Enchanted Garden 2001
March 28th, 2002 by freddie96
Nick Philip
Nick has been a prominent figure in San Francisco’s experimental electronic scene for well over a decade now. Blurring the lines between DJ, visualist and producer, Nick is an elder statesman of chill out – ‘Radical Beauty’, his audiovisual work that melded interactivity, philosophy and electronica is now recognised as a classic. Having played at both the Enchanted Garden and Naxos last year, we’re delighted to say he is a stalwart Big Chiller too.
Norman Jay
Norman Jay hardly needs any introduction – least of all after his storming set at the Enchanted Garden last year, which drew ecstatic applause from an enormous crowd of Big Chillers. Given Norman’s involvement with virtually every dance scene down the years, it seems only appropriate that he should bring his own inimitable mix of styles to the Big Chill. Having already played around 90 dates this year alone – including Homelands, Miami and the Cannes Film Festival – this man is still one of the most energetic DJs around. This year we are delighted to say he’ll be playing both our summer festivals.
Pete Lawrence
The Big Chill’s co-founder and creative visionary. Compiler of some of the most genuinely chilled compilations in the land. Zappa fan. International DJ and beach-hopper. Cider drinker. Jockey Slut and bigchill.net columnist. Space.fm regular. Chilled By Nature. Father of two, and godfather to a whole movement. The man without whom we would not be here.
Richard Norris
Richard has been a regular fixture at the Big Chill ever since its Union Chapel all-dayers so many summers ago, though he will probably always be known best for being one half of The Grid (whose fans are legion). In the intervening years he has been DJing in some unusual places – Taiwan and Poland – as well as the more obvious – Ibiza, London – and producing, writing and remixing for a host of names (Eno, Happy Mondays, Pet Shop Boys, Yello). Welcome back, Richard, to where you will always belong.
Rob Wood
If, like us, you think ‘Jockey Slut’ is one of the best music magazines around, Rob’s the man to thank. Having done his time with Mixmag and 7, Rob is currently steering the Slut into a commanding position amongst music mags the world over – when he’s not DJing. There’s hardly a decent club in the UK Rob hasn’t played at, and he is currently also resident at The Gallery’s backroom (Turnmills, Happy Families). Following his turn at the poolside decks in Naxos last year, this is his second appearance with the Big Chill.
Robin Brunson
Robin’s career as a DJ and producer has followed an unusual curve. Having debuted at The End’s Friday night Skint party, he has subsequently progressed downwards to friends’ house parties, christenings and weddings. He has recorded for Skint’s Under 5′s label, is a core part of the audiovisual production duo Hexstatic (who rocked EG2000), and will soon have new matierial out on Illicit Recordings. Suffice to say he is pursuing a Guinness World Record for the number of record contracts signed. Taking a break from messing with other DJs’ EQ and crossfaders, he now steps forward to play a set of whatever falls out of his supermarket carrier bag (ladies’ underwear and all).
Roots Manuva
Since his first appearance at the Big Chill (EG99), Roots Manuva – Rodney Smith (aka Smite, Smythe and Simit) – has been grafting away at ‘Run Come Save Me’, the follow-up to ‘Brand New Second Hand’. Not for nothing is Mr Manuva, Stockwell born and bred, known as the London word-merchant par excellence. Back with some bustin’ rhymes and dubwise tunes, he’s here to share his inimitable style with us for one summer afternoon. Go deh.
Ross Allen
Ross Allen. You probably know the name. Maybe you’ve read his stuff in ‘Straight No Chaser’, or remember Filter Records’ fine track record. You’re more than likely to have heard his ‘Destination In’ show on GLR (now BBC London Live), and if you’re lucky you’ll own a copy of ‘Ross Allen Presents Abstract Funk Theory’, the compilation that Jockey Slut, 7 and Muzik all raved about. Quite simply, we’re talking about one of the UK’s premier taste definers.
Russ Dewbury
One of the UK’s original jazz DJs, Russ Dewbury is perhaps best known as the promoter of Brighton’s Jazz Bop. Over the last few years he has also run the Brighton Jazz Rooms sessions, broadcast ‘The New Jazz Spectrum’ on Surf 107.2FM, managed Terry Callier, put together the ‘Africa Funk’, ‘Club Africa’, ‘Freedom Time’ and ‘Jazz Bizniz’ compilations… not to mention playing club nights all over the world. A busy man who we’re lucky to have here.
Sam Hardaker
Sam Hardaker is one half of Zero 7 – which should say it all. But for those who like a little extra detail, we can tell you that back in the ’80s Sam was a cutting edge hip hop man – until he met smooth soul boy Henry Binns. Together they served their studio apprenticeship at Mickie Most’s RAK studios, working on anything and everything until Nigel Godrich gave them Radiohead’s ‘Climbing Up The Walls’ to remix. The rest is history. And odds on Sam’s set on Friday evening will be another landmark Enchanted Garden moment remembered for years to come.
Sidestepper
If you’ve heard some of the new sounds coming out of the South American music scene (or were lucky enough to have caught their performances at EG98 and the Big Chill cafe @ The Spitz), chances are you will have heard Sidestepper already. After last year’s ‘More Grip’ LP on Palm Pictures, this Columbian-London crew have been tearing up dancefloors the world over, making appearances at NYC’s Leche and on Claude Challe’s Buddha Bar compilations. Featuring mainman Richard Blair, production maestro Champi Benavides and singers Johanna Marin and Jimena Angel, Sidestepper live offers you the chance to experience the deep Latin dub vibe of their legendary Bogota club nights.
Sophie Barker
Fans of Zero 7 will need no introduction to Sophie Barker, the sublime voice that lifts tracks like ‘Waiting Line’ and ‘Spinning’ (as featured on The Big Chill’s ‘Glisten’) onto another level altogether. Having collaborated with the Zero boys – not to mention Groove Armada, Dave Tipper and Grooverider – Sophie is now going it alone as a solo artist. If you missed her recent session on the Big Chill’s Sunday night slot on Space.fm, you can catch her this weekend, where she will be accompanied by singer-songwriter Leonard Ng.
Soundzero
Soundzero were formed in ’96 by Philip Clemo and Mee under the original name of Sound (you may recall their storming set at EG98). Their compositions range freely across jazz, electronica and contemporary classical music – the kind of lush, multi-layered pieces that gradually reveal their complexity through repeated listenings. With an album in the bag featuring guest appearances from Cleveland Watkiss and Pete Lockett, and a growing reputation for their audiovisual live shows, the time is now for Soundzero.
Sounds From The Ground
London-based duo Sounds From The Ground – Elliot Morgan Jones and Nick Woolfson – are no strangers to the Big Chill. Following appearances at the very earliest of Chill events, their sophisticated blend of dub, ambient, hip-hop and jazz has made them firm favourites over the years, including Naxos 2000. Since the release of their acclaimed second album ‘Mosaic’ in ’98, the boys have been busy in the studio, remixing and collaborating with a number of other artists – so this weekend is your chance to get a taste of their long-awaited new work, ‘Natural Selection’.
Spacek
Spacek sadly couldn’t make the Enchanted Garden last year, but one year on, their star is still in the ascendant. In the last year, this South London soul trio – Steve Spacek, Edmund Cavill and Morgan Zarate – have played alongside Mos Def and Gilles Peterson, and completed their debut album, ‘Curvatia’, for Ross Allen’s Island Blue imprint. Mixing classic soul and R&B influences with the technological innovation of contemporary electronica, Spacek make the kind of fat space age grooves to set you up for a great Saturday night…
Stuart Borthwick
Stuart is a man who practises what he preaches. As Programme Leader in Popular Music Studies at Liverpool’s John Moores University, he lectures, teaches and writes about precisely what we’re here doing this weekend; the rest of the time he keeps his hand in by DJing and participaing in events like the Big Chill. This year, he’s bringing his collection of ambient remixes – all clocking in at approximately 0 bpm – as well as folk, classical, and a bit of everything else besides.
Subvision
Subvision’s Sunday morning sets are another of the Enchanted Garden’s institutions. Mixing classical music with electronica, Richard Lannoy and Jan Sodderland will give you a gentle but stimulating start to the day. Over the last year, Subvision have been spreading their net wider than ever, DJing on British, French and Danish radio, while Richard has been collaborating with live visual artists at the monthly Cinefeel night he co-founded, as well as contributing to the ICA’s ‘Selector Selection’. But there can be no better setting for what they do than an English country garden on a Sunday morning.
Terry Callier
What better way of rounding off a weekend as musically diverse as the Big Chill than with the unique sound of Terry Callier? After all, this is the man whose work traversed the early folk boom of the ’60s, the soulful ’70s, and the ’80s acid jazz scene before latterly being recognised as one of the all-time originals and innovators. Blessed with the kind of voice that encapsulates and carries forward an entire musical tradition – Terry hails from the same part of Chicago as Curtis Mayfield – he now stands alone as a genius, survivor, and apostle of the love-gospel that is music with soul. It is a great honour to have him here.
Tim Hutton
As part of the brave new wave of singer-songwriters, Tim Hutton’s day has surely come. After many years of experimental techno and abstract ambience (under the memorable name of Vulva) and, more recently, the Afro-beat and P-funk of his Soul Ascendants project, Tim has finally allowed his more emotive side to come to the fore. And ‘Everything’, his recent album, is the sound of a man only too happy about that. Which makes him the perfect compliment to a Sunday afternoon in the Enchanted Garden.
Tom Churchill
How many people can say they have performed at every Enchanted Garden to date? Tom Churchill can. And who can forget his outstanding stand-in for an errant Ashley Beedle two years ago? No-one who was there. Tom’s love of Detroit techno and deep house – always thoughtfully programmed, mixed smoothly, and garnished with plenty of funk – means he is greatly in demand these days, whether it’s at Cardiff’s Radius nights, Raya, Headancer and Kult events, or some glamorous location overseas. The boy done good.
Tom Middleton
What exactly doesn’t Tom Middleton do? He has recorded hard industrial techno, electro funk, drum ‘n’ bass, deep house, experimental beats and ambient. He has remixed everyone from Aphex Twin to All Saints. He forms a seminal part of The Bays. He has DJed his way around the world and back a fair few times. He even VJed at the Big Chill’s Winter Festival – after two landmark electro-acoustic Amba performances with a 40-piece choir. But of course we will always love him most for the extraordinary passion, intelligence and good humour he brings to whatever he turns his hand to. All hail one of our generation’s true greats.
Tony Morley
The man behind Leaf records first started out DJing in backrooms at raves when he was a student, and is now no stranger to playing abroad, online and on London radio. Not surprisingly, the intervening years have been busy ones for Tony. Leaf might have started out life as a labour of love, but now has a roster of artists that includes Eardrum, Susuma Yokota, Beige, 310, Rob Ellis and Manitoba. All are bound by a strong mark of individuality, with enough warmth, melody, playfulness and emotion to make the ‘experimental’ tag irrelevant. Expect these qualities to shine through Tony’s set this weekend.
Yam Yam
Featuring one Yam on the decks aided and abetted by Kwasi Asante on vocals and repeater drum,
Yam Yam will be taking a sound system approach to this year’s Big Chill. They will be playing new material (like ‘Dudley Rumba’, featured on the new Big Chill compilation), as well as other recent releases like ‘Introspective Party People’. Still resident at One Tree Island, Manchester’s longest running club night, Yam Yam will be celebrating eight years in the business by re-releasing their classic ‘The Spectacle’ – a Big Chill anthem for some years now – this summer.
Zak (Intrafunk)
Zak Tsamoulos was raised in Sydney before relocating to Greece at the age of 16. Since then he has been at the forefront of Athens’ chill out scene, be it on his various radio shows, DJ sets around Europe, or Zak & Alexees ‘Intrafunk’ outings with Simon Lee, Jazzanova, Tim ‘Love’ Lee, Miles Hollway and Ben Davis. Naturally he played at the Big Chill in Naxos last year and will be there with Alexees again this year. He is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.
Zero 7
‘I have a dream,’ wrote Steve Nickolls on bigchill.net earlier this year. ‘I’m at this year’s Enchanted Garden, sat facing the main stage… from which emanates the live sound of Zero 7’s quite stunning debut album.’ This weekend, many such dreams will be fulfilled when Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker take the stage with their 11-piece live band. Ever since their stunning first EP, The Big Chill has championed their sound – their fabulous reworking of Lambchop’s ‘Up With People’ was for many the highlight of Pete Lawrence’s ‘Beach’ album. Following their fine DJ set at EG2000 – the very moment, they say, which inspired them to put together a live band – it is a real pleasure to welcome Zero 7 to the main stage for the first time. Long may they return.
[galleryurl=http://www.bigchill.net/gallery.html?id=15]EG2001 photogallery[/galleryurl]
