My BLOG: infina.blogspot.com
My DJ MIXES: djstarsign.podomatic.com
My "MUXTAPE": djstarsign.muxtape.com
I would have linked the links above except that myspace will embed its own code and it disables some. It's just easier to copy and paste so you can get the info. Lot's of good stuff so it's worth it ;-) thanks!
Quick summary. I love art, design, The Rolling Stones, vintage posters, vinyl and guitars.
LISTEN TO DJ STARSIGN MIXES ONLINE!
Mixes available at djstarsign.podomatic.com (copy and paste in new window).
Who I am, What I do, What I believe in...
(EDIT: I've been on a self-imposed hiatus, a vision quest or detoxing of the lame dj shit that has taken over in the past year and a half, but now I'm back to drop the real science... oh yeah, I'm one of those DJs that still plays VINYL out in public... I can't get used to laptop djing.)
Unlike most of my heroes, I didn't start deejaying until quite late (19), but my love affair with music started quite early (5). It all started with The Beatles "A Day In The Life". Along the way, Echo and The Bunnymen, The Smiths, The Cure, The Pixies, David Bowie, Velvet Underground, Can, Bob Dylan, Brian Eno and Slowdive forever changed the way I would listen to music, but it was the soulful sounds of 60's and 70's Black America that really had the strongest impact on me.
James Brown, Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Sly Stone, The Meters, Funkadelic, Donald Byrd, Mizell Brothers, Freddie Hubbard, Bobbi Humphrey, Lonnie Liston Smith, Kool and the Gang, Fatback, Freda Payne, Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder (among many others) created the music that would become the soundtrack to my life. As a fan of hip hop (back when hip hop was an underdog that relied almost exclusively on obscure samples), I became somewhat obsessed with finding the original tracks that were used on tracks by Gang Starr, Organized Konfusion, A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and Main Source records.
That's when the bug kicked in and I began collecting "dusty vinyl", from second hand stores and garage sales. I was open to it all, especially anything from 1969-1974. My interest in what I later found out was called "rare groove" began to get out of control, and suddenly, my collection went from a few dozen records to a few thousand. I began djing in 1996, mainly to a crowd of friends at small house parties, but it was always fun. As my collection grew, my interest in djing also grew and I met other like-minded "vinyl junkies". My mentors schooled me on secret records. I was introduced to more genres and more influential movements, artists, producers, taste-makers, etc...
A few years later, I found myself playing at some of the most coveted flashy downtown spots on Friday and Saturday nights, but the connection with the crowd just wasn't the same. I learned to appreciate smaller intimate gigs where I could do "my thing" and get crowds getting down to my eclectic sounds, rather than the big money gigs where most (plastic) people want to hear overplayed pop music all night long.
My mentors are people like Norman Jay, Grandmaster Flash, Prince Paul, DJ Premier, Gilles Peterson, Jazzanova, Benji B, DJ Shadow, Diamond D, and Evil D. They promoted the culture of music, music that had teeth and grit as opposed to just gloss and sheen (style without substance, in my opinion, means nothing). These people set the mold for others like me to follow and play music below the radar, but just as important to music culture as so-called "big room" music.
Along the way, my collection has grown to include records that range from funk 7"s, obscure early 80's rap 12" singles, underground disco, electro, house, dub, jazz, techno, rock, soul, and other odds and sods.
I go by feeling when I play, meaning that I rarely ever plan a mix prior to a few minutes before a gig. It's that spontaneity and sense of improvisation that makes it more exciting, more raw and ultimately more fun. I mostly play vinyl (because I came up in the vinyl era) but I'm not opposed to digital forms of music. If it's good, it's good. I don't think I'll ever stop buying vinyl though.
If you have an open mind and a curiosity for music below the radar, I think you may like the sounds you'll hear at one of my gigs.
This video playlist might give you a good glimpse of what makes me tick.
I did an interview and live mix I did for THE PINCH which you can check out here .
Listen to some of my "really" old mixes here.
FREE DJ MIX:
Daetron Vargas and I teamed up one time and we recorded our set. This was a live improvised set of all wax (aka vinyl records... fuck an mp3). The set was comprised of mostly New Disco and assorted electronic type shit. We don't exactly know what to call this music, but we like it. Recorded some time in early 2007. Never released until now. No tracklistng, don't ask for one either ;-)
Recommended if you like:
Prins Thomas
Todd Terje
Lindstrom
Alan Braxe
Rong Music
Full Pupp Records
I posted the "Bear Shall Never Kill Bear" mix at my blog, which you can find here and if you like it, spread the word, nawmean?
word!
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SHOWS + STUFF:
The Hump is a weekly dj event that happens at Plush. My friends Res and Paco spin the finest in Disco, Funk and Boogie. Here's a chance for me to spin an all vinyl set of some of my favorite "disco" records. Be there!
DJ Starsign or The Lord Imperial?
DJ Starsign used to be my guise when I played less electronic music (funk, hip hop, lounge, downtempo, jazz, etc...). The Lord Imperial was my alias for when I played more house/disco/electro/uptempo sets. I rarely play jazz and downtempo (even though I'm still a fan) so now Starsign and Lord Imperial are basically the same.
