title: dj ++ project
type: (extended) djing
year: 2020 -
author/composer: Alexandros Kontogeorgakopoulos
Dj ++ is project which explores and aspires to extend djing techniques and to combine them with more experimental music production approaches. It attempts to create a new music experience by blending in realtime many music tracks and pre-recorded loops, all processed and re-sampled with various digital audio effects. Often the aspiration is to create music with music in a live situation. It brings remixing, re-editing and mashup techniques in a performance context. The selected music comes from various genres such as electro, electronica, hip-hop, synth-pop, indie dance music, IDM and it is shaped musically following a minimalistic melodic synth-based trajectory. Another aim of the project is put Djing in a more artistic context. Often the inspiration or even the structure of the mix comes from the visual arts; paintings, sculptures, installations, photographs.
The picture above was taken from our art studio space in Athens where various art and sonic (Djing in this case) experiments are taking place: oneContinuousLab.
The previous video, depicts a simple algorithm that was generated in order to find a Dj name. Four Tet and Kolsch / Michael Mayer are mixed looped and pitch-shifted.
The following music clips are extracts from live performances that illustrate the aesthetics and the techniques of the ongoing project.
A frenetic mix with Ballo Dei Morti - Brassica, samples from New Order and various drum fills.
This dark mix blends tracks from Alva Noto, Four Tet and New Order.
The following pop mix uses Sandra - Hi! Hi! Hi!, enriched with other beat loops and exceptioanlly, with performed strings on the top. Once again all was done live.
A very slow mix with music from Caribou - Sun and Vessels - The Sky Was Pink. The tracks are looped, re-pitched, slowed down and processed aggresively.
This is a quite dark and experimental mix. The tracks used are Odd Nosdam - Sisters (Boards of Canada remix), Plaid / John Tejada - Maru, INXS - Suicide Blonde, Apparat - Bad Kingdom (Lulu s Version), The Strokes - Eternal Summer.
The following completely distorted and altered clip, comes from the same material and from the same session. It is a completely new track.
Iterestingly, the first recording is also very interesting when played reversed.
A re-edit of Diskjoke - Song for Synne. The track is re-sampled and played back with percussion loops and dialoges altered by a granulation process.
The pitch-shifted,looped track is Christian Loffler - Bergen. It is altered enormously with various digital audio effects and it mixed with other crackles and noises.
Similar Dj processes can be applied to classical music too. The following very short clip is based on Beethoven s 5th piano concerto and dialogues from the movie Casablanca.
The following long and minimal set, mixes Gus Gus with Tears for Fears and few other tracks and loops.
Here is an example of a mashup based on various rhythmic tracks (Tears for Fears, Yo La Tengo, U2, Peter Gabriel etc) .
Similarly to the previous track, below is another example of a mashup based on various tracks (Tune-Yards, Fujiya & Miyagi, Madonna, percussions etc) .
This low-tempo minimal mix blends together different genres and artists such as Caribou, Toto, Marvin Gay. It is also heavily distorted and processed especially in the end.
The mix below is a full 3h set performed at Lulu bar in Athens. It is less experimental than the previous Dj sets above.
A very smooth mix (mini-clip) with A Guy Called Gerald, dialogues from film noir movies and other tracks that I can't unfortunatelly recall...
A very 80's moment with Duran Duran and Wang Chung entangled in a melodic way!
Another nostalgic 80's moment with Ultravox, Caribou, extra beats, another track (?) and fax machines.
Different genres brought together in a mix - White Lies and Modeselector and time-based audio effects (brassage in the French acousmatic tradition).