2D - Tuesday, September 6, 2011
NEW STUDENT EDITION
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
FILE PHOTO/Daily
MEDMA DJs bring grooves to the dance floor
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By CASSIE BALFOUR
Daily Arts Writer
Jan. 12, 2011 - The events of
the Michigan Electronic Dance
Music Association (MEDMA)
aren't for the faint of heart. The
beat gets inyour head - so rhyth-
mic that it almost seems to match
your own pulse. With a twist of a
knob, the DJ controls your every
move, as the crowd sways in sync
with the cadence. But this song is
probably something you've never
even heard before.
"We want to raise awareness
of electronic music on campus,
just to get people interested in
this different genre that's not
really publicized too much on the
radio," said MEDMA president
Sean Masters, an LSA senior.
MEDMA was founded back in
2005 when a few friends decided
to spread their love of electronic
music across campus. Today,
the club has grown to over 70
members who actively work to
expose students to a wider range
of dance music. And after pro-
curing some equipment of their
own, MEDMA DJs began spin-
ning at countless house parties
and frats, introducing hundreds
of students to subgenres of elec-
tronic music - an introduction
that is usually met with gleeful
surprise.
"Fraternity parties are fun
because you have a bunch of peo-
ple who maybe didn't come to lis-
ten to electronic music. You have
people who just came to have a
good time," Masters said. "We
had a ton of people come up to
us to say, 'Aww man, I love this.
How come I didn't know about
you guys before?"'
Granted, obscure electronic
dance music isn't without its dis-
senters.
"Of course, you always have
the people coming up to us ask-
ingfor 'Like a G6,'"Masters said,
"but they're still a blast."
MEDMA DJs put a lot of
thought into mixing music and
crafting beats that will stay with
partiers long after the lights have
gone up.
"People listen to artists like
Ke$ha and they don't really
think about who's making the
actual beats," Masters said. "In
the electronic music world, the
person that is actually making
the music is the centerpiece."
Techno, and subsequently
modern electronic music, was
locally grown in Detroit. Accord-
ing to Masters, Detroit techno
was originally meant to be very
thought-provoking. The scene
was inspired by the repetitive
beat created by the industrial
machines found in automobile
factories, and soon found its way
from the Midwest into clubs
worldwide.
Impulse, MEDMA's main
DJing event, takes place on the
second Thursday of every month
at Necto nightclub. Though
Necto is generally the place to
go when a person wants to dance
to the dulcet tones of Katy Perry,
during Impulse, MEDMA takes
over Necto's Red Room so its
DJs can showcase their talents
and range of tastes in electronic
music.
In addition to putting on
events, MEDMA cultivates
fledgling DJs and gives lessons
to due-paying members. While
some join MEDMA with DJing
experience, many learn from
veteran MEDMA DJs. And after
they practice spinning at various
house and frat parties, they too
are able to DJ at MEDMA's pre-
miere events.
"Its kind of a steep learning
curve, but once you get the hang
of it, it's not that bad," Masters
said.
The first (and the most pivot-
al) step when it comes to mixing
electronic dance music is called
"beat matching." This is what
keeps electronic dance mixes
transitioning smoothly so danc-
ers reveling in the music won't
break their rhythm.
"If you imagine two cars on
a highway side-by-side, it's like
getting those cars lined up and
going the same speed," Masters
said. "So you're trying to line
up the beats, so when you move
from one song to another, you
can't really tell that you're tran-
sitioning."
LSA senior Alex DePorre
was one member who mas-
tered DJing during her time at
MEDMA. While a sophomore,
she joined the group despite
being an electronic dance music
rookie and now DJs events on a
regular basis - including MED-
MA's monthly soirees.
"The first time I DJed Impulse,
I was so nervous," DePorre said.
"I practiced so much and
memorized everything I was
supposed to do and I was terri-
fied, but it actually went really
well."
MEDMA DJs and other pur-
veyors of electronic music dance
mixes take affront to the idea
that they're just glorified iPods,
as Masters explained, for good
reason..
"The DJ is seen as someone
who has taken the time to go out
and find this music and blend it in
a way that kind of keeps a certain
vibe or a flow going, so it's not
very common to take requests,"
Masters said.
But don't accuse MEDMA
members of music elitism, either
- they'll mix anything with a
good beat.
"If I think the song is appro-
priate and I have it, by all means
I'll throw it in," Masters said.
"We do some top-40 remixes,
even just a remix of Ke$ha. I
actually love Ke$ha personally."
And MEDMA appreciates
how important star-studded
electronic music makers like
deadmau5 and DJ Tiesto are to
drawing new members in and
making electronic music more
accessible to the masses.
"We consider artists like
deadmau5 (to be) gateway elec-
tronic music - like this is gonna
be some of the electronic music
they'll first listen too, and then
they might come to a MEDMA
show," Masters said.
The electronic dance music
genre isn't just for superstar
DJs or high profile producers,
though. Electronic music is a
democratic art form - anyone
with talent and the right soft-
ware can produce the sort of
music MEDMA thrives on and
encourages other students to lis-
ten to.
"Its up to these DJs to pick
out the best electronic music
from tons of music worldwide,
as opposed to hearing it on the
radio and top 40," Masters said.
Masters went on to explain
the DJ's role as an ambassador
and tastemaker in the electronic
dance music world, exposing
his or her listeners to electronic
music from across the globe. The
large array of electronic music
made and posted on the Internet
by amateurs and professionals
alike has created an unregulated
market of electronic music shar-
ing that acts as a veritable buffet
for hungry DJs eager to share
their findings.
DePorre agrees with this sen-
timent, adding that the variety
allows each DJ to find his or
her own niche in the electronic
music scene.
"There's so much out there
that it's really personal - most
things that you find, most people
will have never heard of," she
said. "Right now, I'm really into
minimal, which is kind of dark
and scary."
"Minimal" is one of many
subgenres in the vast electronic
music world. It has a sometimes
eerie and sparse sound that uti-
lizes a lot of repetition. But like
a surprising amount of electronic
music, it still sounds immensely
soulful, using only what is essen-
tial in order to make people
dance.
When MEDMA isn't busy on
campus advocating for electron-
ic dance music, its members are
taking limos to electronic shows
in Canada and Detroit or observ-
ing their favorite holiday - the
Detroit Electronic Music Fes-
tival. DEMF is the latest incar-
nation of an electronic music
festival that Detroit has hosted
for years. Every Memorial Day
weekend, scores of the world's
preeminent DJs and musicians
descend on Motor City, and each
year MEDMA members go to
bathe in the glow of these elec-
tronic demi-gods.
"My birthday is right next to
Christmas, but I like DEMF bet-
ter than birthday-Christmas,"
Masters said. "DuringDEMF, we
all get a few hotel rooms and it's
a blast."
Although MEDMA members
have spun at DEMF afterpar-
ties in the past, they've recently
turned their focus back to Ann
Arbor. MEDMA has big plans
on campus, including bringing
Detroit DJ Kris Wadsworth to
Necto in February and continu-
ing its monthly Necto parties,
like the "Class is Back in Session"
Impulse at 9 p.m. tonight.
But this doesn't mean
MEDMA members are bound
to the University. Through their
tireless campaign to inject Ann
Arbor and southeast Michigan
with danceable beats, they've
introduced townies and students
alike to scores of music that goes
untapped by the average citizen.
And their only objective is to
find the mix, beat and sound that
you can move to.
When Masters ventured out
of the world of low-lit basements
and jam-packed clubs and played
for Ann Arbor citizens of all ages
at the outdoor summer festival
Top of the Park, he had one of his
best DJing experiences to date.
"There was this one guy -
he kept saying, 'Hey man, play
something I can groove to,' "
Masters said. "I thought I was
playing something perfectly
grooveable, but then I played
this song at the very end. I didn't
think anyone would recognize it
... but this guy knew every single
word to it, and he was so pumped
up.'
Ultimately, that's what
MEDMA is all about - expos-
ing as many people as possible
to electronic music and find-
ing something "grooveable" for
everyone.
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