I mean, I have similar images from my early days as a DJ, just not with Beyoncé looking incredulous, but with other, rather unknown people.

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Yes, it’s nonsense, I know. Compared to him, I was probably a bit lazier. I put less effort into getting new records and gigs. That’s how I’d sum it up after reading the book…

Mark Ronson wasn’t really on my radar. Sure, Amy Winehouse, Bruno Mars… I was aware of all that. Not my kind of music. But I also found the memoirs of Carl Cox and Harold Heath very interesting, if only because of my proximity to the subject. So picking up this book wasn’t a stretch.

Of the lot, I actually think Mark Ronson’s is the best. I like his writing, some of the scenes are incredibly quirky and entertaining (no spoilers: Robin Williams), and the music scene the book covers mirrors a time when I was tuned into much of what he describes.

Long story short: please get the book, it’s good!

The official playlist for the book is available on Spotify, with a copy also available on Deezer.

This post is part of my reading page.

I can’t remember why my friend had the 2000s and then moved on to the 3000s after selling them to me. The Technics 1210s were the gold standard and the club default back then, just as Pioneer is today.

Personally, I always preferred the handling. I often said at the time that the Vestax was more forgiving and you didn’t have to be quite as precise. The Technics were a bit too sensitive for me, so I often turned the platter a bit too far.

The PDXs are not only more robust in terms of handling, but also in terms of durability. Mine are now a good 20 years old and give very few problems. But what bothered me for a long time was that there were no covers for them.

Well, there were some, but they weren’t included and they were hideous. So I was chuffed when Decksaver stepped in last year and added Vestax PDX 2000 covers to their range.

That solved one problem. The next was the target light, which plugs into the front of the turntable via RCA. Of course, these get lost on club nights and although I never really needed them, I missed having the light.

Last year I found a supplier in the UK who had built very robust replacement target lights. Coincidentally, you can spot one of them on the Decksaver website on the PDX 2000 pictured there. Apparently, this person no longer makes them or sells them on eBay. Which is a shame, as the quality is superb.

However, someone in Poland has taken over the mantle and is making simpler target lights for the Vestax and other turntables. So that might help you out too.

With the two new accessories, I took the opportunity to finally give the players a proper clean after what felt like decades. I reckon there was still some club dirt in there.

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Much of it was not new to me, which is to be expected in my line of work. But in its condensed form it sent even more shivers down my spine. When you then consider that the book was written in 2017, that Schlecky was already processing Cambridge Analytica in it, but that the wider world only started paying attention last year, you shake your head even more.

Why we should all use our smartphones less, maybe not install some apps at all, and why it is essential to look beyond your own bubble is not only described by Schlecky in the book. As far as I can tell, an association he has co-initiated is on the verge of being established to educate people about the dangers described in the book.

Far from light reading, the book is well worth a recommendation.

This post is part of my reading page.

You can also nominate yourself for the invasion by adding the hashtag #iwanttobeinvaded to your own picture. With around 114,000 photos currently using the hashtag, you can imagine how slim the chances are. In any case, the humour you see below is to be expected.

I had been following Lucas Levitan for a while when he announced his Kickstarter project to realise the printed version of his Photo Invasion. I didn’t have to think twice and backed it more than once, as I wanted the signed version for myself plus two more as possible gifts. Which meant I ended up being mentioned twice in the credits. A bit awkward, frankly.

Lucas Levitan now sells the books in his shop, along with some other really good items. One of my favourites is definitely the Wall Clock, if only it wasn’t sold out. Have a look at lucaslevitan.com and don’t hesitate. The book is available for just under 20 euros including postage. You can’t go wrong!

This post is part of my reading page and my Kickstarter page.

The editor, Tristan, is a redhead himself and started MC1R magazine about 3 years ago. In that time he has published six issues, all dedicated to the one topic and dealing extensively with the peculiarities of redheads.

In the current issue #6, Anna Ermakova is interviewed (and not a word about her father). Lindsay Lohan’s stylist also has her say and Samantha explains the peculiarity of red-bearded men.
With articles like these, and plenty more no less interesting, the magazine convinces through its subtle but sophisticated design and obvious attention to detail. This starts with the unusually thick paper and doesn’t end with the elaborate photo series.

To find out why Tristan went to the trouble of creating a special interest magazine for redheads, and what the challenges were, watch a short arte Tracks feature on YouTube:

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And why am I writing about this?

My formerly red, now grey beard and my rather sensitive skin don’t necessarily make me the target group. It’s more because Tristan has been my colleague at DOKYO for a good six months. See for yourself at mc1r-magazine.com.

Thanks for the mention, Tristan!

Tim Renner caught my attention at some point with some clever and controversial statements on copyright, and I was impressed, among other things, because he made these statements as an employee of a music publisher. If you bite the hand that feeds you, you’d better have balls – or know what you’re talking about. That was my quick conclusion.

Renner served as State Secretary for Cultural Affairs in Berlin until the end of 2016, wasn’t always met with approval there, and still likes to comment on the truly farcical music industry, as he does in “Wir hatten Sex in den Trümmern und träumten”.

One of the reasons I’m so enthusiastic about the book is that the topics and arguments are entirely in line with my own thinking. The music industry doesn’t just have an outdated system that exploits artists (unless you’re a few sizes bigger) and customers alike. It also keeps missing the boat when it comes to properly marketing its product!

In the previous sentence alone, with all the discussions about music, you can let the two words “product” and “marketing” melt on your tongue.

A Gorny is forever preaching that artists are being robbed and that you can’t just make their work freely available – where “freely” refers solely to alleged copyright infringements. All the other “the internet is rubbish because everything gets nicked” preachers follow suit, and recently Spotify, for example, has been dragged through the mud because artists are supposedly being exploited there. And nobody questions this!

There’s a calculation by occasional radio presenter Jan Böhmermann (I’m afraid I can’t find the interview again), in which he compares the figures: an artist receives roughly 30 euros for a single play of one of their songs on a radio station! If a comparable number of listeners (it was around 1.6 or 1.8 million) were to stream the same song, that would come to just over 3,000 euros.

This example is one of many, and both the pro-internet camp and the Gornys of this world have an astonishing number of them. The overlap between both positions is probably closest to reality, and part of that overlap is, for me, in this book.

But it’s not just about marketing and the merits or absurdities of the industry – it’s also about the stories of how artists became who they are now, and regardless of where you stand, you can have a proper laugh about these stories.

The book is available at the bookseller of your choice, but only in German.

About Tim Renner

This post is part of my reading page.