New Wristband Helps DJs to Read Crowds!
Lightwave is a new project aiming to create wearable technology to provide DJs with real-time data analysing audience activity. By measuring sound levels, movement and body temperature of the participants at an event, it is intended to enable the performer to alter lighting and track selection in order to complement the whole experience.
As we all know, a DJ can make or break a party. Playing appropriate music, lifting spirits, dropping tracks on the beat and syncing the music are all key parts of a DJ set. However, the hard part is being able to read the crowd and pick up on their reaction – finding out what works for them and what doesn’t. Weekends of driving from venue to venue, lifting and carrying equipment, hours of set preparation, late nights, barely any sleep, years of hard practice… all become worthwhile when you’re in the moment playing the right tracks at the right time, truly making the party happen.
However, the experimental Lightwave system has been designed to replace the skill of an experienced DJ with technology. Launched by iPad DJ Rana June, it was recently tested by A-Trak (Canadian DJ and record label owner) at the South by South West Music Festival in the USA. “The underlying goal is to provide deeper, more meaningful insights about what’s happening beyond someone with a clicker saying 1,000 people walked in,” Rana June said.
The concept is similar to the Nike Plus iPod which records data during exercise, tracks progress and provides feedback. Instead of being used for a gym workout this gadget has been designed for a party, festival or nightclub. The idea is that all attendees to the event wear one so their movement, audio and body temperature levels are collated and fed-back to the DJ, giving increased insight into the mood of the crowd.
As innovative as the idea may seem, could this be taking away the organic purpose of the DJ?
Published: 25 April 2014