The first DJ I remember was Johnny Rabbitt. He was on KXOK, a typical 1960's AM Top 40 station in St. Louis. Every week they put out some kind of a yellow sheet that showed the rankings of the records and a bullet to the side indicating the trend line of sales. It was a world of 45s.
The along came FM and suddenly that's where all the cool DJs were.
The real hippie station in St. Louis was KSHE 95 in the late 60s and early 70s. The DJs spoke in hushed, "like wow, far out man", tones and they played long songs, not limited by the AM demands for songs in the 2 minute mode. It was the only place you could hear the entire drum solo from In a Gadda da Vida if you didn't own the record. It came out in 1968 and was 17 minutes and 2 seconds long.
Then radio stations started being bought up and playlists were set and suddenly radio all sounded the same again. Tom Petty wrote about it in The Last DJ.
All of these DJs played music but regardless of the era the music was from a band, written and performed by that band, and produced and marketed by a music company.
Then along came the world of electronics.
Suddenly you could sample, mix, remix, mashup. Words that never even existed before suddenly described what some guy was doing in the privacy of his own home.
Welcome to the world of Andrew Owsley, otherwise know as Wick-It the Instigator, the guy with 20 million hits on SoundCloud.
Wick-It is 36. I met him while driving him to the airport to do a show in Iowa City last week. I thought, 'Ok, DJ, dance party, white wannabe rapper.' He casually mentioned his grandma 'was a Helm.' For the uninitiated that is Helm as in Levon Helm, the extraordinary drummer/singer from The Band. That is a musical root par excellence. My curiosity was piqued,. so this week we found some time for the education of Ken in regard to some of today's music scene. Boy, did I get an education.
He doesn't do dances, he does concerts. People buy tickets and sit and watch and listen. I know this must sound terribly old of me but I had to sit and digest that for a minute. He's on stage with a computer, a mixer and maybe some lights and stuff. He IS the band. No Jimi setting his guitar on fire. No Townsend smashing his amp. No Joe Walsh too screwed up to remember his lyrics.
It's Wick-It and his computer.
In concert.
So now my head is spinning, total cognitive dissonance, simultaneously rejecting and reaching for the new concept in front of me. Ok, keep talking Andrew, or Wick-It, or whatever I am actually supposed to call you while having coffee. I have to gain an understanding of this, I suddenly feel like too much of some world is not only passing me by but I'm not even aware of its existence.
It's vaguely reminiscent of the first time I heard the White Album. I said what is this? I don't understand these songs. Where in the world did this come from? Give me more.
Well you need to start by listening. He tells me he has this Johnny Cash Walk the Line remix. I'm listening to it as I type. Were it a record I would be reaching for it to stop the skips. Here it is for your listening pleasure. Be advised some of you are going to hate it. I didn't care for it at first listening. I like it more and more.
https://soundcloud.com/wick-it/johhny-cash-i-walk-the-line
A couple of points here. If you strip out the Johnny Cash part all of the other music was created by Wick-It sitting at home with a keyboard and a computer. He can't play Walk the Line to 20 somethings at a concert. But he says when he plays it his way the crowd loves it and he feels like he exposes the classic Cash to a whole new crowd. And of course for me it's in reverse, he exposes me to Wick-It World by using Cash as the hook.
Here's some Pink Floyd for you.
https://soundcloud.com/wick-it/pink-floyd-have-a-cigar-wick
This is his career and full time job. He has a booking agent and performs 100-120 shows per year across the country. He has original music for sale on ITunes. He has fans who follow him. He obviously is a musician, you can't do what he does without musical talent. He plays a guitar and I suspect plays it better than he lets on. He has a sound in his head and he puts it together electronically instead of using a band.
I'm still trying to make sense of this, it's just so new to me. I need to learn more.
So, if you're looking for me on April 30 you will likely find me in Murfreesboro, TN, at the Wick-It the Instigator concert. Far out man.
KS
The along came FM and suddenly that's where all the cool DJs were.
The real hippie station in St. Louis was KSHE 95 in the late 60s and early 70s. The DJs spoke in hushed, "like wow, far out man", tones and they played long songs, not limited by the AM demands for songs in the 2 minute mode. It was the only place you could hear the entire drum solo from In a Gadda da Vida if you didn't own the record. It came out in 1968 and was 17 minutes and 2 seconds long.
Then radio stations started being bought up and playlists were set and suddenly radio all sounded the same again. Tom Petty wrote about it in The Last DJ.
All of these DJs played music but regardless of the era the music was from a band, written and performed by that band, and produced and marketed by a music company.
Then along came the world of electronics.
Suddenly you could sample, mix, remix, mashup. Words that never even existed before suddenly described what some guy was doing in the privacy of his own home.
Welcome to the world of Andrew Owsley, otherwise know as Wick-It the Instigator, the guy with 20 million hits on SoundCloud.
Wick-It is 36. I met him while driving him to the airport to do a show in Iowa City last week. I thought, 'Ok, DJ, dance party, white wannabe rapper.' He casually mentioned his grandma 'was a Helm.' For the uninitiated that is Helm as in Levon Helm, the extraordinary drummer/singer from The Band. That is a musical root par excellence. My curiosity was piqued,. so this week we found some time for the education of Ken in regard to some of today's music scene. Boy, did I get an education.
He doesn't do dances, he does concerts. People buy tickets and sit and watch and listen. I know this must sound terribly old of me but I had to sit and digest that for a minute. He's on stage with a computer, a mixer and maybe some lights and stuff. He IS the band. No Jimi setting his guitar on fire. No Townsend smashing his amp. No Joe Walsh too screwed up to remember his lyrics.
It's Wick-It and his computer.
In concert.
So now my head is spinning, total cognitive dissonance, simultaneously rejecting and reaching for the new concept in front of me. Ok, keep talking Andrew, or Wick-It, or whatever I am actually supposed to call you while having coffee. I have to gain an understanding of this, I suddenly feel like too much of some world is not only passing me by but I'm not even aware of its existence.
It's vaguely reminiscent of the first time I heard the White Album. I said what is this? I don't understand these songs. Where in the world did this come from? Give me more.
Well you need to start by listening. He tells me he has this Johnny Cash Walk the Line remix. I'm listening to it as I type. Were it a record I would be reaching for it to stop the skips. Here it is for your listening pleasure. Be advised some of you are going to hate it. I didn't care for it at first listening. I like it more and more.
https://soundcloud.com/wick-it/johhny-cash-i-walk-the-line
A couple of points here. If you strip out the Johnny Cash part all of the other music was created by Wick-It sitting at home with a keyboard and a computer. He can't play Walk the Line to 20 somethings at a concert. But he says when he plays it his way the crowd loves it and he feels like he exposes the classic Cash to a whole new crowd. And of course for me it's in reverse, he exposes me to Wick-It World by using Cash as the hook.
Here's some Pink Floyd for you.
https://soundcloud.com/wick-it/pink-floyd-have-a-cigar-wick
This is his career and full time job. He has a booking agent and performs 100-120 shows per year across the country. He has original music for sale on ITunes. He has fans who follow him. He obviously is a musician, you can't do what he does without musical talent. He plays a guitar and I suspect plays it better than he lets on. He has a sound in his head and he puts it together electronically instead of using a band.
I'm still trying to make sense of this, it's just so new to me. I need to learn more.
So, if you're looking for me on April 30 you will likely find me in Murfreesboro, TN, at the Wick-It the Instigator concert. Far out man.
KS
Wick -It is definitely his own style. I love every moment when seeing him live. It really is something to behold. But even if it is just a man, a laptop, and a guitar, its a show that never disappoints and always leaves you with a smile.
ReplyDeleteWick-it introduced me to 'mash ups'. He is a seriously talented musician, no doubt. Good on you Ken for having an open mind and broadening your own, and your audiences, horizons. Rock on!
ReplyDeleteI discovered this blog through your article on Andrew Owsley(DJ Wick-It). He has been a staple of Nashville DJ culture for many years and has become a huge success abroad. It is refreshing and inspiring that you would open yourself up to such a new experience rather than shut yourself off from something unfamiliar.
ReplyDeleteThe times, they are a changin' - there will always be good and bad, but change is indifferent. Our perception of the change is what matters.