Features

Groove Armada's Andy Cato looks back on the life behind his new 'Times & Places' album for R&S' Apollo imprint — a musical travelogue of his time touring the globe...

This years British festival listings

Programmed and mixed by Steffi, Panorama Bar’s latest mix CD makes it feels like the series is complete. The Dutch DJ/producer’s passion for music is rooted in her deep knowledge of electronic music, which transcends genres and lazy descriptions.

Maintaining the perfect blend of old skool rave and the finest contemporary leftfield sounds, as well as attracting one of dance music’s most passionate crowds, this year sees Bang Face celebrate its 10th anniversary.

In the music industry there are two types of meteoric rise. One is a scary, Susan Boyle-shaped process, where the basking lizard kings of pop pluck an unknown, polish them dumb, tell them what their new name, hairstyle and personality is, and thrust them mercilessly into the light, there to cavort for our pleasure.

Fred P is the underground DJ/producer from Brooklyn who's become synonymous with the real deep house sound purveyed by labels like Underground Quality and Strength. With a new album out now, we seek out the enigmatic house head to learn more about what make him tick...

Barely a week goes by without some muso or other declaring the death of the mix CD. And you can understand why, given the proliferation of free mixes that pop up like pop-ups each and every day on the worldwide web. Once every four or so years, though, all that changes, people forget to argue and unite in appreciation of the form once more.

“I never latch on to one particular trend when it comes to music,” says Luke Solomon. We’re talking about the New Jersey house revival currently pumping energy bubbles into the British underground house scene. And the reason we’re talking about it is because old school New Jersey house, says Luke, is something he loved and lived through the first time round.

Freshly signed to Rinse with a massive tune set to run dancefloors and radios this spring, and with huge tracks for Kerri Chandler's Madtech doing the rounds, Krystal Klear's disco-informed house is more in vogue than ever

Damian Lazarus is the leader of Crosstown Rebels — not just a label, but a globe-trotting party and network of like minded artists. Celebrating 10 fiercely independent years of always innovative house and techno in 2013, the Lazarus man opens up about his path to dancefloor domination

Belfast drum & bass auteur Calibre is a true enigma. Prolific, classically-trained, with a melodic, futuristic style all his own, he shuns the limelight. But with a new mix CD for Fabric — his first — in the offing, we're granted a rare audience with one of the most fabled artists in dance music...

“After I do a gig, if I’m in a party mood, it’s my tour manager’s job to remind me that this is my job,” says 25-year-old megastar DJ Hardwell. “Even though when I DJ and travel it doesn’t feel like a job. It feels like a dream come true.”

Danish producer Noir and his sprawling musical empire Noir Music have been riding the crest of a wave for a couple of years now, and it’s all down to one man’s tireless work ethic...

Trap is the slow-rolling, synth-heavy, snare-snappin' sound that's swept underground dancefloors and stadiums alike across the US and Europe. But what is trap? Is it a genre of its own? Where does it come from? Why's it so popular — and why's it hated in equal measure? Does it have a future? Danna Takako investigates...

Detroit-born Kris Wadsworth talks to us about Plastikman, giving up drink and drugs, still playing vinyl in a digital age, and making more fucking tracks for labels like Hypercolour, Morris/Audio, and Get Physical from his adopted city of Berlin...

“I love listening to a cool techno DJ, in a club, but if you go and see Swedish House Mafia DJ, for example, there’s no artistry involved. They are just getting behind the decks, with a finished CD, and pressing play then putting their hands in the air. This is something that is so wrong, because they get paid so much money for that.”

Joe Claussell is on the brink of an exciting project, along with Brian Bacchus — they’re all set towork on remixing the Miles Davis catalogue. It’s a task that the Body & Soul star is approaching in a typically philosophical way. “Whatever the universe puts out we will accept it,” he muses. He’ll be heading to the UK this summer to the Southport Weekender along with Francois K and Danny Krivit for a Body & Soul special. “I really love what they do, what they put together, making sure they put on the best music festival around.” Coming from a household where each room had a different soundsystem playing a different genre, Joe Claussell is well equipped to sum up his Lucky 7...

Only 20-years-old and already a dance music star, with Top 10 chart hits in the UK, a residency in Las Vegas and US wide tours under his belt, Porter Robinson is the new face of the hugely popular big room electro house sound. But as it turns out, he spurns fame, cringes at the acronym EDM, and draws inspiration from musique concrete to Daft Punk. DJ Mag has a pint with him in a grimy North London boozer to learn more...

As you’ve doubtless heard, dubstep is dead in the water. Cursed with a lethal mix of commercial success, mass popularity, a huge internet presence, countless sold out raves, the scene is, as any fool can tell, totally knackered. Somebody needs to pause and tell Skream this quick, because from where he’s standing, the world has never looked better. Currently on a short solo tour of the States, the man who describes himself as having “dubstep as my blood group” has been gleefully pushing the boundaries of the sound, chopping up half speed snare smashes and bully boy basslines with taut explosions of house, disco and techno, knowing full well that rather than destroying the scene he loves, he’s blowing it wide open.

Mr C is an enigma. Celebrating 25 years in the game, the man born Richard West has played an integral part in the development of quality electronic music over the last quarter of a century or so.