My DJ Mix Broadcast on Di.fm

My new DJ mix, R_EXile summer2010mix, has been scheduled to air in the Minimal Channel of www.di.fm at:

1pm 20th July (US EST)

6pm 20th July (GMT)

1am 21st July (GMT + 8)

Enjoy!

Touch DJ Application on Iphone

‘Oh is he reading porn or checking emails?’  Sorry, this kind of jokes about laptop DJs is getting outmoded; one updated version can be ‘is he checking text-messages?’ With the advent of Touch DJ, the ‘first and only real mp3 DJ mixing application on Iphone’, it seems that the debate about the essence of DJing will be heated up once again.

Ok first of all I want to say that I haven’t tried this potentially controversial application developed by Amidio yet – if I have a chance in future I’ll probably write a detailed review – so at this moment I only reflect upon what I saw on the youtube videos.

Indeed, at first glance this application does seem to offer the basic functions for DJing – cueing, beatmatching, crossfading, scratching, EQ,  looping and some FX. And like using Ableton Live, you can even beatmatch the tracks in advance. As suggested by the video, this application is targeted at both ‘professionals’ and beginners.

Here is a video in which the application is used in a relatively more advanced way in mixing (with EQ & Filter)

The mixing is too coarse to meet the requirement of DJing at clubs without a doubt (and in fact the availability of only 2 decks in the machine does forbid the contemporary style of multi-track DJing) , and compared with the audio-output quality, reliability and user-friendliness of the professional decks and mixers at clubs, this application is barely applicable in such professional contexts. But it is indeed okay for house parties or even those at student unions. It could be an appropriate tool for those mobile DJs who perform at private parties or weddings, where the technical skills of DJing and audio quality are not emphasised.

But of course ‘image’ is another problem. Whilst the term ‘DJ’ most of time connotes ‘coolness’ and ‘exclusivity’, DJing with the Iphone, an electronic appliance owned by people from all walks of life, is unlikely to be appealing to those DJs who enjoy the up-on-the-DJ-booth status (no offense, especially after watching the first video in which the engineer-looking guy DJs and smiles in a setting like home).

After all, as a laptop DJ myself I do not want to discourage any invention that has the potential to push the boundaries of the art of DJing; and indeed Aimdio should be given credit for creating such an application that encapsulates so many DJing functions. Although I probably won’t use it at the moment, I do look forward to the development of Touch DJ and Iphone in the future.