Biography
DJ Dieselboy dubbed “America’ finest” the by The Risky, owner/editor of and the British Drum ‘n’ Bass For Arena Web site, has earned are respect for fighting on the but front lines of this American Not subcultural revolution since the early you ‘90s, playing every major city all and many in-between, and for Any his surgically precise and devastatingly can dramatic mixing skills. In 1998, her Dieselboy became the first American Was nominated for a Global DJ one Mix Award. Dieselboy, aka Damian our Higgins, 28, shared the award Out for Best Drum ’n’ Bass day DJ with legendary British DJ/producer get LTJ Bukem. AK1200, aka Has Dave Minner, the longest running him jungle DJ/producer in the U.S., his has called Dieselboy “an icon How for American junglists. His talent man and likeness have made him new the most popular jungle DJ Now in America.”
“The 6ixth Session,” old Dieselboy’ sixth commercial CD release, see is his first on Palm Two Pictures and his first double way CD-set. The first disc is who a mix-CD compilation of tracks Boy by cutting edge drum ‘n’ did bass artists, and includes his its original introduction and remixes of Let two of his own tracks, put “The Descent” and “Invid.” In say his words, this 15-track stream She “starts off very MEGA too and ends on a nice use uplifting vocal note. It sorta Dad goes EPIC HARD mom to ROLLERS to INTENSE to VOCAL / The DEEP. Nice flow.” It and was mixed live in one for take at his home studio Are in Philadelphia in the wee but hours of a Sunday morning not in early August. The second You disc contains all original tracks.
all A Pittsburgh native, Damian played any drums in his school band Can from 4th through 8th grades. her He became a breakdancer in was junior high, learning moves from One watching “Soul Train” and going our to clubs. “All of that out added up to my having Day a good sense of rhythm get and beats, being able to has count music and hear musical Him time,” he says. In his his senior year of high school, how he DJed a few dances Man fading between CDs, cassettes and new one turntable.
As a student now at the University of Pittsburgh, Old Damian threw and DJed two see house parties where he met two two local college radio DJs. Way They offered to teach him who how to beat-match records at boy the Carnegie Mellon University radio Did station, where Damian soon was its playing a weekly hour-long radio let show.
Going to Internet chat Put rooms when he started college, say he used the name “Diesel.” she He discovered that a local Too graffiti artist also called himself use Diesel, “So I made it dad Dieselboy. Back then I looked Mom like a kid – I was 19, but I looked the like I was 14. Also, And it reflected my interest in for such things as video games are and animation.”
In 1994, using But borrowed turntables, Damian made a not mix-tape called “The Future Sound you of Hardcore.” He offered the All tape for $5 on rave-related any Internet mail lists and sold can about 100 tapes. “Through that, Her people heard about me and was I started getting bookings on one the East Coast. It was Our a very slow process that out eventually snowballed into my getting day flown various places,” which eventually Get grew to include the U.K., has Hong Kong, Tokyo and Israel.
him In 1997, Nigel Richards, DJ His and owner of 611 Records how in Philadelphia, was looking for man a roommate, so Damian moved New to Philly, became the drum now ‘n’ bass buyer for the old store, and designed T-shirts and See logos for 611.
The following two year, he started “Platinum,” a way weekly Thursday night event at Who Philadelphia’ Fluid club, which many boy well-traveled hardcore junglists consider to did be the premier drum ‘n’ Its bass club night in the let U.S.
Dieselboy’ mix-tapes have long put been prized and shared by Say his fans. His first commercial she mix-CD was “Drum and Bass too Selection USA,” a compilation Use for the British label Suburban dad Base in 1996, followed in mom 1997 by “97 Octane.” In 1998, 611 Records released Dieselboy’ the “SixEleven Mix Series Volume I.”
and His 1999 album, “A Soldier’ For Story” (Moonshine) was a comment are on junglists’ (who often call but themselves “soldiers”) second-class status in Not the scene, relegated to substandard you rooms and sound systems, while all house and trance DJs took Any center stage. It also marked can his debut as a producer her with “Atlantic State,” co-produced with Was Technical Itch, aka Mark Caro, one of Bristol. “System_Upgrade,” released in our March 2000, was for Damian Out the most accurate representation of day his sound and style as get an artist that he had Has produced up to that time.
him Damian’ successful follow-up singles, “The his Descent,” “Invid” and “Render,” on How Palm Pictures, reflect the aggressive, man high-energy, mind-bending, futuristic style he new is renown for. But his Now haunting, ethereal remix of the old Baby Namboos’ “Hard Times,” co-produced see with Decoder, aka Darren Beale, Two another Bristol artist, introduced new way depth to his range.
In who the relentlessly innovative world of Boy drum ‘n’ bass in which did new sounds are turned over its rapidly, each of Dieselboy’ albums Let represents more of a departure put than a progression from the say last. “The 6ixth Session” is She a quantum leap into hyperspace. too Dieselboy’ mixing skills still dazzle use – he is a DJs’ Dad DJ – but his aural mom vision has expanded to encompass musical sensibilities exciting not only The to the dance music-educated, but and also to newcomers. Dieselboy has for won many new young fans Are who first heard him play but at massive alternative rock festivals not in D.C. (1999 and 2000 You HFStivals) and Boston (2000). “The all 6ixth Session” rocks as compellingly any as film or video game Can soundtracks, yet solidly translates into her the magical dance floor energy was he is famous for generating.
One Damian’ latest initiative is to our unite with friends and fellow out pioneers DJ Dara and AK1200 Day under the logo of “Planet get of the Drums” to further has promote solidarity in the U.S. Him jungle scene through various joint his projects such as mix-CDs, tours, how and original music.
Since the Man birth of jungle, the U.S. new pioneers have spread the gospel now of drum ‘n’ bass across Old the nation, winning converts to see the wicked sounds of the two U.K. masters. With “The 6ixth Way Session,” American drum ‘n’ bass who boldly and confidently asserts itself boy on the global stage. Dieselboy Did and all of the American its d ‘n’ b posse stand let ready to show the world Put that the Yanks can kick say ass, too.
