http://www.expressmilwaukee.com/articles.sec-213-1-club-noise.html Parisian DJ/producer Don Rimini is serious when he calls his latest release "a goddamn wedding." Between the filth and froth of his track list, the Kick'n Run EP (Mental Groove/Delicious Gutter) features everything from the chaotic fuzz of "Rave On" to the naughty O-la-la of "Oh Ow." Rimini even followed up the EP with a steroid-induced remix of Young M.C.'s "Bust a Move." During his live sets, Rimini may pull out the predictable card of fidget twitch 'n' glitch, but he still mixes it up with enough ease to create electro pop swells of saw tooth synths...]]> KiNK's (aka Strahil Velchev) innovation and natural production ability have made him a magnetic force in almost all of dance music's divided factions. Full-on underground house music people, techno heads, hipster blog-housers, fidget bandwagon riders, huge-name disc-jockeying institutions, deep house nerds and jocky douche bags who just came to the party to get drunk and dance with a few girls have all emerged as fans of his music. The Bulgarian-born DJ/live performer has emerged as one of the most...]]> Ken Christensen keeps his musical secrets closely guarded. Since moving to Chicago from Washington, D.C., in early 2008, the producer and DJ has balanced his time crafting beats, running a record label and opening for high-profile artists like Chicago rapper Common. "Chicago seems to churn out talent in all realms," Christensen said during an interview earlier this year. "[That is] something I have always admired about this city and I am happy to be a part of it now." Not that Christensen needed much of a boost. He began...]]> The promoters behind the successful Projekt events at Six Degrees (518 N. Water St.) say they didn't spook themselves into shutting down their night too soon. The move to pull the plug on their EDM monthly this coming Halloween weekend simply presented a prime opportunity for the three-man collective to bow out while the monthly still attracts solid attendance. "As Projekt promoters, we don't do shows just to do them-we're too old and not interested in that these days," says co-promoter Brad Valerine, who organized the night with Justin Grall and Nate York...]]> The last time I heard Donald Glaude I was at Mighty, a San Francisco venue tucked away in the shaded alleys of the Mission District. The year was 2006; it was late September and I had traveled to the Bay Area alone to dance away the weekend at the U.S. version of The Love Parade. ]]> Midwest Dance label Communiqué Records has come a long way since the early 90's. Founded by the Midwest's own DJ legend ESP Woody McBride, the label has been home to underground dance giants including Josh Wink, Derrick Carter, Mystic Bill and DJ Hyperactive. More than 15 years later, the imprint has evolved with the times, launching its new Communiquemusic.com site that incorporates a fresh interface with direct sales links. Today, the label that built its reputation on...]]> Cuban producer Maetrik will be passing around plenty of "Space Chronic" this coming weekend. The latest EP on Claude VonStroke's new Mothership Music label has the backing of one of the Bay area's most exciting techno and tech-house producers. Maetrik's Aug. 22 Space Chronic record release party at San Francisco's seminal party palace, The Endup, solidified his dark, seductive sound as a primal force on one of electronic music's hottest scenes. Now a resident of Dallas, Texas . . . ]]> In a dance-music age when how much an artist tours is almost always synonymous with how many records they've produced, there are a rare (and lucky) few who are busy trotting the globe based purely on their merits as disc jockeys. Mark Farina is one such anomaly, as is his female counterpart, the legendary dance floor damager DJ Heather. It may be her incredibly humble and inviting demeanor when interacting with fans, or her no-nonsense-no-frills personality behind the decks that keeps the punters coming back again and again, but more likely than anything, it's the fact that everyone who catches a set from Heather live-from the uninitiated dabbler to the seasoned house music vet-can always agree that "she destroyed it . . .]]> Bryan Lam, aka DJ ShortRound, Shepherd Express readers vote for best Club DJ in the 2007 Best of Milwaukee is featured in the Cobalt Garage this month. In a colorful spread, Cobalt Garage features DJ ShortRound, the Shepherd Express, and Milwaukee in a very positive light in front of a national readership. ]]> John Larner earned his reputation in the 1990s under the guise of Cyberjive. More than a decade later, the multifaceted house DJ/producer says he still can’t shake his past. “Nearly every show, someone wants to hear tracks from the rave days,” says Larner, who now sets up shop in Indianapolis. “Back in the day I played a lot of Chicago house mixed with some techno and acid. It’s pretty much the same thing now . . . ]]> Chuck Love’s musical diversity may have landed him a spot with crossover label giant Om Records, but it’s his musical understanding that has kept him on the radar of the underground electronic audiences for more than three years. The Minneapolis musician didn’t start impacting the house scene until early 2005, when his breakthrough Frozen in Minneapolis EP debuted on Miguel Migs’ Salted Music impact. Backed by the commercially savvy appeal of an artist such as Migs, Love’s multi-tasking music style became a hot commodity at clubs across the country. ]]> The soulful roots of Chicago house dug deep into the artistic mind-set of Andrew Emil, who channeled their influences into sound, art and audio experimentation. The accomplished result melds the smooth vibe of neo-jazz with the funkier influences of underground house. Emil’s recent venture, Four Play Music, is an attempt to expand his musical reach through a self-helmed record label. Four Play marks a home base for his own work— alongside several artists from Chicago and his native Kansas City, who he features on the imprint’s latest compilation, Andrew Emil Presents Four Play Music. ]]> When Jamanta Crew’s Eduardo Marote (aka Prztz) wrapped up a three-day gig in Barcelona in 2004, he returned to his native Brazil with several tracks for the seminal Chicago house imprint, Classic. “It was a Monday morning, my last day there and I called Classic to have them listen,” Prztz said via his cell phone from Sao Paulo. It turns out the Classic label heads had been the ones looking for him. Months prior, several unlabeled tracks crafted by the burgeoning Brazilian P.A. act fell into the hands of Luke Solomon, who played them without knowing who made them. Solomon saw first-hand how crowds went off. ]]> Since 2003, Danny White and his crew have been slumming it. With a few lessons in debauchery from creative cohorts Eddie Leader and Rucky (Dan Rucker), the U.K.-based trio Slum Science has been crafting a catalog of funky house tracks that reek of smoke, booze and ingenuity. Could the underground heads demand much more? Labels such as Deep Future, Icon, Jackin Tracks and Black Cherry certainly got buzzed on the smooth sound of their work. The trio’s string of successful drops led the production team to branch out on their own . . .]]> Living abroad in Amsterdam has repositioned the creative mind-set of Gene Farris, whose deep, spacey sounds echo back to an era of raves gone by. And while his recent batch of remixes is not about reinventing the wheel, the DJ/producer/label owner keeps his Chicago-influenced sound spinning on heavy rotation. In teaming with Control Records leader Bryan Jones of late, Farris has crafted an inspired bag of remix work that quips with quirky tech and acid lines while working audiences with organic finesse. In the mid-’90s, Farris played into another eclectic EDM movement that revolved around the Chicago-based Relief Records.]]>