Sweet Suite

I finally broke down and lobbed a large chunk of money at Ableton for the Suite upgrade. Essentially it gives me a bunch of instruments to produce electronic music. I have just started reading through the manual which is 480 pages long. Quite an undertaking for learning new software but I'm looking forward to the challenge. I'm using an introductory guide by a gent named Tom Cosm. He uses Ableton and it's native instruments to produce his tracks and mixes.

The lessons are each an hour long and there are 10 of them. By no means do I think I'll be a pro once I'm finished with the lessons but I do feel like I'll be more comfortable using Ableton and the instruments. I watched the first one tonight and learned a few things about synthesis and creating an interesting bass line by layering the same bass track over itself but making a simple change to the second bass track's oscillator .

I've got some technical jargon tossed in there that, admittedly I haven't read much of myself but hopefully the links will be informative and give you (and me) a baisc idea of what the terms mean.

Well, back to reading! I can't wait to start my second lesson tomorrow!

DJ Mercy - Suit Up

The new mix is now available for download and streaming. It's a progressive house/progressive trance mix with a heavy dose of great vocal tracks. I'm always so excited for this one so I hope you enjoy. Feel free to vote if you have an account with djmix.net. If you need easy access to the mix just click the "Suit Up" link to the right under Mixes or click the picture below.

Celtic are THROUGH!

2-0 win on the road! Holy crap! a 22 match winless streak on the road in Champions League play finally comes to an end. I only wish I could have seen it myself.

This segues into my photo well. Why don't I have this? Someone. I beg you. Go to Celtic's website and get me this!


To answer your question: Yes, it really does exactly what is shown in the photograph. Get your credit cards ready!

Burnt

Well I'm broke for the time being so I have yet to put together a decent track list for the next mix. China and lack of self control will do that to a person. I have a plan though so don't fret.

As for the title I just keep looking at my red arms and reminiscing about the beach. Good times.

Cracked it

Cracked in to the Top 10 on day one. Debuting at number 10 on djmix.net is no small feat so thank you all. To those that haven't voted, please feel free. To those wondering why I appreciate the votes I'll just say that the longer my mix stays on the front page of djmix.net the more exposure it is getting. The more exposure it gets the more the big guys out there take notice and maybe someday I'll actually get a gig playing in front of actual people or a slot on someone else's podcast. That would be wonderful.

DJ Mercy - Are We Out There

The new mix is now available for streaming or for download. As always you just have to register to djmix.net to download the mix to your computer/ipod/mp3 player. Otherwise it will stream if you click the listen now button. If you register, please go ahead and vote! The more votes the better shot I have at making it to number 1 on the top mixes of the site! (Shameless I know.) Thank you all for your help. The link to the mix is to the right of this post!

It's called jazz

I'm sorry I hit a wrong note on that last song I hit an A instead of an E but you know what? It's called jazz and my good friend Travis Barker starts it off.

Awesome. Seriously. Did I mention I have tickets for this. Awesome! Third time's a charm.

The Robot Goes Beep Boop

A couple of things here. I keep tossing around the idea of doing the Crater Lake Marathon again knowing full well that I'll probably injure myself if I start training for it right now. Can one of you be in charge of reminding me that I'm in no position to run 26.2 miles by August? I'll take a little therapeutic touch and reassurance that 13.1 is probably more likely.

Okay, great. 13.1 Crater Lake Halfsies. I can do that. I'll follow that up with the Portland Marathon in October and if I can muster another one I'm thinking the California International Marathon in December. Think Sacramento. If I'm still in Oregon that is. Let's all keep our fingers crossed that that won't be the case.

The new mix is nearly done. I just have to finish it. It's kind of a marathon as well but a much more enjoyable journey than the running kind. I'll keep you posted. I'm thinking something like next week sometime. Get your listenin' ears on rangers!

#1

Just to let you all know the mix has reached the number 1 spot for it's seven day stretch.

Great news! Thanks for voting and keep listening! I've got the next batch together and will have some new material out soon! Keep an eye out!

#2

Just an update, The End of Everything is up to number 2 on the top mixes at DJMix.net

Awesome!

#5

The End of Everything has reached the number 5 slot on djmix.net's Top Mixes! Thanks so much to all who are listening and enjoying the mix! I was excited to see I got some global kudos for the mix as well. It's always nice to see some experts in the field appreciating the mixes. It really makes me feel like I'm on the right path.

I've been working on some new tracks that I'm looking forward to putting together for the next mix. I have a few new tricks up my sleeve. I feel like I continue to learn something new and make positive progress with every mix.

Thanks again for all those that listened and voted and all those who plan on doing so in the future!

#9

Just keeping you all posted as the new mix is up to #9 on djmix.net 's top 10 mixes today. If you haven't voted or haven't listened I hope you'll reserve me an hour of your time and give it a listen.

DJ Mercy - The End of Everything

Thanks to all those who have voted and listened!

This is the end of The End of Everything

New mix out today! The End of Everything. If you think you've heard it before you're wrong. It's nothing like the previous incarnation. This is probably my best effort to date. I thought it would be easy remaking this but in all honesty I tried so many new things with this one that I literally probably poured 40 hours of pure work time into it's creation. It could be lack of proficiency that takes so long but I'm working on being more of a perfectionist.

Here's the track list to entice you. Yes, I do have a man crush on Markus Schulz. Whatev.


1) Explosions in the Sky - Your Hand In Mine
2) Star Chaser - So High feat. LO-FI Sugar (Martin Roth Remix)
3) Sia - Buttons (Markus Schulz Coldharbour Remix)
4) ATB, Jades - Wrong Medication (Club Mix)
5) Blake Jarrell - Punta Del Este (Arnej's Minimal Drum Dub)
6) Late Night Alumni - Empty Streets (Haji & Emanuel Remix)
7) Sunlounger, Zara - Lost (Dance Version)
8) Markus Schulz - Perfect feat. Dauby (Agnelli Nelson Remix)
9) Darin Epsilon - Tahitian Sunrise (Original Mix)
10) Markus Schulz, Departure - Cause You Know - Is This The End


As always, the mix is posted on the right hand side of the page, just click the link and hit "Play this mix". You can download the mix if you register with the site, registration is free and you can add it to your ipod or other mp3 device. You can also vote for my mix if you register which gives me a chance to get into the top mixes on djmix.net.

Hope you all enjoy! Happy listening!

The Very Thing

I purchased some new music the other day, not for mixing, just for listening. Although if I can ever figure out how to deconstruct songs they might be used for that. I bought the newest Radiohead album. The title escapes me, something about Rainbows. I bought an older Sigur Ros album that has a wacky Icelandic title that isn't worth printing. There is a track on the album called Gobbledygook or some such thing. I purchased an EP by a band called Van She. It's pretty cool, kind of rock meets synth but with a machismo swagger. Good stuff.

I purchased a compilation of some downtempo/break tracks called The Rorschach Suite. It's certainly not disappointing if you need something to kind of chill out to.

I also purchased a CD by a band called Explosions in the Sky. The album is called The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place. It is instrumental guitar, drums, bass, a basic band if you will but minus a singer. It's actually really cool. It has a very progressive sound. The tracks start very minimal and build to a climax. I'd highly recommend it.

The last album I bought is the one below with some lyrics attached.

Just some lyrics I was really drawn to while listening to a new-old Stars album I purchased recently called Nightsongs. The track name is The Very Thing:

The bar closes early on the Sabbath day
So me and my kid we hit the park to play
Then it'd start to rain so we'd walk home again
He asked why he was born
I don't know what to say

I don't feel guilty and I don't feel sad
This mother fucking life is the best he's had
I said I've been there sonny and it ain't that bad
I took my hits from the shits back when I was a lad

So long ago and even though I tried
I couldn't make him see the life he had cast in front of me
And even though I cried I couldn't make him be the very thing
I needed

His mother'd make a scene when I come home late
She look like she's dying but she's twenty eight
I never loved that whore I never will no more
Except for a month back in '84
The jam was playing and my heart stood still gazing at a shadow
on the window sill

So long ago and even though I tried
I couldn't make her see I wasn't quite the man she thought I'd be
And even though I cried I couldn't make her be the very thing
I needed

And even though I tried I couldn't make her see
I wasn't quite the man she thought I'd be
And even though I cried I couldn't make her be the very thing
I needed

Could she be the very thing I needed?
Could she be the very thing the very thing

Push yourself away from your one best friend
Who's going to love you when you reach the end?
Who will?
Who will?
Who will?

200!

The Liquid Shift mix is up to 200 unique plays and over 100 unique downloads. Thanks so much everyone!

Top 40!

The Liquid Shift is now in the Top 40 of the top mixes on djmix.net! Thank you all so much for listening and voting! If you haven't heard it feel free to check out Liquid Shift or any of the older mixes. Let's see if we can push that mix into the top 10!

.wav to the DJ

Good news!

We've got over 100 unique plays on the Liquid Shift mix! Well done everyone and thanks for your support! It's only been two days since I published it so I'm really excited about how quickly this one made it out of the gate. My previous mix is still available on the site as well. It has yet to hit 100 plays but either way I'm excited so many of you are listening.

I'll get back to music in a moment but first a word from our sponsor: Man On Wire. If you haven't seen this documentary I'd highly recommend it. What this man did was truly an amazing feat. I'm not going to tell you anything about it, just watch it. Let me know what you think.

I'll gradually work my way back into music by saying I watched another documentary called Scratch. It is about the birth and evolution of scratch DJs. The things these guys and gals do with two turntables is truly amazing and I'd highly recommend the film if you'd like to get some perspective on hiphop DJs.

And now back to our regularly scheduled program already in progress. I've worked out about 20 new tracks that I'll be whittling down to around 10ish for the new mix. I have yet to purchase the tracks but as soon as I do I'll give it my best shot to have a quality mix available before the end of the month. I'm really looking forward to producing more quality mixes for your listening enjoyment.

Thanks again for all of your support!

Liquid Shift

Liquid Shift is my newest mix now available for live streaming and downloading. If you'd like to download all you have to do is register to the site and return back to my DJ page. Registration is free!

This mix was extremely taxing for whatever reason. I used a different technique to mix the tracks together and have added different effects.

The track listing is listed on the mix's page. It is progressive house with some electro house influence. I hope you all enjoy!

Stars and Apple unveils the new iSuck

It's 2:30 AM and I am suppposed to be gettting up in 5 hours. I'm going to iKea to get a two seater. A two seater is a couch. The term replaces the ever popular love seat. Let's face it, love seats rarely get much love. ikEa is in Portland which means I'll be driving up and back today.

The mix, it's troublesome but almost finished. I had some technical diffficulties today which is why it isn't posted yet. Coming soon. Promise.

Idaho and Other Distractions

I'd like to apologize. I'm sure you're sick of hearing me do this so often. The music isn't ready and I'm the one to blame. I'm so sorry. I hope you'll forgive me. I'm definitely hurt more than you. I promise.

The music is coming. I can assure you. I have the tracks all laid out in a nice neat little package. I went to Idaho and got distracted. I planned to do it both the Thursday before I left and the Friday afternoon before I left. I failed. Instead I drank too much Thursday night and slept into the late afternoon on Friday.

I'm in the wrong, I know. When I got back last night I had all night to do it as well. I was not in a good place then. My mind was in a frenzy of unpaid medical, school and credit card bills. It feels like being crushed on all sides.

I'm not going to give you a date. I'm back at work now so it could be as late as next week or as early as tomorrow. I have plans tomorrow so it probably won't be then.

I had a lot of fun in Idaho. It was filled with excitement and wonder. Who knew a state made famous by a subterranean vegetable could be filled with such things.

Long time no smell

I made it back from San Francisco and survived the move into my new apartment. Pictures are forthcoming for at least one of these events.

San Francisco was a lot of fun. It was great to see my good friends, Rob and Deni again. They have chitlins now and I do love me some chitlins (even if I say I don't). I got to eat at In n' Out Burger twice and watched a few of my cousin's soccer games (he's from Alaska). I drug my parents out in the middle of the night to see The Watchmen in South San Fran. I think they liked it. I know I liked it. The weather was beautiful and we bought a lot of bulk liquor for wicked cheap prices.

The Monday after I got back from the city I was moving into my new pad. It's great! It's in such a convenient location for me. I can walk to the grocer store, Starbucks, and several eateries and bars. I love it. The only downside is it's kind of far from work but I'm dealing with that. I still don't have the internet or cable so I am extremely bored at home right now but it's coming on Tuesday and I'll be posting pics once that's all set up.

I got an awesome new laptop bag custom made by my friend Renai. I'll be posting pics of that as well once the internet is working. I love the bag and it is holding up nicely. It holds most of my DJ equipment as well which is fantastic! Thanks Renai!

I SWEAR the new mix will be out soon. I'm hoping for sometime before the weekend since I'm off to Boise for a few days starting Saturday. I need someone to push me in the right direction to get this mix done! Help!

Editediteditedited

The Night Shift is currently going through some formatting changes. I've decided to add on personal entries to the blog because I have this sinking feeling that the people that read the blog yearn to know what I'm doing. Either that or they have no idea what I'm talking about when I bring up technical jargon.

Regardless I'd like to hear what you think of the mixes if you are so inclined. Honesty is the best policy in this case and any criticism is fantastic since, at the very least it means you listened to the mix.

Tonight is my last night of work and I am chomping at the bit to get out of here. I'm heading to San Francisco for the weekend. I wonder what the future holds? Probably some In n' Out Burger and The Watchmen on IMAX. I'll be catching up with old friends and watching some soccer.

I'm pretty sure there will be a visit to the Liquor Barn as well. Yeehaw!

I'd also like to add that I finally got a place! I'm really looking forward to moving in on Monday. I feel all grown up again. It's a nice little studio that's within walking distance of nearly everything I need.

I'm hoping to have the next mix out sometime next week. Stay tuned!

...and then it dawned

I have some brand new features to report on The Night Shift! I have a donation button on the right hand column of the blog now. This features a direct link to a place where you can donate funds for good music and help keep me fed, clothed and sheltered while I work on the compositions.

I'll give you a run down of what it takes in monetary units and time to create music. This is not meant to be a guilt trip by any means. I just want to let everyone know that I love DJing regardless of donations. In fact, the thing that makes me most excited is you all enjoying the mixes.

Lets start with money, this is money that does not include new technology. It is just me getting the music to you.
Every track I purchase costs $2.50. The tracks are more expensive because they are .wav rather than .mp3. The .wav tracks have much better sound quality because they haven't been compressed like a .mp3 track. So in music alone I spend roughly $25 to $40 per mix. The reason I may spend up to $40 is because not all tracks sound good together so I may have to find another track that I think will be a more appropriate fit for the mix. I also use a website to host my mixes. The website charges me $10 a month to make my mixes available for download. All in all I guess I spend $35 to $50 a month to produce a mix.

I've been trying to keep track of the time involved but it's extremely difficult. First of all, every track I think I want to go into the mix I have to listen to over and over again. I have to know all of the cues and breakdowns in the song. I am actively listening to all of the nuances the song offers up so I can make the mix sound seamless. I'd liken this process to an actor trying to memorize his lines for a scene.

Secondly, I have to arrange the tracks in a particular order. Track order is one of the most important things in my opinion when DJing. There are two objectives when I put together a track list: First, set the mood of the mix. Get the listener engaged in the music. The second is to make sure the tracks are mixed in key so they sound good overlapping one another.

Next I do several run throughs of the mix where I try to incorporate the effects I'm going to use in the mix. As you know my mixes are usually about an hour so this part alone can take a few hours. I'll then go for the gusto and actually record the mix. This can take several takes as well but is typically less time consuming.

Lastly, once the mix has been recorded I go back and smooth out effects with Ableton. This is followed by the mixdown and viola! We have a completed mix!

I would honestly say that it takes me 20 to 40 hours to complete a mix depending on the level of involvement. I'm also still learning Ableton on the fly and I have a lot yet to learn.

FYI, I am working on a new mix and I'm hoping to have it ready to go next week!

If you haven't yet, check out Best of Beatport 2008. You can listen to it if you click on the link on the right hand side of this page. If you want to download this or any future mixes you can do so by following the link and registering with djmix.net. Save that bad boy to your ipod and hit the gym or take it to a party.

Happy listening!

Get me this!

If you purchase this for me my life will be complete. Okay, that's a lie, my life is already complete. If you get this for me you'll be my new best friend. Also, a lie, but as you can tell, I like to lie almost as much as this sentence likes commas! So if you get this for me I'll lie to you and tell you you're my new best friend or maybe I'll call you a comma.

This is the Akai APC 40. Now go, get this for me!

Beatport Best Trance 2008

Click on the pretty blue link below!


DJ Mercy - Beatport Best Trance 2008

Here it is! Now available to you by djmix.net! You can either launch a player and listen to it streaming or download the whole mix and listen to it on your ipod or phonograph! I think it's my best mix yet. I hope you agree! Feel free to comment. I was supposed to be able to embed a player here but that function isn't working. This is simple! You can do it!

Best of Beatport Trance 2008

The new mix is now available. If you'd like a copy feel free to contact me.

I had to do very little editing after making this mix. I'd like to think it's because I'm getting better at it. I am really tired and would like to listen to the mix in its entirety a few more times before I really discuss it. Here is the track list:

1. Alex Bartlett, Martin Roth - Off the World - Gareth Emery Remix
2. Cressida - 6AM - Kyau & Albert Remix
3. Nic Chagall - What You Need - Marco V Remix
4. Andy Duguid - Wasted feat. Leah
5. Orjan Nilsen - La Guitarra
6. Simon Patterson - Smack
7. Bernard Sumner, Blank & Jones - Miracle Cure - Martin Roth Nu Style Dub Remix
8. Maarten De Jong - Mono - J.O.C. Remix
9. Lange - Out of the Sky feat. Sarah Howells -Kyau & Albert Mix
10. Jon O'Bir - Ways and Means - Paul van Dyk remix

Posting comments is working

You can now post comments. Hope you like the new template. I'm digging it. I also have plans for a new mix. Not sure about the remix as I'm still new to that. It might have been a more ambitious project than I thought. Anyway, I should have a new mix sometime soon and possibly even a music player posted on the site! Awesome!

Two and a half hours 'til breakfast

If you've come from my myspace page or visited it in the last day or so you'll notice I've posted a couple of new songs on my playlist. I am loving that Boy Robot song. I don't want to give too much away but you may be hearing echos of it in the upcoming weeks.

Finished

After what was roughly 4 hours of editing I'd say The End of Everything is as complete as I can make it right now. Have a listen and let me know what you think.

I thought there would only be a couple of patches that I wanted to smooth out but it turned out once I started editing I couldn't stop myself. Honestly I haven't even listened to it all the way through yet. I listened to the transitions over and over to make sure they sounded smooth and I think they came out much better. The mix is also roughly 2 minutes shorter than the original due to some of the editing.

I'm thinking about putting up some video of either me mixing or editing just for fun. I think it would be cool to do an "in the studio" kind of thing.

Ableton is an amazing piece of software and I am actually learning tons of new things about it. I remember when I first got it the only thing I could do was record my mixes from my CD players. Now I'm using it to edit mixes I make using Ableton as the mixer. It's pretty amazing.

Next up is creating various loops and samples prior to the mix and making a couple of mashup tracks. I think I'm going to make a mashup track first. I have this great acoustic track that I'm pumping some bass into. So look for that to be coming soon.

Due to the sectionz site being down I'm going to ask anyone that would like a copy of the mixes and tracks I'm creating to contact me in an email. Obviously these are for listening purposes only and not for distribution or selling. I think as of now I have 3 true followers that are recieving the mixes. Woohoo! Keep posting comments, it really keeps me going when I get the feedback.

And now on to the track list:

1. Starchaser - So High feat. LO-FI Sugar - Martin Roth Remix
2. Markus Schulz - Buttons - Coldharbour Remix
3. ATB, Jades - Wrong Medication - Club Mix
4. Blake Jarrell - Punta Del Este - Arnej's Minimal Drum Dub
5. Late Night Alumni - Empty Streets - Haji & Emanuel Remix
6. Cary Brothers - Ride - Tiesto Remix
7. Markus Schulz - Perfect feat. Dauby - Agnelli Nelson Remix
8.Carmen Rizzo - Ecouter feat. Jem - Morgan Page Remix
9. Markus Schulz, Departure - Cause You Know

Happy Listening!