I am an experimental DJ. I go under the name of Chairman Wow! and I play what can loosely be called an electro-ghetto-tech-vibe.
I choose to DJ digitally. This allows me to have a wider range of music to select and the turn around of release-to-deck is a lot quicker.
I could be DJ'ing a dub I finished in the morning of the night of a gig, rather than wait on a vinyl dubplate being pressed. Plus, I do not want to haul 6 stone of records up and down ginnel and dale.
Why I’m an experimental DJ
I’ve always loved the idea of mixing different sounds and styles in unexpected ways. For me, it’s all about giving new life to a range of recordings.
Old sounds can feel new again.
With almost every piece of music ever recorded now available, the options are endless. My journey into this world began with CDs and eventually moved into digital formats. I choose to DJ digitally because it gives me access to a huge range of music, not just those hard-to-find tracks from years ago.
Plus, I can even mix in a recording I made that morning of leaves rustling in the wind.
Is being an experimental DJ an art?
William Burroughs once said, “Nothing is true, everything is permitted.” Music genres like new wave, disco, punk, and prog rock seemed worlds apart years ago. Now, they’ve all come together in the work of artists like Animal Collective and places like Other Music and The Wire.
In the ’90s, DJ culture turned mixing into an art form, shaping today’s diverse music scene. As an experimental DJ, I focus on selection rather than strict techniques. It’s about blending tracks that reflect today’s mix of influences and ideas.
Maybe that’s too much to put on a poster. But just say, “An open-minded, open-format DJ,” and people will get it.
Is being an experimental DJ a time-based practice?
I’m fascinated by time-based media. There’s something about field recordings that I enjoy; they take sounds out of their original setting and let you hear them in a whole new way. Being a turntablist is almost the opposite-I’m bringing a soundscape into a new environment, and hopefully a great one at that.
Whether it’s a mix from my Imaginary Soundscapes series, one of The Gaffa Tapes, or even a nod to White Lightning from back in the day, I aim to create something experimental, something unpredictable.
My slower mixes aren’t really for dancing-they’re more for unwinding at the end of the day or finding some warmth in the middle of winter. They’re meant to be a kind of comfort, and I hope they’re received with the same care and intention that went into making them.
Fractured Sequence is a series of DJ mixes exploring the outer edges of sound and structure. Drawing from avant-garde, ambient, noise, and experimental electronics, each mix is a study in tension, texture and dissonance. Expect slow builds, sudden breaks and moments of quiet unease-fragments stitched together into something strangely coherent.
Playlist
- Ursela K. Le Guin - A Homesick Song
- Dave Clarkson - Ghosts of Norfolk Coast
- Nocturnal Emissions - When were you last in control of yoour dreams and aspirations
- 87th Off Broadway - Moving Woman
- Alejandro Remeseiro - North Korean Fake Vocoder
- Albert Ayler - Ghosts
- Alessandra Eramo - Realyl Very Gut! (Nocturne)
- Alan Wakeman / Gordon Beck - Chaturanga
- Angèle David-Guillou - En mouvement
- Anne-James Chaton & Andy Moor - Tout Ce Que Je Sais
- Aphex Twin - Xtal
- Onra - Ms. Ho
- Mark E. Smith - The Horror In Clay
- Phạm Mộng Hải - Help Us In This Life
- Hep!Collective - No Plumage
Playlist
- Paper Trio - Litho
- KABAAL - Weerman
- Dog Faced Hermans - Virginia Fur
- Another Dancer - Overfriendly Dogs
- Andrea Wildhagen's Spiralis - Solar Activity
- Driftwood - Towards the colour of the sky
- Shonen Knife - Faith Healer
- Vladislav Delay - The New Beast Is Coming
- Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson - Bragating
- Thom Yorke - Dawn Chorus
- Sons of Kemet - Let the Circle Be Unbroken
- Gregory Isaacs - Mr Cop
- Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Here Eyes Are A Blue Million Miles