Good Gig, Bad Gig.

[Nakatomi]

Yay Wayne! Glad you had a good one. You've been missing them I can tell

I forgot to mention had my first bona fide client meeting today too. In the morning. At a hotel/wedding venue in North Yorkshire not far from Scotch Corner. Makes everywhere I've worked to date look rather like a toilet. Didn't get to play with the ceiling speaker system, but loading in looks to be a breeze. Oh, and the couple are very nice folks indeed & we get along. I explained about the venue PA & said announcements may have to be made the old way.. but that's not going to be a problem for me.

Ah yes. The reason the man booked me. They were at a wedding I did last year & he was suitably impressed by my crowd reading skills & mic work.

[Imagine]

Yay Wayne! Glad you had a good one. You've been missing them I can tell

I do like working with the light screens I have to admit....in tonight's clients words "they look like a proper disco". I'm not going to argue. It's just a shame they're so damned heavy and hot.....and I'm sooooooo glad I'm not lugging crates of vinyl into venues anymore

So...according to tonight's client....THIS is how a proper disco should look (I feel a marketing opportunity coming up after I've had some sleep)

[ukpartydj]

My first event with a confetti cannon. A "proper one" to rather than handheld ones. Chauvet funfetti it was.
It was left for me to set up which was a bit annoying, especially as I had no idea what angle or distance it would throw out.

Was quite fun though and worked well enough! I might look into getting one myself as they're only £250

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Wedding for me at a venue that is becoming a regular one (will have to have a chat soon about my move as I have 3 bookings there already for next year) and Daryll was out at my residency for another wedding.
I'd set up the uplighting for both on Friday and so I didn't need to be at my wedding to set up until at least 6.30pm ready for a 7.30pm start (finishing at 00.30am).

Lovely couple, both pilots actually which was really freaky as a couple I DJ'd for a few weeks back were also pilots....strange!

Anyway, access very easy and I was set up by 7.15pm and that was taking it a lot slower than usual due to the heat and also trying to be as quiet as possible whilst the speeches were going on. There was only a curtain dividing us. I didn't get to soundcheck and this was a first for me and guess what!!??....Low and behold I encountered a problem when I was doing the background music. I started to stress out a bit actually but luckily nobody else was over my side as yet.

I thought it was the speaker at first so changed the speaker cable but nope, it wasn't that?
When I played something from the right side deck of the Denon HD2500, the sound was great out of the right speaker but hardly anything from the left speaker. It was crackling and not all there (if that makes sense?). I swapped to a different channel selector and the same happened. I thought it may be the audio lead. As I had music playing already I couldn't muck about too much. When I listened in the headphones it was the same there too. Crackling etc on right side but perfect on left side.
I decided not to sod about and just used VDJ and the left deck of the HD2500.

I am sure I had a similar problem a while back which resulted in me getting the replacement HD2500 (the other one is still sat indoors in need of a looking at).
It was frustrating knowing that I had to do the whole night on VDJ but hey, that's what back up is for eh!
I will investigate and try and replicate later today. I don't have another booking until Saturday so it gives me time.

As for the wedding - Well, what can I say? Absolute cracker of a night with a dance floor rocking all the way through. I had a list of around 15 song requests that included the likes of Run DMC - It's Like That to Nena - 99 Red Balloons. They seemed to really like the 70's Disco stuff and the usual suspects went down well.
The whole night flew by. They had 4 x first dance(s) (that's a first for me) and the last song of the night was Bohemian Rhapsody.

Absolute pleasure too. The guests were all great and very complimentary. There were quite a few Dutch guests as the Groom was Dutch and one of them asked me for a card. We got chatting as I was packing up and he said he'd like me to DJ for him in the future. He'd told me he was from Holland so I said "Ooh, might be a bit expensive travelling to Holland" and he said....."Don't be silly mate, I live in Woking!"

I cracked up!

[Shakermaker Promotions]

After hardly any sleep (because I am a stress head) and some testing this morning on the headphones, swapping cables and channels etc I can confirm that it is the Channel 4 section on the Denon X500 mixer. It doesn't matter which of the selecters on that channel I use, they are all giving a 'crackly' sound.

Hoped it wasn't the Denon HD2500 and thankfully it isn't as it is all sounding fine through the replacement Denon X400 I have just put in the flightcase.
I really like the X500 and will be dropping it off at my mates tomorrow who will nurse it back to health.

[Excalibur]

Sitting down DJ.

Interesting you should mention that, as it's something we've discussed before. Last night's venue offered me a chair, and were very pleased when I refused it. I won't reopen the debate in here, but I may pop across to the original thread, if I can find it.

Lots and lots of compliments from guests at the end of the night congratulating me on a job well done. I feel I may well be working locally a little bit more in the future.

Were it not against forum rules ( which as a Mod, I'm a stickler for ) I would have said " Faites vos Jeux ". All the best from Cassandra*.

* No, not Rodney's beloved, google it.

Ah yes. The reason the man booked me. They were at a wedding I did last year & he was suitably impressed by my mic work.

On come on Justin! "Buffet's open " and " Last orders at the bar " are hardly going to earn you a Grammy award.

I do like working with the light screens I have to admit....in tonight's clients words "they look like a proper disco".

So...according to tonight's client....THIS is how a proper disco should look

Oh no Wayne! Not again. INCOMING.

( For those not in on the joke, I too really miss screens. )

OK, my gig. Be honest, how many weddings have you lot done lately where two of the last five songs were Music Man and Star Trekkin' ?
I felt like this bloke. More on that later.

The couple who " interviewed " me before booking. Nice folk. Venue was a beautiful stately home near Lincoln, Branston Hall. As I drove up, I viewed the entrance with some trepidation, but joy of joys, that wasn't the access. Oh no. Very DJ friendly, just park the van next to a fire exit, open the door, plonk the kit a suitable distance away, and you're ready to Rock and Roll. What a pleasant surprise. ( I was in the Churchill Suite, others may not be as good )
Special mention must go to all the staff, in particular the duty manager, Daniel. What a lovely warm, friendly and laid back chap he was. ( Anybody who brings me a hog roast sandwich is OK in my book ) He ran the day efficiently, in just the perfect style.

Details of the day, well I arrived just as the room was clearing after the ceremony. Perfect timing. Got set up ina leisurely manner in sweltering heat, which became apparent once I got out of the new van ( did I mention it has aircon? ) I then had my £3 meal deal from the Spar ( other purveyors of comestibles are available ) and got changed. I went and ran the kit , because it was far cooler inside.
I played background during the meal, and it was a lovely mix of all manner of music. The speeches were short, and the room was turned round for the night, as I watched smugly.
We had the cake cutting early, and the first dance immediately afterwards. We had a choreographed number, the like of which I'd not seen before. Ed Sheeran- Thinking out loud, into Greased lightning ( Greased Lightning???? ) at which point all the bridesmaids got in on the action, followed by Footloose, where the bridesmaids dragged anyone they could reach onto the floor. What a start to the evening.

Well, dear reader, here's where we abandoned any semblance of musical integrity, pride in our work, and offering an upmarket service befitting the venue. Oh dear. I played a handful of New Orleans jazz tracks for the groom's parents, which went down a storm, and then the floodgates were opened. I don't know what the bride was on, but I wished I'd had a pint of it! As the evening wore on, she got more and more animated. She just never stopped. She never stopped requesting The Classics.
Every time guests requested I headed off into a bit of Tamla, Rock and Roll, Reggae and other styless, back she came in a ceaseless quest for what was on the list. Viewers of a nervous disposition may wish to look away now.
Among others, Time Warp, Macarena, Saturday Night, Love Shack, 500 Miles, Grease Megamix, Y.M.C.A, 5,6,7,8, Reach, Cotton Eye Joe, and of course Oops.
Numbers dwindled steadily ( the ceremony had been at 11am, the day was steaming hot, and by 11pm that was twelve hours for most ) but my diehard dancers kept at it, with requests for even more coming in relentlessly.
As I was heading into the final furlong, Music Man and Star Trekkin' made their appearance , before I could get them into New York, New York.
Much hand shaking followed, praise from the bride, and a feeling that somehow I had done a very bad thing.

All thoughts passed, as I got into the new van ( did I mention I've got a new van ) for the seventy mile ride home. Once upon a time, dear readers, I dreaded this point, knowing it was going to be a 50mph crawl home, in a noisy, draughty old van, which was never designed for motorways. I would always try to avoid them if possible, and shorten the route as much as possible. Those days are gone. This one is like sitting in an armchair, proceeding at the legal limit, cough cough, in a state of comfort hitherto unknown to me. I nearly stayed on the motorway longer, just to keep driving!

Nottingham next week, whoopee.

[Vectis]

Much hand shaking followed, praise from the bride

Funny how when things go well there's never any mention it was a NaD client

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

I let myself down badly last night - I caved and gave them one more song (2 actually before the killjoy chargehand told me to wrap it up)

Venue was miles from anywhere else so sound wasn't an issue and it had been such a good night I was ready to play on and play on gratis which I literally never do.

[Excalibur]

Funny how when things go well there's never any mention it was a NaD client

Sorry Martin, I omitted that salient point. It was indeed an NaD gig for a sum of well over £100. They do exist.

[Imagine]

Funny how when things go well there's never any mention it was a NaD client

Credit where credit's due Martin - if it's a NaD client I absolutely do and will mention it. Unfortunately for me at least, they're few and far between at the moment

Example: http://www.forum.mobilediscodirector...l=1#post656212
Unfortunately though, they didn't bother to confirm me as the winner