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Hook 'n' Sling

We're hooked
on this DJ/
producer's
house and
breaks collision

SYDNEY-based house cat Hook 'n' Sling,
also known as Anthony Maniscalco, is getting
a lot of peeps excited. With only a handful of
releases to his name for labels such as Cr2
and Hussle 'n' Bussle, he's already
cultivated a reputation as a
producer.
But it's his eviscerating DJ sets
that are really getting clubbers
hot under the collar. With an
open-minded approach on the decks,
Maniscalco spins a dancefl oor-shredding
pile-up of breaks and tough electro-house,
mixing in dirty Miami bass and B-More a
cappellas to get the crowd just that bit more
amped.

His ridiculous skills are documented on his
debut mix album 'Chew The Fat! at The End
Presents Hook 'n' Sling', out now on Fat! - a
dope dossier of obese breaks and house
ranging from the mirrorball thump of Margot
Meets the Melody Maker's 'Torch' to the dark
crunch of Koma & Bones' remix of 10 Rapid's
'Master System'. Catching the ears of Paul
Arnold and the rest of the Fat! massive, who
are currently in the process of expanding their
musical blueprint beyond the realm of breaks,
they invited Maniscalco to step up.

"I've known Paul from Fat! for a few years
now," the DJ reveals. "Back in the day when I
was a little unknown bedroom producer, I sent
a few of my tracks over to him for some
feedback and a bit of guidance. We've pretty
much kept in touch since then."

Naming himself after Eddie Bo's seminal rare
groove classic 'Hook 'n' Sling', the funk is very
much part of his sound, but Manisculco's not a
purist about where it comes from.
"I come from a musical background, but I never
really came in from a dance or rave angle like a
lot of guys," he ponders. "I'm not too
genre-conscious. The compilation is a good
example of what I mean - just good music. I've
chatted to heaps of 'so-called' music purists.
You see them one week stroking their chin to a
certain song and then you see them the week
after in the same club, to the same track,
gurning off their tits on the podium. I've come
to realise there aren't as many music purists
out there as we think," Maniscalco chuckles.

Blending
between the
commercial and
resolutely
underground, Hook
'n' Sling's punky, irreverent style is what
makes his sets so addictive and refreshing.
Right now he's focused on his gigs, but there
may be an album of his own productions to
come - just don't hold your breath.

"You need 12 tracks for an album, don't you? I
think I've only released three originals in my
career so far. Better get working, hey?"
Manisculco grins.