Do you remember the first time that you saw Traktor? What were your initial thoughts?
I'd always been a bit nervous about taking the laptop back on the road with DJ sets. I was using Ableton 4 with a MIDI concept mixer about four years ago and there were always problems. The mixer was getting knocked in transit and the laptop always going nuts on me before I started the show. So I decided to go back to CDs. But, after a while, you find yourself spending more of your time burning CDs than actually listening to the music. I remember seeing Richie using it at Cocoon in Ibiza a few years ago, doing things that just weren't possible before and thinking, "How is he doing that? I have to make the switch."
When did you make the transfer over to it? What caused you to make that shift?
I made the transfer just over a year ago. I remember getting it for Christmas in 2007, and I was just using it at home for the first few months. I finally had the guts to use it on my US tour a few months after that and I haven't burned another CD since!
I think the main reason that I made the switch was that I wanted to spend more time being creative with my music, and a lot of my time was being wasted on burning CDs. Not only that, but it was hard to read ten tracks on one CD.
Traktor allowed me to DJ in the style I was used to before, but added great sound quality, built in EFX's and a way of utilizing four decks—allowing for further creative expression.
NIC FANCIULLI
Tell me why you like working with Traktor Scratch so much today. What feature do you like best?
I treat the laptop as a digital CD wallet basically. I only look at it to search for tracks, then I jump back to focusing on the crowd. Features like the effects, looping and hot cues are all custom assigned to a MIDI controller, so it's like having a piece of hardware customized to my needs and allows me to be more creative, whilst still allowing me to DJ using CDJs in the same way I've been doing for years.
Some say something essential is lost when you use DJ software. What's your take?
I can understand that comment, but I don't think its valid for 2009. You can use turntables or CDs or even just the laptop. I still use CDJs and a Pioneer DJM-800 in the same way I always have. The hardware provides the perfect interface for controlling whilst the software gives you additional depth and features. Together, it's the perfect marriage.
So, really, you haven't lost any of the essentials: It means you bring your whole music collection to the party and don't have to stress about it being lost in transit. You can take your set exactly where you'd like it to go and aren't limited in your track selection. It's also way easier and quicker to find tracks!
People want to hear good music and be entertained, and using your laptop to control your music doesn't mean you lose that. This is becoming the future of DJ culture and I can only see it getting stronger and stronger.
