DJ Branding

Related to the "Which Are You?" threads, when you look at the vast majority of A-List DJs they are typically known for one particular genre, even a sound within that genre. It could be looked at as a branding thing, people know, when they go to see Hernan Cattaneo for instance that they are going to hear prog. They know if they are going to Derrick Carter or Mark Farina they are going to hear boompty boompty boomt.

Are there DJs out there that make it big playing across multiple genres or does playing like that dilute the brand and alienate the audience too much?

For instance, there are a bunch of people who like prog but not tech or vice versa, does playing both genres eliminate both of those subsets of people from coming along? Would a DJ like that only appeal to people who like both?

I dont think you have enough to do.

Want to keep me busy?

Which in-itself is weird as the career-long legends are generally the opposite. Levan, Morales, Tenaglia, Cox, Pullen, May etc are known for the broad range of styles they play.

I should have added that... playing broader styles is what has long been called prog in the US. So guys like Behrouz, DJ Vibe and Tenaglia would be considered prog DJs.. while being completely different in style to Nick Warren who is prog in a more UK sense of the word.

not many DJs can play across multiple genres - especially I would wager the younger genre focused generation

saying that most DJs can play outside their known genre and often do, just not at their day job events

take Carl Cox for example, I'd love to hear him play a soul/funk set which he is known to do

paul oakenfold doing a disco set would also be special

neither of whom I would want to see playing their usual style

Why tho? Is it that the guys I mentioned came from an era when the lines weren't as defined? Or because they just are just people who appreciate broader influences? Or is that the skill required to span Theo Parrish, Axwell, Joris Voorn etc is beyond most DJs? I'd bet it is partly this. Not claiming to be an expert at it but I've always tried to play as broadly as possible within my vibe and the degree of difficulty in it is many times harder than playing a pile of *this category* house tunes for example. It takes tons of practice/experience and forethought, which I doubt most DJs could be bothered doing let alone could do if it dawned on them.

This is a big reason why I am often critical of vanilla, mainstream-ish DJs who play polite big tunes for 90 minutes then ludicrously compare themselves to those who try to do something which is miles more difficult. It's the McDonald's line of thinking in play. It doesn't equal quality - It equals averageness.

I am actually surprised more NZ djs don't play broader styles because we don't have a firm influence in the music we have played compared to, say, someone who was in Chicago, London or New York which have their distinct sounds that dominate. We have always seemed to be a real mixed bag in terms of music sources.

There is a new genre crossing DJ emerging over the past few years. More of a club thing but quite a few guys who play hip-hop/fidjet/Bmore/electro/dubsted/DnB all in the same set and not necessarily in any specific order either.

There are loads of BPM spanning bootlegs around that support this style of mixing most of which go from hip-hop (90-100bpm) and transition up to around 130bpm.

This is the key me thinks.

being old I'd say they is ignorant... but thats unfair and incorrect

today it is very easy (not saying this is wrong) to play within the bounds of one genre and thats the way most clubs in nz operate(there is also so much music to choose from within (sub) genres, unlike the past where releasing music was expensive)

it takes knowledge, passion and balls to play across very different genres (and to a lsser degree the same to play across similar ones)... and I think only a certain type of DJ can do it and even less really well - them that love music first and foremost over DJing

blah blah blah

Er, not that I would consider playing deep, funky, disco, electro and jazzy house in one set to be 'multi-genre'...

Hell.. I don't really even think Techno and House and Electro is that wild..

I was waiting for you to comment on this.
Your name tag should say Multi-genre.

The question remains then, is there room in the current climate for somebody to carve out a niche in the style of the old greats. A DJ that can and does play across multiple genres, and that becomes their niche?

Or has the electronic scene shifted it mindset to the point that they want to hear a particular subgenre of a genre when they go to see a certain DJ? And is that tied into our need to classify everything we hear and to define particular borders into which everything must fit?

I think it's a combo of both. The Dj's who have a distinctive sound don't always stick to a genre, but choose tracks that suit the sound they are pushing. This can be done across multi genre.
I don't think we are talkng extremes here.

Surely we'd all agree that there has to be some connectedness between tunes, no matter what the genre.

That is the skill of the dj, finding that balance between varience of genre and making it seem like they are one and belong together.

Personally, I like it when a dj has a sound they push and I can see the similarity, no matter what they are playing.

Yes, absolutely.. but..


New Zealand is coming off the back of five or six years of being dominated by commercially slanted dance music which caters to the people who put little stock on the actual music where they go... But, when I see the techno and other events like Stimming, Tommiie etc starting to get good followings and the regular nights likewise it might be the resurgence of people looking for something a little less obvious. If you were at the Our House gig at Ellerslie the Global Underground room was by-far the best room over the course of the night and had the best buzz. In the main room, even Joey Negro was what I'd call a bit patchy - resorting to tunes he probably wouldn't need to play at most events.

I think it really is time for promoters and club owners to take a hard look when they complain about patronage as they themselves are the primary reason people have been so fickle in their clubbing habits.

The flip-side of that is there is now a much larger pool of regular clubbers(ish) than five years ago so there will always be that percentage who check out other sounds and drip feed new people into those sort of events. That is the good outcome imo.

Nuff said, if you went to any major house gig in Auckland the main stage will be dominated by very safe mainstream DJs. IF you could remove a prime-time act and put a DJ like Greg, Tenaglia, Page-3 or myself even behind those decks - an act who thinks less niche and more to-the-event - and the party would go off better than with the usual DJ. 100% guaranteed. So why doesn't it happen more?

This says quite a lot when you think about it.... the people being hired to perform are selling parties and party-goers short.. and it's not just a genre thing, it's also a capability thing. Most DJs, especially the so-called big room house DJs, really are not there on ability, morerather the lack of insight by promoters seem to merely default to what they see happening in the same 20 clubs all around Auckland every weekend.

Now, should big events just weekly clubs scaled up? I say no.. no way. They are called parties - but they don't feel like a party. That's why people always talk about how meh our parties are compared to Sydney or most other places overseas - because it's rare that you get a sense of them being something different or special.

Some try to make the special and succeed but rarely do they bother. I went to Slinky last weekend and, although not into the main room music, could appreciate the effort, see how much people enjoyed it and how much better a party is when you don't start off by thinking people are idiots who need to be upchucked on with a megamix of mainstream UK house which any idiot could play.

No-one remembers what got played at Spy or Bungalow 8 weekend, but people still talk about Danny Howells at Centro over five years ago. There is a reason too.

Playing different styles of "house", or "drum and bass” within a set is hardly a revolution, many of the best most popular DJs in the world can do it! I definitely prefer listening to specialist DJ sets rather than token mash-up sets though if that's what you mean.

Also I don’t think it should at all be thought of as a “branding” thing. The music should come first, if a brand association happens it should happen naturally and over time as a byproduct of the music being played, not the other way round

I remember when house dj's would play a tune (normally something breaky, or big beat) and they would be hailed as a "Genius!!"
"The mans a genius I tells ya!!, he mixed Right Here Right Now into Bingo Bango!".
Ha, I remember when Tom Middleton was called a genius cause he played the "bongos" on his turnie!!
Or that dude at Cause Celeb (spelling?) who crunched a packet of chips into a mic in time with the dj!

Eta or Bluebird?

Jesus Jones?

Anyway - I have thought for ages that there's more talent in creating a brilliant DJ mix/moment than there is in half the records which come out. Hard to put a finger on it but the magic in truly great DJing is far and few between.

and most of that magic is sheer good fortune/luck on the night

Not to mention it's futile to try and describe it someone who wasn't there... This is why the May/Pullen/Carter/Tenaglias strike up such varying opinions amongst people. Because they don't do Tiesto/Tong/Guetta type sets/gigs where they aim to please everyone everytime, they invariably don't get viewed by the majority as being at the level of the more popular ones when they could probably take them down with one arm tied behind their back if it was a contest of skill and talent.

Now that possibly would have been a feat.
To what you guys were sayin about great dj's rather than tunes, my prime example is seeing Derrick Carter years ago. He was playin what can only be called hard house. Now before you slay me, hear me out.
He was dropping the sickest dark corner house tunes in such a "tuff" and "ruff" way, that as a set the music was absolutly thumping. This has influenced me more than any other dj or any style or technique. It was then that I stopped buying generic Sharp Boys style hard house tunes, and started crafting sets out of really staunch house tunes.
Its not what you play, its how you play it.
Listen to a really old TDV or Steve Thomas set, and you will find most of the music wouldnt be out of place in a DT or DC set, or even Kevin Saunderson. (Well until they hit over 130 anyhow)
Im not sure if this makes sense.

House.... yep I got some.

btw, I funking love Kevin Saunderson. (even though he tried to take my wife home! cheeky bugger)

Same. His new remixes of/remixes by album (History Elevate) is fcuking gold

same you love him?

or same, he would like to 'love' your wife?

Heh, yeah, didn't mean different styles of the same genre within a set. I meant different genres altogether. For example, I love tech, house, and prog but is playing all of them in a set going to alienate people like yourself who prefer specialist sets?

Also, on the branding tip, I agree the music comes first, but therein lies the problem. I love breaks, drum & bass, dubstep, house, tech, prog, trance, dub, even some older style hard house, but Im not going to play them all in a set am I? So I need to work out which of these genres I love, will I play, and thus what will my brand become...

No, same I tried to take home LeKnights wife

oh, well we've all tried that with her... she's a great cook allegedly



speaking of mixing genres - anyone listened to the Seth Toxler Resident Advisor podcast?

www.residentadvisor.net/podcast-episode.aspx?id=156

when he plays Beat happenings "our secret" it was one of them moments I felt actually inspired to want to play one record after another in some semblance of non order (rare these days, unfortunately)...

a great example of how one can play across musical sepctrums, genres and possibly formats

On the DL now

Jay Hazes new Fabric I thought was quite a good example of genre bending as well. Mostly house and techno, but he cuts and splices all sorts through the mix, he even runs a DnB beat over top at one point

You have been gravely misinformed!!
On dl now, cheers Bob.

please note its not the greatest mix... just the beat happening moment made it special for me

she's not a great cook... dammit man for the sake of your marriage LIE LIE LIE

as if we'd know any better

Ha, anyone on here who knows her knows this!!
I do all the cooking, she does all the good looking, and she's great at telling me my latest tune needs to be deleted.

See, I consider these to be the same basic genre when I play - just different takes on it. It is significantly harder to play well, let alone appreciate, stuff which spans from Theo Parrish to Way Out West but there are DJs out there who do it well. Howells/Tenaglia/Pullen/May etc have their own vibe/theme but they are just a few who span stuff that diverse and even more in the case of the (generally) American guys.

Amongst prog DJs, interestingly I think, the big guns are the guys who don't just stick to prog tunes.

I have no qualms at in turning up to a house gig and playing a old Octave One record, or dropping System 7 at a prog gig. I have way more respect for DJs who try this sort of thing too - given it takes more skill and a broader range of influences which the average DJ who plays UK-slanted poppy house can't fathom (actually, it wouldn't even cross their mind).

Put simply. No-one is ever going to become considered a great DJ through playing Freemasons records or Robin S remakes.

What about Jolyon Petch?

To take my tongue out of my cheek again... What about something a little broader? For example breaks. I love progressive breaks, and if I was playing a straight progressive set would have no qualms about dropping one (or a few) in there, but (assuming it is done well) is that still going to alienate a crowd who are there for house/tech/prog?

This thread needs a pic of a bunch of dj's lined up getting MOS cattle branded on the ass!