So what is your definition of dance music? This blog homepage seems to be full of those know what they don't like (and in some cases what they do) but as a dj it's hard to know what u mean. What is house? What is dance? What is funky, hard, electro, chilled, handbag, twisted, disco? What i think is cheesy pop some call house and what I call soulful some will not - demanding I playing something "we can dance to!"
I always describe my sound as funky strung out disco tinged house but that is my preference and the tunes I play are also influnced by the clubs I play in and the sets required. No one wants all the clubs to sound the same. Sunday afternoon is a very different place from sunday am. I do think we're lucky sods in Brfighton having as many good dj's as we do but we should let them push the genres occasionally. As a clubber I want my hands in the air but I appreciate the different twists and turns a dj can take me on. Electro is very 'in' at the mo and at the right time and in the right place is corking - cheers Dulcie - where as commercial house is very party time and the more soulful / disco stuff is very socialable. Well in my view anyway.
Trust the dj is what I say and yeah if you don't like the tunes they are playing find another club (or start one?) I for one will always be grateful for the changes we've seen in choice, numbers of different dj's and the genres they play. I remember the not so distant dark days of writing your request on a pad and the dj playing tunes in that order and the rush for the dancefloor when Whigfield's Saturday Night kicked in. Never again people.
This blog page proves house music ain't dying. The passion for it is there for all to see. And I for one am chuffed to be part of it.
So what are your definitions?
K xx
First one - Funky House - ???
Last modified by wildblood on Thursday, 14th December 2006, 3:02pm
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Comment by lycra_uk00 on Monday, 8th January 2007, 10:25pm
Yes I agree that the gay scene is a diverse mix of people and music style,but surely when a style of music is just not cutting it on the dance floor,you rethink and dont press on saying it's the music of the moment!!!!
read moret only for the few who wish to make it so. We have seen many good nights start in brighton over the past couple of years, and recently either they are on there last legs or have ended altogether.
Clearly the dance floors of Brighton reflect it's not the music of the moment bu...
We are not just asking for anthems to be played all the time,but at least tunes that make the dance floor fun to be on and attract clubbers from around the area and further afield.
I was recently in London for a friends birthday on a monday night in heaven,and was amazed how busy the club was and how vibrant,and so many good tunes,Yes I hear you say commercial and cheesy but the club was packed with a huge que waiting outside. There was none of the heavy,dull and totally un danceable music that has been creeping through in brighton of late.
We have always had in brighton Dj's that lead the way with new music and so may it continue,but I and others like me think it has left the clubbers behind in this headlong rush for electro and other heavy music !!! and with the current state of clubbing in brighton I think we all need to rethink and try to recover what has sadly disappeared from the brighton scene i.e busy clubs.
Phil xx
Comment by djdanger on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 7:21pm
I'd say proper electro tunes (big ones) are things like ame-rej, ste ga shop -supermarket, m.a.n.d.y- body language..... I only really play this stuff in the straight clubs cos they LOVE it.
read morer sounds a bit like Bodyrox now...needless to say if you don't want it then I won't drop it on the gay scene.
Exceeder isn't going away, its gonna be a big hit the majors have stuck a vocal on it from Princess Supersta...
I don't really play that much electro on the gay scene, I'd call it more 'dirttty house' which has all the umph of electro but gives you the sex!
There's all the other electro too which the indie kids play...which is Peaches and stuff like that.
I think it all comes down to how a dj programs a set...if they're gonna take you somewhere dark then they need the uplifting stuff to back it up. Its a bit like when I haven't dropped a vocal for a while in the set, you'd better believe that when that vocal comes in its gonna sound amazing and excentuate that track.
I think the club scene is great down here for such a small place, it is january and everything seems to be ticking over nicely. I hope that when people go out that they're not relying on just the dj to give them a good time. I think the dj is just a small ingredient into making a party. People make the party and they set the atmosphere....I know I play better when the crowd reacts, we are all on a journey together...I feed off the people and when they're clearly up for it it gives me a good idea what to play next. Saying that the dj can put a dampner on the night if they're not very good but we seem to be spoilt rotten for good djs down here.
I think its also important for clubs and djs to play music that moves forward without ramming the uncomfortable down peoples throats. So credible but fun is the key....I hope.
Thanks for the compliment Jimmeegee, I saw you out a couple of times over the Xmas period and I got all nervous that you weren't liking it! :)
And Phil I think that everyone is getting their heads round the whole late licensing thing down here. Give it a couple of months and everything should settle more...and then we have the smoking ban to look forward to....but thats another discussion altogether ;) x
Last modified by djdanger on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 7:26pm
Comment by lycra_uk00 on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 9:29pm
Unfotunately with the greatest respect I feel that we are not going to get very far with "The Music of the moment " debate ,as it's seems that trend is far more important than feet on our dance floors .
read more forward then why are the clubs half full on what use to be busy nights when London is more vibrant than ever !!!!.
I still have not had an answer yet to my point, that if electro and other heavy music is the way...
Yes January is a quiet month but the last 3-4 months have been quiet too !!!! now this cannot be right.
I have started seeing regular clubbers being more selective over what nights they go out in Brighton ,also look on Real Vauxhall and Real Soho,I could see were regulars who used to go out on the scene in Brighton this can only spell disaster for our scene !!!!
I said in a blog just recently that we should all support our scene as we are very lucky to have it,and I still feel that way but there has to be some give and take before it's too late.
Phil XX
Last modified by lycra_uk00 on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 9:34pm
Comment by anon on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 9:45pm
Great discussion we have on our hands! Well for me when electro house came on to the scene in the summer I absolutely loved it. Songs like Same Man and Put Yours Hands up for Detroit (before it became commercial) were dirty, uplifting, and brought everyone onto the dancefloor. Nights like Cash Queen...
read more became my favourite nights of the week, because it where we could hear the latest and best electro house.
However, this great music that we were listening to in the summer has been gradually faded out (obviously), but has been replaced with a different type of electro house that isn't very popular with a lot of the regular brighton clubbers. It seem slower, less uplifting,and a little bit dull in places! I mean I love electro house, the dirtier the better...but I still want to be able to dance to it! Lots of the current electro house seems to have a lot of gaps where us clubbers find ourselves standing around for minutes at a time waiting for a song to kick in.
I don't think it's the case that people aren't willing to give new music a chance...as Phil said, its not that we want to listen to anthems all the time...its just that the new music we're hearing isn't very popular. It seems to have lost the essence of what house music is all about...keeping people dancing until the early hours of the morning, and not wanting it to end! The only song I can think of recently that has resembled the good music of the summer is Proper Education, hopefully signalling a change back in the right direction.
I think if we all (clubbers, djs, promoters) talk and listen to each other, then I have no doubt that the Brighton scene will return to its former glory. As long as these issues aren't ignored, then the clubs will start filling up again.
Nick x
Comment by nick2005 on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 9:48pm
I dont no why it says 'none' on that last blog...but it was me who left it x
Comment by lycra_uk00 on Tuesday, 9th January 2007, 10:05pm
Yes Nick i could'nt agree more ,Proper Education and Another One Bites The Dust Fantastic new tunes keep them coming.
Phil X
Comment by wylie on Wednesday, 10th January 2007, 3:33pm
i love electro! deep down dirty and nasty. my favourite memories are of koochy at storm and rebel red.. it just makes me want to dance and if they didnt turn the music off i'd never stop. i love music fluffy it makes me smile.. but hearing that tougher beat makes me get that naughty glint in my eye, its FIERCE, its driving and it makes a crowd properly go for it!
Comment by jonny_m on Wednesday, 10th January 2007, 4:26pm
ive come from mixing and clubbing to d'n'b and breakbeats a couple of years ago, so dont really find much house too dirty, but i think if a tune's really filthy, it needs an uplifting synth or a huge dramatic build up to give it credence. dirty for the hell of it is (partly)why i gave up drum n bass...
read more over 2 years ago! i'm a big fan of really techy-but-uplifitng house; seamus haji, hoxton whores, axwell's 'together', paul rincon's mix of 'energy 52', stuff you can really lose yourself in. i've been listening to some filterheadz stuff recently too, really uplifting and though i've not heard it out clubbing im sure it would get people going. really love their mix of 'silence', and 'yimiyana'. dunno if its actually classed as house as its over 130bpm, but genre shouldn't really be a constriction.
on the topic of clubs being quieter than usual, i'm not sure i've been in brighton long enough to comment with any authority, but the increase in venues and late licencing have surely had an affect; and after all it is january. also, i thhink one of the problems is many of the young gays are not really dance music fans at all; many go to nights like shinky shonky and boogaloo instead to get something altogether different.
also, what about bennyboy's thursday nighter at charles st? thats consistently pulled in crowds week after week, especially for the themed parties?
i dont think the emrgence of harder types of house music can be blamed for too much.... personally, i love it! look at trade, still going after 14 years! although brightonians are always gonna travel to vauxhall every now and then cos theres more choice (and cos u can go clubbing pretty much 24/7) i moved here a year ago from london, and i think brightons got something really good going on and its not about to pack it in! just wait till the summer....
Last modified by jonny_m on Wednesday, 10th January 2007, 5:58pm
Comment by wildblood on Saturday, 13th January 2007, 3:08pm
First big love to johnnyboy - on the button boyfriend!!
read moreimes reality. i can't help but feel the so called darker side of house is happening due to our darker times. war, the drugs of now, politics, the 'invisble recession' - it's all getting darker. twisted tuunes for twisted times
Second. Tunes are more than tunes. tunes are memories, tunes are tales, tunes are top nights out, tunes are heartbreakers. tunes are a matter of taste. tunes are a reflection of our lives. sometimes providing escapism, sometimes obilvion, somet...
Some of dance music's defining moments including French Kiss, Donna Summer's I Feel Love or Blue Monday were hardly fluffy or commercial. and i doubt they filled dancefloors on first play! (More likely dropped jaws)
i have a tshirt somewhere that says 'trust the dj'. and that's all i think any dj will ask. so love or hate 'electro' ? that's your choice. choose your nights accordingly and trust the dj.
time for another genre discussion i reckon.....
R'n'B anyone ?
k x
Last modified by wildblood on Saturday, 13th January 2007, 3:15pm
Comment by lycra_uk00 on Saturday, 13th January 2007, 3:41pm
Well the thing about all 3 of those great classics you mentioned Kate in your last blog,is they all had energy and a great dance beat ! Sadly that is what is missing from the dance floors in Brighton.
read moreg in the world today then its sure time we changed them and played music to put Love and Happiness back in peoples lives.
There are too many tunes that lack energy played at the moment ,and if they reflect whats happenin...
Lets all hope that we get back to the days when you could go out nearly every night in Brighton and have a good time.
Like you say Kate trust in the Dj's and pick your nights acordingly.
Phil XX
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