DJ MERTZ
DJ MERTZ
SATURDAYS @ 10pm
For Mertz, it has always been simple: Find amazing music and share it with others.
Whether it has been hosting radio shows, covering electronic music in magazines, promoting, or DJing, Mertz has found ways over the last ten years to share the music he loves. In the last six years, Mertz has made his mark as a DJ in central Illinois by spreading the songs he digs up to appreciative crowds.
“For me, DJing is the most visible way to tell if the music that moves me has any effect on other people,” says Mertz. “Seeing people dance or having someone ask the name of a record I’m playing is all I need to keep me happy.”
Despite growing up in the Chicago suburbs, just a short drive from the birthplace of house music, Mertz’s first real taste of DJ culture came in London on New Year’s Eve 1998-99. His first party was shared about 12,000 strangers that night and was headlined by The Chemical Brothers, New Order and most importantly, Underworld. That party hooked him on electronic music and DJ culture.
Returning to Bloomington, Illinois, Mertz immediately started Digital Groove, the first live DJ mix show on the Bloomington airwaves. Every Friday night local DJs spun live on air a wide variety of underground sounds from house to techno to drum n bass. Mertz himself never spun a single record, but did his best to help promote these local DJs in Bloomington. In the process, he became fascinated by watching people spin vinyl just a few feet away every single week.
Eventually, Mertz would move to Champaign, Illinois to attend law school. Tired of just listening to music, and with the excitement of Digital Groove still in his mind, Mertz got his own pair of turntables in 2002 and learned to mix. Since then, Mertz has held down five different residencies in Champaign, including his weekend residency at Boltini Lounge that has been going every weekend since the Fall of 2005.
His ear for great tunes has put him in front of crowds across the Midwest. He’s played alongside big names such as Colette, Justin Long, Pete Moss, Bryan Jones, Chris Grant and The Sound Republic. He also shared the decks at gigs and residencies with his old DJing partner, and current tech house/techno rising star, J Phlip.
In addition to writing about the local scene in magazines, newspapers and blogs, Mertz co-founded The 217 Mafia, a collective of local DJs and artists that support underground music. He’s hosted several radio shows in Champaign including Radioactivity and Chilled Beats.
In the last year, Mertz’s sets have branched out into sounds outside of house music. Specifically, he’s focusing on the latest wave of disco music that allows him to not only dip back into the classic funk music that he loves, but also fast forward to the latest techno and electronic sounds that fit nicely within disco’s wide range of sounds and styles. Starting in early 2009, Mertz and five other local DJs started a monthly dubstep party in Champaign that sees over 200 people turning out to hear the bass heavy sounds.
Despite the wide variety of sounds he now spins, and the multitude of different projects he’s involved with, it all goes back to that simple ethos: find great music and share it with as many people as possible. No matter what or where he’s playing, those guiding principles will never change.
