Kutski is a label head, a DJ, a Radio 1 star, producer and all round good eggin the hard dance scene. As more hard DJs hit the DJ Mag Top 100 Poll than at any time in recent memory there has never been more hype about the global scene. The Hard Dance Awards is set to crown the best producers, performers, labels and promoters in our international community and on Saturday 27th February 2011 all roads lead to the legendary Emporium Music Venue in Coalville, UK as the winners are announced in front of a full house. We caught up with Kutski ahead of the show…

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How’s the Radio 1 show going? Anything coming up we should watch out for and whats it like rubbing shoulder with the likes of Chris Moyles and co... Any stories from the R1 Christmas Party??

Radio 1 show is going really we'll, we've been focusing on new music in January which has been great to give new artist some exposure, and be super cutting edge with the music!! Unfortunately I had some important stuff on the day after, so I had to get off before the gossip worthy stuff happened... So as much as I'd love to tell you i snogged Fern Cotten, it wasn't to be... on that occasion ;)

How did the show come about and have ratings gone up since you took over?

It really came out of the blue! I have always tried to mix up all music within the ‘rave’ scene in my sets. A lot of people told me it was a bad thing and I had to pick one particular style and stick to it, but sticking to what i believed in really paid off because in 2006 BBC Radio 1 started a new show called ‘The Residency’ which they wanted new DJs to play fresh exciting music once a month on the station. They wanted to cover hard dance, hardcore, oldskool etc.. in one show, so when they where looking for a DJ, I was really the only option despite having no experience in radio at the time! I went in and recorded a pilot for them, they loved it and I got the show! They changed the DJ’s on the show regularly but always kept me on until 2009 when there was a big change of DJ’s at the station and I got my own weekly show on Friday night :D over the two and a half years i have been on weekly the show has been growing steadily, and we have a real loyal listenership which is amazing!!

Have you had any bad gigs because of promoters booking a Radio 1 DJ and being surprised at the style you play?

Yeah I got booked for a gig called "Storm" i think it was... total waste of time :P hehe, seriously I've had a few random ones, but I'm quite a seasoned pro on the old ones and two now, so I've always managed to battle through and keep (most) people there!! But to say the 'get out jail' section of my CD wallet has expanded in anticipation of these gigs would be an understatment ;)

Was music always going to be something you were going to do? and what would you be doing if you weren't a DJ/Presenter?

Its always something i wanted to do professionally, I just never thought I'd be lucky enough to have the opportunity to do it! I used to be a road designer for the council before I went full time with music so I would probably still be fucking up the roads of Cheshire if it wasn't for music!

Who do you think is at the top of their game in hard dance and all its sub-genres at the moment?

FAR too many to name them all, but Organ Donors are KILLING at the moment with there new hard techy sounds, as are BRK3. Hardstyle is all about Bioweapn for new tallent at the moment, and big names on the scene like Technoboy, Tuneboy, Brennan Heart, Max Enforcer are all on fire too!!

What do you listen to when you’re just relaxing? Any surprises?

A lot of different stuff really, i find i go through phases. Sometimes I'm really into hip hop, then a few months later is all about dubstep and drum and bass in my car... At the moment, I'm listen to a lot of rock and metal, people like System of a Down, Lacuna Coil, Soil etc... and I'm having a borderline obsession with Dragonforce!!

Is there anyone you think deserves more recognition than they’re getting at the moment?

Hmmm, it's a tough one, because there are a lot of great talents emerging, but they do seem to be getting noticed which is nice! People like Argy, Klubfiller, Tone etc... All doing their own thing, making there way on the scene nicely, and I'm sure will go on to be major players. But as i say, it's not a case of them not being recognised, as I'm sure everyone reading this already knows them :)

Playing all around the world, is there anywhere that surprised you with how much they loved your sound?

LA was quite a surprise! I had no idea how big the scene was out there! Crazy numbers at the raves (4-5000), and well up for the hard music!

What do you think you’re going to look back on and remember the most about 2011?

Career wise, It woudl probably be the Hard Dance Awards as I won 3 categories. I know you have to take all these kind of things with a pinch of salt and they don't really mean anything, but at the same time it is really nice to get recognition for the work you do from the people you do it for :)

Run us through a day in the life of Kutski…

Pretty much every day of the week is different for me as I do a lot of different things, but say a monday, I wake up about 9am, drink coffee and watch Sky Sports News for a bit wishing i was married to Millie... Check emails, download new music, plan features for the radio show, get disturbed a lot by people on the phone, make a few phonecall and disrupt people... Eat dinner, listen to new music, have a blast on the decks, check more email... Have a game of guitar hero, watch an episode of Ice Road Truckers and try and retire by about 2-3am... Shit that really does show what an unglamorous job it really is haha