House and techno never went away for me, but over the last few years it seems there has been an abundance of decent, deep, soul laced, funk dowsed, jazz tinged, bass ridden electronic music from new and upcoming producers.
At the same time classic labels such as Trax, KMS, DJ International, Pheerce City and Harmless are reissuing many of the original Chicago and Detroit based releases that made such an impact in the UK the first time around.
Meanwhile 2nd gen producers like Omar S, Ob Ignitt, Theo Parrish, Jay Daniel, Kyle Hall, Kai Alce, Mike Huckaby, Rahaan, Jamie 3:26 etc continue to lay down some of the finest and filthy grooves ever to grace a dance floor. And let's not forget the talent from across Europe.
So with all that in mind, this Saturday sees the launch of a new club night for Preston. It's called Mesmeric and it has been born to give the DJs that are booked the chance to play all the new music they are feeling right now, on a loud PA, to the decent sized core of music heads that live in and around the city. Here is the lowdown:
Upstairs, sound in, lights off, decks on.
COTTAM (Ruff Draft)
JOHN TREE (The Perfumed Garden)
PAUL THORNTON (Dig Deep)
HOUSE // TECHNO // ACID // DISCO
Free in before 11pm // £3 after
The Adelphi,
Fylde Road, Preston
COTTAM
Arguably Preston's finest export, Cottam first came to the attention of non Lancastrian's in 2009 when he released a slew of limited edition 12"s of his now trademark soul ridden, afro-dowsed, dubbed out, beatdown house and techno grooves.
Quick to sell out, they blew up on the underground deep house and nu-disco scenes. 5 year's later and one of the most humble guys you will meet has quietly amassed a back catalogue many would be proud of.
Labels include Delusions Of Grandeur, Paper Recordings, Fabric, Sound Of Speed, Phonica, Use Of Weapons, Aus Music, Audio Parallax, Wolf Music, Tru Thoughts, Endless Flight, Amp Art, Quintessentials, Constant State, Machine, Melodica...
In March this year he started his own Ruff Draft record label which has been getting support from Riccio, Sleazy Beats, Giles Peterson and Anaxander. The 5th release, by Romansoff, is out in October.
But that's just what he does in the day time. DJing is his first love and primary focus, and you can hear the passion every time he takes to the turntables. A burgeoning career behind the decks has seen Cottam DJ around the world from London & Ibiza super clubs to the dirtiest basements of Berlin and Manchester where he is a resident at the highly respected Bohemian Grove night.
Cottam also has a raft of podcasts under his belt, having been asked by Boileroom, Red Bull Music Academy, Creme and most recently Daniel Avery to work his magic.
His rate of mixes on Soundcloud is prolific, but a studio recording can never match the off the cuff ideas and crowd interaction of his live sets, that can take in anything from groovy disco edits to dark heads down techno, acid and lo slung house, all mixed with skill, grace and swagger, and topped off with a trademark cap.
https://www.soundcloud.com/cottam
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JOHN TREE
Apart from macaroni cheese, festivals, and his long-suffering wife, John Tree's main passion is the hypnotic groove.To regulars at the Beat-Herder, John is probably best known as the driving force behind the Perfumed Garden stage, and he has been involved with the festival in one way or another since year two.
His love of festivals has led him across the country, to play events as diverse as:
Solfest (Dogs in Space resident)
Alchemy
Musicport
Alfresco
Exodus
Bearded Theory
and along the way he has shared the decks with such luminaries as: Don Letts, Steve Hillage, DJ Derek, and Banco de Gaia.
When John isn't packing out a dome in a field, he presents his Wednesday night show on Cowbell Radio where he gets the chance to play a mid week mix of quality electronic music that is that bit more chilled than his live DJ sets.
http://www.mixcloud.com/johntree/
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Paul Thornton
"Little known fact - some 21 year's ago Cottam taught me how to mix. And he can still pick up my records and play them better than me".Paul has been honing his skills since the 90s with 5 hour sets at The Departure Lounge, (The Adelphi's original Saturday Night soirée) before going on to play at hundreds of events across the UK. Now a seasoned club and festival DJ, Paul has steadily built a reputation as a respected selector that plays across the board.
A regular at Beat-Herder in the Trailer Trash tent since the 2nd festival, he is often asked to play on other stages throughout the weekend. In 2012 he played the Disco Stage at Kendal Calling festival alongside some of the North West’s finest DJs.
Paul is one half of the DJ tag team that supports The Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show when it comes to town. But don't let that fool you, his house, techno and nu disco collection is up there with the best and his mates over in Chicago feed his vinyl addiction with regular tips both new and old.
He’s also one of the many resident DJs at Manchester based club night Boogizm “a party full of music aficionados that know how to let loose on the dancefloor”.
Possibly best known as co-promoter and resident DJ at itch - Preston’s longest standing club night which, since 2003, has brought the likes of John Morales, RSL, Domu, Cottam, Diesler, Treva Whateva and Jon K to the city. Elsewhere he has shared the decks with Manchester stalwarts including The Unabombers.
Paul has been hosting his 'Dig Deep' radio show since 2006 and has worked with some of the most respected DJ’s and live acts from around the world, including Mr Scruff, Rahaan, Marcel Vogel, Gene Hunt, Mr Mendel, Gene Hunt, Sean P, Fraser Funk, DJ Izrail, Voc Walters, Dave Merritt, Boogie Nite, Mikey Donn, Bruce Ivery, Danielle Moore, Zernell Gillie, Simba, Manmademusic and Yogi Haughton.
This month's Dig Deep on Cowbell Radio show reached Number 1 in the Detroit Techno chart.
http://www.mixcloud.com/paulthornton
http://www.digdeepradioshow.blogspot.co.uk/
