Nick Warren und Dubfire

He was at the start of the dance music explosion, becoming one of the early superstar DJs to take the world by storm. Yet Nick Warren continues to be at the forefront of the electronic scene, laying down the standard for progressive house and techno for years gone by. Since bursting out of Bristol in the early 90s, Warren has released 17 albums, the most recent being 2013's 'Renaissance:The Master Series, Part 19" which is rather aptly titled for he is certainly a master of dance music. His eclectic style has moved between so many subgenres that it is hard to pin down. But throughout his career he has progressed electronic music to new levels, particularly in the world of trance through his hits 'Life on Mars' and 'Nipple Fish' which became huge anthems in their time. His selections have always made efforts to show the diversity of the scene, with his many releases being testament of his desire to present the wide-ranging progression of electronic music. His Edge Summer Edition mix (2014) at Antwerp was a next-level example of sumptuous beats flawlessly combined to make an instantly danceable set, pounding out house and trance bangers at a consistency which is rare to vend. Warren is still at the top of his game and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future.

It’s fitting that Ali Shirazinia (AKA Dubfire) states that some of his most formative influences stem from the Iranian punk scene that he grew up around, along with records from the Washington D.C Hardcore scene from bands like Minor Threat and Black Flag. One cursory look at his recent career is enough to see that it’s been pretty punk rock by anyone’s standards. Making his name in the progressive house DJ and production duo Deep Dish, he sacked that in after winning Grammy’s for what they do and radically changed his sound with his subsequent DJ sets. No matter what music you listen to, you have to respect the dedication and sheer spine that it took to follow that through, even if Deep Dish reunited for a single release this year. The truth is, however, that Shirazinia’s evolution from the duo’s prog house to minimalist techno works far better live and makes for some outrageous sets for any house fan. The music he creates in his solo sets just is more accessible than his previous work, and while that might seem like a cop out on the surface, in the heat of the moment, it would take someone seriously churlish to care. Besides, the man’s shown that he’s an artist, and now he wants to show that he’s just as adept at making people dance like utter lunatics. Go and join them the next chance you get, you will not regret it!