FFWD Weekly
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Music by Rob Faust Mix Master Mike Tuesday, May 16 MacEwan Hall Ballroom After years of postulation upon the question of whether or not the turntable is an instrument, a dedicated community of rock critics held a convention to decide this most important musical conundrum. With their "Gas, grass or ass..." T-shirts in tow, they held a super secret meeting at David Crosby’s sperm clinic, where much Geritol was consumed, many tales of the good ol’ days were exchanged, and each had a story about the "real" musicians: "How about the time that drummer died on stage? Not only did he do a faceplant into his drum kit, but he actually died on beat – wow, that was a musician!" So, under sunny skies and after much deliberation, it was decided that these new-fangled turntablists are simply no match for them good ol’ days of drugs ’n’ hair. Maybe someone should have informed Mix Master Mike. "It’s a new branch on the tree, you know, I think it’s something that kinda reflects what’s goin’ on...," says the man whose hands are insured by Lloyd’s of London. "It’s a way to combine all these influences into something new." In these heady post-postmodern days it seems a natural musical extension. If our media and all images are cut quicker and flashier, it’s only natural that our attention span has become digitally modified – no longer are we able to sit idly listening to a 15-minute drum solo going on ad nauseam. The musical public needs quicker, faster and fresher. "The way we hear music is different now. Turntablism is sort of a way to cut to the chase, get past the predictability," Mike says. Getting past that predictability is something that the Beastie Boys hired him for on their last album and tour. He’d open the live shows with a healthy dose of "Tom Sawyer," driving the crowd crazy, before breaking into a different beat and mixing things up "I mean, there’s more to it than just anthems," he says. That’s part of the genius of the turntablist/DJ – a band is stuck with a certain number of instruments, a certain way to present their sound, and the audience comes to expect a few things like a weird loving tribute to a musical influence, or maybe even a drunken stumble into the audience. With DJs, and in the case of turntablists, while these expectations exist, you get to hang out the musical laundry more. What band has ever incorporated Muddy Waters, Dick Hyman and a track from Planet of the Apes into a regular set? Not in an effort to be deliberately obscure, but rather to create a sound out of the three. "I look for a beat," Mike says. "Yeah, there are some odd combinations, but... it gives people a chance to see that this is coming from all over the place. You don’t have to just play this type of sound or sound like this, you’re free to find something for yourself." And though the consensus amongst the aging community of rock critics is that the DJ thing is a fad, Mix Master Mike believes otherwise. "I think you’re just startin’ to see the tip of it now," he says. "The popularity will ebb and flow, but I did a project with Rage (Against the Machine) and I’m workin’ on something with Tommy Lee (of Mötley Crüe fame). People are startin’ to realize the potential of (turntables), that you can do something that fits into a band or a traditional format. I mean, I’ve known about it for years, so have the Beasties, but others are catching on. "People want to hear different stuff. I went from playing to 1,000 people to sometimes 50,000 people and the vibe didn’t change – people really got off on it. It’s about evolution, just another branch on the musical tree, just a new way to approach music."

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