dj ShmeeJay‘s Ain’t No Big Thing radio show, live on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of every month from 8pm – 10pm (PST) / 11pm – 1am (EST) on BoxFrequency.fm, and with a podcast syndicated on iTunes.
This episode I host San Francisco based deejay and producer The Beat Broker. The Beat Broker was born in 1975 and raised in Southern California. His earliest musical influences include radio synth pop and soon after, mid-80s hip-hop by such artists as Eric B. & Rakim and EPMD. It’s these production styles of sampling, updating and remixing that would later become a huge influence on his own work.
Working at the local college radio station in the late 90s launched the next chapter of his musical interests. The vast music library opened the door to a variety of electronic music and led to the late-night experimental soundscape show called ‘WIRETAP’ which became the first step into DJing and studio time. With production partner Ryan Fitzgerald, the two decided to record their sessions and eventually have a studio of their own. They later became Broker/Dealer and have released music on labels such as Asphodel, Spectral, Traum and Sentrall.
The Beat Broker began DJing outside of the bedroom in 2001 playing everything from German minimal techno to classic 80s electro to italo disco. As part of Broker/Dealer, the duo created a monthly/weekly party in San Francisco called ‘POP’, which in its 5 years, had hosted many popular acts ranging from Erland Oye, Brennan Green and Tako/Loud-E. To create just the right mood, the Beat Broker began to make edits, remixes and even original tracks to mix into the night. From slower “cosmic” music for the beginning of the night to up-tempo synthesizer based crowd pleasers for the peak hours. These productions later became completed works and have been released on labels such as Bear Funk, Flexx, Disques Sinthomme, Ghost Town, Adult Contemporary and Sentrall. In the past few years the Broker has been up late working in his office producing and remixing for Eskimo, Is It Balearic?, Rebirth, Emerald & Doreen, Voltaire and Internasjonal to name a few. While continuing to make remixes and original tracks, the Beat Broker is constantly attempting to fuse old sounds with new ideas and create something for the crowd as well as the listener.
Look for more of The Beat Broker on his website, SoundCloud, Twitter, Facebook, and BandCamp. And of course you must familiarize yourself with Dream Chimney, a music blog and podcast series curated by The Beat Broker.
The Beat Broker’s set is his little secret, but if you ask nicely maybe he will tell you.
dj ShmeeJay‘s set:
Sleazy McQueen ft Obas Nenor – Song For Pheobe [Whiskey Disco]
Ivar Gafseth – Privatfest (Rune Lindbæk Edit) [Gronmo Edits]
Grace Jones – Feel Up (Danny Tenaglia Remix) [Great Jones]
Obas Nenor – Candies [Masterworks Music]
Megadon Betamax – He Can’t Love You [Voyeurhythm]
Salsoul Orchestra – Ooh, I Love It (Love Break) [Chewy Acid Rub]
Swifft Edits – Take You Higher [Thunder Jam Records]
Martin Hayes – Easy Come Easy Go [Razor-N-Tape]
Stevie Wonder – Superstition (OPOLOPO Remix)
Kan Sano – Music Overflow (Luvless remix) [Razor-N-Tape]
Junktion – Watching You Sleep [Sleazy Beats Black Ops]
If you like this mix, please take the time to go to my Facebook page and ‘like’ me there. I certainly will like that. And if you want a copy of just The Beat Broker’s mix feel free to grab it here.
TympanumBene,
folO Olof
dj ShmeeJay 