Check In with DJ Whoquestion
DJ Whoquestion is at it again, about to drop his fifth full album, Loaded. The release date is not set in stone yet, but is definitely coming soon, so we caught up with DJ Whoquestion about the new release, as well as secured an exclusive preview track.
What have you been up to since releasing Big Big Trouble?
After Big Big Trouble–perhaps the critical defining moment of my life, next to being born and the birth of my third son Jahari–I took a short-lived break and then basically got right back on the wagon. My three multi-song albums (Hot Plate, Big Big Trouble, and now Loaded), while different in some ways, to an extent are just extensions of one another…long strings of mashups whose division into albums is mostly arbitrary based on the time of their creation. That being said, what I think Loaded has that others don’t is a more linear sort of energy, with certain instrumentals being stretched out and made the most of.
How much time have you put into the new album?
I had to balance my time between the album, arriving at college in a new city, and fighting my ex for child support and alimony payments, but I still feel the time put in is reflected positively on the album. Some tracks were made that just didn’t make the cut, and I didn’t want to waste space on Loaded with sub-par mashes. So I didn’t rush its release.
What genres can we expect to hear on it?
All over the map–classic rock, hip hop, electro, R&B, and the list goes on. Bruce Springsteen makes a whopping two appearances. Some popular indie rock of the last few years features prominently, like Fleet Foxes, Broken Bells, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes…and some lesser-known but personal favorites make appearances like the Vaselines. But there’s still classic big singalong choruses, like Elton John’s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” or the Beatles’ “Day Tripper”.
Does the album consist of A vs. B mashups or multi-song mixes?
It’s all multi-song mashes, but I got back to my roots of A vs. B in the sense that the songs themselves aren’t jam-packed with samples. Instrumentally, each song has a few strong backing tracks stretched out and mined for all their worth which gives it a more grounded feel.
Any samples you were really excited about including?
I worked in a Dan Deacon chorus at the end of a song that is a total dance-crazy moment. And using the opening guitar riff from Blondie’s “One Way or Another” was really fun.
Favorite combination off the new album?
It’s gotta be the first chorus of “Homeroom (Tasty)”, with the chorus of Edward Sharpe’s “Home” and the various hip hop acapellas that are sprinkled over it. Runners-up include Billy Idol’s “White Wedding, Pt. 1″ with the “Cupid Shuffle” and drums from the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack.
Favorite track off the new album?
“One Way”…or maybe “Miracles”…or maybe…this question is too hard. What’s cool about this genre though is that everyone has different favorite tracks based on their musical background and experience. Some you love, some maybe not so much…but one thing for sure is that start to finish, the album doesn’t drag for a second.
Can you tell us a little bit about this exclusive preview track
This track, “Not Ready”, is the first song (after the intro track) on the album. It starts with Mike Shinoda of Fort Minor chanting “Y’all are not ready…” over “Bang a Gong (Get it On)” by T. Rex, which kind of taunts the listener into the album, before exploding into some personal favorites like The O’Jay’s “Love Train”.
Any other comments?
My last two albums have been known for their intro songs–this album is more cinematic (wow, that sounds pretentious) in the sense that the intro is downplayed but sort of opens up the album like a first prelude or first scene in a movie, while the last track, actually ending with a movie quote, is more prominent than the introduction, tying things up in a resolved sort of way (that being said, if you don’t know or like the song “White Winter Hymnal”, it’ll just suck).
I’ll keep on mashing, making instrumentals, etc after the release of Loaded…but I think this marks an interesting time in mashup history, if you can call it that. I’ve been doing it long enough to put out over six mashup albums, and with Girl Talk’s release of his third non-glitchpop disc this year, I wonder if the attitude towards this kind of music will start to change. Innovation needs to happen, and fast–how many more multi-song mashup albums can happen before people get bored? Or will the pop music machine keep churning out enough songs to keep mashups interesting? I think all this waits to be seen, but one thing is sure–shit’s about to get weird.
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