From ones & twos to ones & zeros

Local luminaries discuss the advent of the digital DJ

by RAF KATIGBAK

There is something inherently ironic about techno DJs. The idea of artists delivering futuristic music via the outdated medium of vinyl always seemed, well, strange. But ask any DJ why they don't just play CDs and they'll tell you, there's something about the hands-on control and feel of vinyl that other media can't duplicate.

Enter Stanton and Rane, two companies battling to bridge the gap between analog control and digital convenience. Using two specially encoded records, an interface box and a user's laptop, their products (Final Scratch and Serato Scratch Live, respectively) are revolutionizing the way DJs like Paul Van Dyk, Richie Hawtin and DJ Craze drop, uh, wax. Here in Montreal, more people are discovering the technology and a new generation of DJs are extolling the virtues of virtual vinyl.

With a price tag that's nothing to scoff at (around $350 for the first-version Final Scratch and $800 for the feature-rich second version), Alex Kano, owner of Montreal's Moog Audio, has already sold over 200 Final Scratch units. "It's getting bigger and bigger," says Kano, who's outfitted clubs like Tokyo and Time with the rig. "It's less heavy for DJs who travel a lot, and also cheaper for those who don't want to buy vinyl every day. It's also perfect for mobile DJs who do weddings and events where they need to download a lot of specific requests."

Thomas Sontag, Thursday-night resident at the W Hotel's Wunderbar, has been using Final Scratch for the last year. "What always frustrated me about DJing," Sontag explains, "was that it never was a truly level playing field. It was all about what records you could find. It's not always easy to find good records. While the whole experience of shopping for records is aesthetically pleasing in some ways, if you brush aside the legality of downloading music, you can now sit at home, do your research, go find it, then play it out like vinyl."

At the heart of this digital DJ phenomenon is the MP3 file-sharing debate. The main problem, of course, being that artists aren't getting paid for their music. But as a well-respected producer/remixer and user of Final Scratch, Mateo Murphy believes that artists can also benefit from virtual vinyl. "It's really an advantage if you're an up and coming producer. Printing up your own records is very expensive. In the long run, people are pragmatic - for a while, vinyl was the easiest, but now it's less and less so."

DJ Mana, local DMC scratch champ and owner of Soul Mechanics DJ School, sees firsthand aspiring young DJs tempted by the convenience and economics of digital. "I have so many students who ask what is more worth it for them. Because they're young and just starting off, they don't have the attachment to vinyl that I do. They think, what's better for me in terms of economics?"

As a devout Final Scratch user, Mana is also wary of its implications on the industry. "It's both sad and a good thing for me. But at the end of the day, my back feels so much better after a show."