Name DJ Craze
Occupation master turntablist. DMC award magnet
Why should we have heard of him? Originally from Nicaragua, but now settled in Miami in a continental shift which Tony Montana would be proud of, Arith Delgado (for Craze is he) has pocketed most of the trOphies worth mentioning in the world of advanced turntable proficiency. His Wikipedia entry lists 14 up until the year 2000. and that's including the three World DMC Championships he walked away with from 1998—2000. consecutively. He's the only solo DJ in histOry to complete such a hat-trick. and his six-man team The Allies didn't do so badly either. In total. he holds six DMC Championships.
What does he sound like? Craze‘s first love is old-school Miami booty bass. and his sets are still influenced by the dirty thump of the style. The holy trinity of deck technician staples all come out to play, however. and you can expect to hear elements of hip hop, drum & bass and breaks throughout the night. We don't want to tell you what you won't be getting, in fact. because from such a true expert on the wheels. chances are that everyone will hear a bit of something they love during the course.
Where can we hear more? The Bully Breaks battle series are among the finest of his recorded output. Craze is also a label boss, and his Cartel Records release some fine drum & bass. The man himself is rumoured to be working on both a hip hop album and a Miami bass album of his own. Sneak previews may well be in evidence at Manga's 1 1th birthday. (David Pollock)
I DJ Craze plays Manga 's I 7th Birthday at the Liquid Room. Edinburgh, Sat 27 Jan.
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l UTURE: J/V/ DEPARTURE LOUNGE The Caves, Edinburgh, Fri 26 Jan
Despite being more than capable of aligning a cosmic jam with their resident DJs Astroboy, Mr Zimbabwe and percussionist Cammy, Departure Lounge have in three and a half years brought a boggling array of backward looking and forward thinking guests from across the space-jazz spectrum to the capital. This month they welcome future global beats behemoth Mark De Clive- Lowe, the West London-based Kiwi musician and producer who can, and will, do no wrong. Having popped his head into the Caves after last year’s TrocaBrahma festivities, the innovative collaborator is bringing his Freesoul Sessions to Edinburgh for an unrepeatable evening of total improvisation with a dance floor bias.
‘lt’s different every time and that’s something I definitely appreciate,’ says MdCL of his Freesoul Sessions, originally born of an unprepared encore that
l LLCIRONICA MARCIA BLAINE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS Kinky Afro at the Sub Club, Glasgow, Fri 26 Jan
Mark De Clive-Lowe
necessitated programming in real time and has in two years created a carnival of beat-centric spontaneity in London’s Jazz Cafe and the world over.
‘There are a lot of great musicians in the world and I’ve been lucky to work with a decent number, but I have found that not all good musicians can get down with the concept,’ he explains. ‘lt’s not as simple as playing great solos over some beats; conceptually it’s a lot more integrated than that. It’s about musicians that understand the aesthetic of club music, are great on their instrument, know when not to play and know how to play without the ego. So it’s a fine line.’
Having struck up a symbiotic collaborative relationship with heavenly, in-demand vocalist Bembe Segue, Mark has welcomed key players from the likes of Bugz in the Attic, Jade Fox and PPP into the Freesoul melting pot along with guest DJs such as Dego, Domu and Benji 8. Thus this Departure Lounge outing has all the hallmarks of a one-off to blow your mind and free your soul. (Mark Edmundson)
Glasgow's electronic trio Marcia Blaine School for Girls (yes. the name is based on the fictional educational establishment of the ltltitls novel The Prime of Miss Jean Brod/cl are gearing up to launch their new album Ha/fwav into the lit/oods this month with an official album launch and live set at Kinky Afro. The album itself was recorded in quite a unique way. Dave. one of the trio. has his own take on it. ‘lt's kind of a strange recording process because there are three of us and one of us lives in london. When we write music it tends to be that one of us starts something off and then we handy it back and forth electronically and then maybe meet up towards the end of the process to get everything sewn up. It is collaborative but not necessarily With all of us there at the same tiine.'
for this live show (more of a club setl audiences are in for a real treat as. like all of their shows. each one is tailored specifically for the audience and venue. 'We find it difficult sometimes to play live because we find if you play in a club you have to play a drastically different set than if you are playing in a more gig environment where people are sitting watching you and possibly not so intent on you pumping out things on l4()bpm that you can dance to.‘ explains Dave. 'So we basically have to write a different live set for most gigs that we do.‘ (Sandra Marron)