General Midi

A first visit to Beatz & Bobz at The Cavern for the Hope Recordings label with a DJ set from General Midi on the 14th of April. Watch out for another visit to the Cavern from Hope later this year from Timo Mass!!

Bristol DJ and Promoter Leon Alexander and DJ mag/Ministry journo Steve Satterthwaite formed Hope Recordings in the summer of 1998. Until this point Leon had been promoting Lakota's highly successful Friday Nighter Temptation (very often voted No 1 club night in Mixmag, DJ and Muzik). Room 1 concentrated on the harder side of things with regular appearances from Carl Cox, Blu Peter, Commander Tom and Billy Nasty as well as residencies from home-grown wonders like Ian Wilkie and Way Out West's Jody. Meanwhile Room 2 saw the best of Bristol's drum and bass luminaries such as Roni Size, DJ Krust & DJ Dazee and out of towners like Goldie, Bukem and Jumping Jack Frost In this time, Leon was also A&R for the very successful Lakota Recordings. A label dedicated to a progressive trance sound pioneered by local talent such as Starecase & Area 7 and Germany's highly prolific Timo Maas. Each release was a sell out and was regularly played by the big names appearing on compilations world-wide. Mixmag recently described the label in the following words: "Each release is the pinnacle of its particular genre with every record being both astounding and outstanding" Hope recordings was set up due to the need to do something fresh with the same Artists that had been appearing on Lakota, as well as plenty of new ones, a first release that sold out in under ten days and massive support from the best DJs world-wide it looks as if great things are on the move again.

General Midi has gradually been scaling the nu-skool breaks ladder with his top quality remix and productions. He's been about for quite some time though. Formerly known as FLUID, General Midi has been heavily involved in the Bristol Music scene since moving to the city in 1991. He got bitten by the dance bug in the early nineties and alongside Leon Alexander (former promoter of Lakota's Temptation night and co-owner of Hope Recordings), Simmer and Stuart formed the legendary Techno night Shimmy in 1994. Fluid was Shimmy's resident live act and has played all over Europe with Shimmy including gigs at HQ at the Melkweg in Amsterdam and Luxury in Luxembourg. General Midi is inexplicably linked with Bristol's finest breakbeat trancer's STARECASE and he has recently remixed their "Other Side of Line" single out on Hope. Alongside other remixes for Hope, General Midi has provided an exclusive track for Distinctive Breaks Y3K compilation CD which features the cream of the breaks scene and has tracks out on Silver Planet's break imprint (Planet Breakz) and Shadow records in the USA. General Midi's debut single release "The Westerner" and "The Eastoner" (correct spelling!) has been released to critical acclaim on BOOM BOX RECORDS. His DJ style draws from influences far and wide. Blending 'Nu Skool' breaks with other electronica, and not frightened to blend in the odd West Coast techno Track, his understanding of the dance floor combined with his musical knowledge combines to create a set for the mind as well as the feet. He is resident at Bristol night CODA and is a regular guest at BLOW POP and breaks nights all over the country. General Midi will be appearing on F.U.N.'s Functional Breaks label later this year.