spinning drum blog

Ahhh, what a month, most of it has been spent studio/home searching. The creative spirit has succumb to life’s practicalities such as securing food, shelter and paying bills, and January has been creatively less productive than I had hoped. My to do list still looms large, and my fingers have been spending more time on the keyboard than the spinning platter. Apparently this is supposed to be a lucky year for me according to my horoscope, which has Jupiter the planet of good fortune dancing in my sign till next November. Well, though I do count my blessings each day, I feel a little unlucky when it comes to finding the right place and mental space in which to work.

To find a room of which to house myself, cats and accompaning gear is proving to be a serious feat, and as my final month at my old residence approaches, I am looking for a miracle. Nothing suitable has thus far arisen, even with my flexibility of location and realtively minimal requirements.

Just visualize, put it out there and the right spot will manifest say many of my more than adequately sheltered friends. It will all work out in the end, you must have faith say countless comfortable and home happy individuals to my house hunting stress. Makes me want to puke on pollyannas who have forgotten the last time they were on the house hunt. The rental world is not especialy kind and as far as I have seen cut no special deals for the karmic rich or abodeless wanderers with tight budgets and two cats in tow. This is a sure test of faith no doubt, and I can’t wait to be able to post an entry from my new studio.

Try as I might to channel energies into practice and creation, reality keeps bumping me back infront of the computer screen surfing housing posts, looking for an open door and a stable base. Spinningdrum has been immobilized by my house hunt, but slowly I am trying to convince myself to refocus, and if anything lighten my to do list by transcribing some interviews for the words section. Stay tuned for interviews in the works with idm producer and technoist Granny Arc and electro-world fusionist Adham Shaikh.

On the creative front I am inspired by a new scratch band a friend sent me a link to. Turntable based, Insideamind (http://www.insideamind.net/) produce groove-based jazz for the modern age. Fun, experimental and cutting edge, I look forward to their evolution and contribution to turntable culture.

Speaking of turntable culture, I was perusing some dj forums last week and came across a few posts bemoaning the lack of female turntablists. The general consensus was that while females are surely as capable as males in the dj arena, very few women are drawn to spending hours on end in their bedrooms scratching endlessly to get to the level of a qbert or jazzy jeff. I read this after a 3 hour scratch session, and though while I wondered if I was just a freak of nature, I concluded the juries not in on such a new musical instrument and sound. Several females posted they were sweating out the scratches getting ready to take the dmc by storm, and I’ll add too that because more than likely when a woman steps up to the tables, and eyes are a little more focused on seeing what she can do, I bet not one woman will be out of the gate until she reaches absolute mastery.

Makes me wonder though, when the next shejay hits the scratch circuit will vinyl still be king. The new technics SL DZ1200 is out and making the promotional rounds. Reviews are mixed (http://www.skratchworx.com/reviews/sldz1200.php), but once again it confirms the digitization of turntablism is moving forward. Amongst the Revolutionists (http://www.revolutionist.spinningdrum.com) T Wiz is on Serato Scratch and is constantly wowing us old school vinyl heads with all the neat features his laptop and serato box can do. I’m seeing more and more djs break out the lap top infront of their decks, and to be honest if I had $2000 to spring for a lap top and serato, I’d add it to my gear list.

For now I’ve got the pain and joy of thinking how to pack all my records for the pending move and sorting through the collection is the only fun part of packing I can think of. If the universe is listening, ” my records need a home.”

Anyone who knows me, knows I’m a hot beverage person. Not coffee mind you, for which i have never developed a taste, but for teas. I’m a serious mate drinker, and a green tea addict, and you know having said all that, sometimes I just drink hot water straight because it’s really just the heat and liquid I’m after. So the other day when I found my prized cordless 1.7 liter kettle cracked and leaking, you’d think I’d be a little upset, or saddened at least, something right. Well certainly it was a c’est dommage moment, but honestly the only thing I truly felt was that’s one less thing to pack.

It’s funny over the years as an evolving minimalist, I have slowly lost attachment to things. Now don’t get me wrong, I am deeply attached to my turntables, mixer and computer. These are tools I use everyday, little electronic viaducts to happiness, and understandably you must realize to some extent I make part of my living from them. However, anything outside these things has increasingly lost significance. I have few clothes (yes it’s me always in the same burgundy pants, or blue sweater vest, but hey all my clothes fit in one large size cooler), even fewer nick nacks (can’t handle clutter) and a half a case of books. I own almost no jewelry to speak of and a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and moisturizer are all the “beauty products” I’ve invested in. Outside of a few gardening supplies and a ten year old bike, that’s all I own.

Well being poor aids in my minimalist habits, but also over the years I have routinely given things away, to the point for anything I have gotten, I have tried to find two things to divest myself of in return.

So as I am half packed for my impending move (still don’t know where to yet) I am proud to say I’m looking at reasonably few Rubbermaids, and none of them over stuffed. Feeling good about that. The only thing that is going be a bitch to move are my 24 odd concrete blocks. Combined they are the base for my 8 foot long 2 foot wide plywood desktop.

I remember my friend Dina D laughing when she helped me move last year out to the sunshine coast. She said, “Ya, I know you said you didn’t have much stuff, but you never mentioned anything about the twenty odd concrete blocks girl!”

Well you know what I say, “A woman can’t be too rich, too thin or have two many concrete blocks, honey ”

Anyway, here’s “stuff,” its presence, its absence and the stability it can bring and take away.

Back after a little new year r&r, and ready to get back to work. More interviews and mixes to be arriving by the end of the month as I’m grindstoning it to meet deadlines, and I hope to make some headway before I must pack up my studio and relocate.

Where to? Not sure yet, but I hope to get my virtual reality in tip top shape before the upheaval of house hunting, packing, moving and resettling. I am heavily leaning towards moving into the city, yes, yours truly becoming a full-time urban dweller. Now that I have aquired a penchant for mixing with headphones, I feel my housing options as a gear laden bass thumping studio dweller are more open. Still can I withstand the distractions, costs and intense city energy? I feel a bit overwhelmed when I start to imagine all the details required with shifting from gumboot wearing, backyard chill’in, casual working and green living bumpkin to dialed in, fashion concious, serious income generating urbanite.

As for djaying, well, no doubt the opportunities increase, but the focus and freedom of my studio I suspect may decrease. So as always with choices, it is a trade off. I’m still debating, but in the meantime, I’m crossing off the list of things to do before I move, whether down the street or across the water. Look for more interviews and links the coming weeks.