It's not often that The Vinyl Word raves about a DJ, but the "godfather of house" Derrick Carter's show at Luxy on Wednesday was exceptional. His mix of beats, often shorn of melody, was a lesson in DJing. It was the evolved sound of Chicago house and the epitome of of dance music.
The only DJ to compare him with is the best, the world's official number one Tiesto. Of course, Tiesto is very different, he develops a techno-based sound into a set that is best compared to a classical concerto, in terms of its progression and integrity. The beat is relatively uniform and the melodies provide the high points.
Carter, who transformed the early Detroit sound, focuses more on the rhythm, chopping and changing, mixing and fusing the bass, for a more dance-oriented sound.
PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES
Both DJs are at the top of their game and we have been fortunate to hear them.
The Vinyl Word had tried, without success, to get an interview with Carter before he arrived. We had sent off the questions, were told that he would reply and were disappointed when he didn't. He doesn't do interviews, we were told.
This made us think he was one of those DJs who thought so highly of himself that he didn't need publicity. So, when he was sitting at the bar before the show, we put it to him that he "dissed us."
"Nah, man, I thought about it, but the questions were like psychoanalysis. The public may want to know, but I don't want the public to know everything, so I decided against it."
In person, Carter was one of the nicest people you could meet. He just sat at the bar drinking shots, greeting whoever wanted to meet him, a modest man with a lot to say, a star without the attitude.
He played a good three hours and it was a pleasure to be there.
Tonight, the big event is the opening party for Stage which is presenting "Summer Breeze" with DJ Nina and vocalist Eleanor, Saucey, "taiwan's godfather of electronica" DJ @llen, Elvis T and Edmund, the leading light behind the occasion.
High-quality house music and a friendly atmosphere is promised by Edmund, "with beautiful people, funky grooves (latin, electro, a summer feel) and lots of laughs."
Also tonight, at Bass in Chungli, is "Foxy Girls Like Hip Hop Party" from 8pm to 5am. With four DJs (including Chicano, Afro, Aber and Kragger), three MCs and dancing crews, it should be a good one.
For your information:
The Stage is at B1, 22 Songshou Rd, Taipei (
Bass is located at 7F, 182 Hsinsheng Rd, Chungli, Taoyuan County (
May 6 to May 12 Those who follow the Chinese-language news may have noticed the usage of the term zhuge (豬哥, literally ‘pig brother,’ a male pig raised for breeding purposes) in reports concerning the ongoing #Metoo scandal in the entertainment industry. The term’s modern connotations can range from womanizer or lecher to sexual predator, but it once referred to an important rural trade. Until the 1970s, it was a common sight to see a breeder herding a single “zhuge” down a rustic path with a bamboo whip, often traveling large distances over rugged terrain to service local families. Not only
Ahead of incoming president William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20 there appear to be signs that he is signaling to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that the Chinese side is also signaling to the Taiwan side. This raises a lot of questions, including what is the CCP up to, who are they signaling to, what are they signaling, how with the various actors in Taiwan respond and where this could ultimately go. In the last column, published on May 2, we examined the curious case of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight Tseng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) — currently vice premier
The last time Mrs Hsieh came to Cihu Park in Taoyuan was almost 50 years ago, on a school trip to the grave of Taiwan’s recently deceased dictator. Busloads of children were brought in to pay their respects to Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正), known as Generalissimo, who had died at 87, after decades ruling Taiwan under brutal martial law. “There were a lot of buses, and there was a long queue,” Hsieh recalled. “It was a school rule. We had to bow, and then we went home.” Chiang’s body is still there, under guard in a mausoleum at the end of a path
Last week the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) released a set of very strange numbers on Taiwan’s wealth distribution. Duly quoted in the Taipei Times, the report said that “The Gini coefficient for Taiwanese households… was 0.606 at the end of 2021, lower than Australia’s 0.611, the UK’s 0.620, Japan’s 0.678, France’s 0.676 and Germany’s 0.727, the agency said in a report.” The Gini coefficient is a measure of relative inequality, usually of wealth or income, though it can be used to evaluate other forms of inequality. However, for most nations it is a number from .25 to .50