D4rk has been pushing the Harder edged sounds of Hard Dance in London for the last 3 years building a very loyal and dedicated following. He destroys dancefloors with his distinctive sound and stage presence,leaving his listeners in awe and begging for more! His passion for all things hard and dark is demonstrated through the high class bookings at prestigious events like Frantic, Bionic and Raindance. He runs both D4rk R3cords and Presence Hardstyle and has over 34 releases whilst promoting London’s only dedicated Euro and Hardstyle event Octane vs Squelcher ,who will be joining Frantic on NYE. We caught up with the Lord of D4rkness to find out more about him and what to expect from the red room on NYE.

How has 2009 been for you?

It got off to a slightly rocky start, but I can gladly say things got better!
It’s been really busy both on and off the decks! I managed to achieve some of my early DJ ambitions including main room at Bionic, played alongside some of my DJ idols and spread my wings to Northern Ireland, as well as Ibiza again. In addition to giving myself a kick up the arse to do more with my graphics and web skills as well as trying to hold down a busy day job.

Overall a successful year with lots of late nights/early mornings, pulling some stupid faces and wearing a lot of makeup!!

Did you keep your New Year's resolution?

I didn’t make any specifically for New Year. I make resolutions throughout the year, I’m gonna do more of this or none of that, and I think I’m pretty good at doing what I say I’m gonna do.

What has been the biggest tune in your Box this year?

There’s so many! I’m always buying new music and my favorite tune is always changing!! There’s a few that have almost guaranteed a slot in a set throughout 2009, these include
Da Tweekaz “Day Dreamz”, The Playah “Walking the Line”, Pavo “Raven”, Noise Controllers “Shreek” or was that last year?!

Additionally for personal reasons Evil Activities “Nobody Said it was Easy” got a lot of air time. Dedicate to the late but ever so great Tom aka “Bapslapper”. A dear friend, and was there from the very start of the Squelcher parties, so each time I play it all the great memories come flooding back and it also reminds me why I do the things I do and to keep trying to be better. Fortunately it’s also an awesome energy fueled tune that everyone seems to love too!

Which gig you played at that literally blew your mind?

The biased answer would be Octane v Squelcher at SEOne a couple of weeks ago ;) The show of support from the people that love their Hardstyle was amazing, but also I have a huge amount of respect for the non-hardstyle clubbers that came down and tried it for the first time. Not a single person left unhappy ;)

I also loved Frantic Hardstyle… I mean Hard House Academy, and whilst I may have played to a small crowd, to be part of such a huge inspiring event was awesome.
Can I play main room next year please uncle Gordy?!

Playing main room at Bionic in October was also a great achievement. Considered to be the home of UK Hardstyle, it was an honor to finally play for them especially with me not being Welsh!

Planet Love in Northern Ireland was also awesome, and again amazing to see so much quality Harder styled music gracing the main stages.

Oh and how can I forget the 2 hour set at Hard Dance Showcase back in May!! That was insane, the room was packed and it was simply beautiful ruining everyone on the dancefloor! I think I left the DJ booth on my knees at the end of my set!

What track have you heard in 2009 which you really wished you had made?

It’s got to be Technoboy’s “Oh My God”!! It’s got to be the ultimate Hardstyle tune of the century!!
…. Back in the room…. It would have to be a choice between “Double Dutch Darky” just for name sake or a Euro-Hardcore track The Playah “Walking the Line”. So much energy, completely insane, and just when you think it can’t get any more crazy… “Booooom!!!!”

How is your production going?

Production’s been a little quiet over the last 6 months for a number of reasons.
The day job has been crazy, the DJing has been really busy, and obviously with running the Squelcher and Octane events thrown into the mix, I’ve had very little time to get down in the studio.

That said 2009 was a good year for what was released. I had 1 track included in the “Hands Up for Hardstyle Vol 3” Compilation last year, so I was really pleased to have 2 tracks included in Volume 4 from D4RK R3CORDS and Presence Hardstyle.

Also having tracks featured in the top 20 tunes on dance-tunes.com alongside some of my Hardstyle idols was pretty awesome too.

Rest assure there’s stuff happening and some awesome new Artists coming through, and I’ll be focusing a lot of time early 2010 to push both Hardstyle labels starting with a new website design!

We are coming to Dinner! What is on the menu?

Who invited you? I don’t do guests and socializing outside of clubs!!

There’s a good selection of local take-aways, feel free to grab something on your way, I can recommend the Indian round the corner, they do a tasty Chicken Tikka and if you’re lucky you might catch a chubby Chris Evans who regularly turns up there in his pyjamas!!

Do you have a Secret Weapon for your set in the Squelcher vs Octane Arena at Frantic's glittering NYE Event?

Yep…Daniele Mondello!!

I’m also working on a new track called “C4VEM4N” a very dark little number, which I hope to have perfected and finished by then.

On the night I’m just gonna feed off the crowd. Spirits will be extra high anyway due to it being NYE, plus I love the Red Room at Hidden it’s very interactive with the booth protruding into the dancefloor. If they’re going nuts, then it’s gonna drive me on! Maybe some stage diving to Walking the Line?!

What new DJ has impressed you the most this year?

Multiple answers again I’m afraid!
Steinbeck has just gone from strength to strength. Between you and I, I’m a little worried he’s getting better than me! Anything we can do to curb his enthusiasm and presence behind the decks?!!

Additionally Sinistry’s very own Jester has really impressed me. We’ve done a number of radio shows together b2b and had a blast! Then seeing him play for Octane v Squelcher and coming onto the stage and having it large! Awesome! He’s like a cuddlier Hardstyle version of Dark by Design!!

Twilight or Underworld Evolution?

Mmmmm…Twigletts!!
Defo Underworld Evolution… not sure if I’ve seen this particular one, but Latex cat suits ftw!!

What will you be doing on Xmas Day?

Hiding. I hate Xmas!!
I dunno, spending time with friends and loved ones, bringing peace to the world, or driving around in a new Skyline if someone decides to buy me one for Christmas… The Black one please ;)

What plans do you have for Squelcher and Octane?

Well Squelcher and Octane have an awesome opportunity for NYE 2010 with hosting Hidden’s Red Room @ Future Frantic NYE. So really really looking forward to that!

Squelcher are also heading out to Ibiza with HardDanceIbiza June 16th > 23rd 2010 (harddanceibiza.co.uk ) **Remember to Quote “Squelcher” when booking ;) **

And in March Squelcher will be celebrating a 6th Birthday so we’re currently in the process of evaluating our options for a big birthday bash with Octane.

Would love to get involved with some of the other promotions out there that are providing awesome events to Harder styles such as Glow ball, Sinistry and DHF to name a few, maybe even some Hardcore again like we did back with Squelcher Nation.

As soon as we have anything confirmed you’ll be hard pushed not to hear about it!

You can create the Main Room line up for Frantic's next birthday at Koko. Who is on the list?

Money’s no Object right?!
Tbh I wouldn’t want to choose the lineup for Koko not after the amount of debate from HHA!!
Koko for me is about Frantic classic style with your Hard Trance and Hard House. That’s what it has always been to me, it works and I probably wouldn’t change it, but having said that I probably wouldn’t come unless there was at least a little Hardstyle, hahaha!

However if you want a lineup for Hard Style Academy next year I’d gladly help you out!!

Phil York or K90 Live for a warm up Hard Trance set
Dark by Design taking us through Hard Trance into the slightly Harder styles.
D-Block & S-Tefan for some uplifting Hardstyle
Da Tweekaz for some crazy Cheese!!
Headhunterz or NoiseControllers for some Nustyle hard stuff
Donkey Rollers taking us into the darkness followed by Evil Activities, then Tommy Knocker and as I mentioned before, can I play pleeeeeease?!

Have you heard about the new Soundsystem and Heated Marquee at Hidden?

I’ve not heard a lot since the weekend apart from a continual high pitched whine!!
I’ve heard about it but not had to opportunity to sample the delights just yet.
The sound system at Hidden has never been disappointing, so if it’s been upgraded then you know it’s gonna be impressive.

The addition of a new heated Marquee is also a really nice touch. I have to admit to enjoying many an evening/morning in the outdoor smoking area of Hidden, drinking Tea and savouring a hot dog, whilst propping up Loki or listening to Castleboy’s extensive knowledge of Nustyle!!

Thanks Adam for a very entertaining interview! Make sure you check out D4rk’s 90 minute epic set at Frantic NYE. To get you in the mood check out the 2 mixes below.

D4RK - SKULL FUCK 8.0 “Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die”
d4rk.co.uk

D4RK – “El Dia De Los Muertos”
d4rk.co.uk

djd4rk.co.uk
d4rkr3cords.co.uk
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