Home News What's On Annual Poll Photos Forums DJs Features Music Venues Reviews Links

Features Introducing NEM3SI$’s new label Infinite Resistance! Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! NEM3SI$ - I Live for the Night – talks superficiality, psychopaths, and bittersweet success, ahead of a plethora of evocative, emotional, and passionate upcoming melodic techno releases! Psy-Sisters Spring Blast Off! We talk to DJ competition winner ROEN along with other super talents on the lineup! Blasting towards summer festivals with Bahar Canca ahead of Psy-Sisters Spring Blast! Shyisma talks parties, UFO's, and Shotokan Karate ahead of his upcoming album 'Particles' on Iono-Music! SOME1 talks family, acid, stage fright and wolves - ahead of his upcoming album release ‘Voyager’ on Iono-Music in February 2023! The Transmission Crew tell all and talk about their first London event on 24th February 2023! NIXIRO talks body, mind and music production ahead of his release 'Planet Impulse' on Static Movement's label - Sol Music! Turning the world into a fairy tale with Ivy Orth ahead of Tribal Village’s 10th Birthday Anniversary Presents: The World Lounge Project The Psy-Sisters chat about music, achievements, aspirations and the 10-Year Anniversary Party - 18/12/22! A decade of dance music with Daniel Lesden Earth Needs a Rebirth! Discussions with Psy-Trance Artist Numayma Taking a Journey Through Time with Domino New Techno Rising Star DKLUB talks about his debut release White Rock on Onhcet Republik! PAN expands on many things including his new album 'Hyperbolic Oxymoron' due for release on the 14th April 2022 on PsyWorld Records! Psibindi talks all things music including her new collaborative EP 'Sentient Rays' on Aphid Records, her band Sentience Machine and 10 years of Psy-Sisters!

The Monkey has returned and this time it's about to get Maximal! Reported by JC-TAKTIKAL / Submitted 10-08-07 11:10 Not so long ago, a creature with distinctive colouring was seen swinging through the night somewhere in south London. It’s mating cry was broken beats, fused with electro and a smattering of house. The Purple Monkey was one of the best nights in town for the discerning masses, bringing some of the biggest breaks stars from around the UK, headed up by none other than Mr JDS, Darren Pearce. Then one night, the Monkey was gone. The streets of Brixton, well we won’t say they were safer, but they were certainly a whole lot quieter. Beat-heads pounded the pavements, searching in vain for the sight of purple fur. Rumours ran rife. Had the Monkey been killed off? Had ill-tempered heads of venue given it a severe beating and sent it on its way? Had JDS stuffed the Monkey in his suitcase and spirited it off to pastures new? Or was someone busy in a dark corner somewhere, spanking it over and over and over again? Fortunately, particularly in the last instance, none of those Chinese whispers where true. The Purple Monkey is back again and so is Darren Pearce. Leading a stunning line-up of breaks talent, including Move Ya!, Angel Farringdon and Stylus Rex, The Adventures Of The Purple Monkey takes over the world-famous Terrace at The Cross on Friday August 17th in association with Maximal. With Paul Woolford, Mistress De Funk and Micah Lukasewich in action in the main room, it’s going to be one hell of a hot night in the city. HF caught up with Darren ahead of the gig and found out just what’s been going on with him and then Monkey since we last saw him. Hi Darren, how are you today? We haven’t heard much from the Adventures of the Purple Monkey for a while – where have you been and what have you been up to? We were rocking Babalou every month for a while with a real loyal following, but we wanted to move to a bigger and better venue, somewhere more central and well more world class! I’ve personally been working on two new albums as well so it’s been pretty hectic but I’m glad we’re back! You’re bringing the promotion to The Cross on August 17th in conjunction with Maximal vs Perfected. What persuaded you to jump into bed with them? I’ve always loved The Cross as a venue, great sound system, amazing layout so when heard Maximal was interested in having us on we jumped at it! Maximal has got some big sounds there with Paul Woolford and Mistress de Funk both performing. How do you think the different promotions will come together to produce a cohesive night for clubbers? That was the whole idea of bringing us in – they wanted to diversify the music across all three arches. From Big room house sounds, through to breaks in the middle terrace and darker tech sounds in the cave! It’s pretty much the end for The Cross this year. How much of an institution do you think it is in London and will you be sad to see it go? Big time! It’s gonna be very sad to see it go, that’s why we’re here to give it a good send off! In the summer it’s possibly the best club in London, each room is attached to wicked outside gardens where you can escape for a little bit right under stars, then straight back in the club and get right back into the vibe of the night. Clubland at the moment is being shaken up with developers buying up some of our best loved venues and tearing them down to stick up shitty apartment buildings. What are your feelings on this? Sad thing is that’s just business I’m afraid. When this all started there weren’t any self built super clubs, just spaces and places to put a big ass rig and people just put together their own parties wherever they could. Just because a few venues are going doesn’t mean that we’re gonna stop what we love! Trust me. You’ve just signed a record deal with Distinctive – how did that come about and are you being paid sick loads of money to mess around in a studio all day? There’s no money in dance music, only for the lucky few. We sent them what we had and they liked it so we came to deal. They’re a great label to get on and we really love the concept of doing our second album! How much of the album is finished so far? We have about 6 tracks finished and others on the go so we are hoping to have it dusted off by the beginning of next year. Who’ve you been working on it with? Ha, well that’s a secret! We’ve always had a tight knit crew of people we work with like our vocalist who we’ve been in collaboration with for years but we’re always searching for new people to work with all the time. What’s a typical day in the studio with you like? Well we tend not to get started until later on in the afternoon, we always get together a little early, vibe around in the studio, listen to stuff we like that’s new, old or whatever, just try and find what kind of tip we’re on and then well we just get cracking until we get something we like. What kind of software/hardware are you using in your set-up? Pretty standard as any studio nowadays, we’ve got the MAC G5 dual processor, running Logic Audio and any software we can find. It’s so easy to set up your studio from where we were 10 years back and even easier if you’re using a laptop just plug in and get moving – and you also have a lot more space. Have you got a working title for it? No not at the moment, that’s always the hardest part, haha! We always tend to wait until we’ve finished before we start thinking about names, I guess you need to have the whole piece of work before you can start thinking about it. The first release is a cover of the Kinks’ classic You Really Got Me. Why did you choose to cover it and what have you done to the original version? What do you think Ray Davies would make of it? We’ve been thinking about covering it for ages so we thought let’s just try it and see how it comes out. We always thought it had that rebellious dance feel to it so we thought we’d give it a modern day update. I don’t know what Ray Davis thinks but it has been cleared for use with the publishing company and when I’ve played it out someone always asks who made it plus it gets a great reaction. Do you think that covering such a classic track could see you break into a more mainstream market? Well you never know with these things, we will just have to wait and see. We never made it with that intention – we just loved the track. If it becomes a crossover hit then that’s cool but the most important thing to us is making the music. A little recognition is nice too though obviously. You’re pretty much close to completing your Paradox 3000 album. How much of a labour of love has that been? Yes, we have 3 vocal tracks to finish so by the end of August that definitely will be ready. It has been a labour of love as I really working with Angel Farringdon, we both like all types of music so we can draw on lots of different types of inspiration. There’s one track on there, ‘One Priceless Moment’, that sounds like it’s going to blow up big time. What kind of feedback have you had from it already? It’s something we worked on using a lot drum editing like with jungle, very original sounding not an instant tune but it has drums and bass to die for! It always seems to be asked about when either Angel Farringdon or I play it. Rennie Pilgrim rang me to tell me how good it was and should be proud of it which is cool especially from a legend like him. When can we expect to see both your finished works? Paradox 3000 will be by the end of the year with samplers just after summer, so watch out! What have you been up to DJ-wise? You toured Australia recently, how did that go? I love touring it’s always one of the best bits of the job, its great to see that people appreciate your music no matter where they are in the world. I must admit I preferred the club part of the tour over the festival, there’s something very intense about being in a club and so close to punters it’s a very different feeling. I haven’t DJed so much as JDS but as Darren Pearce so it’s nice to tour under the name where it all started. Where’s the one place in the world that you haven’t played yet and would kill to? Why do you want to play there so much? Sheesh, well that’s such a tough one I couldn’t really choose, I’ve pretty much played in every country, everywhere is different and bring along with them their unique experiences. Finally, if we could pay good money to see you at The Cross on the 17th, how are you going to repay us musically? What can we expect? This will be first time you hear some of my newest tracks from the album, I’ve been keeping them close to my chest for the relaunch of AOTPM. The Monkey will be strong on the 17th and it’s gonna go OFF big time in that middle Arch at The Cross! Photos courtesy of Most Wanted. Not to be reproduced without permission Maximal present Perfected On: Friday 17th August 2007 At: The Cross [map] From: 10pm till 5am Cost: £10 concessions Website: www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=228505&interface= Ticket Info: JC: 07935 065 075 Buy Online: Click here to buy tickets More: Maximal presents Perfected @ The Cross Friday August 17th 10pm – 5am Limited £12.50 concessions available guestlist@wearebeautiful.co.uk + Outdoor smoking garden now open Sponsored by: FRONT Magazine Maximal ‘London’s fastest growing club night’ returns to the world famous Cross Club on Friday August 17th to present to you a brand new concept in music… ‘Perfected’. Their goal, aim and ambition is to bring you the very best in cutting edge, forward thinking Electronica to the people who want it the most. To achieve this they have scoured the globe in search of the finest, freshest DJ talent of the moment, the true innovators who live, breath and sleep music. The names that were finally chosen really emphasize the all-encompassing range of styles that Perfected features. UK legend Paul Woolford, Canada’s progressive shining star Micah Lukasewich from Baroque, BBC Radio 1s ‘Queen of the Underground’ Mistress De Funk and breaks leading light JDS will bring you a dynamic display of mainroom sonic sounds for your aural pleasure. Please note: This will be the only time you will ever see any of these artists perform at the world famous nightclub before it closes at the end of the year! With three rooms of the most genre defying and thought provoking music on the planet spread over three glorious arches of The Cross, join us for a one off musical experience too good to miss. Paul Woolford A man that really should need no introduction, Paul has already crafted a legacy in the dance music scene. His current DJ career spans the globe from Ibiza to Berlin, Montpellier to Madrid, Chicago to Singapore and is a testament to his commitment to pushing his unique musical sound and knowledge. As an artist his productions and releases have come under various aliases on many respected labels (2020 Vision, Underwater, Subliminal, Soma’s Freelance Science imprint, C2) and now he is launching his own label ‘Intimacy’. With Paul gaining his first set of decks at the tender age of 12, and gaining radio play at 13 its obvious music and DJ’ing has flown in his blood all his life. Now a master of layering tracks in-key to almost create a third sound, his sets are something to be savoured and defiantly not to be missed. Mistress De Funk This young lady has been dubbed the ‘Queen of Sankeys’, the legendary club night and is now pushing her sublime style of minimal tech and electronica across the UK and Europe including rocking Ibiza to its very core. Her first residency of many came at the age of 15 confirmed that despite her young age the lady definitely has experience where it matters. Now with a weekly show on BBC Radio 1 since January, a huge achievement and responsibility in itself, and touring with Jo Mills the Mistress is seemingly on an unstoppable roll. Micah Lukasewich (Exclusive Baroque Album launch) Micah is currently one of the key names in the Progressive arena. With a position on the Global Underground world tour as well as his album forthcoming on the legendary Baroque label, life is certainly looking up for this young talented Canadian musician. His production work has seen his name grace many respected labels such as Fade, Silverplanet, Method, Aurium among many others, plus he's remixed releases for Lost Language and Global Underground. Now he finds himself creating his own label named Ruhnsong to continue releasing forward thinking dance floor aimed bombs. He has also built his reputation through his highly regarded Ruhnsong radio show on the Proton network. As you can see Micah has made his passionate presence felt within the scene and his star is sure to only keep burning brighter in the very near future and beyond. JDS Most people would have first heard of JDS through his massive cross-over hit ‘Nine Ways’, released back on Pete Tongs ‘FFRR’ label and reaching 41 in the national charts way back in 1997. However in the decade following Darren has crafted a legendary career for himself as both a DJ and Producer extraordinaire. Now running is own label Punk Funk Records and with an album entitled ‘The Adventures Of The Purple Funky Monkey’ released on Rennie Pilgrems hugely respected TCR label, Darren’s studio credentials are unquestionable. His DJ’ing career also see’s him touch down in Ibiza & Canada, Spain and more, plus there are tours planned in South East Asia, Australia and Europe in the very near future too. Truly now a recognised leader in the global scene, Darren continues to swing from branch to branch as an unquestionable master of all things breaks-related. Mainroom: Maximal presents Perfected Paul Woolford Mistress De Funk Micah Lukasewich (Album Launch) Chris Barratt (Stealth / Yoshitoshi) KNL The Terrace hosted by A.O.T.P.M JDS Move Ya! (Know How Records) Angel Farringdon Stylus Rex Andy D (MOS Radio) Ste Roberts (proton) Andy Dennett (Slow Motion) The Cave hosted by NeverNeverland Jamie McHugh Warbgasm (Variance) Dave James (IDJ raw talent) Laura Heath Kabuki Mono Kriess Guyte Vs Rob Read 100 x £12.50 Early bird tickets (on sale now) £15 concessions MOTD Buy here direct: Ticketweb http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=228505&interface= Flyer: - Region: London Music: Deep House. Prog House. Tribal House. US House. Deep Techno. Funky Techno. Techno. DJ's: Mainroom: Maximal presents Perfected Paul Woolford Mistress De Funk Micah Lukasewich (Album Launch) Chris Barratt (Stealth / Yoshitoshi) KNL The Terrace hosted by A.O.T.P.M JDS Move Ya! (Know How Records) Angel Farringdon Stylus Rex Andy D (MOS Radio) Ste Roberts (proton) Andy Dennett (Slow Motion) The Cave hosted by NeverNeverland Jamie McHugh Warbgasm (Variance) Dave James (IDJ raw talent) Laura Heath Kabuki Mono Kriess Guyte Vs Rob Read Who's Going? (6) : Digital D, dimitry, JC-TAKTIKAL, mirezz, mostwantedkat, Tinks  Share this :: : : : Follow HarderFaster :: Other Features By JC-TAKTIKAL: There really is only one Type 1 Tin Tin out at Maximal Take a trip down the 3 way M.I.D.O.R says YES! to his first ever UK appearance Chris Barratt’s recipe for upside down almond and apple cake: Maximal style… The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable. Comments: From: JC-TAKTIKAL on 10th Aug 2007 12:43.12 this is going to be our biggest lineup to date make sure you make this your first MAXIMAL! From: GJB on 10th Aug 2007 16:30.53 Well looking forward to this. Would be great to hear JDS drop Punk or Funk! From: mostwantedkat on 13th Aug 2007 17:45.45 Can't wait for this one!!! Roll on The Cross From: dimitry on 15th Aug 2007 11:30.22 Yes Yes!!! how cooll is this gonna be => Superb night on the cards!!!

All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective companies. All other content is (c) 2001-2024 HarderFaster.

Terms and Conditions | Privacy Statement | Text Mode