Project 2 Many DJs at the Party - 2 Years of the Ministry Club

In September, the "Ministry" club celebrates its birthday. This event promises to be one of the brightest moments in Moscow's club life in 2003. On this day, a real theatrical DJ show will unfold in the "Ministry." The famous Belgian duo 2 Many DJs - two brothers Steven and David Dewaele, better known as the Belgian rock group Soulwax, will perform not behind the DJ booth but right on stage, in the center of the hall. In times when mothers teach DJ skills at their children's birthday parties, and bootlegs are equated with Olympic sports, it's pleasant to witness an album from the Belgian music gurus 2 Many DJs, aka Soulwax, setting new standards for mix compilations. Music lovers know Soulwax from the time of their album 'Much Against Everyone's Advice,' which made it to the British Top 40 and received positive reviews even in Australia and Japan. Besides the fact that one of the band members is the chairman of the Belgian carpentry association (Stephen), and the other has a black belt in taekwondo (David), they are also unmatched masters at mixing the finest works from various musical genres. Their album, consisting of 46 diverse tracks over 62 minutes, is not just beat-matched compositions but a sort of musical collage "glued" together from music of absolutely different styles. Back in 1999, David and Stephen, while performing their shows on the Belgian national radio station 'Hang The DJ,' began experimenting with different musical styles and directions, mixing the instrumental part of one musical work with the vocals from another: "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera with "Hard to Explain" by The Strokes or "Child's Bootylicious" by Destiny's Child with "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana. In the upcoming album, the last composition is released under the title "Smells Like Booty." Having conquered Belgium and the Netherlands, David and Stephen set out to conquer the London music scene, where approximately every 67% of the population (including 17% of women over 65) features two turntables and one mixing desk. But already during their first performance with their scintillating tracks on the Xfm radio station, calls started pouring into the studio from club owners asking them to play at their parties. It later took them three years to convince the Belgian record label PIAS to release such an album. For the album's release, 187 tracks were initially selected and by contacting 45 different record companies, they received permission to use only 114 compositions. "Mick Jones of The Clash was very pleased after listening to his composition 'The Magnificent Seven' mixed with Basement Jaxx's 'Romeo' - says Stephen, but we were unable to obtain rights to use it on our album. It's a pity, but there is more than enough material that could intrigue you, make you smile and have fun. However, the album includes a sufficient number of famous compositions such as Destiny's Child's 'Independent Women' mixed with 10CC's 'Dreadlock Holiday' and The Stooges' 'No Fun' with Salt 'N' Pepa's 'Push It', Royksopp's 'Eple' with Dolly Parton's 'Nine To Five' and Basement Jaxx's 'Where's Your Head At' with Emerson Lake and Palmer's 'Theme From Peter Gun.' From pragmatic commercial rock to funky rhythm and blues, from trendy hip-hop to sounds of German techno - all within one hour of the album's playtime. But that's only half the work. The second half is creating a historical journey through pop music. Some tracks on this album are classics, some are simply unknown, while others will soon become hot hits.

THE NEW YORK TIMES
"Last year, the Dewaele brothers, Belgians who also play in the popular group Soulwax, created a completely legal mix album without much hassle. They needed only two weeks to release the album "2 Many D.J.s: As Heard on Radio Soulwax Pt. 2 (Part 2)." The first part does not exist - it took nine months to obtain rights to use the music (which includes songs by Dolly Parton, Sly and the Family Stone, as well as many other famous artists). And even after that, they were granted rights to release the CD only in Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Pirate copies of this album circulate in the USA, and many music critics after listening to it call it not just the best mix album, but also the best album released last year. "This is my favorite album of the year," says Steve Greenberg (Mercury Records). "It is an absolutely new, fresh, and original look at music that breaks the boundaries between conventional categories, styles, and directions in music."

THE FACE
Leading in the field of illegal record releases with "white labels," Stephen and David Dewaele, well-known from the Belgian group Soulwax, release their first licensed bootleg album. The album by their group 2 Many DJs - As Heard on Radio Soulwax with remixes of the Soulwax group previously considered illegal, is now released on completely legal grounds, thanks to the work of lawyers who managed to find loopholes in the judicial legislation. "We will create a precedent," says David. "Major record companies will now have to 'fret' to protect their rights to the released compositions." 2 Many DJs say: "You have too little time during a DJ set, so you start playing as many records as possible. This is exactly what we did in 2 Many DJs. The compositions are mixed and 'cut' - but it sounds good." They are described as: "They are the most talented DJs and artists I have ever crossed paths with. They do whatever the hell they want with the music, and the result sounds cool" - Erol Alkan, Trash.
We say: An intrinsic "listening" culture among clubbers and lawyers similar to those from the Sony recording corporation.