About

For a small rural town of just three major streets, St Andrews has one of the most thriving University music scenes in the United Kingdom. From rock to reggae, it’s quite likely that you will be able to find an outlet to enjoy your favorite music alongside other St Andrews students who enjoy the same sound. In light of COVID-19, however, all of these in-person music events have been cancelled; in the absence of Szentek, Wax Rooms, Starfields, and even small gigs in Sandy’s Bar, many of us are mourning the nights we used to spend enjoying the St Andrews music scene.

DONT WALK Charity Fashion Show is one of St Andrews most popular and anticipated fashion shows of the year, typically taking place during second semester. Under normal circumstances, students are given the opportunity to attend a series of DONT WALK events at the Vic, with ticket sales and entry fees contributing towards DONT WALK’s chosen charity. During these smaller-scale events, DONT WALK student DJs play a series of sets, with an overall emphasis of certain elements of the show’s eventual creative vision and theme. With no events, Don’t Walk has chosen to host online livestreams where their DJs can play from their own homes, and students and family members can tune in. This year DONT WALK is supporting Impact Arts, a charity based in Glasgow, and Custom Collaborative, a charity based in New York City. Because the show’s committee was initially formed in the wake of 9/11, the committee has chosen to support both a local charity and an international charity. Both charities utilize the arts to facilitate personal and social change, with their impact and initiatives involving people of all ages. This past livestream, ‘BABEL’, is one of many DONT WALK music events that the committee plans to stream this year. 

When asking Cate Crossland, DONT WALK’s current Executive Director, about what the process of creating these livestreams entails, she stated that the main aim is to as closely emulate the feeling of being at a DONT WALK Vic night as possible. Each DJ sets up their equipment in their home, where their equipment undergoes soundcheck, and that’s it. With the show streaming on Facebook, friends and family can comment, like, and share with ease. “Given the circumstances, it’s nice to jam out in your house knowing that people are still coming together and producing something artistic and fun.”

One of the aspects of the St Andrews music scene that has struck me in my last few years is the town’s ability to craft sub-sections of music fans, facilitated through these music collectives and sound systems such as DONT WALK, BPM, Szentek, and so forth. If you like rap and hip-hop, you’ll enjoy the BPM events. If you like disco, techno or jungle, you might venture towards the Szentek scene. But overtime, these polarities can become repetitive, and almost, expected? This routine is something that DONT WALK’s Music and Afterparty teams perhaps saw an opportunity to alter, at least slightly. Crossland remarks, “We really wanted to diversify the DONT WALK music this year. In years past, it’s been very techno-heavy, but this year our DJs’ sounds range from jungle, drum and bass, hip-hop, disco, and so forth. This means that everyone can have something to enjoy, even from the comfort of their own home.”

When speaking to Greer Ross-McLennan, one of the DONT WALK DJs during the livestream, she noted that the difference between DJing in person and via livestream boils down to “completely different” aesthetics of songs. “A lot of great songs to mix in person require a huge concentration of people in front of the decks at event, and these songs don’t really translate as well over livestream”. On the other hand, Greer has found mixing opportunities through livestreaming that might otherwise be unachievable during an in-person set. “Some songs are really great for an online stream, because they’re a bit more chill, or have a different beat drop, but they wouldn’t really have the same effect in front of a big in-person crowd. It’s all about gauging the energy level of the crowd you’re playing for.” 

As we adapt to the rapidly changing world around us, we must also adapt to new ways of consuming music. In showcasing five DJs with refreshingly different sounds, DONT WALK is successfully using their platform to demonstrate what this means.