Panic System

It's all in the DJ and what he/she chooses to spin, right? Downtown's On Broadway has a regular duo with an eclectic collection: Morgan Young and Wendy call themselves the Vagabond DJs. The ambience? "A late-'70s punk/wave/rock vibe," says Morgan. "It's what Wendy and I are all about."

TRICKIEST PROBLEM LIVE?

Morgan: "It's not the gear, ultimately. I mean, the different setups can be aggravating, especially if there are bugs in the system. Every club has a level of how good their gear is and how well it's maintained...a fader that crackles, short circuits in cables, the basic bugs that you can generally troubleshoot. I suppose the other problem lies in meeting clubgoers' requests. I carry a lot of vinyl with me...people do remember when you've got something in your collection that they've requested, other than just how much they did -- or by chance did not -- enjoy what you played."

Wendy: "Technical difficulties or unfamiliar equipment. When you mainly spin at one venue, you become comfortable with the equipment. Then you go somewhere else and panic sets in: 'I have to get

LIST OF EQUIPMENT USED?

Morgan: "At On Broadway: two Technics 1200 turntables, Numark 1800 mixer, Denon DN2500F dual CD player. At the Zombie Lounge: two Technics 1200 turntables, Numark Matrix 3 Kanal mixer, and two Numark Axis 2 CD players. They do have a nice set up there."

Wendy: "Uh...ask Morgan."

WEIRDEST GIG?

Morgan: "My weekly at On Broadway has taken the cake for the most strange. On one hand I feel like a complete extraterrestrial; on the other, a complete maverick because I'm probably the very first DJ to ever play artists like Mott the Hoople, Sweet, Motörhead, or even more peculiar, Sparks, in that club."

Wendy:"X-Fest, about eight years ago. The whole day was surreal."

WORST GIG?

Morgan: "Have not even come close...it'll happen, though. There's bumps in every road."

Wendy: "Every wedding I've ever done, they've all ended in divorce."

BEST OR WORST BRUSH WITH SOMEONE FAMOUS?

Morgan: "In short my stint at the Viper Room in the 1990s...there was a rock-celebrity jam session I played a DJ set at. I really can't remember too much about who was onstage or whether or not it was charitable, but every actor, actress, model, musician with any credibility was in the house. Anyway, this guy comes up and requests 'Highway to Hell,' which I did have with me. That guy was Jerry Seinfeld. He then asked if he could look through my records, which of course I allowed him to. Why wouldn't I have? He then slipped me a ten spot and sent drinks over all night. Fuckin' Jerry, he's the best, and I'll never forget that night, ever. The worst, or most embarrassing...a private party at Sky Bar in L.A., where one Kelsey Grammer snapped on me because I didn't have Boston's 'More Than a Feeling' in my collection. His verbatim: 'Oh heaven's...

what kind of a rock DJ are you, then?'... I wanted to tell Frasier Crane to piss off!"

Wendy: "Vince Vaughn...in a ripped white T-shirt at the Onyx Room, knocking over chairs and pounding on the glass windows of the booth I was spinning in."

TOP FIVE END-OF-THE-WORLD CDs?

Morgan:

1) Cheap Trick, self-titled first album.

2) David Bowie, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.

3) Sparks, Kimono My House.

4) Stevie Wonder, Songs in the Key of Life.

5) Japan, Obscure Alternatives.

Wendy:

1) Burning Brides, Leave No Ashes.

2) The Pixies, Surfer Rosa.

3) The Rolling Stones, Some Girls.

4) The Briefs, Hit After Hit.

5) Tubeway Army, Replicas.