A pivotal part of British dance music since the late-'80s, Hype's career has taken in everything from rave, UK techno and hardcore to the jungle and drum & bass that's he's best known for today. With his insistence that "it's all just breakbeat music to me", he shows the kind of open-mindedness and derision for convention that's become rarer and rarer in these genre-obsessed days. So it shouldn't be a surprise to discover that he's also a former DMC competition finalist - and still prone to enhancing his sets with spectacular scratching - as well as meshing garage and breaks in more recent years. Of course, Hype also continues to achieve an impressive strike rate in terms of quality d&b productions on his Ganja label, while his True Playaz night at London's Fabric club continues to have them queuing around the block. But these days Hype's manoeuvres aren't restricted to London - he's probably most renowned as a global ambassador for d&b, representing the music and taking the spirit of the acid house revolution to far flung corners of the world.
A pivotal part of British dance music since the late-'80s, Hype's career has taken in everything from rave, UK techno and hardcore to the jungle and drum & bass that's he's best known for today.
With his insistence that "it's all just breakbeat music to me", he shows the kind of open-mindedness and derision for convention that's become rarer and rarer in these genre-obsessed days.
So it shouldn't be a surprise to discover that he's also a former DMC competition finalist - and still prone to enhancing his sets with spectacular scratching - as well as meshing garage and breaks in more recent years.
Of course, Hype also continues to achieve an impressive strike rate in terms of quality d&b productions on his Ganja label, while his True Playaz night at London's Fabric club continues to have them queuing around the block.
But these days Hype's manoeuvres aren't restricted to London - he's probably most renowned as a global ambassador for d&b, representing the music and taking the spirit of the acid house revolution to far flung corners of the world.
