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DJ SPIDER
Charlotte, NC
EBM & Synthpop (Industrial and Electro too!)
http://www.myspace.com/thatdjspider
http://vampirefreaks.com/u/thatdjspider
On-Line Interview Conducted By: Carpe Nocturne
November 15, 2007
This month Carpe Nocturne interviews and features Charlotte, NC’s DJ Spider; a name known on the scene for quite some time. DJ Spider gives us some great, “Drama Free” answers to our questions! So this month… Read and enjoy as we speak with yet another highly talented and respected DJ keeping the old tunes fresh and the new ones comin’!
[Carpe Nocturne] What got you started as a DJ and when?
[DJ Spider] I started when I was a freshman in college – I went down with a friend so she could sign up to join the news team, and ended up taking a 3am-6am shift once a week. I’d always loved music, but I’d never had a chance to share it with other people in that medium. By the time I left college, I was hooked on that ability to hook people on a song. I continued to do radio when I left college, and that progressed to covering the occasional shift at the local Alternative night, and it kinda just went from there. I’ve spun a number of diverse genres, and just about anything is liable to show up in one of my sets, but my first love is for the darker side of the musical spectrum
[Carpe Nocturne] How did you choose your name?
[DJ Spider] When you’re over 6 feet tall, it kind of chooses you! When I was in high school, I was dubbed a number of things including “Daddy-Long-Legs”. When I got to college, it was shortened to Spider by a friend, and it sort of stuck. Now even my Mom calls me Spider J
[Carpe Nocturne] Where did you learn your craft?
[DJ Spider] On the job training, mostly. I started working at a club full-time, and I would go in early to try different mixes and listen to music on a big system. The club decided to do some changes at one point and they brought in another DJ for a bit, and he spent time with me as far as mixing went, which was a real eye-opener – up until then I had still been spinning as a radio DJ, playing song after song on instinct without thinking much about mixing them together or how to plan an entire night. Other than that, it’s been watching other DJs and just learning as I go.
[Carpe Nocturne] Do you have any preference in decks that you use and why?
[DJ Spider] Over the years I’ve spun on just about every kind of deck imaginable – Denons, Numarks, Geminis, American DJs, Pioneers, holy-crap-it-has-no-name!s. I currently work with a very basic set of Numarks, with the theory being that if I can spin on those, I can spin on anything.
If I had a dream rig, though, it would be a pair of Pioneer CDJ-1000MK3s and a Denon DN-X1500 mixer.
[Carpe Nocturne] What are your preferred music genres to spin and are you known for a specific style?
[DJ Spider] Drama Free!
**laughs**
I tend mostly toward EBM and synthpop, but if it makes me dance, I’ll spin it – Industrial, electro and retro all show up in my sets. I’m kind of known for throwing out at least one song that’s completely unexpected, whether it’s a mash-up or a soundtrack tune, or just something that makes you either laugh or throw things at me. I live playing all kinds of music! I’ll almost always show up to a gig with about 1800 songs, just in case. But honestly, it’s whatever the crowd is feeling – the best nights I’ve done are the ones that end up all over the map, and everyone leaves exhausted, smiling, and happy.
[Carpe Nocturne] Do you get to spin at many events and, if so, where have you traveled to in the past year?
[DJ Spider] I do a lot of traveling – I’ve been incredibly lucky to have met such great people who have liked me enough to offer me gigs. The big events this year have included Dragon*Con (Atlanta, GA), the Skin Two Pre-Pervy Rubber Ball (Atlanta, GA), the Eccentrik Festival (Raleigh, NC), and Purgatory (Charlotte, NC). They join events like Freaks United (DC) and Dracula’s Ball (PA). Plus a number of smaller regular events up and down the coast.
[Carpe Nocturne] What is the furthest you’ve traveled to spin your material?
[DJ Spider] Over the years, I’ve spun in the Caribbean and the US, from the East Coast as far west as Oklahoma. I have some offers to spin in the UK and Canada, and I’d love to spin in Germany, but there are still tons of places in the US I’d like to knock off my list as well.
[Carpe Nocturne] What are the biggest events you’ve spun at?
[DJ Spider] Oh, good golly – the biggest events run about 2,000 attendees, I think. Not everyone is on the dance floor at one time, obviously J But if you look at Dragon*Con on the whole, that numbers about 50,000…it’s tough to make a realistic call on that one.
[Carpe Nocturne] What are your favorite large events?
[DJ Spider] Freaks United, Eccentrik Festival and Dracula’s Ball number in the tops because they were a mix of people – not everyone knew me or what to expect. And the organizers were ridiculously nice and organized – that makes a big difference in so many ways.
[Carpe Nocturne] Do you have any favorite venues/clubs to spin at and why?
[DJ Spider] Wet Bar in Atlanta has the most amazing booth in the world – there’s a mini-fridge in there! The original booth at Eden in Charlotte was great, and even though we always seems to yank stuff out of our butts for it, the old booth at Amos’ Southend in Charlotte was fun. The layout of Shampoo in Philly is neat, and even though it’s not super perfect, Ringside in Durham has tons of charm. And Dragon*Con is such a phenomenal mix of energy and chaos!
[Carpe Nocturne] What do you feel the state of this scene is today and, in your eyes, has it changed much (and how) since you first started spinning?
[DJ Spider] Tough question; every local scene goes through a state of flux – we’re no more immune to the whims of club owners and city nightlife than any other scene. I’ve seen a lot of big city scenes crash and burn, while smaller scenes continue to grow and thrive. I think the key these days is to remain flexible and open to different sub-genres in a night – play a little bit of everything. I’ve also seen a lot more forgive-and-forget mentalities out there as well, which is great. A lot of new faces who don’t carry old grudges is doing wonders in some places.
[Carpe Nocturne] Have you ever appeared in any other publications or on the radio?
[DJ Spider] I’ve been highlighted in local papers a number of times, and I did radio for 7 or 8 years. I’ve also has small mentions in some fetish publications like Skin Two, and in several online magazines.
[Carpe Nocturne] Do you have any specific bands whose music you really enjoy spinning and why?
[DJ Spider] I know it sounds like a cop-out, but I love anything that makes me dance. I love watching an old favorite make a dance floor cheer, or seeing a new track flow seamlessly into the crowds subconscious.
[Carpe Nocturne] I imagine you’ve met many of the artist’s whose music you include in your set. Do you have any favorites and why?
[DJ Spider] Sure! A lot of it’s purely personal, but that makes it better. Anders Manga is a personal favorite because I’ve watched them grow from a single track on a burned CD they handed to me at a club to the stature they have now. Angels On Acid are another local favorite that are on their way up, and it’s awesome to see their reaction. Modulate from the UK is another star on the rise that I’ve watched. The Last Dance are like old friends now, and Voltaire is just one of those fabulous rakes who never fails to deliver. And I cannot forget the Gothsicles, Ego Likeness, and Hypofixx, who are really just some of the nicest people in the world and deserve absolutely every bit of success that comes their way.
[Carpe Nocturne] Are there any bands you’d like to meet?
[DJ Spider] I’ve been so lucky to meet so many great people! If you can promise me that I won’t make a gibbering idiot out of myself, sure — I think Frank Spinath from Edge of Dawn/Seabound could just read a grocery list to me and I’d be happy. The greats like Siouxsie, the Cure, and the Sisters of Mercy would be fabulous. And I’d still love to see Rotersand live.
[Carpe Nocturne] Are there any Venues/Clubs/Events you’d really like to spin at anywhere in the world?
[DJ Spider] I’d still like to do big events like Black Sun, Dark Star, Convergence, Whitby and Treffen, either as a DJ or a patron. As far as states, I’d like to play San Francisco, LA, Dallas, Tampa, New York, New Orleans, and New Haven.
[Carpe Nocturne] Any other DJ’s you admire and like to spin with?
[DJ Spider] I love spinning with Kangal (DC) because we just have a great synergy and play off each other like crazy. Jennocide (ATL), Triskyl (Augusta), Mouse (Durham) and Omac (ATL) are tons of fun as well. But the list is huge! But my list of faves also includes: SpinMonkey (ATL), , Weasel (ATL), Vlad (DC), Shade (DC), AddamBomb (CT), Techbat (NC), Shrapnel (GA), Kantrip (WA), DJ Eternal Darkness (WA), End: the DJ (AR), Rex (UK), Nitrogen (MN), Mighty Mike Saga (PA), Mothra (MA), Steve Archer (DC), and AnnabelEvil (everywhere). And I know I’m still missing some!
[Carpe Nocturne] What direction do you think our “scene” is going and do you feel it’s positive?
[DJ Spider] I think it’s changing, but that’s the nature of everything. I think in some ways it’s being absorbed into mass pop culture, which is a mixed blessing, and in other ways it’s standing totally solid as a unique sub-culture. As long as people continue to work with each other and support the people who work hard to keep it going, I think it’ll still have a home in the shadows.
[Carpe Nocturne] Are there any parts of the country/world where you would rather be based and for what reasons?
[DJ Spider] Surprisingly, no. Charlotte works really well in that it’s based just far enough away from a lot of hub-bub, but close enough to find the big time. I always have a bit of wanderlust, though, and don’t think I’ll be here for the rest of my life, but for now, it’s just fine!
[Carpe Nocturne] What is the scene like in your area and, if you travel, how does it compare with other parts of the country/world?
[DJ Spider] When I did a tour earlier this year, a lot of people came up to say that they had head that North Carolina was “wow, really progressive”, and that was sort of surprising because we tend to see it from an outside perspective. Charlotte right now has one very large bi monthly fetish event and the occasional small event, but we unfortunately lack a lot of medium sized venues that can support the scene. Yet only 3 hours north of us is a strong scene that supports several weekly nights plus numerous special events and concerts. I see a lot of great things in the tri-state area around CT and NJ, and San Francisco has a fabulous scene.
[Carpe Nocturne] Do you have any new music you are spinning and how is it being received?
[DJ Spider] I have a bunch of stuff that I’m listening to right now, but I don’t have anything on a dance floor right now. But if you haven’t taken a listen to the Start, Modulate, the Birthday Massacre, Edge of Dawn, Faderhead, Northborne, Zombie Girl or the new Information Society, add the to your list of “bands to friend on MySpace”.
Topics: November 2007 |
November 18th, 2007 at 11:00 am
Yay! Spider is one of my favorite people!
November 18th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
I used to listen to Spider at the Green House on St Thomas in the Virgin Islands. I’ve always liked her as a DJ and a friend. She’s good people and an excellenct DJ. Though it has been too long since I’ve had a chance to hear her. I did learn much about her professional life from this article that I had not known before. Rock on, Spider.
November 18th, 2007 at 11:06 pm
She’s been nothin’ but sweet as all get-out to the likes of us here (And that’s sayin’ something).
She is most deserving of the kudos and prop-page
November 21st, 2007 at 1:19 am
Play something good, dammit!
November 23rd, 2007 at 6:27 pm
I had always heard of DJ Spider, but when I was performing at Frolicon I finally met her. She is a wonderful person and a talented individual. I look forward to seeing her again!
December 3rd, 2007 at 12:13 am
I used to know a chick named DJ Spider….hehe She and Pet came up to my place in Jacksonville, NC. Been a long time. Hope you guys are doing well.