Heard Mentality

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Incredible Segues I Have Heard

Posted by Dave Segal in DJ culture

October 19, 2007 3:11 PM

Permalink | Comments (2)

Last night at Kitsch Bar in Costa Mesa, DJ aDJective (Steve Fisch) transitioned from the Kingston Trio's “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” (dewy, earnest folk song from 1962) to Public Enemy's “Public Enemy No. 1” (hard-as-nails, toughness-flaunting rap track from 1987). Damn. That's some ballsy whimsy right there.

(You can catch aDJective spinning at Kitsch on Thursday and Friday nights and at Memphis at the Santora on Saturdays.)

While at venues where dance floors must be filled it may be impractical to swing so wildly among genres, more DJs should attempt this absurd non-sequitur style of spinning. Predictability is the bane of most club nights.

Below see video evidence of the songs under discussion.

“Where Have All the Flowers Gone?”

“Public Enemy #1”



 

Comments (2)

  1. Cal says:
    February 15, 2008 15:39

    Premeditated "ballsy whimsy", boredom or just a DJ running out of time to make his next selection?

    Were he to mix these at an actual dance place and not dump his dance floor then I'd be impressed. I once mixed from "Baby Got Back" to "Cotton Eyed Joe" for a dancing crowd and it worked!!!

  2. Adjective says:
    February 15, 2008 18:12

    First off, Kitsch is NOT a dance-club; there is no cabaret license for dancing and if I get the crowd too revved up the owner will generally signal me to tone it down. So, walking that fine balance between getting the ladies to shake their rumps and at the same time keeping them in their seats is integral to a successful night at the Kitsch. I probably wouldn't hit the Kingston Trio at a dance club...but you'd be surprised at what a motivated crowd will dance to. (I do have an a cappella version of WHATFG by Pete Seeger that fits nicely on top of Pink Floyd's On The Run.)

    Secondly, though the above transition may come off as whimsical, it is, actually, quite deliberate. My DJ method is all about creating stark contrasts between one song and the next while attempting to maintain a groove. Also, if you ask me, there are as many similarities between these two songs as there are differences: They are both protest songs, for example and they both represent the zeitgeist of their time, within the youth culture. And, bottom line, the groove really works, even if it is an abrupt roller coaster ride.

    Don't get me wrong, Cal, there are certainly times when I'm running out of time to make a selection (after all I bring 8 crates worth o vinyl w/ me) and have to force a transition and sometimes it doesn't work as well as I might hope, and if there's an empty room I will sometimes get bored and experiment a bit.

    Remember Dr. Dre got his start by impressing the Eve After Dark crowd when he mixed easy listening bands like the Carpenters into hip-hop and making it sound hip.

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