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Elevating the Kraft

Known for his upbeat sound, Krafty Kuts reaches beyond the boundaries of his breakbeat sound
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Who: Krafty Kuts

When: Thursday, June 24, 9 p.m.

Where: GLC

Cost: $20 in advance

 

You name a place and Martin Reeves has probably played there. The accomplished DJ, who is better known by his stage name Krafty Kuts, had just returned from a massive tour of Asia earlier this week where he played eight cities in just 12 days.

"It was really amazing; Vietnam was crazy, I've never seen anything quite like it," he recalled.

Of course, Krafty's "crazy" should be put into context. Over the years he's played some very unusual shows: manning the decks in an Austrian igloo, from the depths of a submarine, overlooking crowds partying in Turkish baths and swaying precariously on a 30-foot platform in Spain.

"Basically, this platform literally could only stand two people, so I was pretty much scared and all these Spanish ravers were going crazy and it's like four in the morning and the sun was coming up, and I'm on this really dodgy, fragile stage right high up," he laughed.

But apparently, Whistler can hold its own when it comes to living it up at Krafty's live shows.

"It's always good, Whistler. I mean, I don't know what it's going to be like this time of year, but every time I've played - touch wood - especially at the GLC, the crowd is wicked."

A DJing sensation hailing from the UK, Krafty has gone on to amass legions of followers around the world. But according to the man himself, the best shows happen in Australia, Asia, England and right here in Canada.

"There are certain spots in the world that really appreciate good music," the globe-trotting DJ reflected, "And Canada is largely one of the best places, because people are just very genuine and really like to get down and have a good time."

And Krafty knows how to have a good time.

Originally inspired by hip hop and electro sounds that he encountered on the breakdancing scene, Krafty stepped behind the decks for the first time as a total novice, entering a DJ competition and making it all the way to the finals.

"Back then, Technics turntables were unique and they were very expensive, and anyone who had them was kind of wealthy or it was only in the nightclubs, so the opportunity to spin on Technics turntables was really exciting," he explained.

Though he didn't end up winning that first competition, he was officially hooked and set to work laying the foundations to become the versatile, party-rocking DJ he is today. The first step was learning as much as he possibly could about music: any and all music. So, Krafty ran one of Brighton's most popular record stores throughout the '90s, soaking up as much dance music (and more) as he could.

"I've learned my trade, and if I had to give a tuition on DJing and I was to go and teach loads of students music, it would be the first thing that I'd say: 'learn about previous music,'" he said.

"You have to have that knowledge and know about music in general: progressive rock, house, electro, trance, hip hop, whatever it be! You can be clever and manipulate that music to your greatest effect, and that is what I have done."

Of course, it takes a while to find your niche. Krafty actually started out playing around in hip hop before he started decidedly leaning towards more of an upbeat tempo. And today, though he's probably best known for his breaks, this artist is looking to push his sound beyond a defined genre.

"I don't want to be stereotyped into one form of music, so I'm trying to steer away from the fact of a genre," he explained, "I want people to see me like you'd look at Fatboy Slim, like you'd look at Groove Armada, Basement Jaxx and the Prodigy."

You see, at his core, Krafty is an adventurous soul, keen to explore all facets of the musical realm. In fact, his style of music is very deliberately infused with hip hop, breaks, drum 'n' bass, electro, house and dubstep, giving listeners a taste of just about every genre out there.

He quickly made the transition from the club and into the studio. The behind-the-scenes work appealed to Krafty so much that he actually went on to launch two labels, Against The Grain and SuperCharged, in 2000. He began creating music that was designed to shake the foundations of the breaks scene. And shake them they did.

Krafty got his big break when a dubplate of his "Gimme The Funk" track landed in the lap of Norman Cook, who snapped it up for his Southern Fried label and released it to the clubbing crowd. They loved it, and soon, Ministry of Sound offshoot FSUK had Krafty working on some singles: "Funky Elements," "Wild In the Aisles" and 'Return of the Elements." You've probably heard a Krafty in a Coca Cola ad, or perhaps a favourite Playstation 2 game, or the soundtrack to Vinnie Jones' film Mean Machine .

He's been named Best International DJ at the Australian Dance Music Awards, Breakspoll's Face of Breaks 2003 and Best Breaks DJ at the M8 Ibiza awards 2006. Plus, his 2006 album, "Freakshow," earned him the Best Album award at Breakspoll 2007.

But that album, "Freakshow," was released almost four years ago. And while Krafty has definitely been busy churning out new singles and mix projects, this perfectionist admits that producing his latest full-length has been a bit slow going, especially with all the touring he's been doing.

"It's one of those things that I keep changing the tracks and keep doing this, keep doing that, working with new acts and stuff... I can't really explain some of the music that is there, but it's very Krafty!" he laughed.

Now, the countdown is on for Krafty fans: in between his hectic touring schedule, the tireless DJ has been picking away at his next big project, which will be ready for release in just a few short weeks.