Features

New York City-based DJ/producer Kevin Hedge has helped play a big role in pushing house music forward as half of the songwriting/production team Blaze. Together with partner Josh Milan, they’ve written dance floor gems such as De’Lacy’s “Hideaway,” collaborated with Louie Vega, Barbara Tucker and Jody Watley, and remixed Aretha Franklin, Jennifer Hudson and Beyoncé.

Hedge is formidable behind the decks, playing alongside Timmy Regisford at Club Shelter NYC and helming the ROOTS NYC parties at meatpacking club Cielo alongside Vega back when those influential clubs were open.

After taking a 10-year hiatus from producing, Hedge, who became president and co-owner of West End Records in 2002, returned last month with “Reach For The Stars,” a soulful, uplifting collaboration with Rick Galactik for Quantize Recordings. With hopefully more new music on the horizon, we checked in with Hedge to learn about his vast musical inspirations. Continue Reading →

Chicago DJ/producer Lil’ Louis isn’t one to do many interviews. However, in 1995 I was granted an audience with the trailblazing house music pioneer. At the time, Louis was living in Manhattan, and I spent a few hours with him at his studio on West 52nd Street. During our conversation, he recalled how he got into DJing, used his musical abilities to become a producer and how he came up with his classic 1989 track, “French Kiss.” The interview was published in issue 47 of Generator, a long-defunct British dance music magazine.

Images by Kevin Knight

“They used to laugh at me, but I saw the future…” – Lil’ Louis, ”New Dance Beat”

Mark Twain once said that a classic book is one which we’ve heard about, but never actually read. While that theory might be true in the world of literature, it doesn’t hold a drop of water in clubland. We all know that a classic track has the power to fire our imaginations, time and time again.

Lil’ Louis (real name: Marvin Burns) knows a thing or two about crafting effortless, left-of-center house music which has withstood the rigors of time. Where many producers regularly pay lip service to the ideals of avoiding formula and pushing the self-inflicted boundaries of popular music, Lil’ Louis has quietly let his work do the talking. Continue Reading →

Dance floors are a vital testing ground for DJs to debut unreleased tracks, see what works and make tweaks back in the studio. This invaluable real-time research has been helping mixmasters refine productions and remixes since the days of reel-to-reel machines.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic shut clubs and festivals in March 2020, U.K.-based DJ/producer Luke Jones (a.k.a Biscits) was able to road test the pair of brawny house tracks that comprise his upcoming Jungle Sounds EP out April 30 on Sola Records. It’s evident when you listen to the title track’s finely tuned big-room vibes and swinging beat of the tough-as-nails rager “Drum.”

Below Jones shares five tracks he can’t wait to drop once lockdown ends. Continue Reading →

London-based DJ/producer Seb Zito earned his rep back in the day wreaking musical havoc on his city’s pirate radio stations. He’s since gone on to attain international acclaim for his swinging, bass-heavy productions and flawless low-slung sets.

Zito will soon tick an important box on his professional bucket list when he releases his full-length debut, Truth In My Steps, via Eats Everything’s Edible label.

Due out on April 9, the 11-track release tells his musical ascent from raver to DJ and offers deeper insight into his musical prowess.

Ahead of the LP’s release, we connected with Seb and asked him to share his five tracks of the moment. Continue Reading →