If you have some time, check out the first installment of my Beatique Mix series. These monthly shows will be about an hour long and divided into two sets. The first set is more like a regular radio segment and the second is a club mix. It’s not tied to any genre or era of music. It’s just good music that has been in my personal rotation lately. Hope you enjoy it.
Continue reading The Beatique Mix Is Out Now
If you know DJs, then you’ve probably heard or read their complaints about requests. At the very least, you’ve seen a meme or two floating around on Instagram. It’s not necessarily a faux pas to request a song at a club, but there’s a way to do it politely. Unfortunately, plenty of people don’t know how to do that, so I’ll break down how to request a song step-by-step.
Continue reading How to Politely Request a Song from a DJ
There’s one band I’ve played more than any other in my DJ sets. That’s Depeche Mode. The British synthpop pioneers have been a part of my gigs, often regardless of the vibe of the party, since I started DJing. I doubt this will ever change.
I’ve been a Depeche Mode fan since I was a kid, but there are a lot of bands that I’ve loved for most of my life and don’t play nearly as often. It does help that L.A. has a lot of Depeche Mode fans. Outside of the clubs, the band frequently appears on request lists for weddings and birthday parties. But, that’s also not really the reason for so much Depeche Mode play.
Continue reading I Love Playing These Five Depeche Mode Songs
I fell in love with a incredibly fun and thoughtful disco take on The Cramps’ 1981 cult hit “Goo Goo Muck” from Mark James and Peewee Ferris this morning. It’s not something I expected to find. In fact, I never considered playing a disco variant of any song by The Cramps. But, that’s likely going to change soon.
Continue reading This New Disco Remix of “Goo Goo Muck” Is Incredibly Fun
Start off 2023 with Disco Heat. Jus’ B and I are back at Songbird in Chinatown on January 5 for a night of classic ’70s jams and nu-disco bops. Expect to hear everything from Donna Summer to Purple Disco Machine as we turn up the temperature on the dance floor from 9:30 p.m. until last call. There’s no cover for Disco Heat, but we do recommend that you RSVP on Eventbrite.
Continue reading Disco Heat Returns to Songbird on January 5. Free entry!
In 2022, a 32-year-old song from The Human League started creeping into my sets. I’ve been a fan of the band since childhood and play them often when I DJ. Yet, I never played “Heart Like a Wheel,” let alone the extended mix of the song, before this year. I began playing “Heart Like a Wheel” because I heard it on a MARS FM broadcast nearly as old as the song itself.
MARS FM 103.1 was a short-lived radio station in Los Angeles during the early 1990s with a truly alternative format. While MARS was known as the “rave” radio station, they played everything from Morrissey to Arrested Development to Messiah. (Check out these old playlists.) It was wild. Years after the station’s demise, my friends and I recalled it in many conversations. A lot of us were, in some way, influenced by the sound of MARS.
Continue reading Now Is the Time to Rediscover This 1990 Jam from The Human League
Kickstart 2023 with DJs Larry G., Malvada and me (Liz O.) at Underground’s New Year’s Eve Ball. We’ll light up the dance floor at Chinatown’s Grand Star Jazz Club on December 31, 2022 from 9:30 p.m. until 2 a.m. Head over to Underground’s website to get your tickets now.
Continue reading Get Your Tickets for Club Underground’s New Year’s Eve Ball Now
One of the songs I played most in 2022 didn’t come out this year. In fact, “Drop the Numb” is an indie dance mashup that dates back to the mid-’00s. I retrieved it from my Little Twin Stars CD booklet filled with music from the heyday of Soulseek and music blogs.
I still don’t know the name of the remixer who fused together Mylo’s club hit “Drop the Pressure” with Scissor Sisters’ cover of “Comfortably Numb.” I wish I did, just so I could say thank you for this banger.
Continue reading You Love This ’00s Indie Dance Mashup
In many ways, I don’t think of myself as a record collector. I’m someone who happened to start DJing when CDJs were not as user-friendly as turntables and vinyl, particularly dance and alternative music from the ‘70s and ‘80s, fit my college student budget. Many years later, though, I’ve managed to build a record collection that I still sometimes use to DJ. Mostly, though, it’s a source of personal enjoyment.
Over years of crate digging, I’ve learned how to build a record collection. I’ll share what I learned here, beginning with how to source records in a way that’s sustainable for you.
Continue reading How to Build a Record Collection: You Need to Know This Before You Buy Vinyl
There was a lot of great music that came out this past year, so much that making a list of the best 2022 albums is a near-impossible task. Fortunately, last year, a good friend gave me a notebook designed for keeping track of music, so I was able to keep decent notes on most of the albums I heard in 2022. I followed the format of that notebook in putting together this list of albums I love and think you should hear. It’s not short— there are 23 full-length albums listed below— nor is it confined to any single genre. These albums aren’t ranked either. Each listing is followed by a link where you can buy the album.
Continue reading I Love These 2022 Albums From Boy Harsher, The Weeknd, Wet Leg and Lots More