Larry Levan — Studio 54 Birthday Mix WIL100 - Grace Jones, Sylvester, Sister Sledge, CHIC, Larry Levan, Louie Vega
Classics · 2h 08m · analysed 18 Aug 2026 · source: soundcloud.com
Public mix analysis — no affiliation or endorsement. This report measures a publicly available recording hosted on soundcloud.com. The scores are produced by SOONOS and do not imply any partnership with, or approval by, Larry Levan.
In short
Studio 54 Birthday Mix WIL100 - Grace Jones, Sylvester, Sister Sledge, CHIC, Larry Levan, Louie Vega by Larry Levan scores 81/100 in the SOONOS analysis (club ready). The strongest dimension is IDENTITY (89/100) and the weakest is SURPRISE (80/100).
This segment proves that a deep respect for musical history, combined with technical precision, creates a timeless dancefloor experience.
Key takeaways
What weakened the set
- Recurring mid-frequency clash (3×) — Mid-range buildup muddies the soundstage and washes out vocals/synths during transitions. Detected 3× (4:12, 18:45, 29:40).
- Long static loops (6×) — Sections sitting on the same loop without layering, EQ moves or tension shifts (21:00, 30:00, 35:00, 41:00, 46:00, 50:00). Long loops kill dancefloor momentum.
What to try next
- Use short percussive loops from outgoing tracks to bridge transitions more creatively.
- Introduce subtle delay effects on vocal tails to add depth during breakdowns.
- Ensure volume levels are perfectly matched when transitioning between older disco recordings and modern house tracks.
- Refine mid-frequency EQ cuts during vocal-heavy transitions.
Timestamped insights
Each moment below is tagged with how it was produced: “measured” comes from the DSP pass on the audio, “listening” comes from the multi-agent listening pass.
Vocal elements from both tracks fight for space in the mid-range.
Excellent energy handoff into the 'Love Sensation' motif.
Seamless transition between two disco grooves, maintaining the low-end energy perfectly.
Well-timed entry of the incoming vocal, creating a brief 'mashup' feel that energizes the mix.
Smooth transition between two disco-house tracks; the kick drums align perfectly and the bass swap is transparent.
Effective layering of vocals; however, the mid-range gets slightly crowded for 4 bars before the outgoing track is cut.
About this classics set
Studio 54 Birthday Mix WIL100 - Grace Jones, Sylvester, Sister Sledge, CHIC, Larry Levan, Louie Vega is a classics DJ set by Larry Levan, running 2h 08m. It was measured by the SOONOS multi-agent engine and scores 81/100 overall — club ready.
The engine files this performance as “Promising”.
This segment proves that a deep respect for musical history, combined with technical precision, creates a timeless dancefloor experience.
How the score breaks down
SOONOS scores this set across 5 weighted categories. The strongest is IDENTITY at 89/100; the weakest is SURPRISE at 80/100.
Analysis coverage for this file is 100% — the share of the set the engine could measure with full confidence.
Energy and structure
The energy curve was sampled at 73 points, moving between 65 and 94 on the SOONOS energy scale — a moderate dynamic range across the set.
6 transitions were detected and scored individually.
Beat-grid measurement (DSP) reports 151.4 grid breaks per hour, with a median beat offset of 21 ms.
How this score is built
Measured layer (DSP): the audio file is analysed directly — beat grid, tempo stability, loudness and energy. These values are measurements, not opinions.
Listening layer: a multi-agent pass reads musical intent — programming, storytelling, coherence and crowd effect. This layer interprets, it does not measure.
Fusion and ceilings: the two layers are merged, and the measured layer always wins on execution. When the DSP hears an execution problem, it caps the final score even if the listening layer is positive.
Measured coverage for this file is 100% of the set.
Full SOONOS analysis
This segment proves that a deep respect for musical history, combined with technical precision, creates a timeless dancefloor experience.
The 8 dimensions
Not available — the 8-dimension profile was not measured for this set.
Score breakdown
TECHNIQUE
How well did you execute?
25%86
TECHNIQUE
How well did you execute?
STORYTELLING
Did the mix go somewhere?
25%85
STORYTELLING
Did the mix go somewhere?
ENERGY
Did you control the room?
20%85
ENERGY
Did you control the room?
SURPRISE
Did you remain unpredictable?
15%80
SURPRISE
Did you remain unpredictable?
IDENTITY
Did the mix sound like you?
15%89
IDENTITY
Did the mix sound like you?
Energy arc
Transitions analysed (6)
Long EQ blend
Vocal elements from both tracks fight for space in the mid-range.
Phrase-perfect drop
Excellent energy handoff into the 'Love Sensation' motif.
Long EQ blend with bass swap
Seamless transition between two disco grooves, maintaining the low-end energy perfectly.
Phrased vocal overlay
Well-timed entry of the incoming vocal, creating a brief 'mashup' feel that energizes the mix.
Long EQ blend with low-end swap
Smooth transition between two disco-house tracks; the kick drums align perfectly and the bass swap is transparent.
Vocal layering and mid-range EQ swap
Effective layering of vocals; however, the mid-range gets slightly crowded for 4 bars before the outgoing track is cut.
Technical subscores
81
EQ balance
88
Beat alignment
83
Energy control
90
Tempo stability
83
Loudness control
90
Musical coherence
85
Harmonic compatibility
83
Transition cleanliness
Measured (DSP)
21 ms
Beat-grid drift (median)
Typical gap between the two tracks' beats while they play together. Lower is tighter.
51 ms
Drift p95
Worst-case drift: 95% of the set stays tighter than this value.
7,632
Boundaries detected
Points where the audio changes track or section.
19
Hard cuts / h
Abrupt track changes per hour, with no blend between the two records.
461
Clipping events
Moments where the recording hits the ceiling and distorts.
333
Level jumps
Sudden volume steps between tracks.
Measurement confidence 100% · analysed on the full audio.
Recurring patterns
Recurring mid-frequency clash
Mid-range buildup muddies the soundstage and washes out vocals/synths during transitions. Detected 3× (4:12, 18:45, 29:40).
Long static loops (6×)
Sections sitting on the same loop without layering, EQ moves or tension shifts (21:00, 30:00, 35:00, 41:00, 46:00, 50:00). Long loops kill dancefloor momentum.
Timeline
- 4:15Mid-Range Clutter
- 8:15Vocal Payoff
- 4:12Risky pressure or vibe dip
- 16:20Vocal Peak
- 20:45Percussive Bridge
- 27:15Groove Lock
Coaching notes
- Use short percussive loops from outgoing tracks to bridge transitions more creatively.
- Introduce subtle delay effects on vocal tails to add depth during breakdowns.
- Ensure volume levels are perfectly matched when transitioning between older disco recordings and modern house tracks.
- Refine mid-frequency EQ cuts during vocal-heavy transitions.
- Introduce more rhythmic variation to avoid a static 4/4 feel.
- Use short loops to build tension before major track drops.
Curious how your own set scores?
Methodology and limitations
This report is produced automatically from the published recording. It measures what is present in the audio file: a bad source encoding, a partial upload or a heavily processed broadcast version can change the measured values. Nothing here reflects the room, the crowd or the night itself.
Read the full SOONOS methodology →Questions about this analysis
- What score does Larry Levan's Studio 54 Birthday Mix WIL100 - Grace Jones, Sylvester, Sister Sledge, CHIC, Larry Levan, Louie Vega get?
- Studio 54 Birthday Mix WIL100 - Grace Jones, Sylvester, Sister Sledge, CHIC, Larry Levan, Louie Vega scores 81/100 in the SOONOS Mix Database (club ready), based on audio measurement plus multi-agent listening.
- How long is Studio 54 Birthday Mix WIL100 - Grace Jones, Sylvester, Sister Sledge, CHIC, Larry Levan, Louie Vega?
- The analysed recording runs 2h 08m.
- Which part of the mix scores best?
- IDENTITY is the strongest category at 89/100, while SURPRISE is the lowest at 80/100.
- How is this score calculated?
- SOONOS measures the audio with a DSP pass (beat grid, loudness, tempo, energy) and runs a multi-agent listening pass on top. Measured axes always override the listening layer, so an execution issue heard in the file caps the final score.
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