DJ Die
Encyclopedia
DJ Die is a British
music producer and DJ. He was a founder of drum and bass
label Full Cycle Recordings
and a member of acts Reprazent
(1997 Mercury Prize
winners) and Breakbeat Era
.
Kausman was born and spent his formative years in Devon, UK, before moving to Bristol
in 1985 as a teenager. An early interest in house
and hardcore
lead to a musical partnership with friend Jody Wisternoff
(who later formed Way Out West with Nick Warren
). Recording together under the aliases of Tru Funk and Sub Love on Three Stripe Records, they created hardcore staples like 4am and made numerous DJ
ing appearances at early Universe raves.
The partnership was a brief one however, and Die began to diversify his output, drawing on his enduring hip hop
influences. He had already encountered Krust
and Suv, who were regular visitors to Universe, but it was a chance meeting with Roni Size
at Bristol's Replay Records store in 1992 which would lead to their first collaboration in the form of Agility for V Recordings
and Die's ongoing contributions to the Full Cycle Recordings
catalogue.
Together with Roni, he originated the seminal Music Box which was to become the title track of the debut Full Cycle compilation in 1996. Solo efforts like Landslide and Jittabug would help carve out a niche for Die, who became known for his ability to fuse the jazz
with the breaks
to create devastating, seismic floor shakers. Emerging firstly as a core member of Reprazent
and later in 1998, as one third of Breakbeat Era
(a project spawned by the Music Box track of the same name), he was thrust into the limelight and soon found himself remixing the likes of DJ Shadow
, Towa Tei
and DJ Cam
. His Gnarly remix of Reprazent single Watching Windows became a classic and was released in its own right by Talkin' Loud
. He has his own label called "Clear Skyz".
RECORDS AS:
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
music producer and DJ. He was a founder of drum and bass
Drum and bass
Drum and bass is a type of electronic music which emerged in the late 1980s. The genre is characterized by fast breakbeats , with heavy bass and sub-bass lines...
label Full Cycle Recordings
Full Cycle Recordings
Full Cycle Recordings was a record label based in Bristol, England specialising in drum and bass. The label was a sister label of V Recordings and is owned and run by Daniel Kausman , Paul Southey , Keith Thompson and Ryan Williams...
and a member of acts Reprazent
Reprazent
Reprazent is a British drum and bass act formed by Roni Size. Their debut album New Forms won the Mercury Music Prize in 1997. Their follow-up album In The Mode featured artists including Rahzel, Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against the Machine and Method Man.Roni Size resurrected Reprazent in 2008...
(1997 Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
winners) and Breakbeat Era
Breakbeat Era
Breakbeat Era was a short-lived British project, that combined the breakbeat talent of drum and bass producers, Roni Size and DJ Die, with the vocals of singer Leonie Laws. Spearheaded by the single "Ultra-Obscene", they then released as an album under the same title in 1999.In conjunction with...
.
Kausman was born and spent his formative years in Devon, UK, before moving to Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
in 1985 as a teenager. An early interest in house
House music
House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...
and hardcore
Breakbeat hardcore
Breakbeat hardcore is a derivative of the acid house and techno, of the late 1980s and early 1990s, that combines four-to-the-floor rhythms with breakbeats, and is associated with the UK rave scene.-The rave scene:...
lead to a musical partnership with friend Jody Wisternoff
Jody Wisternoff
Jody Wisternoff is best known as one half of the Bristol progressive house duo Way Out West and as a producer of dance music spanning early 90s hardcore to electro house....
(who later formed Way Out West with Nick Warren
Nick Warren
Nick Warren is an English house DJ and producer. He is well-known for his eight albums released in the Global Underground series and as a member of the duo Way Out West...
). Recording together under the aliases of Tru Funk and Sub Love on Three Stripe Records, they created hardcore staples like 4am and made numerous DJ
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
ing appearances at early Universe raves.
The partnership was a brief one however, and Die began to diversify his output, drawing on his enduring hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
influences. He had already encountered Krust
Krust
Krust or DJ Krust is an English drum and bass producer and DJ who is part of the Bristol based Reprazent collective, as well as releasing his own solo material such as "Burnin" which was released on Kickin Records.Krust was interested in hip hop, acid house and rave music as a youth, and was a...
and Suv, who were regular visitors to Universe, but it was a chance meeting with Roni Size
Roni Size
Roni Size is a British record producer and DJ, who came to prominence in 1997 as the founder and leader of Reprazent, a drum and bass collective...
at Bristol's Replay Records store in 1992 which would lead to their first collaboration in the form of Agility for V Recordings
V Recordings
V Recordings is a drum and bass record label, based in London. Started by DJs Bryan Gee and Jumping Jack Frost, V Recordings is one of the longest-running Drum and Bass imprints, with a large catalogue of releases stretching back to 1993...
and Die's ongoing contributions to the Full Cycle Recordings
Full Cycle Recordings
Full Cycle Recordings was a record label based in Bristol, England specialising in drum and bass. The label was a sister label of V Recordings and is owned and run by Daniel Kausman , Paul Southey , Keith Thompson and Ryan Williams...
catalogue.
Together with Roni, he originated the seminal Music Box which was to become the title track of the debut Full Cycle compilation in 1996. Solo efforts like Landslide and Jittabug would help carve out a niche for Die, who became known for his ability to fuse the jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
with the breaks
Break (music)
In popular music, a break is an instrumental or percussion section or interlude during a song derived from or related to stop-time – being a "break" from the main parts of the song or piece....
to create devastating, seismic floor shakers. Emerging firstly as a core member of Reprazent
Reprazent
Reprazent is a British drum and bass act formed by Roni Size. Their debut album New Forms won the Mercury Music Prize in 1997. Their follow-up album In The Mode featured artists including Rahzel, Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against the Machine and Method Man.Roni Size resurrected Reprazent in 2008...
and later in 1998, as one third of Breakbeat Era
Breakbeat Era
Breakbeat Era was a short-lived British project, that combined the breakbeat talent of drum and bass producers, Roni Size and DJ Die, with the vocals of singer Leonie Laws. Spearheaded by the single "Ultra-Obscene", they then released as an album under the same title in 1999.In conjunction with...
(a project spawned by the Music Box track of the same name), he was thrust into the limelight and soon found himself remixing the likes of DJ Shadow
DJ Shadow
Joshua Paul Davis better known as DJ Shadow is an American music producer, DJ and songwriter. He is considered a prominent figure in the development of instrumental hip hop and first gained notice with the release of his highly acclaimed debut album Endtroducing....., which was constructed...
, Towa Tei
Towa Tei
is a DJ, artist and record producer in Yokahoma, Japan.Tōwa debuted as a member of Deee-Lite, from the U.S. label Elektra Records in 1990, and shot to fame via their international hit single, "Groove Is In the Heart"...
and DJ Cam
DJ Cam
DJ Cam is a French DJ. His tunes are almost entirely a hybrid of both hip-hop and jazz music, and is presented in an abstract manner. His first LP was Underground Vibes in 1994, and was revolutionary for its time, featuring familiar jazz samples and many vibe samples and heavy hip-hop influences...
. His Gnarly remix of Reprazent single Watching Windows became a classic and was released in its own right by Talkin' Loud
Talkin' Loud
Talkin' Loud is a record label started by Gilles Peterson at Phonogram in 1990 after he left Acid Jazz Records. The label name is based on Peterson's club night "Talkin' Loud And Sayin' Something", itself a reference to James Brown and Bobby Byrd's "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing".The first...
. He has his own label called "Clear Skyz".
RECORDS AS:
- Die & Clipz (Dj Die and Dj Clipz)
- Swabe
- 4 Tree
- Breakbeat EraBreakbeat EraBreakbeat Era was a short-lived British project, that combined the breakbeat talent of drum and bass producers, Roni Size and DJ Die, with the vocals of singer Leonie Laws. Spearheaded by the single "Ultra-Obscene", they then released as an album under the same title in 1999.In conjunction with...
(with Leonie Laws & Roni SizeRoni SizeRoni Size is a British record producer and DJ, who came to prominence in 1997 as the founder and leader of Reprazent, a drum and bass collective...
) - DNA (with Bill Riley)
- Scorpio (with Roni)
- Wings (with Roni & Krust)
- Kamanchi (with Krust)