CM : What ’ s been the most recent piece of gear you ’ ve added to your set-up , or that you ’ ve been playing around with lately ? What draws you to it ?
Trapment : See above for what I use weekly at my club gigs , but when it comes to making routines and performing my Thre3Style sets , I also use the Pioneer DDJ-SP1 . It has eight cue point buttons per side instead of the five that the Novation Dicers have . The more cue points , the more creative your can be , and on top of that , the DDJ- SP1 has a lot of the short cuts and effects buttons on it that make for quicker and easier transitions with routines .
I was so used to my go-to set-up in 2016 for Red Bull Thre3Style that I didn ’ t want to change it , but last year , Pioneer dropped the S9 mixer , which basically took the DDJ-SP1 and built it into a mixer ! As far as new products go , even though it came out a while ago , the S9 is the only thing that has caught my eye .
CM : Any new techniques you ’ ve been working on lately , or maybe some that you ’ ve been working on expanding or revisiting ?
Trapment : I ’ ve always been a club DJ and turntablist , so I ’ m always learning new things and incorporating them with older ideas and styles . It ’ s hard to give a specific answer but if I had to pick a scratch , I find myself always trying to improve my two-click flare patterns . My homie DJ Hedspin has some of the dopest flare patterns . I hope I can be as sick as him one day [ laughs ].
CM : As music continues to evolve and genre boundaries continue to blur or collapse , have you found yourself working different kinds of music or recordings into your mixes lately than you typically have in the past ?
Trapment : I ’ ve always considered myself an open format DJ , which basically means I play anything and everything , so this “ genre boundaries ” thing you mention doesn ’ t really affect me . I ’ ve always loved to incorporate old music with new , whether it ’ s rock , Motown , punk , or even country . My motto is to always have fun and overall , I just love music .
CM : Speaking to trends you ’ ve seen in the culture over the last year or so , do any have you particularly excited as far as their potential and what it could mean for turntablists ? Or are there any you find disheartening ?
Trapment : An extremely popular and growing trend for turntablists is definitely the mini / portable turntables . The industry has been making 7-in . records like crazy , so you can have all of your favourite sounds to cut up on the go . With a set-up costing a couple hundred dollars all together , it ’ s definitely getting a lot more people involved in the scratch world . It ’ s good for practice or just some fun with your friends while you ’ re out at the beach .
A trend that I ’ m not too fond of is how certain clubs these days hire DJs based on how many people they can bring in instead of talent . If the music isn ’ t good , people will leave and possibly never go back , but if the DJ is good and knows how to speak to the people through the music , it will make for an amazing , memorable time . I ’ ve been starting to see some clubs hire talented DJs over DJs who are part-time promoters , so that ’ s good news . I hope it continues in that direction .
Outside of his “ day job ” as music director and on-air host for 90.3 AMP Radio Calgary , where he holds down the city ’ s number one mix show , DJ Kav is also turning heads with his original music , tasty remixes , and combustible live performances on his own or as one half of Drum N DJ .
In the past year , he ’ s opened shows for the likes of Sean Paul , TLC , and Ice Cube and did a short run of dates with Flo Rida . He earned some acclaim and awards for his early 2016 single “ Raindrops ,” and has followed that up with the release of “ Shooting Star ” featuring Michi , which has blown up in his market . You can catch him opening for The Chainsmokers this summer , check out Drum N DJ ’ s recent remixes of Ed Sheeran ’ s “ Shape of You ” and Maroon 5 ’ s “ Cold ,” and expect a new DJ Kav single later in the spring .
LIVE RIG
Technics 1200 Turntable ( x2 ) Rane 62 Mixer Wireless mic “ I like to keep it very authentic when DJing .”
CM : What ’ s been the most recent piece of gear you ’ ve added to your set-up , or that you ’ ve been playing around with lately ?
DJK : I am classic in my nature . There is something to be said for technology and advancement , and also keeping the real feel of DJing as well . I still love when people look at the turntables and ask , “ What are those ?”
CM : As popular music continues to evolve and “ genre boundaries ” continue to blur or outright collapse , have you found yourself working different kinds of music or recordings into your mixes than you have in the past ?
DJK : I have always been a believer of breaking down barriers . I don ’ t like genres and when someone asks what I listen to or what I play or we play , we can adapt to almost anything . Music should have no boundaries ; therefore , we shouldn ’ t be defined by them .
CM : Considering your unique perspective as an artist and radio professional , what ’ s currently got you excited , musically speaking ? Anything in particular you ’ re looking forward to in 2017 ?
DJK : I am really excited for some of the soul movement by the likes of Bruno Mars and The
Weeknd and also excited to see what the EDM artists are going to push musically . They have evolved and will create a new sound once again to keep the genre pushing forward .
Andrew King is the Editor-in-Chief of Canadian Musician .