Fresno Famous

The crew behind Meatball Magic jokingly refer to the monthly dance night as the people's dance party.

Which makes Todd Frech the people's DJ.
That is, he takes requests.

The crew behind Meatball Magic jokingly refer to the monthly dance night as the people's dance party.

Which makes Todd Frech the people's DJ.
That is, he takes requests.

Which is odd for any DJ that's not, you know, playing a wedding. But as the newest of the Meatball gang, Frech is serious about working requests into his sets. Especially if they're made in advance.
Another thing he accepts almost always: free drinks.
“Vodka presbyterian, plain or flavored. It don't matter to jesus,” he says.

Here Frech (aka Todd Tomorrow) talks about keeping up with the latest music, being part of Meatball Magic and what makes a great DJ set.

How did you get started as a DJ?

I was late on the Meatball train, as I'm younger than the other DJs. I didn't really know Vance (DJ Heinz) when I started going to Meatball Magic. I knew some regulars and tried to tag along with them. Then, I started talking to Vance online and mentioned DJing with them and he was more than happy to have me. I had never done it before, so it was pretty anxiety-inducing and probably sounded horrible (not many people stayed inside to hear it). I waited a few months before going back. Everyone had forgotten about me by March, so I made a flyer for March 28, 2008, and made my return. Almost three years later, I've become a regular and I am so excited to do it every single month.

How would you describe your musical interests/what do you listen to?

My personal library is all over the place. Some favorites are: Xiu Xiu, Sonic Youth, Cocteau Twins, Antony and the Johnsons, Kylie Minogue, The Magnetic Fields, Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Boys Noize, M83, Crystal Castles, Basement Jaxx, The Knife, Ida, Seam, Parenthetical Girls, The Smiths and Robyn.

And what makes it on to your playlist?

My personal playlist: I really don't have a set of rules. It depends on my mood. The past few weeks have been pretty dark: Kate Bush, Eels, Fever Ray, The Smiths, Massive Attack, and Aimee Mann. As for my setlists, I try to make them as consistent as possible, but not necessarily with the sound (that's boring). I pay attention to the beats per minute for smooth transitions and how hard it will make you move, so there isn't any downtime when I'm up there.

It seems like the job of a good DJ is to be the the guy with the best music collection, the one who's most up on their shit. So, how do you keep up with the scene/scenes? Any recent discoveries we should know about?

Google Reader is my best friend. I subscribe to so many blogs that visiting each one individually would take forever. I'm always browsing through Hype Machine. It's user-run and aggregates songs posted on various blogs. You can listen to a preview on the site and then go to the blog to download it. Tumblr and Bandcamp.com are other great resources for new material.
Best new stuff? Cosmetics, Diamond Vampires, The Golden Filter, Wild Nothing, Mark Ronson, Memoryhouse, Hurts, Monarchy, No Joy, Tearist, Twin Shadow, Blue Water White Death, Kele (singer for Bloc Party), and Former Ghosts. This year has been so good to us.

What makes a great DJ set?

Variety. We know that people like to hear songs they know and love, but we have to throw in something new too! Whether it's a remix of something they already know or an amazing track from someone just starting, we have to mix it up. At Meatball, we always have a mixture. In any of our sets, you'll probably hear something harder and more electro (The Presets, Justice), something lighter and poppy (Robyn, Cut Copy), something from the '80s (Depeche Mode and New Order are favorites), and probably something from the radio (we can't deny Rihanna). Everything in between will be more or less indie rock and dancey (LCD Soundsystem, M.I.A., Glass Candy).

Desert island playlist: 10 song set.

C'mon. 10?
1/ The Smiths - Hand in Glove
2/ Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - Young Shields
3/ Radiohead - Idioteque
4/ New Order - True Faith
5/ Xiu Xiu - The Fox & the Rabbit
6/ Cocteau Twins - Garlands
7/ Parenthetical Girls - The Weight She Fell Under
8/ The Knife - Like a Pen
9/ The Magnetic Fields - Sweet Lovin' Man
0/ Kate Bush - Cloudbusting

Oh. 10-song SET? Easy.
1/ Crystal Castles - Baptism (Rory Philips Remix)
2/ Fever Ray - Seven (The Twelves Remix)
3/ Robyn - Love Kills
4/ The Juan Maclean - Happy House (Cut Copy Remix)
5/ Basement Jaxx - Romeo
6/ Gwen Stefani vs Kylie Minogue vs La Roux - Waiting for Bulletproof at First Sight
7/ Boys Noize - Oh! (Danger Remix)
8/ Debbie Deb - When I Hear Music
9/ Yelle - Je Veux Te Voir
10/ Duck Sauce - Barbra Streisand