Cafe Mambo Ibiza In The Park Festival Reading

Fabio

<b>Born</b> ‘Brixton, London. I’ve never ever, ever told anyone my age.’ <b>Family</b> ‘My family aren’t musical at all; except in the sense that when I was growing up there was always music playing in the house. My parents when I was growing up were real party people who used to go out a lot and there was always music on loud in our house. Brixton was a very musical place when I was younger as well, I was influenced by that a lot. There were always parties, round the corner from where I used to live they had a blues party ever saturday night. Everywhere was music playing, you’d go to the shops and there was a party on. Brixton’s that kind of place, you can’t escape music there.’ <b>First Projects</b> ‘There’s different aspects to me being a DJ. It came about through different things I was doing, I used to go out a lot, I mean I was THE original party man. Tuesday, Monday, we’d just find places to go. My raving partner was Colin Dale, who plays techno now and used to be at Kiss fm. He was a DJ and used to play a club called Tiffany’s. I started to think, this DJing thing doesn’t look too bad, then a pirate radio station opened up near my house and Colin was supposed to be doing a show on it. But he couldn’t as he was already playing on pirate Kiss so he asked me to do the show for him. I wasn’t sure, I wasn’t a DJ, but he said I had plenty of tunes so could I cover for him. I went up and did the show and that was really the start. I hadn’t thought about it before and it was really frightening going there with loads of people in the studio watching. Once everyone left me to it and I was in the studio by myself, with a couple of phone calls from people saying they liked the show, I was like ‘hey, this is alright’ and I was hooked. I thought, ‘Yeah, this is me!’ I got a daytime show and did that for a couple of years, which really sparked things off, I started to get a few gigs out and then the whole acid thing blew up. I was asked to play a small but notorious after-party for this acid club with Grooverider, because we were the only people the promoter knew who played house music. It was a Tuesday night and we weren’t really up for it, Groove had to go to work in the morning and when we got there we were playing music to ourselves really. Then at about 3 o’clock hundreds of people turned up out of the blue as we were packing up to go home. After that, Mendosa said to us did we want to do it on a regular basis after The Trip, and Spectrum, ours was like the official afterparty. That was great, because not many people came to Brixton then. We’d just come out of the riots and everyone was still wary about the place, so to see all these people coming down after partying, monged out of their brains, was a really funny experience. And that’s how the Fabio and Grooverider thing kicked off, and how the DJing part started for me.’ <b>Labels & Production</b> ‘The studio is something I’ve never really done. I never got my head around it, and I’ve not enjoyed myself in the studio every time I’ve been in there. It’s one of those things like riding a bike or driving, as soon as you find out ways of doing things it becomes exciting so I need to get to that stage. I still think it’s really boring but there’s still time and I’ll got a lot of ideas. It’s something I’ve got to look forward to. <b>DJing</b> ‘Colin Dale really helped me through the early stages when I didn’t have many records, he would lend me records. He was the one who taught me how to mix, so Colin was very important to me. Tim Westwood gave me my first break as a DJ at a big night and I had a fucking nose bleed on the decks! Grooverider was much more important in the acid house times. Our partnership was a really good bond and up til now we’re still doing it out there, so it’s all good. It’s really freestyle, we play exactly what we want. If he gets on a roll then I’ll leave him for an hour and then come back on. It’s very important to give a DJ space, even if he is your partner. If he’s blowing it out I let him get on with it, and vice versa. There’s no real set DJ thing between us, it’s just whatever feels right…. We play everywhere; all over Europe and the old iron curtain states where they have great scenes in places like Estonia. Australia is amazing, they love breakbeat there. Drum n bass is bigger than house there which is great. Canada has always been into drum n bass, America is quite a strange place to go to. They’re bang into it but you go to certain places that are just really odd. It’s nothing like England, totally different but amazing to go to these places like New Mexico because they are so off key and weird. The great thing about America though is that wherever you go people come up and say that they listen to us on the radio. It’s great, I love touring and people who go to drum n bass clubs are actually into the music because it’s such a weird sound.’ <b>Radio</b> When we started on Kiss they’d had their licence about 4 years as an independent station. They wanted to keep the pirate feel though so when we were there is was anything goes really. It was a good time and the show was really popular, it was the height of the drum n bass thing in the early 90s when it was massive and Kiss capitalised on that. We’ve been at Radio 1 four years now. The reason we left Kiss was that it felt like they didn’t give a toss about us really. We won a lot of awards for the show and really raised the profile of Kiss. But we never got a thank you, no one ever said, respect for what your doing. Towards the end it just got a little bit shabby and when our producer went to Radio 1 he came and said there was an opening for a drum n bass show there, what did we reckon. Radio 1 was worldwide, and we knew that drum n bass was as well, on a massive scale, so getting out to all those different places was what we wanted. We got feedback from places like Australia, America and Brazil. It’s great to be able to express yourself to people worldwide through your DJing and the radio. The radio is a very personal thing, you play what you want to play but as a DJ you play half for yourself and half for the crowd.’ <b>Fabric</b> ‘I’ve been playing at FABRICLIVE a couple of years now, since soon after it opened. I know Steve (Blonde, Head of Promotions) from back in the day, he’s a really good lad. When you see the way he’s come up through everything, starting small and he’s a big name now. What he’s done with FABRICLIVE is amazing, fabric put their money in drum n bass when no one else would in London. At the height of the garage thing, when everyone was acting like drum n bass was bollocks and no one’s interested, fabric has always put on drum n bass. I don’t think there’s a better night than FABRICLIVE anywhere for what it is. FABRICLIVE is the best of it’s kind. With the whole drum n bass and breaks thing I’ve got total respect for what they’re doing. On the back of the housey superclubs, fabric have turned round and done something totally different on a big night of the week. They’ve shied away from cheesy house and shit like that, the house night fabric is proper. You’ve got Terry Francis and guys like that; I used to play with them years ago when I played house music. I know that these guys are proper house DJs and fabric’s a proper club. I feel totally proud to be involved with it. And it’s not arse licking on any kind of level, I just always really enjoy playing at FABRICLIVE; you can ask any of the big DJs and they’ll tell you that fabric’s set the standard. The pace is set and it’s just up to everyone else to keep up with them, to be honest.’ <b>The Future</b> ‘I’m doing my Swerve night. I’m probably going to get into production this year, cause I think it’s about time. I’m going to South Korea soon, which will be interesting with world events, and Japan which has a great scene. Culturally it’s so different and I’m really feeling it; crime free, the people are so pleasant and the shopping is great. I’m also playing Sonar for Radio 1 this year, it’s off the hook. Then a festival in the desert in Spain that I do every year. Miami for the first sunshine of 2003 but we aren’t doing the show out there. Our first overseas link will be from a festival in Brazil in April. Their drum n bass sound, like Marky and Patife, has really infused the scene with some great vibes.’

Grooverider

British drum & bass DJ Raymond Grooves, a founder of jungle and DnB alongside Fabio at seminal early UK raves.

Norman Jay

Legendary UK DJ, co-founder of the Good Times sound system, known for championing rare groove and soulful dance music.

Lovely Laura

Ben Santiago

Brandon Block

Brandon Block - Autobiography <b>Day One</b> Surprisingly enough my career started in 1985 at my local boozer, The John Lyon in Harrow west London – it was a great pub, everyone went there. My friends and I used to buy a lot of funk and soul (the sound at the time) and one night the DJ there didn’t show, so me and my then DJ partner Ali Jobe asked the governor if we could bring the records down and do it. We were so good that he fired the DJ. In fact it got so popular that they started charging an entrance fee. And then acid house took off and I started DJing properly. It was 1988, and at a night called ZigZag at Broadway Boulevard in Ealing, London. We used to spend our Sundays at Queens in Colnbrook which became such a success that Dean Thatcher (best known as a founder member of techno/house act The Aloof) and I started up our own Sunday night, Haven Stables - well, it was more of an afternoon evening really. The place used to go off big time and was packed to the rafters until it came to an end in 1991. Our adventures in clubland got so successful that we hooked up with Charlie Chester (now famed for DC10 at Circo Loco in Ibiza, Charlie also founded legendary record store Flying Records in Dean Street, London) to promote a Tuesday night at Queens, which is out near Heathrow Airport. You’ve gotta excuse the pun, but this is where my career really took off; my profile was raised and I was able to grab guests spots around London. <b>Going Mad On Ibiza</b> 1990 was also the year I first went to Ibiza with the small record label that I was working for. I loved it so the following summer I packed three or four bags of records, £500 cash and a small bag of clothes with the full intention of staying there for as long as I could. And that’s just what I did. Fast forward to 2001 and me and my frequent DJ partner Alex P seem to be as much a part of the Balearic scenery as Pikes, Manumission and the puke in the streets of San An! The first time we met in Ibiza Alex was really drunk. He threw beer all over me and rolled around on the floor. And then he got arrested and we met up the next day and the rest is pretty much history. Two years later I met up with Peeze again and he invited me to play at the Space Terrace, which he had built himself. For the next five years we were residents at the Sunday Session, a place that confirmed the Terrace's reputation as one of the most special places in clubland. Over the past ten years I have seen Ibiza transform from a secret party island somewhere in the Med to one of the craziest places on earth. It has grown so big now that you can easily have the best night of your life every day of the week. Every year I look forward to a summer of what life should be like all year round – absolute madness. <b>More clubs than Tiger Woods</b> I’ve been lucky enough to have had my fair share of wicked residencies over the years like Up Yer Ronson in Leeds, FUBAR at the Milk Bar in London (which I co-promoted with Lisa Loud), Club For Life and Malibu Stacey (both in the capital) and Scream in Plymouth. Nowadays I play regularly at the Ministry of Sound, Turnmills, Miss Moneypenny’s, Golden, Republica, Progress, Karanga, Colours, Clockwork Orange and Kelly’s. I’m sure there’s loads of other places which you’ve probably been to and see me larking about on the decks – I’ve been all over Europe, my international tour of carnage has stopped off in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Australia, the US (I love the Ra Club in Las Vegas) and all points in between. Israel’s a good one – I’m a regular at Allenby 58 in Tel Aviv and C Bar in Eilat. <b>Records, radio – I do them all</b> But it’s not all DJing and partying. Production-wise, I’ve had three singles released as Blockster, which I made with the M&S boys of Salsoul Nugget fame – Something Goin’ On, Grooveline and You Should Be Dancing, all out on Ministry – and a collaboration with DJ Gee last year called Zeus’ Dance out on London/Systematic. Tall Paul and I did a record as The Grifters which was out on Duty Free and there's new projects on the boil as we speak. I could go on, but for my full discography, click here... Those who live in London also have had the pleasure, since October of '97 I became a fully fledged radio presenter, presenting a show on Kiss 100 alongside Ibiza’s other legend and my oldest mate Alex P. Peeze and Blocko's House goes out every Saturday evening from 5-7pm – catch us if you can! <b>At the end of the day</b> My favourite thing about DJing is seeing crowds go mental. It’s fantastic. It makes your job worth doing – it’s everything you work for. It just makes it so good to see the happy faces, enjoying themselves… everyone’s in there, waving their arms in the air. It’s a DJ’s dream.

Jonathan Ulysses

2011 marks his 13th year as resident at Ibiza’s super-club ‘Space’ also sees him as their worldwide resident for an impressive 3rd year running and being a constant and adored fixture on the We Love… Terrace.. His trademark up-tempo, driving, pumping house style sees him spinning week in, week out at the world’s leading nightclubs. With DJ appearances on every continent, Jonathan sits comfortably amongst dance music's most elite DJs. Each year he is jetting off all over the world and recent tours featured the likes of Soundwave Dubai, Sea Club Ilhabela Sao Paolo Brazil, Balearika Turin, La Rocca Belgium and Paparazzi Abu Dhabi. On home soil he’s often a guest at Hatclub, Kinky Malinki, Gallery, Pukka Up and Garlands, never a moment standing still for this in demand artist! Jon has compiled copious compilations and works closely with high tech labels including amongst many others, Ministry, UMM, Destined, DJ Center and Klubstar. 2010 saw Beatport jam-packed with six pages of his compilations and tracks as well as the release of ‘Ibiza Opening Party’ downloadable exclusively to iTunes/UMM; He has mixed on a myriad of compilations over the years. The establishment of his ‘Ulybug’ brand has been steadily expanding since the launch in 2008. Jon hosts his uber cool trademark ‘Ulybug’ parties in clubs around the world & the clothing range is available to buy from his website. You can keep up to date with his plans on the flourishing site www.jonathanulysses.com and also on facebook – www.facebook.com/jonathanulysses1 and on twitter - www.twitter.com/jonathanulysses The ambitions of this world-class performer of course lie beyond the confines of just clubs and production consumes a huge slice of his time. As his track list expands weekly, he distributes his talents in studios worldwide, working with top notch producers including; Prok & Fitch, Matt Schwartz (Destined), Peter Brown, Reza, Steve Haines, Filthy Rich, The Beat Thiefs, Oliver Lang, Sam Obernik, Jose Diaz & Richard Grey. 2011 will follow 2010’s massive achievements that saw him release successful releases on labels such as Big in Ibiza which released ‘Baila’ (produced with Reza) & Brazillia (co-produced with Steve Haines). The sound was influenced by his tours of South America that will continue through 2011 with his 3rd year as a resident of the outstanding M.O.B festival. Labels Jonathan has worked with include Toolrooms, Big In Ibiza, Asume, Dowalve, Oxyd, UMM, Destined, Arts n Krafts, Lowered Recordings, Cyber, Nukluez and Azuli. Check his website www.jonathanulysses.com and social media pages for all up and coming UK and international dates, free mix downloads, photos, blogs, Ulybug parties and more.

Bongo Ben

Bongo Ben is a live percussionist and session musician with current residencies for LoveJuice and Clockwork Orange. The artist can claim impressive International recognition including performances at Space Ibiza, Ushuaia, Drais Las Vegas Dubai, Sankeys Ibiza, White Dubai, We Are FSTVL, ADE Amsterdam, V Festival with Mixmag, Pacha, Es Paradis, Ocean Beach Club and the iconic Cafe Mambo to name a handful… Ben’s ever-growing CV doesn’t just include some of the world’s most credible venues either. The London-based artist has used his tireless work ethic to showcase live streamed sets on national radio, monthly yacht residences in the UAE, Mediterranean cruises, the BBC studios and at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Live performances aside, the musician’s debut EP collaboration ‘A Bit Patchy’ with producer Sammy Porter charted successfully with a No.3 position in the UK iTunes Dance chart in March 2017. Ben has most recently collaborated for LoveJuice Records releasing ‘Addictions’ in October 2017. The EP reached a No.4 place, gaining Ben a 2nd consecutive iTunes top 5 release. The remainder of Ben’s calendar just in 2018 see’s the artist scheduled to perform at Printworks, E1 London, Abode in the Park, Old Fountain Studios and Gorilla Manchester to name a few…