Actually, I should rephrase that. I now have vinyl decks – Technics, of course.
I bought them a couple of months back and yes, they have pretty much sat there since then. It was too good a deal to turn down, though unfortunately one of the needles seems to need replacing – and that is where I am stuck.
There is one other rather sizable problem – I have no vinyl.
Again, not strictly true as I have a large box of old vinyls that has apparently done the rounds of the old BOA group in Reading (gosh that’s a blast from the past) – think mostly slightly cheesy funky house circa 2003/2004.
I've had a look through and out of those with recognisable artist/label names, there might be one that I'll keep. As you can imagine, I am unlikely to be the last destination for that box of old vinyls!
The main reason I haven't had much of a play with them is that I have had to concentrate all of my spare time recently on looking for my first ever web developer role. Which not only meant all the time and effort that job hunting itself entails, but designing/coding a portfolio and half a dozen websites to go along with it. Not to mention that my social life has been pretty hectic too.
Come July payday, I will treat myself to a replacement needle and then start to work out how the hell you mix on vinyl. One suspects Youtube will be my friend, but I always like to try to work out how to do it myself. I know the theory, I know what I need to do, but actually doing it will be another matter until I've had plenty of practice.
Though it won’t be until I have my own record collection that I will really start to get into it and truly be able to call myself a vinyl DJ.
Which is the next problem. Though some old records are around the £1 mark, most new vinyl is towards £10 and some records on my wishlist are of astronomical value.
Speaking of my wishlist, I am also currently going through my 8,500 tracks on iTunes and deciding which ones I need to have on vinyl. I have a systematic approach – all the tunes I have given 4/5 stars to (maybe bar any Ten Walls records or similarly embarrassing ex-favourites!), all 80’s/early 90’s house tracks that I have given 3+ stars too (they tend to be super cheap and a good way to boost a collection and get that practice I need) and as many disco tracks as possible as I have a long-standing dream of doing a disco night.
Oh and I will definitely buy every track that has helped me get where I am – ie those I have put on my DJ mixes, and those I can recall playing out. I estimate I will have 1,000 tracks on my wish-list once it is composed. Hmmm.
The priority for now will be getting, say, 20 of the cheapest vinyls I can, all of which must be tracks I adore, so I can start practicing.
I reckon it will be two years until you see me out, DJing on vinyl. It is coming and I'll have a whole load of new things to moan about!
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