tyle: “Drum & bass.” Best known for: “Energetic DJ sets and
new music in my live shows.” Tune of 2012: “TNGHT ‘Higher Ground’.” Breakthrough DJ/producer of 2012: “Disclosure.”
THREE years after he broke onto the scene in a big way, things are looking good for Belgian drum & bass DJ/producer Netsky. After releasing his second album, ‘2’, in the summer, Netsky hit the festival circuit, culminating at Pukkelpop, Belgium. “I closed the stage after Björk, in front of 60,000 people. That was insane. I had my whole family and all my friends there, and I got my parents onstage after my set. That was a really important moment for me.”
Netsky’s biggest project of 2012, however, has been his new, full live band, which will hit the road at the end of the year. “That’s one of the most exciting projects I’ve started. I still love DJing, but for me it was a logical step to get on stage and do something different.” It’s a suitably forward-thinking finale to what has been a game-changing year for Netsky. TRISTAN PARKER
If you were a superhero, what would your superpower be? “I’d love to fly. I’ve always been really into flying and I want to get involved in aviation later on.” Should you play to the crowd or for yourself? “It’s important as a DJ to know your place, but at the same time it’s very important to make sure you enjoy playing your set as well.” What does EDM mean to you? “Just dance music in general, I guess, but a lot of people use it for something else. I’ve never used it, I don’t like using pigeonhol- ing terms.” Should celebrities be DJs? “It’s very easy to use celebrity status to start DJing, and that’s been going on in 2012.” Have you ever been thrown off the decks? “At one of my first DJ sets at this club in my hometown, people couldn’t handle drum & bass, which is funny, because now everyone plays drum & bass in Belgium.” Are you a DJ if you don’t beat match? “Sure. DJing is far beyond beat matching. I don’t think I could do an hour’s set without it, but it’s not all about technique any more, it’s about the right music.” Where’s the next dance music capital? “For drum & bass, dubstep and more underground music, Antwerp, in Belgium, is huge right now.”
tyle: “Progressive trance.” Best known for: “A clearly recognisable style
with driving basslines and many voice samples.” Tune of 2012: “Neelix ‘Sunshine’.” Breakthrough DJ/producer of 2012: “Khainz.”
HENRIK Twardzik aka Neelix’s bid to enter the Top 100 with a Napoleon Dynamite ‘Vote For Me’ campaign worked a treat, although some of his fans weren’t too impressed.
“I had a lot of hate mail, people were really fighting against me, because my scene, psy trance, is very underground and the people think this is capitalism,” reveals the amused Trekkie. Henrik wears ‘geek’ glasses and hails from Hamburg, and in recent years has taken his DJ name from a Star Trek character.
But it’s not just for comic effect — Neelix admits to being a slight nerd and has just made an app for the iPhone. “It’s an app where you can very easily create, record and export remixes of Neelix tracks,” he beams. His seventh album ‘Nerdy By Nature’ is due for release next year, but not before he’s had time to settle into his new location of London. HELENE STOKES
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If you were a superhero, what would your superpower be? “I could travel through time to have a drink with Einstein and some other interesting people.” Should you play to the crowd or for yourself? “When I am in my studio, I produce music for myself. But when I am on stage I definitely play to the crowd!” What does EDM mean to you? “Electronic music gave me the opportunity to travel and meet a lot of new friends. I also get to do what I love!” Should celebrities be DJs? “I think it’s a requirement for the celeb- rity D-list these days.” Have you ever been thrown off the decks? “Actu- ally the opposite. When I first started performing live, I was so shy I used to walk off and stand on the side of the stage.” Are you a DJ if you don’t beat match? “I think these days, yes. I know quite a few DJs playing with Ableton Live, which is not about beat matching, and they give good shows.” Where’s the next dance music capital? “India, especially Mumbai and Delhi.”