just a mark of respect to the previous DJ (and it might not have been suitable earlier in the track). He may also not have been familiar with it, looking over the setup or whatever yada yada yada... you get my point anyways.

In a sense you answered the question yourself as you mentioned that you didn't think that the warmup DJ was good in these instances. While the headliners were still great (and so they should be for the money that they are getting) the overall night may have been better if the warmup was of a higher standard and relevant (Just food for thought).

I know what you mean about the headliners not listening to the warm up sets, I arrived 45 mins late when I was in Italy last. Seems like airtraffic control are just a bunch of timewasters . Had to start straight away and work like a maniac to build up fever pitch but the warm up left off at a very good spot so it worked out just fine. He knew what he was doing and new he had to start building as I might have, incase I didn't arrive at all. I have played at this place before and I know the warm up guy, he's one of their best DJs and the most likely out of all the residents at that place to go on to bigger and better things. Not because that's my opinion but that's the scene's opinion of him. I just happen to agree with it.

Overall
The thought that a warm up DJ has to be in a certain way seems to be a very hard pill to swallow for some people here. And I guess that's fine as I am a firm believer of people's right to express their opinions. So that's all cool

Best of luck to you guys either way you play it and I hope you get what you wish for.
Nem

When i started out as a warm up dj- i saw my job as follows:
To entertain people, and to bring the energy level up to a point where the main dj can start with a dance floor rather than an empty dance floor
The job isnt to prove you can do better than them or sneak in a few big current anthems or whatever.

Djing in a club is all about energy levels- it was once described to me as a rollercoaster- which is pretty accurate. The warm ups job is to build it up sufficiently to then drop it when the main dj comes on-or the main jock may want to keep the energy at the same level for a while.
Its a very hard thing to describe

quote:

Originally posted by Nemesis44 Hey Inertia, Not really overthinking it just speaking from what I know to be true. It's not so much about new and old and more about energy levels. Whilst most DJs may well have the abbility to adlib and get out of situations (heaven forbid if we didn't, then we shouldn't be playing out), but it's still not quite the point. While that techno track may well have sounded great etc. The fact that he played it out is just a mark of respect to the previous DJ (and it might not have been suitable earlier in the track). He may also not have been familiar with it, looking over the setup or whatever yada yada yada... you get my point anyways. In a sense you answered the question yourself as you mentioned that you didn't think that the warmup DJ was good in these instances. While the headliners were still great (and so they should be for the money that they are getting) the overall night may have been better if the warmup was of a higher standard and relevant (Just food for thought). I know what you mean about the headliners not listening to the warm up sets, I arrived 45 mins late when I was in Italy last. Seems like airtraffic control are just a bunch of timewasters . Had to start straight away and work like a maniac to build up fever pitch but the warm up left off at a very good spot so it worked out just fine. He knew what he was doing and new he had to start building as I might have, incase I didn't arrive at all. I have played at this place before and I know the warm up guy, he's one of their best DJs and the most likely out of all the residents at that place to go on to bigger and better things. Not because that's my opinion but that's the scene's opinion of him. I just happen to agree with it. Overall The thought that a warm up DJ has to be in a certain way seems to be a very hard pill to swallow for some people here. And I guess that's fine as I am a firm believer of people's right to express their opinions. So that's all cool Best of luck to you guys either way you play it and I hope you get what you wish for. Nem

i understand all that, was just trying to make a point that its
not that complicated. you have a warm up slot, then WARM UP. you
have a closing spot, the CLOSE the night. not rocket science if
you ask me. what i meant to denote with my examples, is that in
both cases, fuckups were prominent (i mean, that chick mixed from
some funky house into hard techno?!) and zabiela just played it
out with a big smile on his face. i didnt mean screwing things
up is ok, of course not, but its not like a bigname DJ will actually
recall every single warmup/opener they have, despite how good or
how bad they are. all the more incentive to do an exceptional
job, and maybe they might take notice.

i agree with john 00 fleming and nemesis, but the other way round makes you think too: if you always have to adapt your set to other genres, by opening up to different genre dj's, wouldn't you be losing your signature sound? like you're a trance dj, then you're forced to play prog, then in other ocasion you're forced to play breaks... isn't developing your own sound and style a good way to make yourself a name? so this wouldn't help. i think that developing your style and sticking with it is a lot better than just follow the market and play whatever's more popular at the time.

perhaps the best thing is to adapt the style, but not too much, and simply don't accept to warm up for someone when you know you would be stretching your style too much for it to fit.

(this coming from someone who isn't a dj and probably doesn't have a clue)

quote:

Originally posted by paranoik0 i agree with john 00 fleming and nemesis, but the other way round makes you think too: if you always have to adapt your set to other genres, by opening up to different genre dj's, wouldn't you be losing your signature sound? like you're a trance dj, then you're forced to play prog, then in other ocasion you're forced to play breaks... isn't developing your own sound and style a good way to make yourself a name? so this wouldn't help. i think that developing your style and sticking with it is a lot better than just follow the market and play whatever's more popular at the time. perhaps the best thing is to adapt the style, but not too much, and simply don't accept to warm up for someone when you know you would be stretching your style too much for it to fit. (this coming from someone who isn't a dj and probably doesn't have a clue)

well, as Nem said, if the promoter is worth a turd, he'll try to get
a warmup DJ that fits the headliner. why in the name of satan would
they get a techno DJ to warm up for a progressive trance DJ? in cases
where there is a slight difference, well, adapt to it, you might be
broadening your horizons. you can play trancey breaks, or start trance
and end with some downtempo breakish stuff. mix & match, and most
important is to have fun. if you're hating it, chances are so is the
crowd.

quote:

Originally posted by Inertia most important is to have fun. if you're hating it, chances are so is the crowd.

Now that is so darn true.

Sorry Inertia, got the wrong meaning out of your previous post so my bad. It's exactly as you say. Warm up means warm up not out do the headliner and close means close and so on. And on the whole you are right but if a DJ notices you trying to mess with their rep they will very much remember you.
Usually DJs of calibre in the UK will work out a deal for several appearances over a period of time, and it's usually the first thing they will mention to the promoter once their set is finished i.e. if they were happy with things as they were.

It's quite surprising what you can actually use to warm up for trance. It needn't just be proggy it can also be funky. And there is also a lot of damn fine music that isn't trance that will work really well.

Cheers
Nem

quote:

Originally posted by Nemesis44 It's quite surprising what you can actually use to warm up for trance. It needn't just be proggy it can also be funky. And there is also a lot of damn fine music that isn't trance that will work really well.

I think this is really an important issue.. I don't stick my collection to trance, actually I have most of all the spectrum of EDM. And I don't know what all tracks have in common (except for the fact that I like them all of course) but I bought them because I identified myself with each of them. I have funky house, progressive trance, tribal, uplifting trance, hard trance, techno, techno-pop, and I'll be getting some breaks... don't stick to a genre, and whatever you spin, as long as it has your signature, you're ok I guess. Look at eddie halliwell, he spins a lot of different stuff and what they all have in common is energy. And take PvD's 3 hour set at XXL partynight or whatever that was, where he spun trance, house, techno... all of them are "PvD-like", they all have emotion and that typical "PvD" energy, and they have different tempos and are different styles! You just need to broaden your horizons and.. well.. have a lot of money
Cheers!

Nemesis to me appears to be an extreamly professional DJ, keep it up

On the subject of spinning before tiesto, the crowd are there to see tiesto play "Tiesto" style tunes, not the warm up playing Tiesto's set forcing tiesto to play something he didnt really wanna play.

I think the main thing is for the promoter to program properly for example having a hard house dj warm up for Sasha wud be a stupid example but it gets my point about.

People want a good night, so advice to the warm up is don't spoil it be playing to fast to soon its like premature ejaculation, you just wanna sleep the rest of the night after its all over!

quote:

Originally posted by Nemesis44 Now that is so darn true. Sorry Inertia, got the wrong meaning out of your previous post so my bad. It's exactly as you say. Warm up means warm up not out do the headliner and close means close and so on. And on the whole you are right but if a DJ notices you trying to mess with their rep they will very much remember you. Usually DJs of calibre in the UK will work out a deal for several appearances over a period of time, and it's usually the first thing they will mention to the promoter once their set is finished i.e. if they were happy with things as they were. It's quite surprising what you can actually use to warm up for trance. It needn't just be proggy it can also be funky. And there is also a lot of damn fine music that isn't trance that will work really well. Cheers Nem

you make a great point, if a DJ is bad at warming up, or is purposely
trying to outdo the headliner, it makes a lot of sense the headliner
might complain. but simplifying my other posts, my philosophy is go
out and have fun doing what they hired you to do, and don't overthink
things. sure, stick to your role, but dont worry too much about it.

also, this country not being a very electronic music oriented, sees DJs every
now and then, rarely they make more than 1 appearance in a year, unless
they have a residency, but even thoes are 3-4 nights a year at max.

and i totally agree, the warmup spot can be used for trance, but i
also think it can be used for anything really. try techno, there is
a lot of laid back minimal techno, some experimental, some very dance-
able. you can do trance, house, prog, breaks, the only thing that can
limit a set is the DJ in my opinion. hell, no good DJ is good for just
anything. and just mixing tracks in the same style doesnt cut it anymore,
not to mention it can get quite boring. why must there be a war among
styles? it all revolves around rhythm, if you can mix it together
nicely and it sounds good, why not?

big thank you to nem and j00f for all these words of wisdom, as an aspiring club dj i will take all of this to heart!

Listen to Nemesis people, he knows what he is talking about. What Fleming says is so very true. I have seen many occasions where a DJ played what he liked before a headliner and later was blasted for his actions and ultimately lost out on other gigs. Sure it sucks ass we have to not play what we like or shit that is not our style but you have to do the time to get to that place just like every other DJ out there. I have a close friend DJ out here who would spin warm up sets for over a year even though his style is banging 145BPM+ trance anthems. He wanted so bad to blow it up but always paid the DJs the respect they deserve. Well guess what? Now HE is the headliner and gets to blow the roof off several times a month. He would NEVER have gotten there if he had just played whatever he liked. Now I'm moving into the position he used to be in, warming up. Sure its going to suck and I'm going to so badly wish I could drop bombs but I must be patient and respectful. If you do it all right, your time will come and you'll look back and be glad you paid your dues.

it's very simple the warm up dj brings the party level from 0 to lets say 4 and the main dj will try to get the party level more up so thats from 4 up to 10 and when he's good he will hold it 10 until the end.

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