Carlo Ruetz
It was a breakthrough by name, and by nature. By 2013, Carlo Ruetz had been playing twisted technoid minimal for a decade, but it was his debut longplayer of that year Breakthrough that launched him into the spotlight. Within 24 hours of its release the album crashed into the top spot of Beatport’s minimal techno chart, and it remained in pole position for weeks. It also caught the discerning ear of Richie Hawtin. Since that unmissable moment, Carlo has only gathered more and more momentum; acclaimed EPs for MINUS, DEEPERFECT and KD MUSIC, alongside memorable performances at international Minus showcases and Richie Hawtin’s essential Ibiza night ENTER. Unique in sound and in situation, Carlo Ruetz is the ‘overnight sensation’ born of ten years in the trenches of the underground.
Rostockbred Carlo became fascinated by the sound of music at an early age. In his youth he was often the last person on the dancefloor in the early hours, and in 2001 he bought his first turntables and mixer, built a small studio in his parents’ attic, and recorded his first set to tape. His devotion to the minimalist aesthetic was forged in these early sets, and continues it continues to be his calling card. Carlo adopted a DJ alias “Jason Wawn” and soon became a regular fixture of clubs and open air parties in northern Germany. With his horizons broadening further, and after stepping out from behind the mask to embrace his real name, Carlo Ruetz went on to blaze the stage at ENTER. Ibiza at Space, FUSE Brussels, TOFFLER Rotterdam, 10 DAYS OFF The Last Waltz Ghent, and a 2015 tour through India.
Carlo began writing his own compositions in 2010, inspired by artists like Heinrichs & Hirtenfellner, Daniel Steinberg and Magda, and the following year he made a successful debut with I’m Fucking Famous. Handmade EP through Alfred Heinrichs and his homebaselabel Supdub followed, with further releases for Moonplay Records and Slaap Records, before the gamechanging arrival of Breakthrough through Supdub Digitales in March 2013.
Carlo Ruetz is Known for starting from scratch with every production, mining deep for unexpected sounds and arrangements, and taking compelling bends and turns while in the DJ booth. It’s no surprise that Richie Hawtin counts Carlo Ruetz as part of the new Minus generation. With forthcoming heat lined up with future releases, and more clubs and festivals switching on to the distinctive Carlo Ruetz sound, expect to hear more from this overnight veteran who exists at the leading edge of minimalism and techno.
PAST EVENTS
Fabio Florido
“When you find a balance between a passion for music and a pure love of nightlife, you have found the perfect combination to build something unique”
As a teenager Fabio studied at “Giuseppe Verdi” academy, Prato. However, it is fair to say that he spent most of his youth in night-clubs or festivals across Europe; spreading the essence of music & fun on his own skin and building his knowledge week by week and experiencing the party scene first hand.
In 2007 Fabio moved to London where for the first time he came into contact with the intricate world of music, he then spent hours and hours in the studio developing his own unique style that rolls techno and tech-house into one soul led him to his first released in early 2011.
Thanks to the many EP releases and remixes on countless European labels he was being recognised and quickly found support from artists like Richie Hawtin, Dubfire, Luigi Madonna, Subfactral, Markantonio, Sasha Carassi and many more from across the globe. Such positive support has touched Fabio and has led him to concentrate not only with producing, he has also refined his own vision of music through his dj sets.
The fact that he’s never satisfied sees him in constant search of music, tools and new equipment to make him stand out from the crowd.
2012/13 was the period that took him to another level, having moved to Ibiza he came into contact with those who gave him the initial inspiration, his mentor, Richie Hawtin and his concept Enter.
ENTER. & Ibiza gave him everything he needed to understand what people expect from music. Throughout the year he was incredibly lucky to listen, dance and experience many of his productions played by the best djs on the most talked about dance floors in the world Space Ibiza & Amnesia.
Having held various residencies at Club 999 in his hometown and playing for Kehakuma “Zen Garden”this has seen Fabio take control of the floor like never before.
2014 and a new era for Fabio has begun. Having already cemented himself firmly within the ENTER. family. Fabio has become a central resident to the ENTER. party at Space Ibiza. Taking on the Sake room this year for six dates and also a prolific Enter. Main appearance before Marc Houle, Luciano and Richie Hawtin. This residency has launched Fabio at lighting speed onto the international circuit and garnered many fans for the Tuscan native.
Now onto August 2014 and things are heating up again. With his first EP “Be yOu” on Minus already out. There is no stopping.
With a huge portfolio of releases behind him, amazing gigs and unique achievements it’s clear that Fabio Florido has proven that he is one to watch for the future with the simple fact that the “best is yet to come” !
PAST EVENTS
Hito
Hito is a Berlin-based electronic music artist and vinyl DJ with a unique style and aesthetic. Full of colour and character, she was born and raised in Himeji, Japan, and is loved for her sophisticated record collection, her deep techno style, and her incredible ability to entertain crowds with charm and energy.
After moving to the German capital in 1999, she developed her passion for minimal and emotional music pressed on vinyl. Hito connected with electronic music icon Richie Hawtin and became a resident and integral part of his ENTER. experience at Space Ibiza from 2012, the island’s most forward-thinking party concept.
Hito took full ownership of the ENTER.Sake Bar at the outdoor Space terrace with epic sets – sometimes playing all-night long to an incredulous response. The room was modelled on a Japanese Sake Bar and her performances, both in sound and vision, added huge authenticity to the concept, performing in formal dress with a beautiful range of kimonos.
Hito has now evolved into a unique artist of her own right, in-demand around the world for the touch of class she delivers. Her contribution to the Minus release “ENTER.IBIZA 2013” combined with a series of live streams from Ibiza on the Resident Advisor / ENTER. channel resulted in this fascination in her career.
People don’t just like Hito – they LOVE Hito. She recently completed a tour of North American Soho House’s with Hawtin to present the ENTER.Sake concept and she has become an unofficial ambassador for Japan. Her background has seen her strive to share her culture, defining a palette of sounds which she relates to the five senses that have coloured and shaped her life.
PAST EVENTS
Dubfire
“I try to apply a punk ethic to my own music…it has to be groundbreaking, futuristic, unique, and organic.”
Grammy Award-winning recording artist Dubfire is renowned for his innovative DJ sets, revolutionary music, and much-lauded SCI+TEC label. Widely recognized as one of electronic music’s most versatile artists, Dubfire initially brought a pioneering sound to the masses during his days as one-half of the distinguished DJ & production duo Deep Dish, which led to a catalog of timeless dance classics and numerous international awards to their credit.
Dubfire has always been a risk taker, and his decision to go solo in 2006 at the height
of Deep Dish’s success was a precarious one. But staying true to his convictions,
he created a visionary new style of “techno” that defied genres, crossing over into the hearts, minds and performances of the world’s leading tastemakers. The cadence of his early solo productions came in the form of a relentless string of releases, including “RibCage, “Roadkill, and “Emissions,” collaborations with Underworld and Oliver Huntemann, and the now-classic remix of Radio Slave’s ”Grindhouse” to name just a few. He has shown no signs of slowing the pace, with a host of originals, remixes and collaborations that have subsequently been released to great fanfare.
After more than 23 years behind the decks and in the studio, with deep roots in the genesis of electronic music, Dubfire continues to evolve in new ways that have helped shape the industry.
PAST EVENTS
Ambivalent
“The curtain went up before I knew I was on stage.”
Ambivalent aka Kevin McHugh
Currently working out of Berlin, Kevin McHugh has spent the last decade living in the German capital or New York and in a sense; these two metropoleis represent the contradiction at the heart of his Ambivalent persona. On the one hand the reckless freedom and hedonism of the Berlin subculture, on the other the more considered, conceptual approach of its New York counterpart. As a result his idiosyncratic sound lies somewhere between the two, a precarious balancing act that manages to infuse stripped down, finked up minimal techno with a distinct sense of purpose, often defined by a pearl of an idea around which his skeletal grooves revolve.
After growing up in Washington DC on a balanced diet of Acid House, Go-Go and Punk, his active involvement in the electronic scene began in New York in 2002, producing a series of memorable parties for Creative Time in the base of the Brooklyn Bridge. Fusing house and techno with experimental multimedia and urban installations, Kevin was quick to recognise connecting patterns of value between these art forms, with temporal, physical, spatial and minimal elements among the most obvious common denominators. If one person embodied these principles through music it was Richie Hawtin. The pair were soon working together, co-producing the Plastikman show at Mutek in 2004. The planning process meant spending the best part of a year in Berlin during which time Kevin assimilated into the scene. Energized, he returned to New York and besides co-presenting the Nerd Tank on East Village Radio, he began working on his own compositions, which quickly led to a debut release on Camea’s Clink label in 2006. His event organising activities also intensified, buoyed by the network of DJs and producers he’d met in Berlin.
It was after one particularly intense party, that Kevin set to work on a new track. Extreme images from the event were still flickering across his mind as he picked up his studio mic and, in a flash of inspiration, laid down a twisted, one-sided conversation in a single take. He passed the resulting track to Troy thinking it was just a bit of fun, a tongue-in-cheek parody for his friends to play. Within days Richie was telling him – the track was blowing up, the dancefloor reaction to R U OK was unbelievable. What followed was beyond his wildest imaginings as the track went global, topping charts around the world aided by Ali Demirel’s tripped-out video interpretation. By 2008, the gravitational pull had become too strong to ignore and he returned to Berlin, hooking up with the Minus community and embarking on a non-stop schedule of live shows and DJ gigs. 2009 also saw him join the line-up for the London Contakt special as well as the release of several remixes, a JPLS collaboration and his own follow up EP is 5.
2010 holds even more promise for Kevin, with back-to-back releases. Rumors shows another quirky wordplay, voiced by a character twisted in knots trying to learn the meaning of all the gossip floating around. His second release of the year comes on strong with a dancefloor bouncer Down accompanied by an aggressive vocal challenge. With a DJ mix and an album in the works, it’s already becoming more interesting by the day.
Ambivalent by name, ambivalent by nature, Kevin McHugh insists we shouldn’t read too much into his ideas, but as long as he continues making such bold musical statements, that stimulate the instinct and intellect in equal measures, he’ll just have to get used to the attention.
PAST EVENTS
Fabrizio Maurizi
Fabrizio Maurizi is a native of Bologna (Italy), a city that has always paid particular attention to the original Detroit Techno movement, making it the perfect place to grow up in terms of music. After a brief spell as part of the city’s militant illegal rave scene, Fabrizio soon graduated to residencies at some of the most important clubs in the country.
Fabrizio started producing his own sounds, switching to music software programs after 10 years of studying piano. Completely hooked on very low bassline frequencies, his tracks explore the sometimes dark, sometimes funky side of techno, using completely mad vocal samples to give his music a unique flavour. Fabrizio definitely has DJing in his blood, liking nothing more than to lead the dancefloor out of darkness into light and vice versa, allowing his music to slowly evolve through the interplay of rhythmic analog elements and jumping basslines.
His dj set is an endless journey between house and techno, the sun and the moon, with no boundaries between the music genres: the organic elements are perfectly melted with futuristic sci-fi atmospheres.
In 2007 he founded with his friend/partner Idriss D the label Memento, releasing his first ep “Hasta la Baldoria Siempre” that was an incredible start for an unknown artist and label: the ep joined quickly the top ten everywhere.
One year after Fabrizio realized his dream joining the Minus family, where he started to produce and performing with.
Now Fabrizio is delivering his unique music all over the world, playing in the best clubs like Fabric , Rex , Robert Johnson , Womb , Cocoricò , Cocoon…just to name a few, garnering an underground very high reputation for his unmistakable dj set.
PAST EVENTS
Magda
Magda is an artist who can never be pinned down, no matter the timeframe or time signature. Any one of the Detroit-raised artist’s DJ sets or productions breeds a rare feel of mystique and discovery. “I’m really obsessed with finding a line between things – between sounds and between genres. My influences come from a life spent in very different environments, which plays a huge role in the way I connect with music.”
Dramatic sounds and eccentric basslines carry her multilayered sound, which veers everywhere from funked-out space disco to the intricately-programmed, metallic feel of Detroit to stripped down techno, all the way to Italian horror film soundtracks. The only thing that remains consistent is the element of surprise.
Her accidental entry into Detroit’s underground party scene as a teenager was the kick-start she needed for a lifelong love affair. Soon all became a blur of “cities, record stores, and parties.” In 1998, she joined Minus and began touring the world as Richie Hawtin’s sole opener. From there, her distinctive sound began to develop and the rest is history.
Stylistically, Magda grooves through opposition – creating sets that are emotion-led yet clinical, having profound expertise with analog and digital technology. Her sound is otherworldly but visceral; dark with a warm sense of beauty and grace; sparse yet wondrously full-bodied with density and bass-swathed extremes. Magda’s DJing style has been encapsulated on her mixed CDs ‘She’s A Dancing Machine,’ and her mix for London club Fabric ‘Fabric 49′ (a mix CD with as much artistry and vision as an original album).
In the fall of 2010, Magda revealed her debut, ‘From The Fallen Page,’ a darkly- tinged, transportive album that curiously combines natural, organic sounds, and modern electronic grace. Similar to her unpredictable DJ sets, ‘From The Fallen Page’ took listeners from one end of the spectrum to the other, treading the fine lines of extremities along the way.
These days Magda isn’t home very often. In-between touring, she’s fully focused on her recently resurrected label ‘Items & Things.’ The label’s vision always pinpoints the off-kilter and the uncommon, seeking out new artists and sounds that push boundaries. “Items and things are bits and pieces of uniqueness we come across. The label is a platform to launch the music that we love. There are no rules, just sounds we like and artists we believe in.”
PAST EVENTS
