By Ines Min
Turntables. Beat juggling. Scratching. Body tricks. DJ Craze was one of the first to bring them all together into a cohesive art form.
This weekend, the American DJ will be making his Korean debut at clubs in Seoul and Busan for two nights of dance and catchy routines.
Craze, who got his start at the age of 15 with a set of his brother’s decks, fell in love with the sound and action, instantly.
``I always thought being a DJ was cool,’’ Craze said, in an email interview with The Korea Times. ``I love the way you can control people’s vibes and how much fun you can bring to a party.’’
The three-time consecutive winner of the DMC World DJ Championships _ the only person to have done so ― helped revolutionize the industry with his multi-genre DJing, a combination of skills that others had yet to tap into.
``When I create a routine all I think about is how I can take it to the next level,’’ the 32-year-old said, constantly looking to raise the bar. ``I practice till I can't think no more and videotape myself just to see if what I've come up with looks fresh.’’
What’s satisfactory might vary from time to time for the world-touring DJ who caters to crowds in Japan, Nicaragua (his native country) to Australia.
``Different cultural backgrounds affect the response to my DJ sets,’’ Craze said. “For instance, the U.K. has a heavy Jamaican dub influence so I tend to play more ragga when I'm over there as opposed to when I play in the U.S. I play more of an eclectic set in the U.S. and all over the world.’’
But music is always able to transcend national borders and ethnic variations; the toughest critics are not necessarily listeners in a completely foreign country.
``The most difficult crowds to play to are the crowds that think they are cooler than everybody on the planet,’’ Craze said. ``There's nothing you can play to make them dance...they're too cool.’’
One of the most challenging routines he performed was at the 2000 DMC, he said, referring to the third year consecutive win at the world championship.
``I still can’t replicate that set.’’
Now, a decade later and 13 years into his professional work, progress has been inevitable for the DJ.
``My turntablist style has changed throughout the years many times. I started off with more of a hip-hop style and it has gotten more electronic throughout the years.’’
``For clubs, right now dubstep is very exciting because it's so open,’’ he said of the genre characterized by darkly-toned, bass- and drum- heavy electronics with sparse vocals. ``You got your filthy dubstep, jump up dubstep and even some commercial dubstep.’’
Aside from spinning, DJ Craze has also expanded his sights to production, starting up the label Slow Roast Records with producer Kill the Noise. With a world tour and an upcoming EP scheduled for release by the end of the year, the talented turntablist has plenty on his calendar.
Not that it’s distracting him from his upcoming show here.
``I have never been to Korea,’’ he said. ``I'm very excited to see how Koreans get down.’’
DJ Craze will play with local acts French Knickerz ― DJ Fenner and Yann Cavaille ― and Eugene Blake of Mongoloid, at Club Mansion in Hongdae, Friday. Tickets cost 30,000 won and includes a free drink. His Busan show will be held Saturday at Vinyl Underground; 20,000 won with a drink. For advance tickets, email Multiseoul@rocketmail.com.