James Haidak

A fool-proof guide to starting a DJ career

The world of mixing music is a beautiful one. Those who desire to build a DJ career have been fans of music and mixing for years before they decide to make it their lifestyle. In this blog post, DJ-producer James Haidak shares a fool-proof guide to getting started in mixing.

A disc jockey or a DJ hosts recorded music for listeners. A DJ must always do what they do for the music. Without passion and a real interest in music, it would be difficult for a DJ to discover their own sound and make it far in the industry. Aspiring DJs must make music they want to listen to. The music industry is diverse. Therefore, there will always be room for unique music.

With a signature sound in mind, choose the right equipment for the gig. Some DJs might choose to stream their music and not perform in clubs, while others love to have gigs in huge venues. For home studios, it would be best to buy a desktop. A laptop best fits mobile gigs. Be sure to purchase and install DJ software that you find easy to use. Invest in quality headphones or in-ear monitor to hear the music in the best quality.

According to James Haidak, building a career in the music industry requires connections. Get to know other DJs, learn from their experiences, and ask questions. Some of them would even mentor aspiring DJs.

James Haidak is an up-and-coming DJ and producer, who has found his home base between Koh Phangan and Amsterdam. He produced as a hobby for several years until—at the age of 23—he relocated to Amsterdam, where he discovered his passion for techno. Head over to this page for similar updates.

A look into the effects of COVID-19 on the planet

People have mixed perceptions when it comes to the effects of COVID-19 on the planet. After the last few months where travel restrictions were strictly imposed and followed, a careful but steady decrease in air pollution and emissions was recorded. Will these environmental effects last?

Across the globe, greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution rates have significantly dropped since the middle of March. If there is any good thing that the virus has brought, it could be the decrease in air pollution rates, says environment advocate James Haidak. However, as the need for medical-grade face masks and other personal protective equipment also increased, medical waste has multiplied.

Recycling has been a global problem for years, and some countries have only started imposing laws and ordinances with regard to it. The novel coronavirus is described as a sticky virus that can cling to surfaces for minutes to hours, depending on the material. As a result, recycling programs in some parts of the world have been stopped to prevent the spread of the virus through recycled materials. This has reduced waste recycling and increased waste altogether.

According to James Haidak, the travel industry is the major waste contributor to coastal areas. Without swarms of tourists, some beaches around the world have started to look cleaner. Although, water pollution may increase if improper waste management continues. For city dwellers, environmental noise levels have dropped after governments required citizens to stay home. Noise from public transportation, industrial developments, and commercial activities has significantly decreased in nearly all cities around the world.

James Haidak is an up-and-coming music producer and club DJ who juggles between Amsterdam and Koh Pangan, Thailand. He advocates for saving the environment. For more from James Haidak, head over to this page.

Mixer vs. audio interface: The best unit for a home studio

There is no better time to build a home studio than now. Self-isolation prompted artists to send out positive vibes through online concerts and collaborations with other performers. Having reliable audio equipment at home has never been more important, says James Haidak.

Given that one already has a PC or Mac, a microphone, instruments, instrument cables, and headphones, it’s time to decide on the recording device. A mixer mixes different signals and sends it to the computer, while an audio interface acts as a translator between the recorded instrument and the computer. With an audio interface, the signal that comes from the microphone is converted into a digital sound.

An audio interface is connected to a PC or Mac through a USB or FireWire cable, taking the analog signal and translates it into a digital sound that the computer understands. One key quality to note is that an audio interface separates the tracks sent to the computer. A computer can also power a mixer through a USB cable. Unlike an audio interface, it sends the sounds from a microphone and an instrument as one track.

According to music producer and DJ James Haidak, when recording layers of tracks, the best choice would be the audio interface. It allows one to separate and edit tracks as they please. For podcasts, live stream, and stereo recording purposes, it would be best for one to go with a mixer, as it permits one to tailor their sound, giving them full control of the feed as the computer translates it.

James Haidak discovered his passion for electronic music early in life. At the age of 17, he bought his Ableton music sequencing software and proceeded to learn and hone the craft. For more from James Haidak, visit this page.

How to stay healthy while traveling

There are a lot of jobs and lifestyles that require frequent travel. Global corporations often have people flying from one country to another. Musicians and performance artists like theater groups constantly move from one location to another during tours. Likewise, backpackers often visit a new destination every two or three days. And for all these lifestyles, getting sick can be detrimental, notes DJ James Haidak. A single day sick can ruin a lot of plans. This is why it is important to stay healthy while traveling.

Staying healthy is often attributed to diet and exercise. Sometimes, it’s difficult to ascertain the nutritional value of food eaten, especially if it’s a foreign dish. This is why it’s necessary to take in vegetables and fruits as often as possible. Also, make healthier choices when it comes to drinks. Instead of drinking soda, go for natural juice instead. If your travels have a more active spin, hydrate regularly.

As for exercise, people who travel often neglect this since one usually has little or no time to do so. You have to find time for small exercises. You don’t have to go all out when working out. Purchasing exercise equipment you can bring anywhere like workout resistance bands or a yoga mat can help you do more vigorous workouts. If you are staying at a hotel, check if they have gym facilities. And if you’re a backpacker, know that the constant walking and swimming in beaches may not cover your health if you keep partying at night as well.

Lastly, living a lifestyle that forces you to travel regularly can take its toll on your body. James Haidak believes that you should make sure you are getting enough sleep. If you don’t get enough rest, you could end up with travel fatigue.

James Haidak is a musical performer from Amsterdam. He gives tips on sound production as well as on running restaurants, traveling, and helping the environment. For more about Mr. Haidak and his passions, check out this page.

What traveling can teach you

A career in music can literally bring you to places you’ve never been to. Amsterdam DJ James Haidak has performed in several countries and has traveled different continents for the pleasures of seeing sights and experiencing new cultures. From his experiences and stories shared to him by other travelers, it is not surprising to know that he picked up a thing or two along the way. These could be life lessons, travel hacks, or even something encountered during travels. In terms of life lessons, here are some things traveling the world will teach you, according to James.

When traveling, you can’t help but learn to be more appreciative of the small blessings in life. Life isn’t hurried and you have more time for new experiences. You notice small acts of kindness, how intricate nature is, the capacity of a human being to share his or her experiences, and the power of stories.

During one’s travel, a lot of things don’t go as planned. But as you face more and more inconvenience or hitches during your travel, you’ll learn not to sweat the small stuff. You’ll encounter more and more problems but learn to shrug them off. Suddenly, being stuck in traffic, getting on a bus filled with people, or missing your boat doesn’t seem to bother you that much anymore.

Lastly, you learn to get out of your comfort zone. Traveling, especially when visiting non-English speaking countries, can introduce you to a lot of scenarios which you might not be 100% comfortable with. Whether it’s the exotic food in India or the squat toilets in China, or even the openness of locals to engage in conversations with a stranger, you’ll learn that you can deal with these nuances and realize it’s not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. James Haidak believes that the more you travel, the more you become less irritable and often resign yourself to the inevitability of things around you.

James Haidak is a DJ from Amsterdam. He gives tips on sound production as well as on running restaurants, traveling, and helping the environment. For more about Mr. Haidak and his passions, check out this website.

How restaurants are giving meaning to the days of people with disabilities

While James Haidak loves to share his knowledge on how restauranteurs can improve their businesses, he wants to take this opportunity to pay tribute to owners who have embraced both equality and inclusiveness.

Establishments such as restaurants have always been places where people come to enjoy good food and service. A lot of owners pride themselves in giving customers the best experience so they may return. And because this is the primary concern of restauranteurs, for many restaurants in the past, employing a person with disability was simply not an option.

Thankfully, times have changed, and restaurant owners like many other entrepreneurs in many other industries have become more socially conscious. Along with greener practices in the direction of sustainability, business owners have also inched closer toward equal opportunity employment and inclusivity, James Haidak mentions.

Today, several chains have started to employ people with disabilities. While these establishments, by no means represent the majority, a majority that still resists providing work for people with disabilities, they have adopted the movement and have even revised their missions and visions to this end.

And while people with disabilities may still be viewed as liabilities more than assets, several programs are being developed by employers to train them further, so that they may reach their full potential. It truly is an inspirational circumstance when people with disabilities are offered a chance at a better life, and their days are given much more meaning.

James Haidak is an up-and-coming DJ and producer based in Koh Phangan, Thailand, and Amsterdam. His music is strongly influenced by house, electronica, and ‘90s techno. More on Mr. Haidak here.

The most devastating oil spills endured by the oceans

Some of the worst environmental disasters the world has ever witnessed involves massive oil spills in the ocean. James Haidak explains that not only does oil spill kill millions of creatures in the ocean, it can also take years, sometimes even decades, to clean up. It can destroy livelihoods and solving the problem may cost billions.

On that note, James Haidak shares three of the most catastrophic oil spills in human history.

Persian Gulf, Kuwait

An oil spill on its own is already tragic, but what happened on January 19, 1991 is made even more so by being intentional as Iraqi forces triggered an oil spill in an attempt to block the advance of American soldiers during the Gulf War. The result? Over 4,000 square meters of the golf was covered in four-inch oil coming from tankers and offshore oil terminals.

Gulf of Mexico

Approximately 210 million gallons of oil was released into the Gulf of Mexico when the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded. The oil continued to flow out of the opening for almost three months, resulting in the near-total destruction of the gulf.

Kolva River

The oil spill in the Kolva River in Russia was influenced by a number of factors that included a leaking pipeline that remained unchecked for eight months and a dike which suddenly collapsed due to the cold weather. Acres of streams, bogs, and marshland were devastated, with millions of creatures and plant life being destroyed.

James Haidak is a DJ from Amsterdam. He gives tips on sound production as well as on running restaurants, traveling, and helping the environment. For more about James and his passions, check out this blog.

Seminal Electronica artists from the 1990s

The 1990s not only brought grunge music and alternative rock but spurred on a dance music revolution that would come to be known sweepingly as Electronica. It would be led mainly by dance music acts coming from Europe. In this blog post, Amsterdam-based DJ James Haidak lists down some of the most popular Electronica bands and artists of the era.

The Prodigy

Formed in 1990 by songwriter and punk-music enthusiast Liam Howlett, The Prodigy is responsible for electronic music anthems “Firestarter” and “Breathe.” But before the quartet reached mainstream popularity, they had already been hailed for several underground hits like “One Love,” “Voodoo People,” and “Outer Space.” Sadly, co-vocalist Keith Flint passed away last March.

The Chemical Brothers

Equally as popular during the ‘90s as The Prodigy is the duo of sTom Rowlands and Ed Simons, better known as The Chemical Brothers. The pair helped bring pounding backbeat and deep, groovy basslines into electronic music, explains James Haidak. Among the band’s most popular hits are club staples “Setting Sun,” “Block Rockin’ Beats,” “Hey Boy Hey Girl,” and “Electrobank.”

Moby

Solo artist Richard Melville “Moby” Hall is a renowned DJ, musician, and author. Though he made his entrance into the electronica scene much earlier in the decade, it was the release of his album “Play” in 1999 that catapulted him to global fame. The critically acclaimed album features the seminal hits “Porcelain,” “Natural Blues,” and “Bodyrock.”

Fatboy Slim

James Haidak explains that Fatboy Slim is the moniker used by Former Housemartins bassist Norman Cook. Cook completely reinvented himself from a respected musician into a full-fledged DJ with the release of his second studio album “You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby” in 1998. The album was a worldwide smash hit, giving birth to the tracks “The Rockafeller Skank,” “Right Here, Right Now,” and “Praise You.”

James Haidak began producing electronic music at the age of 23, at which time he relocated to Amsterdam and fell in love with techno. The DJ and producer soon managed to create his own deep and driving signature sound. Visit this blog for related music and DJ culture posts.

Restaurants on the rise: The advantages of online marketing for restauranteurs

James Haidak is fascinated by the restaurant business. He has read up and researched on many topics about running a restaurant and has learned a ton of ways to make this hospitality establishment successful.

One of these ways, James Haidak explains, is to take full advantage of online platforms to execute marketing strategies. For this blog, he shares a number of points on why online marketing is the way to go when marketing a restaurant.

• Email marketing has been known to be incredibly cost-effective, especially if restaurant owners have a good list of people at hand.

• Online platforms such as social media and email take absolutely no time to reach the restaurant’s target market.

• Social media and email providers have developed features that can automate marketing, freeing a huge chunk of time for restaurant owners.

• Part of the best features of social media and email is segmentation, which can target very specific people, such as those in the immediate vicinity.

• Online pages can be customized in such a way that they appeal to different individuals and attract them to the establishment even more.

James Haidak is a DJ based in Amsterdam. Apart from music production, he also has deep knowledge in running restaurants, traveling, and saving the environment. Read more articles like this here.

• Over half of restaurant owners today neglect putting up a website, choosing to go with traditional means of marketing. And since a huge percentage of people today are connected to the internet, James Haidak says that having an online presence gives restauranteurs a distinct advantage.

Theme and service: Two solid ways to market a restaurant

If there’s one thing James Haidak loves to do during his free time, it’s reading up and sharing the many ways restauranteurs can run a successful establishment. He believes that far too many young restaurant owners close up shop because they fail to market their establishments well and fall to their competition.

In this blog, James Haidak shares two solid ways to market a restaurant.

Set a popular theme.

Some of the most successful restaurants in communities all around the world have popular themes. Some themes are more straightforward than others. Themes can be as general as nationalism, showcasing the country’s best, and as specific as “Star Wars.” Whatever theme one chooses, it should coincide with what the immediate community is interested in. For example, if a town is heavy into sports, and has that one favorite sports team, a restaurant and bar featuring said team could attract a lot of patrons, especially during game day.

Showcase unique services.

Unique services have almost always done a restaurant good, James Haidak notes. Back in the ‘50s, it was waiters and waitresses gliding around on roller skates. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, some establishments would have staff would sing or rap the menu to patrons. Having a unique service can get people interested. Even having live bands and singers perform or conducting open mic night can attract more customers and may even elevate the name of the restaurant as “the place” to be on a specific night.

James Haidak is a DJ from Amsterdam. He gives tips on sound production as well on running restaurants, traveling, and helping the environment. For more about him and his passions, check out this blog.