Rapper from Leeds, England. Originally Braintax was a duo, but it is now a one-man band consisting solely of Joe Christie, owner of the Low Life Records label based in West London.
Guitarist and vocalist born at the 25th of July 1958 in Coral Gables (FL, USA), raised in Bethel (CT, USA), lived in New York (NY, USA) for the largest part of his music career and learned playing guitar by Glenn Branca. He is now living in Rochester (NY, USA).
He's best known as the guitarist and vocalist of Sonic Youth which he co-founded in 1981. In 1984 he married Kim Gordon, member of Sonic Youth.
Besides Sonic Youth he did/does a lot of other projects and solo work and he runs the Ecstatic Peace! label.
A member of the critically acclaimed art/punk rock band Sonic Youth, Moore has been involved in numerous side projects, including the Dim Stars with Richard Hell and Even Worse. His first solo album, Psychic Hearts (recorded during and immediately after his wife and Sonic Youth bassist Kim Gordon's pregnancy in 1994), with ex-Half Japanese guitarist Tim Foljahn and Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley, had an appropriately offhand feel but was far from sloppy. Along with carrying Sonic Youth into the 2000s, Moore collaborated with artists including DJ Spooky and Nels Cline, wrote music reviews and other pieces for Arthur magazine, and issued a book, Mix Tape: The Art of Cassette Culture, in 2005. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
The second of six children, John Percy Simon was just three when his mother moved his family to the Patterson projects in the South Bronx in the early '70s. It was there that Percy (as he was called) witnessed the birth of hip-hop. By 1979 Percee (he changed the spelling to emulate artists like Kool Moe Dee) was writing and performing his own rhymes and by high school was a respected local force. In 1992 Percee P made a guest appearance on the Lord Finesse (and former rival) song "Yes You May," followed by work with Vakill, Jedi Mind Tricks, Aesop Rock, and Cenobites, among others. Because for many years he was never officially with any one label, Percee (or the Rhyme Inspector) had to make his name known by hawking his own mixtapes outside Fat Beats Records in Brooklyn as well as at various shows, eventually compiling many of his songs together under the title Legendary Status (released in 2005). In 2003 Percee signed to California-based Stones Throw, which released his long-awaited solo debut, Perseverance, in 2006. ~ Marisa Brown, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
Swedish producer Anders Ilar makes tracks that fall toward the dark and wintry side of micro-house and ambient techno. In 2002, he released Replik for Germany's Shitkatapult, a beat-oriented three-track 12" that showed great promise. He followed that up with the excellent full-length Everdom in 2003, also released on Shitkatapult. Unlike the preceding 12", it focused more heavily on beatless constructs while retaining a subzero chill. (The vinyl version contained only four tracks; the CD version featured six.) Ilar has also produced as Outsize for the Swedish Pinesky and as Rend for the German Plong. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
Swedish techno producer Glenn Wilson has been at the forefront of techno since 1992 when he opened his own record shop and founded his Planet Rhythm label to promote Swedish artists. Glenn also founded the Compound & Template labels.
Chicane is the group name for British trance musician and remixer Nick Bracegirdle, who first attracted attention under the name Disco Citizens with the Top 40 U.K. hit "Right Here Right Now" in 1995. Changing to Chicane, he reached the British Top 20 in late 1996 with "Offshore." He then enlisted Clannad's Maire Brennan for a remake of the Clannad hit "The Theme From Harry's Game" under the title "Saltwater," which reached the U.K. Top Ten and became an international hit.
Chicane is the group name for British trance musician and remixer Nick Bracegirdle, who first attracted attention under the name Disco Citizens with the Top 40 U.K. hit "Right Here Right Now" in 1995. Changing to Chicane, he reached the British Top 20 in late 1996 with "Offshore." He then enlisted Clannad's Maire Brennan for a remake of the Clannad hit "The Theme From Harry's Game" under the title "Saltwater," which reached the U.K. Top Ten and became an international hit. The first Chicane album, Far From the Maddening Crowds, was released in 1997. As a remixer, Bracegirdle transformed Bryan Adams' "Cloud #9" for another major hit in most Western countries. Employing Adams as an uncredited vocalist, he then topped the British charts with "Don't Give Up." It was featured on the second Chicane album, Behind the Sun, released in Europe in the spring of 2000. This disc reached the Top Ten in Britain and charted across Europe and in the Far East. Behind the Sun was released in the U.S. in August 2000. Visions of Ibiza appeared the next summer. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
While little known and relatively unheralded during its brief existence, the Krautrock duo Neu! cast a large shadow over later generations of musicians and served as a major influence on artists as diverse as David Bowie, Sonic Youth, Pere Ubu, Julian Cope, and Stereolab. Neu! formed in D�sseldorf, Germany, in 1971 after multi-instrumentalists Michael Rother and Klaus Dinger both split from Kraftwerk. Recorded in the space of four days with Can producer Conrad Plank, the duo's self-titled debut appeared early in 1972 and quickly established their affection for minimalist melodies and lock-groove rhythms. While virtually ignored throughout the rest of the world, the album sold extremely well in West Germany, resulting in a tour with support from Guru Guru's Uli Trepte and Eberhard Krahnemann.
Rother and Dinger returned to the studio in 1973 for Neu! 2, but a shortfall of cash allowed the duo to complete only two songs, "Super" and "Neuschnee," which they subsequently remixed at varying and disorienting speeds in order to flesh out a full-length album. After the record's release, Rother joined Dieter Moebius and Joachim Roedelius of Cluster to form Harmonia, but Neu! officially reunited in 1975 to record Neu! 75. After its release, they again disbanded; Rother continued on as a solo performer, while Dinger and drummer Hans Lampe formed La Dusseldorf. In the mid-'80s, Rother and Dinger re-formed yet again, although the recording sessions, titled Neu! 4, did not officially surface until 1996. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
Formed in 1991 by Wisconsin brothers, Lars and Leif Hansen. Two demo tapes were released, The Time Spent Dead, and Death In Utero before releasing their official first album Stillbirth on Decibel Records in 1995
Spencer Seim, Zach Hill, Josh Hill, Aaron Ross, Carson McWhirter
Profile:
Hella are a duo from the Sacramento area, consisting of guitarist Spencer Seim and drummer Zach Hill. The two of them first got together in the spring of 2001. In Hella's craft of contrast, the technical and musical weigh equally, complementing each other with a carelessness that can only come out of care. And it's this quality that translates their spasms without losing hold of their horses as they charge through the tracks.
Indie rockers Hella consist of guitarist Spencer Seim and drummer Zach Hill. The two first got together in the spring of 2001, developing a following around the Sacramento area that won them a record deal on 5 Rue Christine Records. Their debut LP Hold Your Horse Is appeared in 2002, and established Hella's chaotic approach to instrumental noise rock. The duo proved prolific, issuing the LP Total Bugs Bunny on Wild Bass on Narnack in 2003, The Devil Isn't Red for 5RC in 2004, and the double album Church Gone Wild/Chirpin' Hard on Suicide Squeeze in 2005. The CD/DVD combo Concentration Face/Homeboy followed from 5 Rue Christine in November of that year. ~ Bradley Torreano, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
As the first white rap group of any importance, the Beastie Boys received the scorn of critics and strident hip-hop musicians, who accused them of cultural pirating, especially since they began as a hardcore punk group in 1981. But the Beasties weren't pirating -- they treated rap as part of a post-punk musical underground, where the do-it-yourself aesthetics of hip-hop and punk weren't that far apart. Of course, the exaggerated b-boy and frat-boy parodies of their unexpected hit debut album, Licensed to Ill, didn't help their cause. For much of the mid-'80s, the Beastie Boys were considered as macho clowns, and while their ambitious, Dust Brothers-produced second album, Paul's Boutique, dismissed that theory, it was ignored by both the public and the press at the time. In retrospect, it was one of the first albums to predict the genre-bending, self-referential pop kaleidoscope of '90s pop. The Beasties refined their eclectic approach with 1992's Check Your Head, where they played their own instruments. Check Your Head brought the Beasties back to the top of the charts, and within a few years, they were considered one of the most influential and ambitious groups of the '90s, cultivating a musical community not only through their music, but with their record label, Grand Royal, and their magazine of the same name.
It was remarkable turn of events for a group that demonstrated no significant musical talent on their first records. All three members of the Beastie Boys -- Mike D (born Mike Diamond, November 20, 1966), MCA (born Adam Yauch, August 5, 1965), and Ad-Rock (born Adam Horovitz, October 31, 1967) -- came from wealthy middle-class Jewish families in New York and had become involved in the city's punk underground when they were teenagers in the early '80s. Diamond and Yauch formed the Beastie Boys with drummer Kate Schellenbach and guitarist John Berry in 1981, and the group began playing underground clubs around New York. The following year, the Beasties released the 7" EP Pollywog Stew on the indie Rat Cage to little attention. That year, the band met Horovitz, who had formed the hardcore group the Young and the Useless. By early 1983, Schellenbach and Berry had left the group -- they would later join Luscious Jackson and Thwig, respectively -- and Horovitz had joined the Beasties. The revamped group released the rap record "Cookie Puss" as a 12" single later in 1983. Based on a prank phone call the group made to Carvel Ice Cream, the single became an underground hit in New York. By early 1984, however, they had abandoned punk and turned their attention to rap.
In 1984, the Beasties joined forces with producer Rick Rubin, a heavy metal and hip-hop fan who had recently founded Def Jam Records with fellow New York University student Russell Simmons. Def Jam officially signed the Beastie Boys in 1985, and that year they had a hit single from the soundtrack to Krush Groove with "She's on It," a rap track that sampled AC/DC's "Back in Black" and suggested the approach of the group's forthcoming debut album. The Beasties received their first significant national exposure later in 1985, when they opened for Madonna on her Virgin Tour. The trio taunted the audience with profanity and were generally poorly received. One other major tour, as the openers for Run-D.M.C.'s ill-fated Raisin' Hell trek, followed before Licensed to Ill was released late in 1986. An amalgam of street beats, metal riffs, b-boy jokes, and satire, Licensed to Ill was interpreted as a mindless, obnoxious party record by many critics and conservative action groups, but that didn't stop the album from becoming the fastest-selling debut in Columbia Records' history, moving over 750,000 copies in its first six weeks. Much of that success was due to the single "Fight for Your Right (To Party)," which became a massive crossover success. In fact, Licensed to Ill became the biggest-selling rap album of the '80s, which generated much criticism from certain hip-hop fans who believed that the Beasties were merely cultural pirates. On the other side of the coin, the group was being attacked from the right, who claimed their lyrics were violent and sexist and that their concerts -- which featured female audience members dancing in go-go cages and a giant inflatable penis, similar to what the Stones used in their mid-'70s concerts -- caused even more outrage. Throughout their 1987 tour, they were plagued with arrests and lawsuits, and were accused of inciting crime.
While much of the Beasties' exaggeratedly obnoxious behavior started out as a joke, it became a self-parody by the end of 1987, so it wasn't a surprise that the group decided to revamp their sound and image during the next two years. During 1988, they became involved in a bitter lawsuit with Def Jam and Rick Rubin, who claimed he was responsible for the group's success and threatened to release outtakes as their second album. The group finally broke away by the end of the year and relocated to California, where they signed with Capitol Records. While in California, they met the production team the Dust Brothers, and they convinced the duo to use their prospective debut album as the basis for the Beasties' second album, Paul's Boutique. Densely layered with interweaving samples and pop culture references, the retro-funk-psychedelia of Paul's Boutique was entirely different than Licensed to Ill, and many observers weren't quite sure what to make of it. Several publications gave it rave reviews, but when it failed to produce a single bigger than the number 36 "Hey Ladies," it was quickly forgotten about.
Despite its poor commercial performance, Paul's Boutique gained a cult following, and its cut-and-paste sample techniques would later be hailed as visionary, especially after the Dust Brothers altered the approach for Beck's acclaimed 1996 album, Odelay. Still, the record was declared a disaster in the early '90s, but that didn't prevent the Beasties from building their own studio and founding their own record label, Grand Royal, for their next record, Check Your Head. Alternating between old-school hip-hop, raw amateurish funk, and hardcore punk, Check Your Head was a less accomplished than Paul's Boutique, yet it was just as diverse. Furthermore, the burgeoning cult around the Beasties made the album a surprise Top 10 hit upon its spring 1992 release. "Jimmy James," "Pass the Mic," and "So Whatcha Want" were bigger hits on college and alternative rock radio than they were on rap radio, and the group suddenly became hip again. Early in 1994, they collected their early punk recordings on the compilation Some Old Bullshit, which was followed in June by their fourth album, Ill Communication. Essentially an extension of Check Your Head, the record debuted at number one upon its release, and the singles "Sabotage" and "Sure Shot" helped send it to double-platinum status. During the summer of 1994, they co-headlined the fourth Lollapalooza festival with the Smashing Pumpkins. That same year, Grand Royal became a full-fledged record label as it released Luscious Jackson's acclaimed debut album, Natural Ingredients. The Beasties' Grand Royal magazine was also launched that year.
Over the next few years, the Beasties remained quiet as they concentrated on political causes and their record label. In 1996, they released the hardcore EP Aglio e Olio and the instrumental soul-jazz and funk collection The in Sound from Way Out! Also that year, Adam Yauch organized a two-day festival to raise awareness and money about Tibet's plight against the Chinese government; the festival went on to become an annual event. The Beastie Boys' long-awaited fifth LP, Hello Nasty, finally appeared during the summer of 1998, and became their third career chart-topper. A longer wait preceded release of their next album, To the 5 Boroughs, which appeared in mid-2004. In 2005, Capitol issued Solid Gold Hits, a 15-track survey of the Beasties' lengthy career. In 2006, the band released theatrically the concert film Awesome: I Fuckin' Shot That! The film was pieced together from footage shot by 50 DV and Hi-8 cameras that were distributed to fans with little more instruction than to keep shooting. The DVD version appeared in July of that year. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
House maestros Saeed & Palash having been mixing decks since 1999. Based in Washington, D.C., the duo have been a major force in the underground house scene, following the likes of Deep Dish and Danny Tenaglia.
Saeed Younan is of Iraqi decent and immigrated to the U.S. when he was 13. Palash Ahmed's family came to America from Bangladesh when he was eight. Upon entering the Virginia Commonwealth University in 1994, Younan met Ahmed. The two became fast friends over their love of music and christened themselves Saeed & Palash.
Deep Dish's Sharam Tayebi went to high school with Ahmed, so getting into the D.C. dance scene wasn't all that hard for the pair. Having Danny Tenaglia as a supporter was also great, for Tenaglia was first to use Saeed & Palash's debut single, "After Dark," on his DJ Magazine compilation.
Saeed & Palash remixed cuts for Celeda, Kylie Minogue, John Digweed, and Marc Romboy, making them global stars. Gigs at Twilo and Vinyl (New York), Sona (Montreal), and Release (San Francisco) and festival dates like England's Homelands have proved prominent.
In 2002, Saeed & Palash released the double-disc remix Saeed & Palash: Tide: Edit: 07 on Star 69. ~ MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
Just one in the cast of crucial producers that made Strictly Rhythm the premiere American house label during the early '90s, Roger Sanchez grew into a prolific remixer, world-class mainstream DJ and top global-house name by the end of the decade. Though he concentrated more on mix albums than proper studio productions under his own name, Sanchez gained much respect with club kids as well as the dancefloor intelligentsia.
Born in New York to parents of Dominican heritage, Sanchez attended Manhattan's School of Art & Design with several future hip-hop legends including Kurtis Mantronik. He was well into the graffiti and break-dancing scene during the early '80s and began DJing by the age of 13. After mixing for several years at New York hotspots like the Tunnel -- even while he was studying architecture at the Pratt Institute -- Sanchez finally left college in 1987 to give music a full-time shot. His club Ego Trip was soon booming (with Sanchez mix-tapes selling briskly on Broadway) and he never looked back. By 1989, Gladys Pizarro from Strictly Rhythm Records had touched base to see if Sanchez was interested in production; one year later, he had recorded his first single, "Luv Dancin" as Underground Solution.
The single's tough underground grooves charged the New York house scene, then just on the cusp of a turnover from the smooth garage sound to a rougher style influenced by European trance and techno. Despite stumbling into remixing by accident -- after giving a bad review to a single, he was tapped to rework it -- Sanchez became more than competent at the game, and beginning in 1991 he worked on tracks for Babyface, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Janet Jackson, Chic, M People, Basia, Incognito and Soul II Soul.
Later Sanchez productions -- a 1994 Latin dub-house burner named "Sumba Lumba" (as Tribal Confusion), the following year's hard-hitting Livin 4 the Underground EP (as Roger S) and that same year's "Release Yo Self" (as Transatlantic Soul) -- cemented his status as one of Strictly Rhythm's greatest assets and one of the world's leading mainstream producers. Though his own One Records collapsed in 1995, Sanchez formed another label named Narcotic and signed up with the British club Hard Times to release his first full-length. The mix LP Hard Times-The Album featured the S-Man (with just two decks, a mixer and a crate of records) proving his worth as a DJ in addition to his much-hyped studio work. He continued in the mix-LP vein, releasing volumes in two high-profile series (Mixmag Live!, United DJ's of America) and the Freeze collection Roger S. Mega Mix. In 1997, Narcotic Records released "Back" (as S-Men), the fruits of the dance super-group formed by Sanchez, Junior Sanchez and DJ Sneak. One year later, Sanchez released S-Man Classics, a two-disc collection including his best remixes backed with his best own productions. A few mix albums followed during the next three years, but a full production album, First Contact, finally dropped in 2001. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
Markus Schulz is a man on a mission. He dreams of meeting the world. This dream just might be possible. Currently #13 on the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs Poll and #5 on the TranceAddict.com Top 250 DJs Poll, Markus has been travelling the world playing his personal brand of “dark, moody, melodic trance” and meeting as many people as possible.
Over the past three years, Markus has crossed the globe on an almost constant basis. From Australia to Russia and as far away as China and Trinidad. Along with playing his hometown of Miami. Markus was also found in Ibiza at his summer residency at Amnesia; The Two Tribes Tour in Australia and New Zealand; Tomorrowland in Belgium; Mysterland and Trance Energy in The Netherlands; Nature One in Germany; Distant Heat in Jordan as well as clubs and in Kuala Lumpur, Romania, Czech Republic, Mexico, Sweden, Finland, Hungary, Slovakia, UK, Boston, Los Angeles, New York and the list goes on.
Global DJ Broadcast, Markus’ weekly radio show, can now be heard on over 30 stations worldwide. His very special “Ibiza Summer Sessions” debuted in the summer of 2006. Wanting to give the listener the feeling of being part of the Ibiza summer, Markus planned each week with the best guest DJs and hottest music from the Balearic Islands. The mission was to bring Ibiza to those who couldn’t be there and add to the experience of those who were. And it worked. New stations the world over grabbed up the show for their audiences. Markus reached out through the airwaves to meet more people and touch their lives.
His stunning second artist album, Progression, is a cumulation of these experiences, and offers listeners a slice of his trademark dark, melodic trance alongside beautiful chilled tracks, guitars, and sublime vocals. Says Markus, “Progression was conceived in the summer, whereas the debut album was done and released in winter, so Progression is less dark, and more influenced by sunny days in Miami. ‘Trinidad to Miami’ was actually written while I was flying over the ocean with the sun shining on the water, and encapsulates that feeling of optimism and happiness.”
While some artists might find it hectic putting together an album with so much going on, Markus thrives on the inspiration he finds in his two bases – Miami and Berlin – and gigs everywhere in between. “I can't do one without the other - playing for the crowd makes me excited and gives me ideas for getting into the studio. When I’m in the studio, I can’t wait to play out what I’m making and seeing people react to it – the processes feed off each other."
"When I grew up listening to music it had a huge influence on me, and made me who I am, so when I make my own music I do it with the listener in mind and try and recreate that one on one feeling I’ve always had. It’s something that gets you through hard times, is a soundtrack to good times, and touches you in a unique way."
2008 kicks off with the release of his fourth compilation for Armada Music, and Markus couldn’t be happier about its origins – Amsterdam is his spiritual home thanks to the overwhelming passion of the people resident there. “I always choose cities that are dear tome for my annual mix compilation” says Markus. “I just love Amsterdam, I feel a real connection there – my friends there are like my family. The people of Holland were one of the first to embrace and accept me and my sound, so it was the natural choice to do the 08 mix there.”
2008 is set to bring more dates in Australia, as well as Asia and South America. Markus will describe his travels through the Global DJ Broadcast World Tour, where each month he brings a recording of one of his live sets from around the world.
With no plans for slowing down anytime soon, Markus just might meet the world after all.
Though still obscure, Funerary Call were involved in the early movement of black ambient music prior to its growth in the genre. As a result of their inaccessibility, they remain one of the most overlooked artists of the genre. True to their origins, Funerary Call embodies a "cult" sound reminiscent of early CMI artists. Late 2005 Funerary Call was put on ice in favour of the new noise project Sistrenatus.
Adam Levine, Matt Flynn, Jesse Carmichael, James Valentine, Mickey Madden
Profile:
LA-based neo-soul rock outfit: Adam Levine - Vocals; Matt Flynn - Drums; Jesse Carmichael - Keyboards; James Valentine - Guitar; Mickey Madden - Bass.
Three (Levine, Carmichael, and Madden) of the five members were previously known as Kara's Flowers. High school rock band with a record deal. Their first album The Fourth World didn't do well, and the recording contract was terminated. Levine and Carmichael left LA for the State University of New York, where gospel, soul and funk influences from the halls of residence gave them a new perspective and inspiration. Back in LA, the three got back together, added James Valentine, and Maroon 5 was born.
Signed to Octone Records, and started recording October 2001 with Producer, Matt Wallace.
By end of 2004, over 500 live shows, a consistent headline act in its own right, Maroon 5's debut album, Songs About Jane, sold more than 3,000,000 records. Appearances on the Tonight Show, The Today Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Last Call with Carson Daly, and the Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn. The single, This Love was #1 on the top 40, VH1 and MTV simultaneously, and was also the first song ever to be certified as a platinum download.
Adam Levine (vocals/guitar), Jesse Carmichael (keyboards), Mickey Madden (bass), and Ryan Dusick (drums) spent the latter half of the '90s playing in the modern rock foursome Kara's Flowers. The Fourth World was their proper debut for Reprise, a favorite in the college market, but a change of direction loomed ahead. They left Reprise in 1999 and renamed themselves Maroon 5 with the addition of guitarist James Valentine. Levine and his junior-high pals spent the next years tweaking their style and playing various music showcases in and around New York City and Los Angeles. The independent label Octone Records caught one those shows and offered Maroon 5 a deal. Songs About Jane emerged from those sessions, finally appearing in June 2002, but it wasn't until the next summer that things started happening for Maroon 5. "Harder to Breathe" and "This Love" were top 10 on singles and by January 2004, Songs About Jane was certified platinum, reaching number 6 on the Billboard 200. A third single, "She Will Be Loved," appeared later that August, and the buzz continued to swirl around Maroon 5. (They somewhat ironically won the Best New Artist Grammy in 2005.) As the success of Songs for Jane was slow to develop (or rather, it was the rare 21st century album given time to develop), Maroon 5 had to issue some stopgap live recordings while they supported Jane and tried to think about new material. 1.22.03.Acoustic appeared in 2004, and Live at the Santa Barbara Bowl in September 2005. The band also supported the Rolling Stones for a string of dates in August and September 2005. ~ MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide (from mp3.com)
