Digweed was born on New Years Day 1967 in England. By the time he was 15 he had established himself as a prominent DJ in his hometown Hastings. He was particularly popular at the raves on Hastings Pier in East Sussex and sometimes played alongside the likes of the Prodigy and Carl Cox.
Digweed had been DJing for nearly 10+ years until he got his big break. In 1993 he passed a demo on to Renaissance Club owner Geoff Oakes who subsequently relayed it to influential acid house producer Sasha. The recording impressed both of them and eventually led to Digweed’s partnership with Sasha. The two producers worked together throughout 1993, touring and producing a string of mixtapes and remix albums for other artists. Digweed also kept in touch with Oakes and in 1994 comprised a compilation album of tracks recorded at the Renaissance night club aptly entitled “Renaissance: The Mix Collection”. Sasha and Digweed have been noted as some of the first producers to logistically market a compilation mixtape. They continued this trend, releasing compilations under the series Northern Exposure and Global Underground.
Once Digweed got a firm footing in the music industry he formed his own record label, Bedrock Records. He not only used the name Bedrock for his label, but also used it as a medium to perform under, alongside his friend and collaborative partner Nick Muir. The duo found success with their debut single, “For What You Dream Of” , which was featured in the critically acclaimed Danny Boyle film “Trainspotting”.
In 2000 Sasha & John Digweed issued their 5th album (i.e. apart from their Northern Exposure concept series). Though this release did not receive as much critical praise as their previous compilations it is arguably one of their most commercially successful, breaking into the Billboard 200 at No. 149. The compilation included artists ranging from the Orb and Chemical Brothers to Eric Clapton.
As Digweed built his stature in England with his Bedrock club, he also made a name for himself in America, much thanks ado to his residency at New York’s Twilo. He also furthered his status in the American electronic scene by appearing in the 2000 Greg Harrison film, “Groove”, a story which revolves around a San Francisco dance club. 2002 proved to be a vary hectic, but satisfactory year for Digweed as he embarked on a high publicity six week US tour and also scored the soundtrack to the Sean William Scott action movie “Stark Raving Mad”. Throughout the 2000s he hosted a radio show on the UK program Kiss 100 and in 2008 he joined forces again with Sasha, embarking on an extensive North American tour. Digweed has frequently been credited as one of the world‘ greatest DJs by a variety of reputable publications, including Resident Advisor and DJ Mag.
There are many people around who dabble in DJing, but seeing John Digweed perform live, really demonstrated just how hard it is to be successful in the industry. His concentration, and the way that he was controlling the desk was incredible. His hands were flying from the record deck, to the synth, altering volumes, and distorting sounds.
He opened the show with Satellite, and slightly altered it from its recorded version which was awesome. He manipulated the build up to the drop so that it took longer to wind up, so when the drop finally happened the entire crowd were dancing like crazy. As well as being a super talented DJ, Digweed is a born entertainer. From start to finish he had the audience under his control, he’d put his arms in the air and start clapping, and everyone would follow right away. It was a great vibe, because it seemed that everyone was equally passionate about the music.
He mixed up the vibe constantly, and went from house, to electronic dance to keep everyone on their toes. As well as being in an awesome venue with brilliant music, the visual qualities were great, and reflected the music perfectly.
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