Slow down!

[JussiK]

I noticed I had scribbled " - 4" on the inner sleeve of Slow Down by John Miles, and remembered I had pitched the poppy track down that much for a grittier feel. I tried it and behold: Slow Down becomes a sleazy throbber and a damn good one. Any other tunes that work better with much slowed down altered speeds?

[efunk_adelic]

Jussi, :D


I like listening to the following on -4 pitch


Cerrone - Give Me Love/Love In C Minor
Kongas - Africanism/Gimme Some Lovin'

[QUINNY]

Jussi: I just can't imagine any records sounding better pitched down by that much.
I do remember that whenever I did pitch down in order to make a mix work, I couldn't wait to gradually work the thing back up. Slowdown, in particular loses all its bounce, for me, at anything like that slow.
Surely, this is where CD players are really great with their change tempo, don't change pitch feature and vice versa? I'd just love to get mixing with a decent double CD player. I know you'd never be seen dead doing that, but for me the idea works.

[born2disco]

Agree with Quinny - same goes for tracks which are pitched up to chipmunk level in order to do a successful mix. Pitch back down or just plain avoid it!

There are a few records that sound great at almost any speed - usually those without much vocal.

[NickNack]

Agree with Jussi: Pitching it down gives it a better edge. Playing with songs like this was common in the after-hours venues, especially during the early morning hours. I always cracked up that John Miles was pleading with us to "Slow Down" while the record was 'flying' off the turntable. Still loved every second of it.

[BrunoRepublic]

Rinder & Lewis (as Le Pamplemousse) did a cover of this song that was quite, well, slowed down...

[pumpmug]

Totally agree with Graham_Start. That is one of my faves to slow down (Le Pamplemousse):icon_razz:
I was at an event a while an during the morning they played "don't leave me this way" way slow. It was the harold melvin and the blue notes version " 12" single 45rpm@33rpm, plus pitched down too. It sound monsterous and a bit horny too..LOL
Also sleaze may be a state of mind. Real diehard discoheads aren't concerned about the speed, only where it can take you .
Do you have a list Graham?

Brian

[kdavid13]

I remember reading that some DJ in an alternative club played Olivia Newton John's "Heart Attack" 7in at 33 rpm.
The crowd went wild...and it soon became a staple at the club.:icon_cool:

[JOL]

Laura Lee's "Sat-Is-Fac-Tion" from 1979 is a great example of this. Played at it's normal speed 45 rpm it's a high energy tune at 130 bpm. However when you play it at 33 and a third and then pitched up by plus 8 it becomes a great sleeze tune at 104 bpm. I used the pitched down version for a show at Toronto's Leather Ball several years ago and it was well received. Here are two links to the normal and slowed down version. They are good for a week or 100 uploads and then they will become inactive.

1. normal speed:

https://www.yousendit.com/download/Q...Z2cyWGRFQlE9PQ

2. pictched down

https://rcpt.yousendit.com/599247261...de7545f4ff680e

[EricHG23]

Agree with Quinny - same goes for tracks which are pitched up to chipmunk level in order to do a successful mix. Pitch back down or just plain avoid it!

There are a few records that sound great at almost any speed - usually those without much vocal.

I've been anti pitching up or down vocal tracks especially ever since I realized as a teenager getting into Donna Summer why the 12" of The Deep sounded so off to me and her voices sounded off (it was pitched up).

That said, another commercial hit that I MUCH prefer pitched up is Cher's Take Me Home--the 12" is slightly pitched up from the album version and (maybe cuz her vocals are deep anyway) it doesn't bother me whatsoever--and musically I feel it gives the whole tracka boost of energy.

[the disco kid]

To my ears almost ANY track sounds good pitched down a bit, anywhere from 2% to 6% depending on the track. it adds a certain sexiness to a lot of frantic songs, that were intentionally sped up when mastered for the disco market. Brainstorm's Loving Is Really My Game" comes to mind, it's recorded between keys which leads me to believe it was originally recorded a bit slower, about 2.5%, which would put it in key at least (E major) and pitched up about 2.5% it's F Major, and pretty much flying off the turntable!

[markydefad]

Bobby Viteritti played the 45 rpm of the Salsoul Orchestra's "Magic Bird Of Fire" at 33&1/3 rpm on his "Giorgio & Beyond" tapes and it really worked...BV used it after Bob-A-Rela's great "Stop" and before something by Kitaro...leading into Deniece Williams' "Free." Very creative and unusual.

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

Salsoul Orchestra's "Magic Bird Of Fire"
45rpm 12" played at 33rpm & pitched up 6%
(Standard after-hours trick)

Hazell Dean's "Searchin'"
45rpm Ian Levine remix-instrumental (Canadian pressing on ATTIC) played at 33rpm & pitched up 6%
(Standard after-hours trick)

Girl Talk's "Kiss In The Dark"
45rpm 12" played at 33rpm & pitched up 6%
(The vocals are so high, that they become believable as male vocals, for an excellent sleaze-set track!)

[markydefad]

I must add when I hear pro DJs pitch things way down on old tapes/cds they often sound good--but when I pitch things down at home--they sound "off"--especially anything pitched down -4 or so...is it just me????? :icon_eek::icon_confused::icon_razz:

Does it matter which records you choose?...I know the vocals really suffer when I do it on a lark--so I try not to do it.

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

Bobby Viteritti played the 45 rpm of the Salsoul Orchestra's "Magic Bird Of Fire" at 33&1/3 rpm on his "Giorgio & Beyond" tapes and it really worked...

Hmmm... Only 4 minutes apart. Are you accessing that chip in my brain again???

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

I must add when I hear pro DJs pitch things way down on old tapes/cds they often sound good--but when I pitch things down at home--they sound "off"--especially anything pitched down -2 or so...is it just me????? :icon_eek::icon_confused::icon_razz:

Does it matter which records you choose?...I know the vocals really suffer when I do it on a lark--so I try not to do it.

It makes a difference what key the song is recorded in. Some transition well, and some go dangerously flat, or sharp. Depending on the direction of the pitch.

Also, if you change the pitch drastically, at some point, the recording will fall into another key, completely. Or, will drop a full "step"... (I'm really not sure which term is correct.) And will sound aurally correct.

Sorry... Joseph Watt explained it to me, many years ago, and I can't quote him exactly. Hopefully, my generic explanation is good enough.

[markydefad]

Hmmm... Only 4 minutes apart. Are you accessing that chip in my brain again???

Hah! I wonder?. ....so you pitch it up +6--that's interesting.....I never tried to replicate it....BV also did a major bpm drop on Donna's "Hot Stuff" on--I think it was a Castro Street Party--and it really accentuated the SLEAZE factor in that song---heard "under the influence" --of love--or poppers--or whatever--it really brings the sexxxxxxxxy back.

[markydefad]

It makes a difference what key the song is recorded in. Some transition well, and some go dangerously flat, or sharp. Depending on the direction of the pitch.

Also, if you change the pitch drastically, at some point, the recording will fall into another key, completely. Or, will drop a full "step"... (I'm really not sure which term is correct.) And will sound aurally correct.

Sorry... Joseph Watt explained it to me, many years ago, and I can't quote him exactly. Hopefully, my generic explanation is good enough.

That is so funny that you mention Joseph Watt---he also explained his theory to me back at Aloha one day he was expounding on mixing records in the same key or in compatible keys or something which I pretended to understand. :icon_eek::icon_confused: I did play a musical instrument in school but I have no idea what key a song is in by just listening!!!

[for those unfamiliar with the name] Watt was working on some club on Haight Street I think and had this theory of mixing based on the keys the records were recorded in...later went on the become a major remixer of mainly New Wave/Synth [Depeche Mode, etc.] records...under the Razormade..oops, make that Razormaid trademark

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

...so you pitch it up +6--that's interesting.....I never tried to replicate it....

Yes...at least 6%.
The music in those 45's that work at 33, will start to go back into that believable place, around +6%. Ideally, it's best to go to the max at 8%. But that leaves you no wiggle-room for mixing.
Although, I've never heard anyone mix-out of "Magic Bird..." at 33rpm. It's, most likely being utilized for it's dramatic cold-ending, anyway. So that one's always at +8%.

I'd gotten all excited over the Numark TT1 Turntables, a couple years ago, with the key-lock feature. I was able to pitch tracks by 50%, without affecting the key. ("Love To Love You" is awesome at 120 bpms!) Unfortunately, unlike the same CD-player technology, there were problems with the conversion of the signal from analog-to-digital at the same time as processing the key-lock, during pitch changes. This caused a slight echo on the percussion. Particularly the kick-drum. Everything sounded as if it was being mixed, just a hair off-beat. And, while trying to overlay, it was like a 3rd turntable that you couldn't control.

I gave-up, got a refund and went back to my Technics 1200MKII's.

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

That is so funny that you mention Joseph Watt---he also explained his theory to me back at Aloha one day he was expounding on mixing records in the same key or in compatible keys or something which I pretended to understand.

LOL! Yuppers... Compatible-Key Mixing was all the rage in 1986. ...for about 5 minutes.
"The Lambada" lasted longer.

Watt even compiled a list of all the Razormaid releases, catalogued with their keys and maximum allowances for pitch adjustment!:icon_eek: It was included in Issue M.6.

One of my many support DJ's who came-and-went at The Seagull in Miami Beach, was a fanatic about it. He insisted on only mixing in proper key-combinations. I told him to play whatever the hell made them dance.

...he lasted about 5 weeks.

[BrunoRepublic]

LOL! Yuppers... Compatible-Key Mixing was all the rage in 1986. ...for about 5 minutes.
"The Lambada" lasted longer.

Watt even compiled a list of all the Razormaid releases, catalogued with their keys and maximum allowances for pitch adjustment!:icon_eek: It was included in Issue M.6.

One of my many support DJ's who came-and-went at The Seagull in Miami Beach, was a fanatic about it. He insisted on only mixing in proper key-combinations. I told him to play whatever the hell made them dance.

...he lasted about 5 weeks.

It's an interesting idea, but really only appeals to musicians. Most people couldn't care less as long as the kick drum stays in sync.

Besides, occasionally one can get very interesting results from a long fade between two pieces in keys that clash according to the textbook. I'm thinking of an example on one of DJ Tiësto's compilations... intentional or not, it's the highlight of the disc for me.

[VeriForce]

How to mix in key




YouTube - DJ HELP WITH MIXING IN KEY! mixedinkey VIDEO 1

[MARK D.]

What abour RISE by HERB ALPERT(A&M,1979).....it was pressed on 33 rpm(100 bpm),but most deejays played it on 45 rpm!!!And i noticed in some of JOHN LUONGO's mixes,the songs are speeded up (examples;LET ME TAKE YOU DANCING,SHAKE YOUR BODY DOWN TO THE GROUND,YOU STEPPED INTO MY LIFE,SHINE ON SILVER MOON,MUSIC IS MY WAY OF LIFE....ETC.)