Disc jockeys want you to shake your tailfeather

Tony Cairo, senior in integrated studio arts, works his beat under his disc jockey name Kinky Kyro at Bali Satay. Photo: Courtesy/Tony Cairo

Emily Bishop
October 8, 2008

It’s “devoted to the art of moving butts.”

Troy Cairo, senior in integrated studio arts, and Adrian Navarro, junior in interior design, make up the Bootytronic Suite, a disc jockey duo that’s spinning Saturday at Bali Satay, 2424 Lincoln Way.

Onstage the two go by their DJ names — Kinky Kyro and Dr. Navarro.

Cairo began DJing at Bali Satay about a year ago — prior to that, he had been DJing at the Bohemian Bistro, which has since closed.

“It was hard to get it going,” Cairo said. He first worked at Bali Satay on Wednesdays but now it’s Saturdays every two weeks, or twice a month.

“I basically wanted it to be a night for people to come and be ridiculous [and] dance to music that’s new and fresh stuff,” Cairo said.

When Cairo was DJing at ISU Fashion Show pre-party last May, Navarro attended with friends and began talking to him about DJing and techno music.

Navarro is able to introduce people to minimal techno, Cairo said, which is one reason Cairo wanted Navarro to join.

While DJing, Navarro begins playing a song and Cairo transitions into the song, creating beats “looped over each other onto the same tempo to make a remix,” Cairo said. They each use laptops and share four turntables.

“It’s pretty sweet,” Navarro said of the set-up.

The pair use digital spinning.

“It’s cheap,” Navarro said. “[And] it’s difficult to find vinyl.”

Each DJ has a distinct sound.

“I think I give it a more sophisticated tone,” Navarro said, who prefers minimal techno.

Navarro said minimal techno “has a very specific sound and beat layout. The bass has everything to do with it.” The style is never monotone and varies from “really dry beats to more harmony.”

Navarro’s love of techno began when he was 14 or 15 years old and lived in South America.

“I started clubbing at an early age,” Navarro said. “I wanted to listen to [techno] all the time.”

Navarro has a vast techno collection and bought his first turntable two years ago.

While Navarro’s DJ style is more minimal, Cairo mixes ‘80s music and also plays metal mixed with electro.

Cairo’s mom often played ‘80s techno-style music when he was in middle school, influencing his love of the genre.

“I always wanted to be a DJ,” Cairo said, who has been DJing for five years now.

The fusion of Cairo’s vintage sound with Navarro’s more sophisticated, post-futuristic sound “collides in the present,” Cairo said.

They play new music and avoid “Eurotrans” techno.

When people come to the event, Navarro said they want people to feel that “for one night you were a part of something.”

A misconception Navarro had before he began DJing was the idea that you make beats with the records. In reality, the music is pre-recorded. Navarro admitted that DJing is “a lot simpler than it looks.”

Creating trust with the audience is an important aspect of DJing.

“The cardinal rule of DJing is never take requests,” Navarro said.

For the month of October they encourage people to come dressed up, since Halloween is near.

“The social environment is really carefree and laid-back — very inviting,” Navarro said. He added that people come to have a “good time.”

An opening DJ, Xyema, who plays ‘80s alt-rock and new wave, will start the show and hand off the turntables to Cairo and Navarro.

While DJing, Cairo and Navarro dress up — sometimes wearing ‘70s or ‘80s attire.

“That’s how I view it,” Navarro said. “A night for eccentricity.”

A visual element is added to their show through a DVD they project in the background of ‘90s computer animation.

“It helps give a visual element to the music,” Cairo said.

If both weren’t design majors, they said they’d be studying music. Because of this passion, Cairo said money is not the motivation for spinning.

“It’s almost more than a hobby,” Cairo said. “It’s a passion.”

When hearing an amazing beat or song, he said, “I get goosebumps.”