Me

I'm an unassuming self-deprecating technology buff who's only just started getting into this DJing lark - I'm not going to feed you the usual questionable guff about "feeling one with the music" or similar - let it simply be said that I've always enjoyed good music and I've always had more than a passing interest in DJing but my available budget has never suitably coincided with my free time to enable me to get into it until recently, and I was unwilling to risk money on gear until I was sure I could devote some time to it - not to mention having the chance to cut my teeth on someone else's gear first!

To that end I'm still learning - this was something I hadn't actually done for more than ten minutes at a time before September 2009 - and you will still hear me make the odd mistake. No apologies for that - I'm not here to produce perfection, and I don't claim to be a superstar DJ - I'm too busy having a good time...

I can probably trace my desire to DJ back to my first forays into the performing arts - I worked part time as an audio & lighting engineer for a number of years, and when I was manipulating the desks in front of me and bringing together all the parts of a show, I'd always get a rush off the end result, because I could feel the anticipation and appreciation in the audience. That's a feeling I want to be able to replicate in front of a crowd in my own right - and it's that buzz that I'm chasing down now, as I hone my skills. I'm starting to get to the point where I'm getting confident enough with my mixes that I'm starting to get a buzz off them myself when I pull something great off, or drop the perfect track inbetween two I just didn't feel happy with meshing together - from here it's just a case of chasing my tail for long enough until I catch it...

My Music

I don't have an established 'style', per se - I play what I like, and I like quite a lot, but I aspire to play to the flow of the crowd once I actually get the opportunity - I buzz off other people's buzz, and if they're having a good time - I am too. At the moment, I spend a lot of time dabbling with Trance and Prog-House, but I'm busy wrapping my head around Dubstep and Drum and Bass too.

My Kit

I'm currently making the magic happen with Serato and a Pioneer SEP-C1 controller, as well as a battered old Numark mixer (the model number of which escapes me right now - seriously) to glue it all together which needs, at the very least, a fresh crossfader, but is more than servicable for the time being.

Why no decks?

Honestly? Practicality and Precision. Right now I don't have acres of desk space to dedicate to what is, essentially, just an expensive hobby at the moment.

I did have the option on picking up a pair of very nice decks at the time as the rest of my gear but having had the luxury of using both Vinyl and the SEP-C1 in my first few days of mixing I passed up the decks in exchange for the portability and precision (certainly compared to Vinyl) of the digital controller - I just need to find the right 19" mixer with three band EQ that'll let me fit both mixer and controller into a single neat flight case without it costing the earth!

Despite skipping on the Decks and/or CDJ's, I still use Serato (which ordinarily would be used with one or the other) because to be blunt it supports the controller very well (a pleasant surprise, more than anything, at the time, as to how well it works - we've all read the word 'supported' before and been left disappointed) and in my experience it's one of the most uncluttered pieces of software in the market - and hey, I'd have to carry around an external soundcard anyway, right?

If you still think I'm a heretic - let me put it this way - I can pack my entire gear - laptop, external drive, serato break-out-box, mixer, SEP-C1 and all the associated power adaptors - into an overnight bag and carry it with one hand. Now let me see you do that with your Decks. :)