Your favourite dance music DJ

[Wanking Monk of Kefalonia]

I like Easygroove and Tony de Vit. Which DJs do you like?

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Tony Blackburn.

[mojo filters]

I know it's an obvious choice, but Paul Oakenfold back in the day covered many bases.

"The Goa Mix" (R1 1994) was epic and hugely influential. He could play club sets ranging from piano house to really hard house, as well as big events where his own label's Perfecto Flouro trancey originals and remixes got into old school Man With No Name territory.

I guess Sasha & John Digweed were a bit cleverer, when they used stems and multitracks to innovate in the world of commercial mixed releases. However when they actually played out after albums like "Involver" they seemed to just mix between their own proprietary versions of popular club songs.

The latter became more predictable, whereas when Oakenfold got his residency upstairs in the little room at Cream, he just seemed to start playing even more diverse and eclectic sets that were so popular it got physically uncomfortable to get in there - hence he moved out to the courtyard.

[BlodwynPig]

Wanking monk trying to reinvent himself as a Best Buy Replies From View.

[Captain Z]

I don't have the heart to tell them about Tony de Vit...

[mojo filters]

I don't have the heart to tell them about Tony de Vit...

Didn't he die tragically young?

It was either him or Jon Pleased Wimmin (sp?) - both of whom used to play banging sets when Gatecrasher was still finding it's feet at the (much missed) Arches venue, then the converted space at Adelphi.

[monkfromhavana]

Didn't he die tragically young?

It was either him or Jon Pleased Wimmin (sp?) - both of whom used to play banging sets when Gatecrasher was still finding it's feet at the (much missed) Arches venue, then the converted space at Adelphi.

Tony De Vit died in about 1996. Jon Pleased Wimmin is still about. Can't comment on either of their abilities as DJs as I've never heard any sets by either of them.

[mojo filters]

Tony De Vit died in about 1996. Jon Pleased Wimmin is still about. Can't comment on either of their abilities as DJs as I've never heard any sets by either of them.

Aah right, that was sad. As I recall Tony had the same agent as Mrs Wood (of classic "Joanna" fame.) Both were really talented DJs who could transform a regular Graeme Park-type house night into hard banging excitement - especially when playing top of the bill at the end of the night!

Jon Pleased always sticks in my mind as whenever he'd come up to play Gatecrasher, Shindig, Back to Basics etc - he always played properly banging-yet-cheesey piano house sets, a staple of which was an amazing dubplate of a track with this simple, sampled piano hook/riff repeated ad infinitum - mesmerising material, but he was always coy about that particular track.

They both were probably on the same level as Sasha in the early to mid '90s, though the latter quickly progressed towards the trancey elements he's now better known for.

[phantom_power]

Andrew Weatherall did some great mixes. Dave Clarke did some good techno mixes as well

As for back in the day rave DJs I remember liking sets by Terry Francis, "Evil" Eddie Richards, Sasha (when he wasn't doing cheesy shit) and Aubrey

[mojo filters]

Andrew Weatherall did some great mixes. Dave Clarke did some good techno mixes as well

As for back in the day rave DJs I remember liking sets by Terry Francis, "Evil" Eddie Richards, Sasha (when he wasn't doing cheesy shit) and Aubrey

Weatherall was always a great gig, he quite literally liked to mix things up by throwing obscure dub, reggae and old punk tunes in with his more conventional set material. He also built a good reputation by touring way up north and playing shitty clubs in small towns that didn't normally see big names back in the early to mid '90s.

However he was also known for pissing off promoters, when a well dressed Saturday night crowd thought they were going to get the stock fodder of 4/4 R1/Pete Tong-type house/hard house/inoffensive techno - bringing dancefloors to a confused standstill when he really threw in an unexpected curveball number!

Personally I loved the variation and change in tempo, as when teching sound systems all night every weekend, sometimes the repetition of constant 4/4 average mixes featuring the same tunes could become mind-numbingly dull. However there were great benefits, just changing a blown driver in a horn-loaded bin inevitably produced a bizarre collection of lost, deposited items which somehow managed to find their way inside.

Whilst I preferred Sasha once he'd moved on musically, he did build his reputation initially by playing cheese far, far better than most of his contemporaries.

Dave Clarke was skilled and always a good draw for Friday nights, but my best recollection is that his setlist was pretty predictable - though to be fair, the latter made him a safe bet for promoters with money in the game.

[Better Midlands]

Whilst I preferred Sasha once he'd moved on musically, he did build his reputation initially by playing cheese far, far better than most of his contemporaries.

TBF when Sasha was playing "cheese" it wasn't considered cheese, just an alternate to the popular (in the North) Belgium techno sound of the time - he quickly moved on to the more progressive tracks when this sound became "cheesy".

[mojo filters]

TBF when Sasha was playing "cheese" it wasn't considered cheese, just an alternate to the popular (in the North) Belgium techno sound of the time - he quickly moved on to the more progressive tracks when this sound became "cheesy".

That's a very good point. Sasha got in on the scene early and earned his reputation through hard work. The term "cheese" just became a slightly insulting way of differentiating between genres, as dance music diversified and got really popular - creating lots of sub genres and event attendees all moving into their preferred respective corners.

Sasha became well known for playing interesting house sets at his regular gigs in Stoke and then obviously at Renaissance. Those clubs had great reputations for innovating within the dance music scene, and I'm sure the term "cheese" was never associated with their material way back then.

When house got cheesey, Sasha got going, moving on to bigger, better and more exciting things!

[JaDanketies]

Two of the best electronic concerts I've been to have been Infected Mushroom, and Dan Deacon. I'd suggest that everyone tries to go to a Dan Deacon show at least once in their lives.

[checkoutgirl]

Jon Pleased Wimmin

Was more amusing when he was called Jon of the Pleased Wimmin. Was he a transvestite or a transexual? Or maybe he was a woman called Jon? Or maybe he was in fancy dress for the photo I saw. If he is trans then he must be a pioneer because that was ages ago.

Best DJ experiences.

John Digweed - Homelands, Mosney - 1999
DJ Hype - The Button Factory, Dublin - 2003
Dubfire - The Red Box, Dublin - 2007
Phil Hartnoll - Twisted Pepper, Dublin - 2014
Sasha - Output, New York - 2018


DJs around today, of which there are about a million, I like Dusky and also Pan Pot. I'm a prog boy through and through. There was too much choice to keep on top of in the nineties but it's mental now.

[Better Midlands]

Was more amusing when he was called Jon of the Pleased Wimmin. Was he a transvestite or a transexual?

IIRC The Pleased Wimmin were a drag act of which Jon was one (of three?) who started DJing at clubs they were performing at.

[checkoutgirl]

Oh, Marcel Fengler is a very good techno DJ too.

[checkoutgirl]

IIRC The Pleased Wimmin were a drag act of which Jon was one (of three?) who started DJing at clubs they were performing at.

Ah, so that was why he was of the Pleased Wimmin. Nice factoid there.

[Sebastian Cobb]

TBF when Sasha was playing "cheese" it wasn't considered cheese, just an alternate to the popular (in the North) Belgium techno sound of the time - he quickly moved on to the more progressive tracks when this sound became "cheesy".

I've got a great piano mix of his from about 1991 in Shelley's. I think I prefer that to some of his later stuff.

[mojo filters]

He was (to the best of my knowledge) always called Jon of the Pleased Wimmin. He was just a regular bloke as I recall. The full name is a bit of a mouthful though, and back before everyone and their dog had a powerful computer and laser printer - it was easier to just abbreviate the name when writing up riders, promo material and so forth.

I always assumed the nom de plume was just intended as a cheeky joke, but that's purely a guess and I may be way off the mark!

[Better Midlands]

I've got a great piano mix of his from about 1991 in Shelley's. I think I prefer that to some of his later stuff.

Yes, same here. I think he did well because initially there was not so many people up north playing that sound (although it was well known down south in 90/91) - not to take it away from him as he had some tracks that I never heard down here and was a technically gifted DJ.

The first Renaissance mix CD was his peak IMHO.

[monkfromhavana]

It's difficult for me to name one. I was too young to experience my favourite music at the time, so have to rely on "classics" sets that are not the best representation of a DJs abilities. I'd probably go with Easygroove, Pilgrim, Hype or Sy that I saw live.

[Harry Badger]

Tony De Vit died in about 1996. Jon Pleased Wimmin is still about. Can't comment on either of their abilities as DJs as I've never heard any sets by either of them.

He died in 1998 from AIDS, but was performing right up to the end. Many of his sets are available online, but I would single out the two Global Underground double CDs as the absolute apex of hard dance music in the mid to late 90s.

[monkfromhavana]

He died in 1998 from AIDS, but was performing right up to the end. Many of his sets are available online, but I would single out the two Global Underground double CDs as the absolute apex of hard dance music in the mid to late 90s.

I'm just not massively into that genre (see also: Trance & mid-90s Progressive House) so it might be that as agood a DJ as he was, it's still not for me. I'll give one of those GU mixes a go though, just to see.

The May 1998 issue of Muzik has a special (I think after his passing)
http://www.muzikmagazine.co.uk/

All issues are downloadable which is fantastic.

[buzby]

The Fucking/Flying Dewaele Brothers, and their early days as 2ManyDJs before they became international superstar DJs. Their early Hang The DJs radio shows on Studio Brussels and DJ sets supporting thier Soullwax gigs pre-Nite Versions were fantastically eclectic. After they became 2ManyDJs and they started doing the multimedia sets with video mixing, it all became a bit more programmed and predictable.

One of my favourite bits they used to do was deconstructing a track like Out Of Space or Dub Be Good To Me to the records they sampled from and then building it up again.

[Sebastian Cobb]

I saw an AV set by Dj Format a couple of years ago and it looked a lot more spontaneous than the 2manydj's stuff, probably because the video was taking a bit of of a backseat and following what his controller was doing. Certainly at some points when he was chopping things about and blending stuff it seemed the software wasn't really sure what it should be showing.

I think D-Bridge was one of the best DnB dj's I've seen, that'd have been at the Medicine Bar when Soul:R were putting nights on I think. I also saw Dillinja bring the Valve Soundsystem there and it was set up in the drained pool of The Custard Factory.

[Wanking Monk of Kefalonia]

Yeah, as some of you guys were saying, Tony de Vit died young. I really liked the quality of his mixing, and the fact that he worked hard to find more obscure tunes rather than just playing the anthems. He was aware that all the DJs bought their records at the same shops in London so he'd look further afield to find tracks no one else played. There's an eleven hour set he did on YouTube, which is worth checking out.

[WhoMe]

Well out the loop now, but if I need something on a long drive or on public transport I'll often dig out a dBridge mix, especially his Heartdrive series. Astounding stuff in those mixes that still feels as fresh as the first time I heard them. He's probably the one guy I'd venture back to a club for this side of 2022.

[confettiinmyhair]

Basshunter

[bushwick]

Out of all the originators, Ron Hardy as he was raw as hell and truly innovative. Must have sounded mad back then.

Always enjoy Dave Clarke, and folk with a similar fast and furious style , mainly Detroit types like Claude Young and Shake. Stingray too.

Also Jerome Hill (best scratcher in techno), Sunil Sharpe, Helena Hauff.

+1 on Aubrey, absolute genius. Terry Francis used to be a fave circa 1992.

Carl Cox has been brilliant at different stages of his career - I prefer 90-92 and the Ultimate Base late 90s techno period.

Also, growing up on the South Coast I will always have love for Tonka Sound System. Harvey got biggest but Marky Mark was best.

[monkfromhavana]

Out of all the originators, Ron Hardy as he was raw as hell and truly innovative. Must have sounded mad back then.

Always enjoy Dave Clarke, and folk with a similar fast and furious style , mainly Detroit types like Claude Young and Shake. Stingray too.

Also Jerome Hill (best scratcher in techno), Sunil Sharpe, Helena Hauff.

+1 on Aubrey, absolute genius. Terry Francis used to be a fave circa 1992.

Carl Cox has been brilliant at different stages of his career - I prefer 90-92 and the Ultimate Base late 90s techno period.

Also, growing up on the South Coast I will always have love for Tonka Sound System. Harvey got biggest but Marky Mark was best.

Always a bit sad that Frankie Knuckles gets all the props, when he was a great but safe selector, whereas Hardy was pretty fearless and innovative behind the decks. Obviously, Hardy always gets mentioned and is rightly acclaimed, but Knuckles gets all the 'godfather' stuff because he DJed at the Warehouse (which closed before House music, as opposed to 'house music started).

I always like the story that if someone handed Knuckles a new track on a tape, he'd listen and maybe if he liked it fit it in a few hours later in his set or in another set. Give it to Hardy, and if he liked it, he'd just play it straight away. And continue playing it if the 'Acid Trax' story is true.

Aubrey was alluded to have been involved in some domestic violence in a post by Mr. C on FB. Mr. C got the hump at one of Aubrey's posts about how he deserved to have been booked more at Mr. C's events.