everyone has their critics. fortunately mine are mostly concerned with my deejay'ing, altho it's worth addressing people's expectations. when out, i take with me my old faves on vinyl, my stuff, unreleaseds on CD such as mash ups of other people's tunes that i do at home and things people send me online.

As for the technical drum n' wobbles turntablism ability, I'm very much of the mind that there is only ONE Andy C and only ONE Hype, and i'm not about to go bite thier style anytime soon ... that's just not running. It's testament to Andy and Hype's uniqueness that so many people want to perform like them, but as with any copy, there's always gonna be a loss of that aura of originality. So when I actually accept a booking (which is rare) i make sure to simply select all my stuff along with oldies that i like, some on vinyl, some on CD, some mashed up, some not. I'm not particularly precious or competitive about the whole thing... that side of me is fed into the ideas for music projects that i come up with.

Guys like Tony, Hype and Andy found a way to put thier own mark on the music they love in a live situation. Tony's mark didn't even rely on pre-recorded material at all (unless you count sample re-triggering). I may never find my live mark in this music, and may be permanently bound to my studio as far as electronic music goes... which won't displease me, as i feel the true instrument in electronic music has always been the studio itself.

edit: that said, i seem to have always had an affinity for guitar, audio hardware and live dsp... having owned unstable hardware sequencers, synths, fx pedals and mixing desks since day, with many of my tunes done in several takes straight out the back of hardware units (Lean, Heaven's Sake, Wipe Your Tears, and numerous others) ... i think it'd be fun to do something like this live in the future... but for now, if you find yourself in the same room as me when i'm on, don't expect anything other than a bloke with his own tunes and a circulating selection of tunes he likes (anything from Dillinja to Joy Division).

1) multi-millionaire profligate bastards like Richard Branson whining about Alistair Darling's proposed 50p tax rate on the mega-rich. YOU CAN AFFORD IT. STOP F.UCKING MOANING

2) a DeeJay that thinks he's more musically relevant than the records he selects.

3) Cash Converters pricing a second hand MPC at only 50 quid below RRP

4) The British Grand Prix probably going to South Korea

5) Bonkers rental prices in Bethnal Green. IT'S THE GHETTO. IT'S NOT F.UCKING HOLLAND PARK.

Just spent a couple of weeks rolling around out here... at Sydney airport right now about to go home. (wish i could click my heels together three times instead of sitting in a pressurised jet-propelled tin can for 22 hours).
Gotta say there's just something about people's love for music out here. Something wonderfully un-influenced.
It's also strange - for a country that gets such great weather - that so many exceptional floppy haired emos and traders are spawned out here... very much an indoor activity really.
Musically speaking, Aus/NZ is on fire right now.
The Presets, Ladyhawk, Empire Of The Sun, good ole Pendutron ofcourse, Temper Trap, and countless others of a quality that just puts London to shame.

I wonder how many of those protesters yesterday had credit cards, student loans, storecards, x-boxes bought on H.P. agreements and mortgages they knew they probably couldn't really afford?

Been asking myself the following recently, and trying to work out who is more to blame in this scenario:

A crack dealer who ticks rocks he knows his addicts can't afford?
Or
A crack addict who gets rocks on tick he knows he can't afford?

I guess the upshot is, crack is gonna be available one way or another. If you're partial to a spot of crack of an evening, then no one is really going to able to stop you from getting it. BUT, it's up to the addict to manage his habit and prevent it from spiraling out of control. If you honestly want your dealer to be responsible for your addiction, I think you probably need to *just say no* instead of just saying *NOW*

Apple Macintosh G5 with CUBASE 4 (second hand from an enginerr at PWL)

£950

Motu Ultralite interface (second hand from ebay)

£246

Aria Pro 2 guitar (second hand cash convertors shepherds bush)

£150

Korg emx1 (second hand ebay)

£280

Roland mc303 (ebay)

£70

Juno 106

£-DONATED

Mackie Onyx 12 channel mixer

£-DONATED

TC Powercore fx card new from turnkey

£399

duel tube mic kit (self assembly) from ebay

£110

Beyer Dynamic dt990 headphones

£90

total:

£2295

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or i could've bought:

Sony Bravia 42-Inch HD Capable Plasma TV Screen in Silver

£2299.99