DJ Fresh
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One of dance music's visionaries, Dan Stein; uberproducer, DJ and label owner is one of the driving forces behind the success of Drum & Bass. Once described as "a tornado rolling across the horizon", this creative whirlwind has consistently led the scene for more than a decade, having worked with a plethora of artists from both with in, and outside of the drum and bass fraternity.
A founding member of D'n'B group Bad Company, a 19 year old Dan Stein enjoyed early success with 'The Nine', which has been voted as the best Drum & Bass tune of all time every year since 2004 by Drum and Bass Arena. This set the standard to which Fresh would continue to achieve throughout an illustrious career. Bad Company went on to win numerous awards and accolades as they produced a host of DJ and club favourites, including the album 'Inside the Machine', which won the best album of 2000 in the industry authority Knowledge Magazine.
Not content with just studio work, Fresh and Bad Company were also active in forging an online Drum and Bass community. Dan was keen for there to be an online portal where fans could discuss upcoming releases, mixes and gigs. 'Dogs on Acid' grew quickly to becoming the leading online community for the genre, and still remains a key fixture for the D'n'B scene with over 90,000 members nearly a decade after its inception.
The success of Bad Company continued right up until the last release where Fresh produced 'Mo-Fire'; the massive hit reaching #22 in the national charts.
In 2003 DJ Fresh pursued a solo career and formed a new label 'Breakbeat Kaos' with super-producer Adam F. The pair released the Drum and Bass smash 'Barcelona' on BC recordings, and Dan's stock instantly rose again as the release peaked at #11 in the UK charts. This paved the way for Adam F and Dan to produce 'Miracles' for The Pet Shop Boys, which went to #4 in the UK charts. This was an unprecedented achievement for producers from an underground scene, and cemented the pair's reputation as producers extraordinaire.
In 2003, Dan also proved his talent as an A&R through signing global phenomenon Pendulum to his Breakbeat Kaos label. Instantly described as 'the next Prodigy' Pendulum went on to enjoy mainstream success. Their debut album 'Hold Your Colour' was enjoyed by fans of various musical genres, and again signalled the appeal of Drum and Bass in mainstream culture.
Following winning the 'Best Producer of 2005' in Knowledge Magazine, Dan further demonstrated his expertise in the studio on the first of two artist albums in 2006. Described as 'breathtaking' by DJ Magazine, 'Escape from Planet Monday' enlisted the help of The Pet Shop Boys, DJ Shadow, and Apollo 440. The project presented a change in direction from Fresh's previous work but received positive reviews and a positive response from Drum and Bass aficionados.
Drawing on a range of styles including house, dancehall, acid jazz, and ambient, and with vocals featuring on a number of tracks, the album demonstrated Fresh's ability to produce music for the charts and the underground.
Fresh's sophomore album 'Kryptonite' continued on the path of its predecessor and peaked in the UK Dance Charts at #2. A good helping of belting female vocals, a nod to the new bass-led sound monolith that is Dubstep, and a blend of jump-up D'n'B bounciness, the album brilliant encompasses Dan's sound at the start of the new decade; simply all about the dance-floor. Nothing epitomised this more than the third single 'Gold Dust'. The song, along with its brilliant video, garnered yet more widespread acclaim for Fresh, charting in both the UK Dance Charts and UK Single Charts at #7 and #24 respectively.
To round of 2010, Fresh and Sigma released 'Lassitude'. Featuring vocals from Koko and an electrifying piano riff, the tracks proved another mainstream smash and received Radio 1's 'record of the week' status on four different shows, including Sara Cox, MistaJam, Greg James and Dev. 2011 looks as if it going to be another impressive year for Fresh. With a string of dance-floor fillers already in the pipeline, this UK dance music sensation will be tearing up clubs and festivals throughout the year, and will no doubt continue to dominate both the underground and mainstream alike.
| 06 Jul 13 | Cameo Island | Zante, GREECE |