The first installment of the Beat Aesthetic was quite a success! We brought in a huge soundsystem that almost looked out of place for the room we played in, but it helped provide a nice intimate feeling for the dancers and people chilling out on the couches. I got to drop a nice selection of disco, jazz, and deeeeeep house, and everyone else provided a good mix of house, garage, techno, and soul jams that kept it bumping just about all night long. February’s Beat Aesthetic is coming up on the 21st; we will be bringing in the sound system and playing a lovely selection of the finest in house music for you once again. One of the resident deejays Mr. Aaesir St. James has a new mix up here which you can download to check out. As an added bonus, in the main room of the Shadow Lounge on the 21st Waajeed will be playing. For those of you who don’t know, Waajeed was a buddy of J Dilla and he produces hiphop and twisted soul music for the likes of Platinum Pied Pipers, Tiombe Lockhart, and many more. Detroit will definitely be in the house that night!
Speaking of Detroit, it would be remiss for me not to mention another new event about to go down in the 412. This new event is appropriately titled “Hijack“, and it claims to be “designed to introduce the modern styles of detroit and berlin’s smaller venues to pittsburgh.” This is interesting on a number of levels. The “modern styles of Detroit and Berlin” have been being represented here in this city by the exact same group of people for over a decade. That representation has been through vinyl and CD releases (see Technoir Audio, Chris Schubert, and Shawn Rudiman), through deejays like Chris O’Connor, Jwan Allen, The Instigator, Mr. Twon, Chris Schubert, Curt Jackson, and more all playing from the entire scope of music made in Berlin and Detroit, from ghetto tech and electro through melodic techno into Detroit house and soul music, and through events which have featured headlining deejays playing those sounds such as Rick Wilhite, Shake, Dan Bell, Louis Haiman, and others.
The guys behind “Hijack” don’t have quite the same pedigree. Sage was only ever a medicore drum and bass producer/deejay who gave that up to play indie rock. She now apparently makes “funky techno” and will be the “international resident” despite being a resident of right fucking here for years now. Ryan Walsh aka “Local” is a fairwather fan of “techno” (and by that I mean anything from prog house to bullshit electro) whose yuppie stylings will be sure to impress Philip Sherburne whose nuts he inexplicably hangs from. Aaron Clark is another prog house to mnml convert whose Humanaut crew throws some awful Euro-trash attracting prog house parties at cheeseball clubs under the guise of “minimal techno”. And even though he is a friend of mine, Ed Umm hasn’t played techno or house in years. Despite being a great deejay at one time, Ed now generally spends his time hipstering it up with his mix of ironic garbage. All of these cats can fucking blow me. Get the fuck out of here with this shit, you can represent whatever nonsense you want but when you start trying to represent the shit that people have worked hard at for years I’m not going to just sit here and let you. You can all go fuck yourselves, even you Ed.
So yeah, welcome to 2009 in Pittsburgh where we now get to deal with jokers trying to take our shit. I know we’re always behind the times, but goddamn.
88 Comments
only you, tom. only you.
🙂
this totally reminds me of when i used to live in Tampa and the kinds of bullshit that went on there for years. the whole scene is basically run by fairweather house/techno/funky-breakbeat/prog/shitty types of music. basically whatever is popular at the time, they played to that crowd even if it fucking sucked ass (cue DJs Ping, Santana, Craze, Muggles, Brad Smith). i totally hear what you are saying and is exactly why i had to get out and move to nyc. don’t get me wrong, there are the same people here, but they have different names. but there is actually real stuff going on where real people like you and me go to in order to get rocked and inspired. good luck bro and hang in there.
oh and if you ever stop by, hit me up.
…”and will be the “international resident” despite being a resident of right fucking here for years now.”
That’s way to funny!
Tom, the way this looks isn’t cool. Maybe the three other guys on your flyer don’t feel the same way you do. That might not be fair.
But I agree with you a hundred percent and find it very amusing. Your my main man bro. keep fightin’ that good fight.
A
Seems to be the same shit everywhere but we’ll keep fighting because it’s our mission. It’s quiet hard considering that who promote that kind of stuff he’s, most of the time, much better than us to highlight himself … at least in his city. It’s quiet common that djs who play abroad don’t spin so much in town. Anyway … fuck’em and KEEP ON. Many congrats for your site … checking it nearly every day 🙂
Why does Aaesir look like Ludacris?
“in nyc … there is actually real stuff going on where real people like you and me go to in order to get rocked and inspired”
there is? since when? examples please.
tom,
hmmmmmm…
baby want a biscuit?
—>e
Wow. this is some real “do not hold in hand, light fuse, and get away” type stuff! BOOM
It’s a shame, really that Pittsburgh never had an ear for it… Maybe things have changed!?!?
Those were some of my favorite times DJing which many times ended up being for for ourselves and a few friends. I wish we had pictures of the what seemed like 1000’s of records that we would all bring out when doing those all-in type tag team sets. We played a little bit of everything in those sets.
yo, i’m starting a new night with the premise of being “designed to introduce the modern styles of brooklyn to pittsburgh” since no one else is doing that. it’s going to feature mashups, electroclash, dubstep, crunk, bmore club, baile funk, mnml techno, and any other hip genre being played off my iphone. i’m gonna call it “bullshit”, you gonna come through for it?
my question is:
will there be an attempt to rectify? or will folks in Pittsburgh..a small town at that, with a smaller dance music scene continue to be stuck in a vacuum, without any kinda of connection with history? To Ed’s credit, he’s been around for quite some time. Ed knows his stuff. But, even Ed would have to think that something as brazen as “Hijack” is going a bit too far.
yo tom, this is very much the sort of thing i’d do. i remember opening for Boys Noize and having the crowd be really into what i was doing on the decks. the hipster kids came after my set was over and tore the place apart. i mean, dude was all right, but kind of a bunch of nonsense, using CDJ bullshit. nice guy, tho.
it is weird to have to deal with this and to have some people give you tons of shit for speaking out. anyone who heard my set that night was like, ‘wow, yu actually stepped up and delivered some amazing shit,’ but i’d been DJing these kids parties for years! some bitterness is inevitable and totally legit but it will never make anyone friends, which sucks, especially because the truth is bitter most of the time.
keep on keepin on!
(Sorry for the double post; I mistakenly posted this comment the 1st time around on the wrong post)
Listening to “Aaesir St. James presents The Beat Aesthetic Vol.1? now.
Opening cuts — soulful to the nth power… DOPE!
Track ID please.
Cut at the 19:55 mark (says “yes, sound of sounds” or something like that before vocals kick in)
I heard this tune before and always thought it was a superior cut. This cut is crazy hypnotic
Thanks in advance fo the ID.
Damn, Tom — you ain’t holding no punches with this post. I had to laugh after reading it.
That aside, it seems your hard work and genuine luv for the music is paying off for you. Good shit, yo.
Peace.
Wow. Someone sounds pretty angry. Sorry you’re so asshurt.
Lolz someone has a sore asshole it would seem. Buck up dood no one likes techno anyways.
sounds like someone is an irrelevant elitest asshole
Somebody has a permanent baseball bat lodged up their ass.
Wooo! Go anonymous commentators!
Pipecock’s so elitist the motherfucker’s got a spellchecker.
Like, what a total looser.
wow… Did your ass rupture from the double fisting you received the other day? Maybe if you were able to draw more than 100 heads, people wouldn’t have to promote some other country’s sound for you.
If you need help getting more people into your events, I’d suggest reading: “I need a life and not a fat ass ramming” or maybe even “My ass is tired of the pounding, lets be friends”.
Good luck… pound magnet.
Music of the Sun
Once upon a time there was a small blue-green orb floating in a vast sea of emptiness. Now there were many orbs afloat within this infinite ocean of darkness. Huge flaming ones; small cold ones; Even some with the weight of many large ones, yet so tiny, one could barely see them. But this was a very special orb, for it had something few of the other orbs had. It had life.
For countless years it was a happy ball, this blue-green orb. All the various forms of life that thrived danced to the same music. The tree people swayed to it in the gentle breezes. The fish people swam to it in the warm waters. The bird people glided to it in the cool air.
And all the different peoples danced in this ballet of life. The Sun, like some great orchestra leader, kept the beat going. For it was the awesome power of the Sun that sustained the music through the beat of it’s ever-present warmth and light.
But then there arose a different group of people. They called themselves the “Smart People” and after awhile decided that they were too good to dance to the music of the Sun. They felt that since they were more cunning than their fellow peoples, that they, and not the sun, should choose not only the beat of the music, but the tune as well.
And so they started playing their own tunes, for their own benefit with total disregard to the other peoples that lived on the orb.
The Sun continued to play on, and the other peoples maintained their place in this great ballet of life, and left their discordant brethren to themselves. They felt that since these other people did not interfere with their dance, why worry? The Sun will provide.
Soon it became all to obvious that these people did not share this same view, and before too long, these “Smart” people started forcing the other people to dance to their new music. Those that refused had the precious gift of life stolen from them by the others. Others grew frightened and decided to dance to the music of these strange people.
Pretty soon, it came to pass that these peoples’ music grew so loud and discordant, that those on the orb that tried to continue the dance of the Sun, could no longer hear the original music, and so they perished from the orb forever.
Now even the people who played the new music could not decide upon a common tune, so they began to argue amongst themselves, and danced to many different tunes, all of which claimed to be the “one and only” tune to dance to. Finally they divided up into different groups and decided to fight one another to decide once and for all which tune to dance to.
For countless years they fought one another, and many lost their lives, until a person from one of the groups looked toward the bright spot through the clouds of smoke that hid the Sun. You see, this person was considered to be one of the smarter of these people, and was looked upon by his fellows as a great thinker.
This person realized that if one could copy the life-giving power of the Sun and concentrate this power in a small area, they alone could call the tune. So they made a terrible weapon that perverted this great power. Instead of nurturing life, the music was now made to destroy life. And they used it on their brothers and sisters.
They said “We alone have the only true tune, and all must dance to it!.” But soon yet another small group of these people arose and loudly proclaimed: “We too control the music of the Sun, and our tune is better!.” So the first group made a bigger Sun-weapon, and the others countered with an even bigger one.
This went on and on until both groups possessed the power to destroy the little orb many times over. But both sides were afraid to use these powerful weapons on each other for fear of destroying themselves at the same time.
The great thinker from the first group of these discordant people stepped forward and proudly announced: “We have now made a Sun-weapon that will destroy only your people and nothing else, so that we can dance to our music in your house!.” Of course it was only a matter of time before the other group made a weapon similar to the first group.
So back and forth it went; move and counter-move as the balance of terror tried to equal out.
Now all this time both groups had created machines to take care of their weapons, not trusting even themselves to this delicate task.
It came to pass that one day the Sun rose brighter than it had in many years. Upon seeing the Sun in it’s full splendor, a person entrusted to over see these mighty machines heard the music of the Sun for the first time. Just by hearing the strange and wonderful music filled him with awe and wonder: then joy and happiness: and finally he was driven by an unquenchable urge to dance to this true music of the Sun.
But being momentarily blinded by the life of the Sun, he failed to watch where he danced. And by bumping into the death-machine, he unknowingly unleashed his people’s entire arsenal of Sun-weapons. Now the other people upon seeing their impending doom, set into motion a similar fate for their foes, so that no one would be left to live in their homes.
All over the little orb these new Sun-weapons systematically extinguished the life fires of both remaining groups. But all the other people had been left unaffected, since both groups looked upon all the other people as “property,” and so had built their weapons to eliminate only The Smart People, and it was most efficient.
All the remaining people, hearing no other tune but the music of the Sun, finally were able to resume the Dance of Life, and the blue-green orb once again sparkled in the Sun’s eye. The beat goes on
“Interesting” blog here, wouldnt have known about it had there not been the anonymous posts on lolli. Honestly I only know a couple of you oldschool heads, eric justin of course from hypervinyl who was always a cool person to me. Ive always enjoyed his taste in music as well. I know some guys from technoir and I have nothing but respect for what they do, and if it was up to me, Rudiman would be playing at every “rave” event in the city. Those are all inspiring people Ive met and they continue to inspire me.
But seeing your comments and being someone who is friends with the humanaut folks, and even plays at their events and such, I really dont understand where your frustration is actually coming from. I mean, I get that you’ve been around longer, Ive only been in the scene a meager 10 years and fell in love with the music and started collecting tunes a couple years later. Does that mean I don’t know what I am doing? How long does it take to get this “pedigree” or who do you need to know to get it?
Sure guys like Aaron and even myself started out liking progressive house, its more of a sign of age than anything. Many people who got into this music in the late 90’s got hit with progressive first, it was popular at the time for sure, and in my opinion there was also some good progressive out at the time. I still enjoy some of my old records and I am not ashamed to say that. Anyhow, starting with what you know and learning what else is out there sounds pretty logical no? That’s what many of us “new” people have done. Ive been collecting tracks for 8yrs now and for the past 6yrs I have “focused” on a wide variety in anything that is good to me in Deep House, Techno, Tech house and Dub Techno.
Techno is more popular now adays but accounting that as the only reason more people are playing it is a rather rash conclusion to make. Do you ever think that maybe it’s the fact that some of us “new” people aren’t so “new” anymore and we actually know a lot about music and what artists are out there? Or that many people have actually turned to techno/house because it embodies the emotion we’ve always been looking for more so than any other form we’ve come across. (if that is the “sun” analogy or whatever in that last post) To make fun of an 8yr old because he wore diapers when he was a baby is about as pathetic as it can get. On top of that you’ve just associated your childish banter with everyone else you work with. Although, personally I am not the type of person to actually attach your point of view with the people that I know whom you associate with, I believe others still will.
Anyhow, I still have not met most of any of you, Ive never been to any of your events in the past 5-10yrs that I know of because I never knew they existed. Obviously you only go on the message boards to see what others are doing and not to actually tell anyone about what it is youre doing. The Humanaut DJs have been around in one form or another for as long as I have been around. They have been doing events and promoting music from the first day I met them, so when you attack them I also feel attacked. From the beginning I have gotten along with these guys. Probably because they were willing to get to know me and learn from what I do as well as allow me to learn from them. Maybe something someone like yourself should consider doing. If you are so knowledgeable then use that knowledge to work with others and make the pgh scene OVERALL a better place because of it. God knows I have my point of view on how things could/should be but they aren’t that way for me either. We are all going to keep doing what we do and no one plans on stopping. Only through education and example can we hope that others will catch on and join the cause we create. As a first impression, what you’ve shown me is negative vibes and a pissy attitude. Why would I want to get involved with that?
And if you are the elders and had this “knowledge” that you were supposed to keep “alive” then you failed fucking big time. You have no one to blame that your existence is being overlooked by those in larger pgh edm community than yourself.
It takes some effort to try to work with the group as a whole and set aside the differences of genres to get a chance to represent the music you love to the people who attend all events. Frankly, when it comes to techno, people like the humanauts are putting in a lot more effort than you are in representing it in this city, whether you like their taste in techno or not.
You’d rather have your own little garden where its nice and easy to stay secluded with your fear of rejection to sleep next to. You call that representing!? I call it hiding. Fucking stand up and represent what you love and promote it to the masses. Like I said, the only way I know you have a night (one that I would normally be fucking all about attending) is because you pissed on what another person is doing. Pretty weak. If your tree falls will it make a sound? I wouldn’t know.
I’ll continue to support the people who are happy about what they do and happy to share it with others.
And who the fuck are YOU anyway? I’ve never heard your name before. But by the looks of your pic, I’m sure you have overgrown pubes and nasty ball sweat smell.
i have to at least give you some credit for not just randomly flaming like your compatriots seem so interested in. we like dialog here! you bring up some very good points. and i have some answers that are not going to make you very happy. so bear with me here, and i’ll try to be as non-inflammatory as i can.
your major mistake is assuming that what we do and what you do has anything to do with each other. “raves”, “progressive house”, “the pgh scene”, “the pgh edm community”, etc. are all completely irrelevent to me. none of these are things that i participate in, nor are they ideas or concepts that i am interested in participating in. if you think what Humanaut does has anything to do with me, you are 100% incorrect.
not to get overly historical on you, but these concepts are all part of the result of the UK and Europe’s repackaging of the house and techno music of the US. this has nothing to do with what i am interested in. the music i am interested in is primarily american, and primarily descended as part of a lineage of the blues, r&b, jazz, soul, funk, disco, hiphop, etc. this music has existed within it’s own separate dance music culture since the early 70’s at the very least.
granted, pittsburgh never had a huge dance music culture like other cities such as Chicago, Detroit, New York, and others. but it has been there, and it is still there. this is what i am a part of.
at one point, i did have a much more close relationship with the “rave” scene, though i was always an outsider there as well. my connections to dance music came through my love of hiphop, reggae, jazz, and all those other musics. once i discovered that i could have dancing and soul with no rave in my music, i realised i found my place. i was quite glad to have nothing at all to do with the kinds of “genres” and “scenes” that you seem to be all about.
i cannot speak for everyone, but there is a reason that i have never looked at lolli.org, that i don’t promote there, that i never go out to events like those thrown by Humanaut (unless they feel like booking a friend like Derek Plaslaiko or an artist i actually enjoy like Dan Bell, who of course fell into their lap). the reason for this is that i don’t care about that music, or those people. if you think i have a “negative vibe”, then this also includes you. why would i want to promote to people whom i don’t want to come to my event?
i was quite happy living in my own “secluded garden”, which of course consists of the hiphop/soul crowd and venues, all the vinyl record stores in the city (including the one i have worked at for almost 6 years), and many other places. in fact, i think you might be right, i *am* secluded: secluded from morons i don’t want to be around. despite my dislike of the music supported by Humanaut (i have to say, i generally do get along with Adam on a personal level), what they do and what i do are so far apart that i never even think about them, much less have the need to start talking shit. it’s only when the shit i do is being infringed upon that i take great offense.
you also seem to be under the impression that i want mass popularity. i’m not sure what gives you that idea, but you seem to have it nonetheless. i am not interested in mainstream popularity, but i am interested in making sure the shit i represent is represented properly. and that is where my issue with “Hijack” is. this night claims to represent a culture and music that the people doing it have nothing to do with. Ed used to have much to do with it, but he has found other pursuits in recent years and i wish him great luck with that. in the meantime, i am not interested in watering down anything by working with people who are not interested in the same goals. i will not team up with any fool who plays a four on the floor beat just so i can get some clubber douchebags to go to my night. i just don’t give a fuck about that.
i’m glad you think that Humanaut is putting forth “more effort” than i am. in fact, i think that is pretty hilarious. but the fact is that i am not going to hold your hand and take you through my credentials and the things i do because i don’t care to. if you want to find out, it’s all out there. you just have to do a little work yourself. you seem to think that your not knowing about my shit is a failure on my part; i think it is a failure on your part.
in the meantime, i’ll just keep on not representing what i love by writing about it for a large international audience on both my blog and other sites, as well as continuing to deejay and promote and very soon release vinyl records. and i would be happy if all of you guys would just leave me alone while i do that and try not to front on me. thanks.
Hey Tom,
I get the impression that it’s mostly the name ‘Hijack’ pisses you off. From what little I know of you, I can understand why you find it annoying. It seems, from my outlook, that these Hijack people are unaware of their unfortunate choice of name.
It also seems to me that when you use words like ‘pedigree’ and criticise people for once liking music that you don’t like, it can be construed (or misconstrued) as being elitist. These Hijack guys don’t represent the same shit that you do. If their tastes are as fickle as you suggest, they’ll just move onto the next thing when it comes around. On the other hand, if they turn out to be more than just fair-weather purveyors of the music you like, then that can only be a good thing for everyone who likes good House, Techno, Electro or whatever.
I wish you ongoing success with the Beat Aesthetic.
The only reason I went in the direction of bad promoting was because Kelly came on lolli and was agreeing with you and crying that no one comes to her night. So I assumed your anger was about competing for attendance or something. But apparently she was just riding your coattail.
If this really is only about the use of terms which you feel are misused, then Id say you highly overreacted. Plus, have you heard what the big players from Detroit and Berlin are playing today? I believe the flier also used the term modern day.
I cant say I know why they named the night Hijack but I know someone like Aaron wouldn’t be applying some cryptic message to it to try to get under anyone’s skin.
And if anyone can understand your stance on separating yourself from certain aspects of “the scene” in pgh, it would be me. I have my own idea for what a quality vibe is built on as well. I love being part of small common thinking get togethers, but Id also like to be part of the whole spectrum of music and reach out to all people with the music I love as well as having it as my own little thing.
So, I wish you good luck with what it is you are doing. But, what you might want to try thinking about is that; maybe some of these people doing their thing aren’t considering you as much as you say you aren’t considering them.
to be honest, it’s not just the name. it’s the fact that these guys KNOW better. they know who is doing what. they’ve known about it for 10+ years. they are purposely trying to front, it’s no novice accident.
so do words no longer mean anything? can anything be called any word you choose? and it’s not about cryptic messages, it’s fucking hilarious that they would call the night that. i’m sure they didn’t do THAT on purpose, i don’t think they’re smart enough.
do you really think i don’t know what deejays from berlin and detroit are playing? are you on crack? seriously man, this is what i do. all the time.
anyway, if they were just leaving me and the people i mentioned alone, that would be one thing. that’s fine, that was the status quo. but that’s not what this is about, this is some pirate type shit. not gonna happen.
Well I dont even know what more to say at this point but, I still don’t get it man. Pirate? You even said yourself what you do is different than what they are doing. Maybe there are more details you are leaving out? I dont know.
I guess since I am here now, I’ll check out some of your mixes and see what it is you are up to that is going to be tampered with by some people starting a new weekly.
>>> anyway, if they were just leaving me and the people i mentioned alone, that would be one thing
you are even less intelligent than i originally thought. good luck with your detroit circlejerk and continuing to look like a child.
thanks, i will be perfectly fine if you just stay the fuck away from me. thanks again, fuck off!
nothing is going to be “tampered with”. it’s a matter of not presenting what you say you are.
let’s try to put it in terms you might understand. almost all the music i play is off of independent labels. so when starting a night, should i say something like “all the hottest new indie tunes all night long, representing the newest indie music”? and basically every record has drums and bass on it and some come from the UK, so should i say “introducing people to drum and bass music and culture from the UK”? i mean, does indie rock OWN the word indie? does drum and bass OWN drums and bass? why shouldn’t i do that?
the reason is because it isn’t what’s happening, and that shit isn’t what i represent. simple fucking as that. don’t hurt yourself.
Well, a white guy represensting black music could just as easily be regarded as being a pirate.
thats just about the most retarded thing any of you morons have said. Is this a joke?
Just go do your thing, cause none of this dialoge will get you to see the point. I feel like iM taking crazy pills!
man was i surprised to see all of this here this morning ! at least your ism regulars (and maybe one other ?) understand what’s up or at least want to talk intelligently about it.
in defense of laura sage, she has no part in this. i’m not even sure why she’s listed as a resident. she’s definitely not claiming to represent detroit or berlin. i mean, she works for calibre’s label and lives in belfast – why not list that : )
for me it was never about humanaut. they’ve been doing their thing for a long time and that’s fine. it never crosses my mind. it’s the language ryan walsh used in describing the event. this isn’t the first time i’ve hashed this out with someone in pittsburgh. i’ve actually been asked to bring different music than was listed on flyers before. the large percentage of people aren’t even going to notice. but for someone who *actually* enjoys and collects music like that ? of course they’re going to get upset. the fact is, the same people who go to their progressive events will go to this event. it’s a social thing … which is fine if that’s why you go out. it’s not like that’s something new.
“nobody likez techno anywayz”
-kelly carter
riding coattails since 1993
I dont even really know Ryan Walsh to tell the truth.
But the Humanauts are old friends of mine and I know Aaron can play music from those places even if it ended up just being the bigger labels like Mobilee or Spectral Sounds.
It doesnt have to be the smallest label to make it more from those cities.
You might think I dont get what youre saying but I do and Im just saying your not exactly as right as you think you are.
I’ve seen people instantly jump from one thing to another before and I’ll admit that can be annoying. Aaron is NOT one of those people though. And I’m going to stand up for my friends, since I know about what they do, and I’d hope they’d do the same for me.
You won’t have to worry about that if you continue to post things you don’t know about from your bedroom.
Leave it to successful, motivated people to do successful events in that city, because you and the close-minded cumwads you blog out with sure as fuck can’t. Peace out, you aspergers-ridden child.
Just stop. Going out and having fun with friends really sucks. It’s something they can’t comprehend, and would rather argue inane fucking minutia about shit no one cares about then have a good time.
If what they’re doing isn’t what you represent, then that’s fine. No one is asking you to support it. However, shit-talking on the internet because you think you own “Detroit Techno” and “Berlin Techno” is not only patently ridiculous, it’s totally counter to everything that this music is about.
It’s people with mindsets such as yours are the ones that are standing in the way of reviving the electronic music scene in this city, by actively discouraging new people from becoming involved. Why do you have any more right to play techno records than anyone else? Just because you’ve been listening and playing it longer? That’s bullshit and you know it. If you were really interested in promoting this music, you’d be encouraging people to discover this music, not trying to shut them down. Just because someone has become interested in techno recently doesn’t exclude them from playing the music, and to be honest, I think it’s exciting that there has been a resurgence in the style, whether it’s the same as what I came up with or not. For those of us who are aware of the history, it’s our responsibility to educate the new kids what this music is about and where it came from, not to talk shit on them on the internet.
I’m reminded of a quote I read from Jeff Mills years ago: “Techno is music that sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before.” It’s a shame that so many people have lost sight of that mindset, and cling so steadfastly to old sounds. Perhaps you should pull your heads out of your asses and give these new jacks a shot; you might be surprised with what you hear.
Maybe you should reconsider your positions in this scene, and think about how you’re making yourselves and this music look, and then maybe someday we can all dance on the same floor.
No thanks, I’d rather blog from my dandruff-encrusted keyboard in sweatpants how DJ So-and-So is a prog-converted faggot and doesnt know anything about anything, because I’m a fucking child.
“child”? you keep using that word yet constantly resort to playground insults “asshurt”,”faggot”,”dandruff”, etc.. a bit hypocritical isn’t it? at least JayCuban is using his brain before he comments, try it sometime
and it’s also highly ironic that you mock Detroit considering the night in question is supposed to be representing “Detroit and Berlin”
at least engage your brain before posting
Cool, thanks for the insight BLOG POSTER GMOS.
you realise of course that gmos is not only a writer here but an excellent deejay who also does his shit in his spot in ireland. so why don’t you step the fuck off, bitch.
i’ve tried to be cool with you man, but really you can just go ahead and fuck off as well. my job is to educate, which i am doing on a fucking worldwide basis. who else is doing that for techno, house, and disco music here? nobody. if people in pittsburgh are too up their own ass to care about it, what am i supposed to do about that? i guess they can just go ahead and keep being uneducated and doing their name game bullshit, but i hold my shit to a higher standard than that.
i don’t own anything, especially not Detroit, but i do my shit the right way. you can quote jeff mills all day long, i fucking personally know many of these people. i know what the fuck is up, and those doods respect what i do and i respect what they do. end of story.
This is hilarious. I didn’t know it was a crime to dislike trendy fuckers. It obviously is.
i’m pretty disgusted by references to “asperger’s ridden chilren/faggots/cumwads/double fisting/nasty ballsweat” . grow up. that sort of shit has no place here. post something halfway intelligent and coherent or shut the fuck up.
Being a founder of Humanaut, I was initially infuritated by Tom’s slander, especially because at one point I thought him to be at least a friendly acquaintance and I respect his passion and knowledge for music (which has, unlike his blurb on us, typically been based around fact for the past 7 or 8 years I have known him). But really… its his right to hate on whatever, however misinformed he may be about what we do and why we do it.
Its just as irrelevant to us as a group what he thinks – we do what we do because we like it and thats that… so please, thanks for defending us but cut the BS intolerant flames whoever you are – that is Tom’s way not ours.
And I’m sorry you feel this way Tom; it is a shame to think that someone so prolific in their efforts to
educate people on music is equally as hateful in their demeanor and delivery, especially towards others in your local community, who want nothing more than to share the music they love and have fun.
yeah well i’m a [HOBBY] in [A COUNTRY] and i’m GREAT too, step off homeskillet, haha
I don’t know how you’ve tried to be cool with me, since I’ve never met you, but hey, whatever.
I’m not sure how you’re educating people on house, techno and disco here, since I’d never even heard of you or anything you do before this shit-talking started, but if you’re happy with what you do, then fine. It’s awfully childish to belittle others’ efforts, though. Who’s to say what’s the right way or wrong way to do anything? Personally, I don’t really consider myself to be much of a part of the Pittsburgh “EDM scene” or anything else, as I’m not really a big fan of a lot of the music that others promote around here either, however I’ve done my best to find common ground with them both on a personal and professional level, and I’ve enjoyed a few of their events here and there. I can’t say that I’ve even known about anything you’ve done.
My point is that if you’re going to educate, slinging shit at other DJs and promoters on the internet isn’t the way to do it. The way to do it is to reach out to those who may not know about what you do and show them what you know. You’re doing a pretty good job of turning potential fans away at this point.
funny, i would say the same thing about the original post. hope this helps.
also it seems like you’re pretty angry – go outside and cool off for a bit then try posting again.
apparently you’re also deaf, dumb, or dense as well. i introduced myself to you near the end of the night when you played at ed and jason’s disco night, but apparently even that wasn’t enough to get you to pay attention. if you havent heard of me or what i do, that separates you from the nearly 100,000 visitors this blog has had, plus however many tens of thousands read Resident Advisor and other places i post and write. i’m really not trying to brag about it or anything, but you acting as if i’m not doing shit because YOU aren’t paying any attention is really fucking irritating.
being such a disco fan, i find it interesting that you never heard of any number of the nights i’ve done in this city over the past 5 years that played significant amounts of disco, boogie, italo as well as house, techno, electro, etc at venues like the Shadow Lounge, AVA, Havana, Remedy, the Quiet Storm, etc. and that’s not even counting the other nights run by other people that i’ve played disco at such as Alto, Kelly’s, and so many more i can’t remember. you don’t go to the record store i work at that stocks disco, house, techno, and soul. but somehow it’s my fault you don’t know who the fuck i am. right.
moving on, if you want to find common ground with people i have no common ground with, then good luck with that. i’m not turning potential fans away because people like you simply weren’t paying attention anyway. if you have fun going out and giving handjobs to your social clique, then hey you’re ahead of the game. me, i pay attention to everything everyone is doing, even if it’s not something i like (99% of the time, it isn’t).
it’s funny that you say slinging shit isn’t the way to go. all i did was post on my blog. i posted on this blog about a number of events over the last year and a half that i have thrown, yet you didn’t seem to pick up on them, eh? really, this is why pittsburgh’s nightlife is worthless. no one cares to go outside of their comfort zone, and i’m certainly not going to coddle them to try and get them to.
actually, you’re a TOOL in PITTSBURGH who doesn’t do SHIT. so suck a fat dick, buddy.
no actually you just described yourself to a T. excellent job! acceptance is the first step.
jitterbug can do whatever the fuck he pleases here. you and your cute friends spamming my shit is way more retarded than anything i said in my post. funny, is calling someone a yuppie (and really, he IS a yuppie) comparable to calling people “asperger’s ridden chilren/faggots/cumwads/double fisting/nasty ballsweat”? maybe to morons like you it is.
WHO THE FUCK IS TOM COX? AREN’T YOU LIKE 40 OR SOMETHING?
depends on your definition of 40. if by 40 you mean “not even 30”, then yes, i am 40.
I’m the one that’s 40
If you did introduce yourself to me, I’m sorry that I don’t remember. I’m not terribly good at remembering people I meet at gigs, especially people I’ve only met once.
The fact is, you can’t say that it’s my fault that I’m not going to these events. Where are they being advertised? This blog? I didn’t even know that this blog existed until two days ago. I’m not seeing ads in any publications that I read, except for maybe some events at Shadow Lounge, which is a venue I will rarely go to, as I just really don’t care for that place.
If you’re not willing to make efforts to expand the reach of what you’re doing, then Pittsburgh’s nightlife will never be worth anything. The fact is, it’s pretty elitist to take the sort of stance where you’re not willing to make any concessions at all to attract people to your events. What reason does someone who doesn’t know about classic house/techno/disco have to come to an event like that? The vast majority of people who are potential converts to your sound have no idea who the major artists are, or what the music is really about. Taking that sort of hard-line “fuck you if you don’t know” attitude isn’t educating anyone, it’s preaching to the choir.
I’ve been into this music for a long time, probably just as long as you, and despite the fact that you and I probably have very similar tastes, I can’t say that I agree with the way you’re presenting the music that I love.
If you’re not a part of the Pittsburgh scene, and you’re content with your efforts to increase awareness, that’s great. If there’s no overlap between their night and yours, and you don’t care to promote to that crowd, then let them have your fun. Respect begets respect.
If you’re not a part of the Pittsburgh scene, and you’re content with your efforts to increase awareness, that’s great. If there’s no overlap between their night and yours, and you don’t care to promote to that crowd, then let them have their fun. Respect begets respect.
Edit for typo. Sorry.
when their fun is a sham, i’m not going to let that happen. i’m never the kind of person to sit back and let that shit go down, sorry.
i think it’s pretty ripe that you’re trying to tell me that i don’t reach out to people interested in the same things when I DID EXACTLY THAT TO YOU. and yet you don’t even remember. this kind of dismissive fucking attitude as if my shit doesn’t exist is exactly why i dont give a fuck about trendy fucks who just want to hop on a bandwagon because “detroit” is cool again this year. FUCKING PAY ATTENTION.
those gigs have been advertised on flyers at various night clubs, on the roboto board, on this blog, on myspace, facebook, etc etc etc. i even flyered for a couple things at brillobox despite not going there often because i hate their crowd.
on the other hand, if you like the brillo crowd and dislike the shadow, that shows you right there exactly how incompatible we are. shadow is probably the only place in this city that i respect 100% in how their business is operated and their commitment to music. they do it exactly right, and they have a good variety of things that go down there.
anyway, if you go back and look at my flyers (many of which are still on this blog), you can see that we don’t even necessarily put genres on the flyer. we advertised most of our nights as “dance music” simply BECAUSE no one knows about the kinds of things we do. there’s no hard line attitude, we put the shit out and people don’t care until trendy dickhead X says that it’s cool to like something now. fuck that, and fuck those people.
and if you don’t like the way my shit is presented, good for you. a very large number of other people who aren’t you DO like it. you lose.
i’m 37 !
and irrelevant !
i get so confused – i may not even be here right now.
“who the fuck is tom cox” is so november 1998.
given your severe attitude problem, it seems like you’re real jealous of the fun we have. sucks for you mate.
i dunno man, you just asked me to suck your dick. you tell me bro
whoaaaaa seems like you got something to prove.
truth is, i’ve played more events in more venues in more states and countries than you have, or will ever have.
try not being a fucking dick and you might make friends in other cities and get booked. just a tip.
or, continue being a fucktard. your choice! =)
RAWWWR I DONT KNOW SHIT BECAUSE I DONT SHOP AT THE RECORD STORE WHERE YOU WORK AAAWWRRGG.
Get a fucking life, pal.
no, actually it’s still current 11 years later.
Wow. I need a beer. This killed most of my afternoon.
Thanks guys!
Tom – I’m seriously digging some of what you guys have on the site – well thought out and pretty articulate. I think through some of these posts I’ve learned more about your views (and background) on music than I have from our conversations. Cheers.
Hey Tom,
I had lots of fun tonight with friends, good music, and solid DJing. How hard are you going to try and stop this ‘sham’ of fun-having next week? Maybe you could blog about it to a bunch of nobodies.
Let me know and thanks in advance.
-lanny m.
Aside from the asinine banter going on here, I’d like to let the public know that Eric Justin is a fucking sick-ass house DJ. Seriously. Props to you Eric for still being awesome after all the years. Would love for you to not be associated with these wanks.
-lanny m.
Who is Lanny talking to? Is anyone listening?
Seems like he cares an awful lof about a bunch of “nobodies”
You know, I’d like to go to one of Toms parties, but I’d always be worried that he’d spot me immediately and kick me out for trying to front what he was representing. He’d have like this authenticity radar…you, in the corner, you’re outta here buddy. Be like partying in a Gulag hahaha
You both seem to be. Point proven. Thanks for reading, and I hope you never meet Tom in person.
i’ve got a present for you, Lanny. its a circular baked good, which can often be made with chocolate chips in it. yep, that’s right. a big old cookie. just for you. with your name on it.
the name “Hijack” came about on a whim. it was never meant to offend anyone or having any secret meaning.
as i said before, R. Walsh put “Detroit – Berlin – House” on the flyer. i wasn’t sure why, but i took it as a opportunity for me to play some Detroit records and some Berlin records in a set of mostly House music (plus some Broken beats, electro and Italo.)
it was fun. the end.
(until next month March 7th when we do it again.)
also…speaking of Detroit:
this Friday Feb. 13th excellent Detroit DJs JOHN ARNOLD (Transmat/Ubiquity records) and FRANKIE BANK$ will be playing records in the Shadow Lounge main room. i will also be playing some recs. 9pm to 2am. $10. the party is a benefit for the CORO FELLOWS Class of 2009. should be good fun.
Tom,
I don’t know why you let yourself get involved with these kind of arguments on internet message boards. Everybody you are arguing with is a clown that nobody outside of Pittburgh has ever heard of. This forum is the most international recognition they will ever get.
You have great taste in music and this is the best dance blog on the web. Just keep doing you and ignore the douche bags of the world. History is going to be on your side, it isn’t going to be with people like Ronan Fitzgerald. Stop fighting these clowns, just do your work and keep your head down.
2009 is going to be a big year. Let your moves do the talking.
Tom, I totally agree with what Disco Nihilist said. This is a great blog, pity about some of the silly comments made by the Pburgh people. And who the fuck is lanny miller anyway?!
Apparently he puts the figs into fig rolls…
just had a read through most of this which took a while , and from an outsider looking in this is how i see it : the “fun havers” are too ignorant to actually understand pipecocks post and why he put it up . they dont understand what its like to be really passionate about this music and how much it means to people like myself and cleary too othr who post here , so from there point of view i can see how the comments can come off as being offensive and most importantly undeserved , but thats cause they just dont get it
Tom, it’s not the guy who shouts loudest who gets the most respect from the people who count. As you should fucking know. Why not try acting a little more like the people you look up to?
You’re an idiot.
I post here because Tom Cox is an envious, asshurt whiner who doesn’t do shit in the city except sit in his pajamas and blog.
BLOG BLOG BLOG! BLOGGIN ON THE INTERNET TO PEOPLE I’VE NEVER MET IN REAL LIFE WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
huh? i can’t hear you….
yeah, i don’t do shit in Pittsburgh. good luck with that! i find it fascinating that you continue to come to this blog that you look down on so much just to talk shit on me. you might want to look into getting off my dick.
oh yeah, who is it that i look up to? this should be a fascinating list, since i can’t think of many. and of those, almost none are related to music.
Lanny anyone who types in caps should have their computer and internet priveleges permanently revoked and start chewing their rattle again.
PLUR by the way
Reminds me of a certain dublin club night…not to mention any names RUBBERBAND
whatever
oh my god thats some petty shit
if they play wack music you hate them if they start to play good stuff you hate them!
is there really enough heads in pittsburgh for ye all to be bitching like that? i fucking doubt.
i dont hate anyone who is on the same buzz as me its the fucking squares i hate.
ye sad sad mfs.
keep your petty teenage girls sqaubbles to yourselves!
well this was fun to read