| Description: | One of the UK's most accomplished techno producers, Dave Clarke has sustained a career spanning the 90s, displaying an instinct for creating classic tracks which have won him international acclaim. Starting out as a hip-hop DJ in the late 80s, Clarke honed his knowledge of mixing and knowledge of music, moving on to acid house, hardcore, and his own brand of up-front techno, which combined the elation and intensity of hardcore with the funk of hip-hop and house. Becoming affiliated in the mid-90s with the top record labels R&S Records, XL Records, Deconstruction Records, Reload and Bush, Clarke began to make a real impact on international dance music. His Aphrohead remixes of 1993 introduced the filtered house sound, diluted aspects of which are ubiquitous in today's club music. "Red One", "Red Two" and "Red Three" were classic sounding Detroit-tinged workouts with a unique feel and displaying a mastery of drum programming. "Red Three" broke into the UK Top 50 - a rare feat for a techno record. These were followed by "Southside", a fantastically funky track which quoted from old-school Chicago soul, yet managed to sound completely unique.
Clarke's blistering DJ sets received a great deal of attention, earning him a reputation as one of the fastest and most idiosyncratic DJs around. Being criticised in certain branches of the dance media for the seriousness of his attitude to music and his anti-drugs stance, Clarke has always shown himself to be indifferent to the whims of an arguably destructive culture, being invariably more interested in the music. His stylishly presented red sleeved album Archive 1 reflected his dedication to musical perfection, containing all of the Red series, along with more brilliantly executed techno. Extending this eclectic approach, his Electro Boogie albums for Studio !K7 displayed another facet to his mixing technique, coinciding with electro DJ sets which demonstrated his ability to work a crowd. Recently he has established residencies at Liverpool's Bugged Out!, Belfast's Shine and has made regular appearances at the UK's Atomic Jam and Pure. He is also a resident at Belgium's world famous Fuse club and Barcelona's Nitsa, and his weekly schedule takes in clubs all over the world. Clarke has also been a much sought-after remixer, having added his inimitable touch to releases by, amongst others, Emperion, the Chemical Brothers, Christopher Just, Carl Cox and Leftfield. He also delivered a wonderful remix of Underworld's "King Of Snake" for Junior Boy's Own. Clarke is one of the most exciting techno producers on the planet. |
