In And Out In A-Minute-and-Five

The Hip Hop Party Style - The DMC style. - shoot, even the electrohipstermash-up style.....call it what you will. I'm referring to party/club DJing where you're in the record, then out of the record, then on to the next REEEEEAL quick-like. Somewhere around the one minute mark, maybe faster.

There are lots of different versions of this game. Most people who rock it are good technically. Technical skill is pretty much a prerequisite when you are choosing and blending that quickly.

The only person I have seen who I could call 'sublime;' who I think brings a true artistry to it, is Jazzy Jeff. He brings block party flavor, constantly combining his mood and his crowd's reactions to give some sensual quirks to his set. It's not super-predictable when he does it, and the choices are ALWAYS on point. The flow keeps you wryly grinning without even knowing it.

All the others, regardless of their genre of choice, I tend to put in the same boat. I don't care if you're talking about 2 Many DJ's, Klever (who I had the pleasure of getting dance-floor sloppy to on Saturday night) or the multitude of rapid attack rap party DJ's. Their routines are usually planned out, and if they don't "wash-rinse-and repeat" they tend to have a pretty small cache of records that they choose from at any given time. The goal seems to be to blow the roof off the joint from start to finish.......there ain't a whole lot of subtlety. Most of the records are sing-along or hands-in-the air. Don't misunderstand me, the shit can be fun - LOTS of fun, especially if you're ready to put down some alcohol and you're dressed to sweat. It's just not something that leaves me wanting more. I couldn't have fun with it often. It produces a blinder of a night when it's right, but can lose it's potency quickly if you keep going back to the well.

All this being said, Klever rocked it for Sloppy Seconds at MJQ on Saturday night, and we had a funky good time. My brother and I were on the 5th row blue line of Phillips arena earlier in the evening to watch our Pittsburgh Penguins lose to the Atlanta Thrashers. Not only did they lose, but they lost at the hands of one of their beloved former players who now wears that ridiculous multi-hued blue uniform. We weren't too sad though. Being that close to world class athletes was the reward in itself, and we had good times and good friends waiting for us later that night.





P.S. - Went to a little heat trap in ATL called El Bar for the first time.........VERY curious about the future possibilities of the joint. Gotta see Presto there!