The Casual DJ, Part 1: Set it and Forget It

The Hold Steady are right, most people are DJs. Pretty well any living room or bedroom has some sort of speaker system, and if you get a few people together, somebody's gonna have an iPod. So who controls the tunes? The Casual DJ does.

The main event in hangout sessions usually isn't music, and while the 30-seconds-left-quick-quick-it's-ending strategy is thrilling, it is time consuming and stressful. Presumably the Casual DJ is a normal, social person who enjoys conversation as much as gauging crowd reactions to the music they choose. Presumably. 

While prefabricated playlists can be useful, they sometimes feel contrived, especially on the second go-around with the same crew. Today is the only March 7th, 2012 that any of us will ever be alive for, so why turn the evening over to your friend's "Get Crunked Up" mix that you all listened to last week?

So what about just putting an album on? Sure! It's a classic, relaxing way to enjoy a cohesive artistic statement. But gauging the taste and mood of the room is crucial. A whole album is quite a commitment, and the Casual DJ must choose wisely to avoid the spine-chilling dagger to the soul that is "Do you have something more ______?"

So what kind of album is best in this role? First of all, it's got to be in a genre that will be accepted by the crowd you're dealing with. Then it's generally those with a strong aesthetic running through them, and a fairly consistent tempo and mood. People are concerned with conversation, or cards, or their chicken dinner, so the album shouldn't intrude too much or demand a lot of attention to appreciate. Above all, it should be fun and add flavour to your hangout by situating it in a definite sonic place and time.

I have an old 60GB iPod that I haven't updated since just after high school, and I like to use it like an old record collection in this very situation. Here are a few of my favourite Set It And Forget It albums:

(click the album name to bring it up in Grooveshark)

1. Fine Young Cannibals - The Raw and the Cooked (1988)

Front to back, this is a solid album with a unique sound, which is the difference between inedibly stale and deliciously dated. 

2. Sheryl Crow - The Very Best Of (2003)

All the hits: it's surprising how many of these songs everyone will know, if not like. And it's undeniably fun. Did you hear me? Undeniably!

3. The Killers - Hot Fuss (2004)

Specifically for people about my age, who were "impressionable" at the time this came out, some of whom hang on to these synth hooks to remember, others to forget.

4. Charlie Christian - The Original Guitar Genius (2005)

Mostly recordings of the Benny Goodman Sextet from 1939-41, the sort of three minute swing songs that make for fantastic mood music.

5. White Denim - Workout Holiday (2008)

Someone will ask you who this is by the third song. I promise.

6. The Dandy Warhols - Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia (2000)

A rare album that can be totally engrossing but makes for an equally enjoyable background listen. They even put transitions between the songs. It's like they knew.

7. Matt Costa - Songs We Sing (2006)

This is just so consistently good-natured it's hard to fault as a backing track to chill times. 

8. Kings of Leon - Aha Shake Heartbreak (2005)

Short, punchy rock songs that'll get you to the bar by the time it's over.

9. Les Dales Hawerchuck - Les Dales Hawerchuck (2005)

Perhaps a francophone analogue to the above. Will get you to a Quebecois bar? 

10. Nightmares On Wax - Smokers Delight (1995)

This one's for after the bar, the club, and that other club. When no one's ready to sleep, but when  you need something to fill the long, spacey pauses in conversation.