BurnTheJukebox: The autopsy...

So last Saturday was the second BurnTheJukebox night. All in all I would have to say it was a fun evening, sadly marred by a couple of incidents.

Before I arrived I knew there was a private party booked at the venue beforehand but I had been told that they would be finished by 22:30 and then I could start my night. What I wasn't told was that the private party had their own DJ and their own DJ was Vinyl Nazi. My first taste of Vinyl Nazi was when I came to take over the decks at about 23:30 (in Portugal this counts as starting on time). I just use 2 CD decks and he had put out two regular decks out on top of this. I was having a bit of trouble with the mixer and I asked him to give me a hand putting it back to normal. His first response was:

"I don't help guys who use CDs"

I took this as a joke, despite the serious face with which he said it and after a bit of pestering he helped me. I then put a few tracks on, not feeling my most confident with a big crowd of strangers and Vinyl Nazi glaring at me but gradually I got into the swing of things and was just starting to enjoy myself when Vinyl Nazi's friend came up and asked if Vinyl Nazi could go back on the decks. My instinct wanted to say no but I'm not that kind of guy so I said he could have 20 minutes or so, thinking this would give me time to chat to my friends who were beginning to arrive, take a few requests and nip to the loo.

Unfortunately when I thought I had given Vinyl Nazi enough time and my friends were starting to complain about his pounding rhythms I went to try and reclaim the decks and I was rebuffed. He told me that he didn't do it this way, 10 minutes here, 10 minutes there and he wanted an hour. After speaking with the owner he threw a huge tantrum (artistic temperament is a terrible thing) and then started bitching at me in a very loud voice and complaining because I don't speak Portuguese very well. (Something along the lines of, "I should be able to speak my language in my land", a line which S nearly planted him for).

In the end I got back on the decks with my concentration quite shot, I managed to get back some enjoyment and got the people dancing. It was a nice turnout in the end and it was a good evening.

I only relate this story because it kind of proves my point about what I want BurnTheJukebox to be. It's not about ego, it's not about showing everyone how cool you are or how good you are. Vinyl Nazi thought he was great behind the decks and was telling everyone that I didn't know what I was doing and he was right! But what he didn't realise was that everyone was having fun and dancing and it was because of the music.

I want BurnTheJukebox to be the kind of place where everyone feels welcome, where people can come up and speak to me and request tracks (which they did in droves), delve into my CDs and see what I've brought. I want a break from those posey, too-cool-for-school nights and to make something inclusive.

I hope to put something on again soon. Thanks to everyone who came on Saturday.

Now back to the music:

The Strokes - Last Night