I’m spewing this stuff out on
Record Store Day, a pointless piece of self-promotion which satisfies the
vanity of a relative few, at the expense of those for whom vinyl is a way of
life. It was when I interviewed DJ Guy a couple of years ago that I realised
this. He had a double EP slated for release on the Danish label Nord at the end
of March 2015, but when I interviewed him in June it still hadn't come out.
This was due to the few pressing plants left being completely snowed under by
Record Store Day special editions. So while I’m all for anything that engages
people with music of all forms, Record Store Day can do one.
I completed a mix this week
and, as said in the accompanying post, they evolve in spite of themselves. Mine
always seem to start off really well, but then I try too hard, shoehorn tracks
in which maybe shouldn’t be there, and the whole thing falls apart. Let me
elaborate. I’ve been the quintessential bedroom DJ for a long time now. Record
collector, music consumer in earnest since July 1977, an obsession which
continues to occupy my mind most of the time. 'Looking For The Perfect Beat
was The Soul Sonic Force's mantra, and it’s been mine as well for the past twenty five
years or so. It’s enough for a few seconds of a mix to be a slight gallop to do
my head in. Two hours can be ruined by ten seconds. I’ll play the offending
part back over and over again and try to convince myself that there’s nothing
wrong, but it’s always there, gnawing away on an undercurrent of discontent.
Having recently resumed the
cataloguing of my record collection on Discogs, I’m a little depressed at how
many of my records I want to sell, and at how much money I’ve wasted down the
years. More than that though, is the fact that so much of the really good part
of my collection got damaged during last year’s flood, while what I’ve been
filing over the last week or so escaped unscathed. Poker Flat, Minus, Highgrade
. . . What was I thinking? Putting all my Underground Resistance and Mills
stuff at water level . . . I suppose I’m very motivated now though; motivated
to slowly restore what I lost with better stuff.
Having said that, for the
first time in a while there’s not as much good stuff out there as usual. I
haven’t done a chart this year. I guess I’m not feeling as inspired as normal.
I am more inclined to delve into the past and spend money on Discogs, forever
mindful of getting ripped off, than buy new releases, my current collection
being a reminder of taste’s transitory nature. This is a good interview. A
simple philosophy with a timeless message. I’m going for it.
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