Friday, Aug. 08, 2008

With a little planning, iPod can rock your wedding

By Jeremy Dutton, Herald staff writer

There's something to be said for couples deciding to ditch the wedding DJ, grab an iPod and crank it up at their receptions.

You may lose counsel on things like songs you think sound good but are, in fact, wholly inappropriate. From the less obvious -- The Police's Every Breath You Take, a love song yes, but a dark, sinister, stalker one -- to the really obvious -- Nine Inch Nails' Closer, maybe a nice sentiment, but probably best saved for after the wedding. But with an iPod, you get control.

This has been on my mind this week because I'm going to a wedding. And it wasn't too long ago that I myself went through the exasperating ordeal of planning.

I chose the DJ route and it turned out to be a less-than-satisfying experience. I spent many a phone call planning and selecting songs only to find that after I gave a healthy list, it wasn't quite long enough for the first segment of the reception. He ended up starting over from the beginning, recycling about five songs. It was torture. And I was being pulled in so many directions I couldn't make my way over to his booth to strangle him with his own bowtie.

So in the spirit of tying the knot, here's some tips on going DJ-free.

* Don't worry about setting a mood specifically. You can pick a theme, but make sure it's music you like, not what you think everyone else wants to hear. This, of course, requires a small amount of judgment if grandma is there. Getting crunk with Lil' John may not be the best option.

* Know you'll have to designate a trusted and knowledgeable friend to man the iPod. If your future bride somehow snuck in anything by Celine Dion, he'll know what to do.

* Know the downside to going sans DJ -- you may have to designate someone to help usher things along. But every family has a ham, so it shouldn't be a hard role to fill.

* Make it a good mix. Jazz for dinner maybe, small stretch of love songs, fun dance tracks (this excludes the chicken dance or YMCA -- don't be that couple) and a few ballads for the slow dances.

* Make sure you have high-quality MP3s. Don't think the track of Aerosmith's Don't Want to Miss a Thing that you downloaded illegally from Napster eight years ago is going to fly on a decent set of speakers. Buy it this time. You're an adult. This is your wedding.

News and notes

* Seattle's Fleet Foxes played Blue Ridge Mountains on the Late Show with David Letterman on Aug. 4.

* Coldplay debuted two videos for the title track to their new album Viva La Vida by two different directors. The first by Hype Williams paints Chris Martin with some really creepy green eyes. And Anton Corbijn's take is decidedly low-tech, but has more charm. You can see both at Coldplay.com.

* Got some good feedback on ideas for organizing my CD collection, the most tempting from John Book of Pasco, who directed me to jewelsleeve.com.

* Jeremy Dutton: 509-582-1525; jdutton@tricityherald.com.