Matt Clarke - Detroit Electronic Music Festival - May 2007

Biography of Matt Clarke

Matt Clarke has been djing for over 13 years and been at the very fore front of the Drum n Bass movement in Detroit. Be it working at various Record Shops (Record Time, Melodies, Hear Wax) or through his unique Dj sets. His style and blends of double dropping tunes and quickly layering sounds have always set him apart from the rest of the pack. Blessed with the name 'Razorsharp' from the local emcees, he never disappoints while playing a variation of styles. 'I play music that I think people should hear, not necessaily what they want to hear'. Matt is taking part in the Movement festival for the 5th time this year, something that only a select breed of artists have been able to partake in. *Past residency's and affiliations* Subculture, Substance, Frequency Detroit, Detroit Bachelor Djs, Syst3m, Analogue Systems, Detroit Jungle Society, 33 1/3, Bordercity, Breakbeat Etiquette, Bird of Paradise, Blacklisted, Cave Dj's, Motor, Clutch, Carbon, Necto, Alvins.

Influences:
Hip-hop from back in the day with some current day exceptions (someone please steal hip hop back from the suckas and the radio directors!) Techno,House, Drum n Bass, Rare Groove, Funk, Soul, Acid House, Hip Hop Beat Tapes, A little Classic Rock, 808's. 303's, Thedamnphreaknoisephunk and all the Detroit Djs who can mix and bring something unique while refusing to take payment in drink tickets and false hype.

Evol Intent - Detroit Electronic Music Festival - May 2007

Biography of Evol Intent

The evöl voice of all that is dark in drum and bass rings true with villians; The Enemy, Knick, and Gigantor, collectively known as Evol Intent. This platton of DJ/Producers main focus has been on creating drum and bass tracks, mainly with a dark bent.

Evol Intent began in late 2000 when Knick and Gigantor started producing tracks at college in Tuscaloosa, AL. Soon after, Knick and Gigantor met up with Tulsa, OK native the Enemy and the triad of Evol was complete and immediately making a name for themselves on the worldwide circut.

Along with dj'ing/producing the guys own and run their record label known as Evol Intent Recordings. The first release on this imprint: 'Take That' by Knick and Gigantor was put in mid-2001 and had a strong reception in the US. In Early 2002 Knick and Gigantor's 'The Ultraviolence' was released with a remix on the flipside by New York's own Burner Brother Pish-Posh. Evol Intent Recordings followed Ultraviolence with Enemy's 'The Reign' and Knick and Gigantor's 'Evol Ways' on the flip. The label recently got hooked up with worldwide distribution through Alphamagic UK, and their next two releases EVOL004 The Enemy 'Seedic' w/ Pyro remix and EVOL005 Slacknote and Hidden - 'Where's The Score' w/ Evol Intent remix will be coming out in Jan/Feb of 2004. Currently EI has signed '7 Angels with 7 Plagues' and 'Corrupt Cops remix (orig. by Pish Posh)' to Renagade Hardware's Barcode imprint, and the songs 'Red Soil' and 'Deathrow' to Outbreak LTD. Look for these releases, plus some new remixes from the Evol Intent camp to come out soon.

Gridlok - Detroit Electronic Music Festival - May 2007

Biography of Gridlok

As one of America’s hardest working producers and DJs, Gridlok has charted a steady, methodical path into the vanguard of drum and bass. His tracks enjoy the support of drum and bass’ finest, from Andy C to Bailey. His work ethic and tireless efforts to advance the sonic breadth of the music have yielded tremendous dividends for drum and bass fans worldwide. Recent tracks such as “Heatwave” on Violence have become staples of countless major league DJs worldwide, and they are huge crowd favorites.

Raised in sunny Florida and trained as a classical violinist, Gridlok soon found himself edging away from the constraints of a traditional musical education. He began picking up other instruments, familiarizing himself with methods and techniques outside of the cloistered world of classical music. In his early teens, he began his first experiments with primitive recording gear, using a four track tape recorder, a drum machine and a Radio Shack microphone. Taken in by the possibility of being able to theoretically translate any musical idea into a recording, he found himself drifting further away from traditional music and further into the seemingly limitless possibilities of electronic music production.

Cutting his teeth as a DJ in Florida, he began to work with other local producers and DJs, founding Technorganic Recordings, which proved a vital outlet for his creative work beyond simply DJing. With the name and experience he began to develop, signings on well established labels soon followed, including Nosebleed on Zero-G, and The Search and “Horizon” on Audio Blueprint, a release which raised Gridlok’s profile considerably.

Like fellow Violence Recordings artist Echo, Gridlok ultimately responded to the concentrated energy of San Francisco, finding the vibe of the city more conducive to his artistic temperament. Since his move, his career has accelerated exponentially. The close proximity to a host of other leading producers and DJs spurred his work to new levels of virtuosity. His rapidly expanding discography includes monstrous anthems such as Heatwave—his third release for Violence—and the Relic remix as well as more nuanced tracks like “Warhol” on Nerve Records.

His aesthetic firmly cemented to the dance floor, Gridlok has been successful at carving out a sound that manages to incorporate fragmentary echoes of his musical interests outside of drum and bass while maintaining the hard, shining surface of drum and bass at its most technologically advanced edge. He’s been a fearless exponent of new technologies, most clearly in DJing. He was among the first to embrace Stanton’s Final Scratch system, and has positioned himself on the leading edge of studio-based technology, something easily discerned in this technophile’s carefully crafted and utterly contemporary sounding tracks.

Belying the notion that he can only write dance floor-oriented tunes, Gridlok has also completed a full length album, Turning Pages, which afforded him the chance to stretch out into more subtle, deeper grooves, mining a rich streak of inspiration. He’s also established Project 51 Recordings, his new label, and of course he continues to DJ with a vengeance, traversing North America and visiting spots overseas, bringing his intensely condensed and energetic sets to drum and bass fans everywhere. With a series of forthcoming releases lined up for Violence, Virus, and other labels, and no slowing down in his DJ schedule, look for Gridlok to continue his ascendance into the highest echelons of drum and bass in 2004.

http://www.violencerecordings.com/