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DJ Mag Top100 DJs
3
John Digweed
5

John Digweed is well accustomed to long journeys. That's largely a function of his globetrotting lifestyle of course, something he's more than happy to talk about when DJmag tracks him down at Dallas airport.
"You certainly clock up the air miles - not that you ever really want to get on a plane again," laughs John. "But I do realise how fortunate I am because there are so many people who would love to visit all these countries and play the best clubs in the world. It's taken hard work and dedication to get here though."

The same sense of great distances travelled is also true of John's music. Not just in the length of the expansive sets he spins across the world but also in the number of bases he touches en-route. For John's style is increasingly tricky to pin down - moving far beyond the progressive house he was originally known for to visit some of the furthest fringes of electronic music.
"Some people still think I'm a prog DJ and are pleasantly surprised when they hear me now," John believes. "I spend all the time I possibly can seeking out new music and I think that people respect that. They know I'm going to be different every time and not just churning out the same set."

All of which makes the title of his 'Transitions' radio show particularly apt.
"It means not just the mix from one record to another but also the shift in musical styles so I'm not tied to one genre," he explains.
In the seven years since the show began on Kiss FM, 'Transitions' has grown in global reach and is now broadcast in 24 countries. It's also available to thousands more international listeners via the internet and has spawned a CD series on Renaissance - the third edition of which was released recently.
"I'm very aware that I'm not just broadcasting to the UK any more," John says. "There are so many community sites writing about what I do that I know people all around the world are tracking what I'm playing."

It's the fact that John is willing to go out there and play to them in person that makes him the DJ that reaches the parts others don't reach - as evinced by his forthcoming tour schedule, which takes him from South America to China and Korea before ending the year in LA.

The constant touring has meant that his Bedrock label has had to take a backseat this year.
"We've got some good releases like Guy J's 'Save Me' ready to go but we're just trying to figure out a game-plan at the moment," he reveals. "But Bedrock still has a really strong name so people will be excited when we come back."
John has managed to fit some studio time in for himself however, producing the epic 25-minute 'Gridlock' with Nick Muir, which came as a bonus CD-ROM with 'Transitions 3' and will be released as more manageable six and nine-minute remixes soon.

Reflecting on the current state of dance music, John enthuses: "It's really good at the moment. The German sound has slowed things down so people are responding to creativity and not just big obvious riffs. Then people take elements of that and mix them with their own and something new emerges - which is what makes dance music so exciting. The tree needs to be given a shake from time to time."