Cheeky Beats - My Year In Hard Dance

What's been your biggest achievement of the year?

My biggest achievment has been to help Killertrax establish its position in the hard dance scene. Its unbelivable how much we have achieved in the space of a year, especialiy in the current economic climate. We have achieved brand recognition and support from key players in the industry, including Superfast Oz, Jon Doe and Jon BW. Finishing number 1 in the final TID hard dance chart of 2009 was the pinicle for me. The Killertrax artist photoshoot held in winter 2009 was a resounding success amd has enabled us to build a portfolio of press shots to accompany artist`s biographys, thus maximising bookings for our Artist Agency. I feel that Killertrax has had a positive effect on the scene by offering a platform for up and coming artists to achieve success alongside established artists. Establishing the monthly Killertrax events has been a major achievment. We have worked hard promoting our brand, finding the perfect venue and striving to achieve the perfect sound. As we move forward into 2010 we are proud to be bringing with us our growing army of supporters and clubbers who attend our events.

What moments will you never forget?

Taking the plunge and moving from Manchester to Leeds. DJing at Riff Raff NYE 2009 to a packed club. I absolutely love Riff Raff, they have something really special, the music, the clubbers, the decor everything is spot on. so to get to DJ at the night was amazing, and the memory will stay with me forever. I certainly wont forget my trip to Ibiza. unfortunately not all for good reasons! I represented SO DJ Management on their 2009 tour, unfortunately I fell ill and decided to get checked out at the medical centre because of the swine flu scare. Unfortunately this resulted in the doctor referring me to hospital and i was bundled in to the back of a Spanish ambulance and driven half way across the island. I ended up flying home the next day, missing the rest of my gigs and feeling absolutely devastated.

Who's been your favourite newcomer of the year?

One of the stand out artists for me has been Energy Syndicate. His tracks are so full of energy they explode on the dabcefloor each time I play them. He is an extremelly talented lad and I know he will do really well in 2010. John Ridout has really impressed me with his hard trance/psy cross over sound that I predict is going to be massive this year. He has been around for a few years but has recently been brought into the limelight by the Killertrax team, where we hope to help him gain the credit he deserves for his work. Finally the act that has impressed me the most are The Ashan Project. This audio visual act have been headlineig underground festivals for 18 months. The amlount of effort that these guys put into their show is unbelievable and I think withthe right exposure 2919 could be the yer for them to breakin to the hard dance scene.

Who's been the artist of the year for you?

Thats a tough one but I`d have to go with Rodi Style. He is arguabely one of the most technically gifted DJs in the hard dance scene. i`m loving his Recreation mix, the hard trance sound is definately a welcome additonal direction for him. Ben is one of the nicest, clubber friendly DJs that I have met and always has time for people.

What's been your favourite label of the year?

For consistency and quality Tidy wins hands down. I`d also like to give Killertrax a mentioon, for the quality and variation of tracks and for the chances we offer to up and coming artists. .

What do you think has been the best track of the year?

Jason Roberts - Say it right. Gorgeous vocal and hard trance lead, brilliant track..goes off on any dancefloor.

What's been your favourite event of the year?

Well I didn`t make it to any big events this year. Partly due to lack of mney but also down to commiting alot of time to Killertrax. I`d say out of the events I`ve been to this year the best was the `last ever`Parlez Vous in April at The Mill in Bradford. It was my first time at ParleszVous for over four years so it brought back a lot of happy memories. I also really enjoyed the Killertrax Vs Housewives Choice Reunion. This was the first `fun` hard dance night I had been to in a long time, ironing on the dancfloor, dusting behind the DJ box, those were the days!

What's the funniest thing that's happened to you?

Hmm I had to give this question some thought, i``m really not that funny! I`d say the funniest thing that happened to me was at B2T Vs Hardcore Nation @ Gatecrasher, Birmingham NYD. I somehow managed to elbow one of the cdjs during my set, stopping the track mid flow! It wasn`t very funny at the time but I`m able to laugh at it now.

What do you have planned for the next year?

In 2010 we aim to build on last year`s success as well as looking at fresh and innovitative ways in which to push the label and events forward. We have a strong release schedule planned for the label which will be pushing the fun sounds of hard dance, including bounce and hard trance which will be showcasd on the dancefloors of our events. The first of which is a 4 room event featuring AWsum Bounce, Digitally Afflicted Trance, Raw2TheBone and Asperity House Musik. One of our main plans for 2010 is to develop the Killertrax Artist Agency. Qw have a strong group of artists which will enable us to provide individual bookings and group packages to clubs/promoters. Our final plan is to launch The Waves Academy, Leeds. A project that was piloted in 2009. Waves Academy will offer affordable dance music production tuition to anyone who wants to learn, all skill levels catered for. DJ lessons will also be available catering from beginner to advanced. Students of Waves Academy will be offered the option of attending seminars from some of the leading indistry professionals including Jon BW and Sam Townend. These seminars will cover areas such as `Tax returns for DJs` and `How to set up your own record label`.

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