Tune
Juliet Sikora & – Larry’s Garage – Kittball
It’s chunky and funky and builds like a new town and the Deee-Lite breakdown is always a winner.
Secondcity ft Makree – Never Been In Love – White label
It’s a breathing, humping, pumping disco filtered beast with a bassline that slithers all over you like snakes in a snake pit. Lush.
Album
Anderson .Paak – Malibu
Stealthy, sexy and accomplished, Anderson has comfortably taken the most recent seat at the table that plays host to Drake, John Legend, Sbtrkt, Q-Tip, Raphael Saadiq, The Roots, Prince, Outkast, Pharrell, Sampha and Lil Silva. Malibu houses and eclectic mix of music that leaps from hip hop to soul to deep house in a single bound. It also makes you nod your head, dance your ass off and fall in love.
Remix
Joey Negro – Grace Jones – Pull Up To The Bumper
Literally every DJ worth their long sets has played this somewhere in their set this year in Manchester – a get out of jail free card for the disco, funk and boogie set massive.
Nathan Barato – Infinity Ink – Full Capacity.
This was an indie-ish record that had a clunky groove and not super dancefloor friendly but then Nathan rewired it and made it go off. Standard.
Elderbrook – Closer – Eats Everything – Space Station remix – Black Butter
Eats Everything has a way with a fuck off kick, squealing acidics, a rolling groove and a vocal hook that snags you like a leaping salmon on a line. Naughty.
Best label
Even stevens between…
Exploited Ghetto – Tigerskin and Lazarusman – Golden Girls
Kittball – Juliet Sikora Larry’s Garage
Suara – Mat.joe, Purple Disco Machine, Dosem
Simma Black – Made By Pete Made By Pete Made By Pete
Best breakthrough label
A tie break between Simma Black, Simma Red and Audio Rehab – each consistently gets the jacking house grooves right and sniffs out the new producers before the other labels jump on them.
Best Producer
Made By Pete – seriously good productions, a good head on the shoulders and decent enough to respond to playlist plays with thanks and a comment.. Will go far.
Festival
Parklife aced it for me this year even under the deluge.
Music Conference
Didn’t attend any. Strangely irrelevant to me this year which was a surprise.
Radio Show
Gilles Peterson – Worldwide. I always learn and hear something new.
Mainstage DJ
Jamie Jones – he made me proper wiggle at Parklife.
Resident DJ
Jamie Bull – resident ‘HANDSOME’ at Underdog, Homoelectric, The Refuge.
Jamie Rocks because he is a music lover / disco / house aficionado / CD / USB – one of the nicest people and DJs I have had the honour of meeting, eating and working with.
Will Tramp – resident at Warehouse Project / Homoelectric / The Refuge / Albert’s Schloss
Music lover : turntablist : Wine & roast guzzler / always late / dynamic / showman / show off / dog walker / great fun and a top bloke.
Club
Ministry of Sound.
I hadn’t been for three years and had the pleasure to play for the A Night In Paradise Paradise Garage fundraiser last Sunday. I had forgotten how much fun, how musical, how well organised, how slick, how clean and how loud that place is. Hats off to all. A good reminder that it truly is still one of the best (and possibly one of the top 3) clubs in the world (that is left standing).
New Studio Equipment/Software
OK maybe not new new as it launched last August, but have been using Serato at Reform Radio, bought the SL2 and I tried the Serato DDJ – SB2 to go with it. I liked it so much that it’s in my birthday present pile. I like it because it is straight forward to use qnd looks like a shrunk down Traktor S8 / S5. It’s a useful – and highly portable – bit of kit for when or if you need to take your own equipment out.
Personal highlight of 2016
Playing at the Ministry of Sound again for the Handsome crew at A Night In Paradise. It’s been a long time coming.
Your ambition for 2017…
Club sets in main rooms, moving my long sets out of bars and into bigger events or festival tents. Am on course (on pestering and cosmic shopping list course) for getting more regular, live 2 hour radio show slots on Gaydio (in lead presenter training). And finally I hope to get more involved in events planning / organisation.
