How do you organize your records?

[Recess]

Since DJs are notorious for being so very well organized and ALWAYS have their shit together, I'd like to hear how the experts do it. Outside of the Dewey Decimal system (see Party Girls- that scene with Parker Posie still cracks me up), how do you know exactly where to find that particular record at home at a moments notice, is there even a way?

Alphabetical? Genre? Labels? Producers? Record sleeve color?

What about those records (and I actually have quite a few) that cross genres? For example, a breaks mix on one side and a house track on the other.

I mean, some of you out there have literally thousands and thousands of records under one roof. What's the trick?

[Headphones Dude]

What's weird is I don't even have turntables yet, but I organize my crates anyway. I try to think in my mind of a few of my favorite records, and a few ones which are sorta okay, but for each crate, I try to throw in a few Icey records, a few Kaleidoscope or Unions, a few white labels, and anything in between. Then I figure, what I got would rock any party, and then I close it up, until I feel like just going through it again.....

[burnt]

I saw on that movie Scratch that you're supposed to organize your rekkids by BPM, but fuck that, too much work. plus, I'm so bad at staying focused on task, that I'd prolly stop measuring BPM's to start mixing.

I organize by genre, then by sub-genre, then by sub-sub-genre. hell, I think I know all the coolest sub-genre names for all the various sub-genres out there. not so much for sounding smart when I go out to DJ bars, more just so I know where to find that one particular sound.

only, then, like I'll get the occasional gig or something, and grab various sick tracks from the middle of my crates. then I'll get home and be all hungover and super-excited, and I'll start mixing, and get inspired to make a mixtape or something, and pull out even more rekkids. then I go rekkid shopping.

then I've got all these rekkids all willy-nilly all over my livingroom in various piles, and I'll have to re-organize. like, for instance, right now!

I should just stick to this organizational pattern. fuck crates. I've got stacks of 5-15 rekkids all over my house, and it works for me. until my drunk roommate steps on one, that is.

[JungleSelekta]

the universal substaince has no form... natural is beauty.

[dj metro]

all personal preference and what works best for you.

i am somewhat organized, i keep all of my remix service in the same area starting from newer to older, and in their own section. i then organize all tracks by popularity and then by personal preference and taste. all of my record sleeves are tagged with stickers that have the bpm on them, but they are not organized by amount of bpm. that would take too much time and some records that i have contain multiple songs so that would defeat the purpose.

refer to the first sentence :D

[Jizosh]

alphabetical by label, by genre.

[willie]

my newer records just kinda stay in two big piles on the floor (kinda not real organized, but then i don't dig on playin the same records back-to-back all the time, so this way there's kind of a shuffle happening and i end up trying new things.). my favorites go into two flight cases kinda in a loose arrangment by what sounds good together, then the older stuff is alphabetized by artist.

...on a side note, there was an interview i read this last year with either christopher lawrence,bt,or some other big name in URB, and the interviewer asked him about the possibilities of Final Scratch. i had to agree with him when he said (paraphrased), "that means i would have to know the name of the producer/track/label/something in order to digitally file it. i'm used to 'this one goes with the green labeled one, this one behind the red one, then followed by the one in the green sleeve...'."

i admit that i do a shitty job remembering names of producers & tracks most of the time, and in the two big piles rely more on visual recognition... once stuff is alphabetized i still remember more by placement & visual recognition.

[lilroj]

I remember a long time ago, before the bpm counter came out, I used to count my bpm's and label it on the top corner everytime I bought records and they would go in the crate by bpm. Then I started buying too many records of the same style and didn't need to do that nonsense anymore. Now, I'm lazy and unorganized. I just keep them together in the order that I by them, or at least close. Usually when I buy, the set goes good together, so why not keep em together.

[DjHavok]

How I do it in 2 steps:first go by genre of music; second I go by what I like to dislike and occasionally Ill get crazy and sort by what goes good together. When it comes to scratch and samples I use I usually go by what samples I frequent the most. But you have to have your scattered pile....shit for your friends to play with and teaching material. That sums up my record collection set up.
When it expands to like 50+ crates I might go and organize it in alphabetical order in genre, but I still got 20 somethin to go....lol....

[JungleSelekta]

universal form has no substaince do not no not do

[Sophistik]

By genre, but then by ... i dunno... Vibe... Organic tunes with organic. I've been meaning to throw them together all bpm and keyd but I have no time for that.

Right now tho (and most of the time) they're in whatever order they end up in....

....Total Chaos

[bweaver]

LOLz..
All I have to do is keep the styles slightly seperate and look through that style once.. then I know the general area of where every track is hiding out.. I then progress into random skirmish looking for a track (which usually lasts about 20 seconds tops) and whallaH the record I was looking for ends up in my hands.. I try not to let them fall into a program for a disc or anything.. I usually cant play a track twice in the same day unless its brand new.. so after a week or so its in the pile

[RNA]

I keep my records all disorganized... then I lose records, and when I find them again, its like Christmas!

[JiveTurkeyMoFo]

genre to bpm to labels and producers to feel

[186k\sec]

i keep the most recent releases in one bin., then after i get tired of new records I put them in my library by order of genra, but not exclusively, some artists have released so much stuff, I give them their own bin, like Miguel Migs. - I must have over 50 Migs records all in a stack, the rest is divided up in subgenras like 'techy funk' and 'thump'n 1am house' or NASA grooves'.. etc. etc..
I usually dont have to search more than a couple minutes, which isnt bad when searching thru something like 800 records. . .

[skloot]

I generally keep them all in one large stack, on top of eachother, sitting over a heater vent. Keep those grooves flat!

Seriously though, I organize by genre. I have them broken into chunks such as, hard stuff, vocal dnb, older school dnb, uk sheit, etc. Whatever works for you're style, I say.

[brainCandy909]

i think of a set befor i spinn and put them in the order im gunna play thats about it no fancey shit here...

[skloot]

just say NO to pre-planning sets

[groovinkim]

Originally posted by RNA
I keep my records all disorganized... then I lose records, and when I find them again, its like Christmas!


same here.

i have very, very little organization. not only that, but i frequently put records back in the wrong sleeves.

the only organization i have is that the ones i like the best end up in the crate closest to me.. but none of them have anything to do with each other.. genre-wise, sound-wise.. they are all haphazard..

i also apparently have a fondness for records with weirdly syncopated beats that are difficult to mix, no matter what the genre.. records which suddenly switch tempo or overall sound without warning. in the peak of my frustration with mixing, i had someone else try to mix my records.. i thought maybe hearing someone else do it well would inspire me.. instead, he told me that i should get some records that were easier to beatmatch because "this shit would drive anyone crazy" =P hahah!

[dj_r2]

how i organized my records:

I usually stack them by its side and build houses with them like we used to do with Decks of Cards.. or do a domino effeects!!

should try them sometimes.. lol:D

[milgramShock]

i put my house with my house, my jungle with my jungle and my techno with my house....er.... yeah.

within those boundries, I know my records by color and pictures.....

sometimes.... i'll think of a record (I haven't seen in a while) while i'm playing.... and go nuts trying to find it. If I find it...I'll freak out. Then i'll put it on and dance around the room in my dicksuit.... its great.

[KidKaBoom]

Each record gets its own little shrine, where it sits in direct sunlight and worships the holy vinyl deities. :D "Bless'ed thine phat off beat basslines and hoover stabs-in your mercy" :p

[Recess]

At least I now know I'm not alone.

I suppose you could say that my "system" of organization is constantly evolving...

At least I make sure they're clean, upright, out of the heat/light, and in their sleeves. That's about the most I could ask of myself right now.