Faders & Footnotes

As 2015 comes to a close, your brain starts going through a mental checklist to brace itself for the New Year.  What were the highlights? What were the little stumbles along the way – and where did you carve out some special meaning and moments in the journey overall?

I’ve never been one that subscribed to the “New Year – New Me” nonsense that gets circulated during the holiday season with the hope of purposing a resolution that will change your life – but I do think there is value in taking inventory of the people you should be thankful for when you switch over calendars in December.

So with that in mind, let me say thanks.

This past December I released a mix project, with my friends at 8 by 8 Magazine, a beautiful full color subscription periodical that highlights the long-form journey of soccer on a quarterly basis.   So lucky to journey out to NY and meet Cooper + his team.  Their stunning piece of literary art is really the main inspiration behind our project together and it was a blast to interact with them.  I hope to work more with them in the future.  

 Be sure to check out the interview and final product of our collab – RIGHT HERE. THE MIX IS HOT FIYAH! & I also manage to make myself not look like too much of an idiot. 

 Outside of this mix, which celebrated Major League Soccer’s 20th anniversary in the USA, I wanted to establish an avenue to not only give away a fun audio project to folks for free, but also a product for friends  who are just as passionate about music/sport culture. 

So to celebrate this year, this project, and the fusion between music and sport – we are releasing a special limited edition run of DJ STEP and 8 by 8 Mag Jerseys.

 These jerseys have custom made patches – hand stitched into authentic Adidas apparel – and less than 20 of these will be available.  

They’re completely free – but as there is such a limited amount I am going do a little drawing and pick some winners.  

All you need to do is RETWEET THIS LINK, and throw me a THUMBS UP on my FACEBOOK PAGE, and then I’ll randomly draw from that list of people for a free jersey – shipped to your door. The announcement will occur on New Years Day.   Thank you so much for supporting my projects in 2015, working hard to give people something worth cheering about in the New Year. 

I’m leaving on a jet plane this week - catching a flight to NYC to attend #Blazercon.  It’s a soccer-specific convention hosted by the NBC Sports duo Michael Davies + Rog Bennett, The hosts of the television broadcast “The Men In Blazers”.

Spearheading a late Monday night time slot on NBC - Rog + Dav-o (as they are affectionately referred to) crack jokes and recap the weekends matches from England + tackle a wide range of leagues and pop culture points in their weekly podcast.

I’m headed out to spend time with family, but also get to hear from a wide range of soccer figures and learn more about their narratives through the beautiful game.  Understanding the past, and present of what’s going is clearly a way I can help plan for the future & strengthen the soccer culture out here in Chicago.  I also get to meet a ton of very dope people and lay the foundation for some really cool collaborations that I will share with you guys soon!  Plus there is beer - HOLLLLLLLERRRR.  

So to get hyped for the weekend - I created an eclectic spotify playlist of tunes inspired by the panelists and events happening in Brooklyn for the con.  I also included some liner notes below on why I made these selections.  Here’s to a fun weekend of friends, family, and football (Soccer). NO SLEEP TIL BROOKLYN!

Track 1 - Orson “Bright Idea”

I’ve spent a life-time watching crap soccer movies because for some reason all the compelling directors decided to write about Notre Dame Football or Friday Night Lights.  “Goal” was the first movie besides “The Big Green” that inspired or made me feel connected me as a soccer player - this record is from the soundtrack to that movie.  Still gives me chills 

Track 2 - Rush “I Think I’m Going Bald” 

No, This is not me subconsciously telling you something - my follicles are still fluffy and with a bit of luck I will still have hair for the next few years.  But Rog + Dav-O are not as lucky.  The two bald Englishmen traditionally make a conscious effort to target those they refer to as “Bald deny-ers” or those that have not quite admitted the cut of their coif.  Here is their TRUE ANTHEM! 

Track 3 - Churches “Trace of Me”

The Men in Blazers had Churches Keyboardist Martin Doherty on the Pod a few months backs - I imagine an adaptation of this song called “Traces of a Man” that represents Dav-o’s despair as a Chelsea fan in the EPL this year : ) 

Track 4 - Sting “Englishman in New York”

This is a bizarre song - Sting refers to himself as a “legal alien” not sure if that’s the Star Wars or Star Trek version, but it is a great way to describe folks like Charlie is a Red, who is making his first trip to the states.  COME ON UNITED!

Track 5 - Beastie Boys “No Sleep til Brooklyn” 

RIP MCA - This song speaks for itself.  I’m super excited about this weekend - Won’t be sleeping much.  SO much love for the Beasties.

Track 6 - The Who “American Woman”

The World Cup Winning USWNT will be in the house on Saturday.  This song is a bad ass tribute to them.  It was also used in an incredible Nike ad in the lead up to the big tourney. Check it here.

Track 7 - Mos Def “Brooklyn”

The samples on this make it one of my favorite Mos records - So much boom bap, See you guys in Brooklyn!

Track 8 - US3 “Kick This” 

The Drums and horn sample give it a distinct latin flare.  It was also featured on EA Sports FIFA 07.  

Track 9 - Manu Chao “La Rumba de Barcelona”

Yeah this is an American Soccer convention, but arguably my favorite sportscaster Ray Hudson will be there. His coverage of La Liga + specifically his love for verbal gymnastics and Lionel Messi will always have a special place in my heart. Vamos Ray! 

Track 10 - The Givers “Up Up Up”

New York based group has some funky jams, I love the music video and I envision Rog yelling “Up the Cherries” during the guitar riffs on this.  Big fan of his documentary on the Bournemouth premier club.  Their chairman Jeff Mostyn will be speaking at the conference. Did I mention a Chicago company owns part of the club now? That’s pretty awesome news for a Chicagoan like me. 

Track 11 - Paul McCartney “Flaming Pie”

There’s been talk that this was a result of a vision Jon Lennon had about pies. Probably a results of some popular stimulants during that era.  We all know Men in Blazers love of the gameday Pie, so I felt this song was VERY fitting the conference. Shot out Dub Pies! 

Track 12 - The Four Clefs - “I Like Pie, I like Cake”

So now that we’ve established our love of a traditional gameday meat pie... Can we expand our fascination to cake? How many licks does it take to get the center of a tootsie roll pop? Same answer - The world may never know. 

Track 13 - Amsterdam “Does this Train Stop on Merseyside”

Not a fan of Liverpool or Everton necessarily - but I know Rog is.  Here’s a tribute to all the Evertonians out there!

Track 14 - Pat Woods “The Guinness Song” 

MY GOODNESS! MY ___ . Guinness is a sponsor of the event this year. I’m looking to try that Nitro IPA at the conference. Will report back on how it tastes. I love a good drinking song.

Track 15 - The Stiffs “Bring on the Chelsea Girls”

Poor Michael Davies - Tough year for Chelsea fans, but hoping this can cheer you guys up. This wasn’t on spotify - but you can listen here.

Track 16 - White Stripes “Fell in Love with a Girl”

We all know Rog + Dav-0 have been huge supporters of our ailing brothers - the footballing aka soccer playing ginger community.  This White Stripes song about falling in love with a ginger is a sonic ode to this support and I approve of this.

“Red hair with a curl mellow roll for the flavor and the eyes were peeping can't keep away from the girl”

Track 17 - Alexi Lalas “Battle Cry”

All this talk of gingers can only mean one thing - the next song is dedicated to the king of the ginger soccer movement here in the states.  Was expecting this to be real audio assault on my ears, but it’s quite pleasant! Alexi is dope! Check it out. 

Track 18 - Featurecast “Got that Fire”

Ok so I DJ for the Chicago Fire out here in the Windy City - this is me losing the battle to not include at least one song with a loose fire reference. It’s also on EA Sports Fifa 2013 (O retro!) COME ON YOU MEN IN RED! 

Track 19 - Run DMC “My Adidas”

Stripes baby! When I land I will be in Queens and since the soccer gods our one of the sponsors this just gets me in the right mood! “JAM MASTER JAY KING OF THE CROSSFADER” RIP

Track 20 - New Order “Blue Monday”

Undoubtedly how I will feel after the convention and flying home.  The Truest “Sad Nap” that ever was.  : (

There is a contagious emotion that trumps all others in the spectrum of human interaction.

It’s the feeling of creative inspiration.

You know that sensation, that rush of joy or sense of discovery when you lock on to an idea that seems to defy the laws of social reason.  It’s equal parts crazy and equal parts intelligent with a dash of spontaneity. It’s a metaphorical middle finger to the way society wants you to act or behave, and it’s an idea that helps you carve out an existence that straddles the line between the reasonable and the radical.

 This is where I want to live.

You’re not re-inventing the wheel when you feel this way.  It’s the success you may feel when you realize a quicker route to work, or figure out a way to sort laundry faster. You could even be inspired to change from a well-written book or a movie.  The light of inspiration flickers on and off for a wide variety of reasons and in a myriad of ways, but the age-old question remains…. How can we remain inspired?

From a personal perspective – I struggle with this a lot.  I often feel like my life is disjointed – and I naturally compartmentalize things so I can make sense of how life works.  

What this quickly boils down to is some activities become “work” and others become “fun” or creative and the more I’ve meditated on this subject, the sillier I think the concept is.  When things become “work” the opportunity for any learning seems to fade – it’s replaced by the concept of getting from point A to Point B without major physical or emotional injury.  Let’s be honest work then becomes stress.

To me, we have this entire process backwards.

When I got out of school about two years ago, this mental separation between work & play, creative and structured was a process I grappled with constantly.  I struggled to maintain a life of balance with equal parts work (for financial reasons) and equal parts play (for creative and soul-feeding human interaction).  I now have the chance for both.

Recently I made a mix video with the help of my friends Ben + Dan that gave me the opportunity to start sonically curating matches for the Chicago Fire… An organization that is historically very important piece to Major League Soccer.  The sport itself has long since been a huge part of my life, and now to be able to combine two life-long passions into what some would characterize as a “job” – is truly an incredible experience.  

A Valentine's Day Playlist Curated by DJ STEP

Seasons greetings!

.... And by season I mean specifically everybody's favorite Hallmark holiday, Valentine's Day. Today you will metaphorically light your own money on fire in exchange for chocolates, jewelry, and dare I say flowers, to remind a special someone how much you care about them.  

Now at this moment in the conversation I need all the mopey "woe is me" single folks to snap out of it and realize that love is in fact all around them. The support system of your friends, family, colleagues, and coworkers is something worth cherishing. Even if you don't have a special someone to snuggle up with today, I am taking the initiative here and unlocking a secret stash of feel good tunes that you can jam to no matter what your marital status.

Bae or bachelor.. single or sweetheart??

10 tracks for the fourteenth of February, here's my special holiday collection, No Flowers Necessary. Love you guys! <3

It’s Sunday, the alarm went off and you have a horrible hangover. You went out with your friends last night downtown, but that’s about all you remember.

Don’t worry. I got you.  Let me fill in the missing links.  Also here’s some Advil and water (you definitely don’t look like a morning person).  

My name is Ben Stepnowski, I live in Chicago, Illinois and for about four years now I’ve been studying the art form of vinyl record manipulation and turntablism.  In layman’s terms, I am a professional DJ.  On a given weekend if you take a trip downtown in Chicago (specifically the River North neighborhood) and step into a relatively popular club, chances are pretty good that you’re on my dance floor.

In this day and age, DJing has become a really romanticized occupation, a cross between confetti cannons, flashing laser lights, and worldwide adoration, however the reality is way less glamorous.  In fact, your average friend or local weekend warrior probably has never experienced any of those as a “working DJ”.   The reality is a cross-fade between late nights, hard work, little sleep, and special/intimate human interaction that makes it all worthwhile.

That being said, one piece of human interaction that is often referred to as a big pitfall of any working DJ is the dreaded “song request”. 

If you ask a guy (or gal) that mixes songs together and gets paid to do it, chances are they have a horror story of a patron insisting they play some sort of tune during their night on the job.

“Oh. EM. GEE (oh my God) Ben, your life is so tough, people ask you to play music you didn’t even make… what’s your problem, my job is 10x harder than that.”

That’s normally the response I think of in my head when I share little stories of someone who needed to hear Bon Jovi in the middle of the all disco set I was playing or that Katy Perry was an absolute MUST in my old school Hip Hop repertoire.  The biggest disconnect here is that most working DJ’s are often paid on their ability to warm a room up for a headliner or control a dance floor in a manner that reflects the venue they are playing at.  When folks make demands on DJ’s in the forms of requests, they tamper with the ingredients at the DJ’s disposal to craft a proper energy level and rhythm to the dance floor.

I liken this song demand to forcing a baker to put almonds in his cookie mix even though the dessert is meant for someone with a nut allergy, if you demand things that don’t directly jive with what is prescribed for a night or a moment, you risk an uncomfortable or even catastrophic result.

So why do requests continue to survive?  I’m not writing this article as a hater believe it or not.  There have been moments where I run out of things to play and a request jogs my memory in a different direction, or starts a special bond with a patron that turns out to be a memorable friendship.

After a few years playing parties in Chicago I’ve come up with a flow chart and idea that to me, illuminates some reasoning behind the phenomena.

To me the phenomena stems from cyclical range of emotions that the common party-goer goes through when they decide to hit the dance floor with their friends on a given weekend.  The circle starts with STRESS (aka your normal job).

American Institute of Stress released a statistical analysis recently that highlighted nearly 80% of employees feel stress on the job almost half would say they could really use someone to help get through the anxiety.   This pent up negativity energy to me is a catalyst for a particularly rowdy evening of debauchery with friends at your favorite dance club or venue.

People head to mainstream clubs and popular venues to try and escape their normal sense of reality and forget many of the stresses or anxieties that bother them during a traditional day.  The dark room, blazing light shows, loud music, and alcohol prominence is undoubtedly a window of opportunity for escaping any issues or frustrations in hopes for one evening of temporary amnesia.  To some degree I feel that I occasionally overlook the fact that I play in mainstream venues and pop music seems to go hand in hand with a commercial familiarity that makes places so inviting.  But just like there are multiple ways to plan a road trip and arrive at a destination, you can also curate popular or familiar musical vibes in several different ways that are little more subtle than… “DJ - Play Bon Jovi now before me and my friends leave to the next venues”

It’s a frustrating issue because most often, my ability as a DJ and performer is hinged on the way I curate and mix tunes, my own take on popular or not so familiar tunes.  When demands of folks that have contributed 0 to the culture of DJing end up taking priority to the DJ… Everyone loses.  It’s like me walking into a finance office and taking lead on the next pitch your team does to a client.  I have no idea what I am talking about in those cases and no one benefits from me voicing compulsory thoughts or concerns. I don’t have a degree in finance and many of my suggestions would be completely off base.  The same can be said on the dance floor.  The traditional party goers’ lack of knowledge and understanding of dance floor chemistry makes it close to impossible for them to give worthwhile feedback.

  So how does the flow chart end? Where does it go from here?  The demand for familiar, exhaustive pop music is to me an attempt by party goers to anchor themselves in a reality that appears to be trickling away from them with every sip of the double long island ice tea they have in their hand.  As the dark room, strong drinks, and blistering light show begin to inhibit dancegoer’s sense of security and reality, they search for something to ground themselves in familiarity and maintain a hollow sense of comfort in a space where they are quickly losing their inhibitions.  They return to their workweek on Monday, with an empty sense of satisfaction that for one day, they “lived on the wild side” requesting things that are painstakingly familiar to everyone. 

As long as this work cycle remains, requests and the pressure/demands of this interaction will remain stronger than ever.  I write this article as a student of social interaction and not someone that is wishing to chastise or ridicule the system at work, moreover this is an attempt to portray a struggle felt by a lot of working DJ’s that wish to maintain a hard fought creative identity in a world where demands and interactions attempt to sculpt that identity into an entirely different form. 

My call to action is to demand better of yourself and think more closely about your daily social interactions. As a DJ and artist I am willing to play song suggestions and be as warm and welcoming to patrons as humanely possible, but there are cut off points when respecting human beings as individuals are also important.  If people disrespect your existence and position at your job you have every right to quickly and politely make the party aware of this negative sentiment. Then.. just as they made a request, you can also suggest the best way for them to remedy their behavior.  Not all moments in life will end as harmoniously as you expected, but bringing focus and importance to situations like this can help foster a higher awareness for a party – attendees and artists both included.  I also challenge people to actually go out and listen to your favorite working artists and DJs as a more educational experience than just simply treating folks as a human juke box with arms. 

What songs are they playing? How long have they been in a particular genre? Do they scratch?  What year was that record from? Why is this song my favorite?  Does it fit the mood the artist is creating currently?  What time is it at night and would this song requests popularity be too much to play at an early hour.

Photo Credit from Friend + DJ contemporary - DJ Lani Love

All these questions and hopefully a few answers can help create more aware fan bases that genuinely understand music better.  It’s my challenge to you as readers to take these ideas along with you the next time you go out.  I am 100% sure it will change your outlook on the world around you. 

Till next time, yours truly on the dance floor.

Thanks for checking out my blog!

I crafted this digital space as an opportunity to publish and organize my thoughts on a regular basis. 

For the most part the website name speaks for itself… “Faders” are the instrumental dials a professional DJ uses to change and alter sound volume on a mixer or sound system.

Footnotes? If you took any writing class that required you to do things correctly, you know that footnotes are little descriptors that appear in academic writing and serve to add clarification or relevant information to an existing story.

  So, that being said, what’s my adaptation on all this then?

Providing mini footnote-like entries on life by a young dj & professional that lives in Chicago, Illinois.  This isn’t academic, and I won’t be getting a grade for all this (unless you bless me with some feedback) so expect honest assessments with some light humor mixed in. 

You are also entitled to some coverage of current DJ + Music Culture, something I am a big part of in Chicago, but also some tasty entries on current social media and marketing trends. 

A huge interest of mine is connecting socially with others and manifesting that connection over any media platform available, Facebook, Twitter, or my running favorite currently; a cup of coffee.   Any great books, talks or meetings I have that inspire me to do more, expect them to find there way onto this page.   After all, if I can help you open a new favorite book, tune into a new album, or enjoy life a bit more, I’ve done my job.

So let’s start this journey together, Welcome to Faders & Footnotes.