Are we under attack?

[dalzeah]

What do you think of this article on wedding dj's by respected Mancunian muso and journalist John Robb? Love his band, Goldblade though... Mind you they use a set list like everyone else!!


http://louderthanwar.com/hang-the-dj-the-curse-of-the-wedding-dj-exposed/

[lazersounds]

What do you think of this article on wedding dj's by respected Mancunian muso and journalist John Robb? Love his band, Goldblade though... Mind you they use a set list like everyone else!!


http://louderthanwar.com/hang-the-dj-the-curse-of-the-wedding-dj-exposed/

Comes across as a bit of a :muppet: in my opinion lol

Don't agree with hardly any of what he says, maybe had a crap gig last night? lol

[thex-faders]

If nobody enjoys the music that is always played at a wedding or event... people wouldn't book a DJ.

I dont agree with him saying we all play the same stuff, every event we do we always ask the client for at least a few must plays and must not plays and we base what we play around them to ensure there is a build up to those must play tracks.

Yes there are tracks which will bring more people to floor and talking over a track is only to encourage more people to dance.

Don't agree with much of what he said.

However, I attendid a wedding recently where they just had a band and had a great time. All down to the type of people there I think.

Tom

[dalzeah]

He does a bit of Dj'ing - he was in Manchester city centre a few weeks ago. I think he should try a wedding and see how well and evening of punk and indie goes down withy the usual mixed crowd. I find if I don't play a lot of the 'expected' tracks' people start asking for them!

[Shaun]

He's only echoing what a lot of the public think of mobile DJs. And let's face it, there are STILL a lot of mobile DJs that are exactly as he describes. Thankfully times (and DJs) are-a-changing....slowly but surely.

[Ryu]

Load of ignorant tripe base on outdated stereotypes. Reads like a guy who's lost out on a few band bookings to another DJ.

[funkymook]

I've replied and managed to get a plug for my website on there as well....

[DazzyD]

Ah, the beauty of the blog. giving a voice to the folks that no-one wants to listen to in the real world! The fact that this person has us talking about him like this will no doubt boost ego and feeling of self-importance when the reality is, in fact, very different. Isn't the internet a wonderful place? ;)

[CRAZY K]

What do you think of this article on wedding dj's by respected Mancunian muso and journalist John Robb? Love his band, Goldblade though... Mind you they use a set list like everyone else!!


http://louderthanwar.com/hang-the-dj-the-curse-of-the-wedding-dj-exposed/

Respected--not in my world--never eard of im :daft::daft::daft:

Basically a long way out of date and generally missing the whole point--people dont want Bands who write their own material at a Wedding.

Err we wrote this on the back of a fag packet on the way here on the M6---that actually happened to a Country Band we sub hired to play STANDARDS.:daft:

Went down like the proverbial lead balloon--no--- people like sounds they can relate to and no amount of silly talk like this will change it.

The Smiths--at one of Garys events maybe--unlikely for me---never been asked.

[Excalibur]

He's only echoing what a lot of the public think of mobile DJs. And let's face it, there are STILL a lot of mobile DJs that are exactly as he describes. Thankfully times (and DJs) are-a-changing.... slowly but surely.

Shaun's pretty much got it right. Pretty much.


However, re the highlighted bit: If it ain't broke, don't fix it*. :whistle:





* Disclaimer: Not all the above may be wholly serious. I'm not giving you clues as to which bits, though.

[paull]

Last night I had been asked to play Kisstory / Garage all night, plenty of tapping feet and a few dancers

By 9.30 I asked the Groom if he minded me playing a few party tunes, three tracks in and we have a full dance floor

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Haven't read the article yet but John Robb is producing my mates album.
Will take a look when I've woken up a bit.

[Excalibur]

By 9.30 I asked the Groom if he minded me playing a few party tunes, three tracks in and we have a full dance floor

Hmmmm. I wonder if that could possibly be why we tend to play "the usual suspects" so often, eh? Simples.

[CRAZY K]

Hmmmm. I wonder if that could possibly be why we tend to play "the usual suspects" so often, eh? Simples.

Simple for those who know---not so simple for those simpletons who dont--

[PureWeddingDJs]

Im sure even i have been called a cheesy dj before. But if thats what's requested sometimes
you have to play it. i had an awful crowd the other day asking for b52's love shack. played it
and mixed it out with a minute to go, and they all gave me a stinking look and emptied the
dance floor. lol.

[Excalibur]

asking for b52's love shack. played it
and mixed it out with a minute to go, and they all gave me a stinking look and emptied the
dance floor. lol.

You see while I accept that sometimes the fabled ipod function, rigid playlist, or left of centre music only may work like a charm, surely the reason why we advocate the need for a live operator with some free rein to choose the music is to know when to cut something that isn't working, and replace it with something more likely to. It is of course a real kick in the teeth when what you described happens.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

There's no doubt that everyone has a few of their 'guaranteed to work' tunes in the back of their mind when doing a gig and it's more than likely that a lot of us may well have the 'usual suspects' as those 'guaranteed to work' tunes.
The difference is, a lot of us may have different 'usual suspects'.
I did a gig the other week where the 'usual suspects' were all tunes on the 'DO NOT PLAY' section of the pre-requests form. Had I encountered problems on the night, I'd have had to use my experience and read the crowd skills or go on requests on the night.

I think it's fair to say that the upcoming Christmas period will see a lot of the 'usual suspects' getting played by a lot of DJ's. That includes me too but I try not to use them if possible. I think a number of people attending Christmas parties will almost expect that kind of stuff but saying that, over the past couple of years I have played a fair chunk of Chart stuff because (a) It's worked from the off and (b) It's been requested.
Then again, so have the 'usual suspects'.

At the end of the day, I'm not that bothered if I appear to come across at some functions as a Cheesmeister DJ because if that's what the customer wants then that's what they can have. I didn't get into DJing all those years ago to be a sheep and do what the majority were / are doing but it's my job and the way I make my living and I want to continue to doing this for as long as I can. I guess I am lucky in the fact that most of my bookings are either specialised now or don't include the 'usual suspects' kind of gigs. I won't start turning down work just because I am worried about appearing to be a Cheesy DJ.

That's one of the things that I do like about this job. One day I can be playing really cool Indie/Alternative/Rock tunes at a specialised gig and the next I could be playing the cheesiest tunes ever. As long as the customer gets what they want, that's all that matters.......isn't it?

I read the John Robb blog thing and I posted my thoughts on it too. I can see where he's coming from and to be honest, it's something that we've said all along and that's that the publics perception (or some of them) of us is wrong and it's going to be a long time (if ever) before that changes. The more of us that are out there that offer a professional and class service, the better.

[paul1404]

OMG !!!!
Where do I begin
We all play the same stuff
They just need to look on this forum to see the about of debates about what music works at weddings etc
I dont think this guy has any idea of the diversity of wedding DJs
And also the average band are charging up to £1000 for a wedding set
We are no where near that !

Lets see how this idiot would get on with a mixed age crowd everyone asking for different types of music
How would he manage to keep this crowd happy

A lot of people still want Cheesy Djs
A lot of people want club Djs
A lot of people want rock Djs
Some people dont want any music
Some people prefer a band

A dj can now offer 1000000 + songs at a touch of a button - ALso a focal point for any annoucments - Lights etc etc

DJ will never ever die out - People Need interaction - People want a visual and approchable controller at the helm

He has no idea what he is talking about !

[TONYTIGER]

OMG !!!!
Where do I begin
We all play the same stuff
They just need to look on this forum to see the about of debates about what music works at weddings etc
I dont think this guy has any idea of the diversity of wedding DJs
And also the average band are charging up to £1000 for a wedding set
We are no where near that !

Lets see how this idiot would get on with a mixed age crowd everyone asking for different types of music
How would he manage to keep this crowd happy

A lot of people still want Cheesy Djs
A lot of people want club Djs
A lot of people want rock Djs
Some people dont want any music
Some people prefer a band

A dj can now offer 1000000 + songs at a touch of a button - ALso a focal point for any annoucments - Lights etc etc

DJ will never ever die out - People Need interaction - People want a visual and approchable controller at the helm

He has no idea what he is talking about !

I totally agree with Paul,i deal with more bands than most on the forum and the average price is around the £ 1500 mark,mind you most say in there sales pitch if you book us you will not need a cheesy dj as we supply this service free of charge what they really mean is that they plug a iPod into there mixer and rattle out all the usual wedding fodder with no interaction talk about the pot calling the kettle black.

[goldensounds83]

that is a :Censored: insult

Lets do some comparison between bands and DJs shall we

bands:
usually know somewhere between 20 - 30 songs which they play in the same order at every single gig
most bands are limited to one Genre so no real variety


Sorry for sweeping generalizations but this has been my Experience over the past 15 years

DJs:
have massive music collections usually well over 5,000 (most of us have 10,000+) songs and play a mix that keeps the dance floor full
cater for most tastes and occasions
work with the client to make the event special

Again some sweeping generalizations and I know there are 50 quid Sid's out there that let the side down but that would be comparing appeals to onions we are assuming both sides, bands and DJs are professional

btw I have seen some really good bands in my time and I have seen some really cr:Censored: ones even so most of the above applies to the majority of them

[Kernow]

comparing appeals to onions

Both can bring a tear to the eye, especially those involving the mistreatment of animals or distress in developing countries ? :cry:
;)

[ukpartydj]

This guy probably just finished doing a wedding where as soon as the band finished the DJ popped on some Abba and everybody flocked to the dance floor after hearing songs like Panic by the Smiths for an hour.

Understandably you would feel a bit annoyed that all the hard work and hours of learning to play a track in time with the band and to a high standard is nothing compared to power of Mr DJ and an MP3 he downloaded and was asked to play by the B&G.

Just the way the cookie crumbles though!

[paulg]

Well, the item and post were written and published nearly 12 months ago so the attack has yet to gain momentum!!! I don't think we need call out the Home Guard. Here's some unadulterated feedback from this Saturday:

"Paul, everything was perfect, had an amazing day topped off with a perfect night of music. Cannot recommend you enough. Sincere thanks!"

Seems Wedding DJ's ain't so bad after all