Artist Bios
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FUSION (Mark Merlino / Eric Jennings)
Fusion is the collision of a unique Drum and Bass style forme...FUSION (Mark Merlino / Eric Jennings)
Fusion is the collision of a unique Drum and Bass style formed between two of the most talented up and coming DJ/Producers the states have seen yet. Miami based duo Markem & Impression have been rocking the Drum and Bass scene for over a decade and have now decided to join forces and combine their unique mixing and production styles to form the genre's smoothest forthcoming effort. Eric Jennings aka Impression and Mark Merlino aka MarkeM, have been DJing together since early 1997 and have together held down countless resident spots at nightclubs all throughout South Florida from West Palm Beach to Miami. Mark and Eric were both initiated into music at an early age, developing techniques and a musical knowledge that has helped build their experience over the years. After studying at SAE institute, Mark went on to become a fully certified Audio Engineer and has since assisted in recording two major full length albums. Passion for the industry, found Mark taking his career in music a step further when he accepted a position on the crew for the multi Grammy award winner Ms. Lauryn Hill, on her international tour. Upon return to the States the duo Markem and Impression sealed their passion for Drum and Bass by joining together their complimentary production styles.. thus forming the musical union now known as FUSION. Together Mark and Eric have started up Urban Chemistry Recordings, a Drum and Bass Record Label that they both have launched mid 2008 based out of Hollywood, FL. Though the new label they plan to bring a new style and flavor to the local and Global Drum and Bass scene. In 2008 BASSDRIVE.com, the internet’s premier Drum and Bass radio network found the talents of FUSION strong enough to offer them a weekly show on their extremely prestigious lineup. Their show Lab Sessions airs every Sunday 7-9pm EST.
STEREOTYPE (Gary Montoya)
Stereotype: A widely held but fixed and oversimplified image of a particular type of person or thing. The Miami bred producer/dj/ Stereotype (Gary L. Montoya) is determined to dispel preconceived notions of what Drum and Bass should sound like. In fact the vast scope of his musical influences, such as Hip-hop, Jazz, Soul, R&B, Salsa, Dub, Miami Bass, Freestyle, & Electro to name just a few, are but a mere fraction of all that goes into a Stereotype production. You can call it Soulful Drum and Bass if you like, but not because of his sample choices. Stereotype is only interested in making music, which evokes a response from the soul. The past year has seen his tunes garner DJ support from BBC Radio One as well as the fine DJ’s at Bassdrive.com. He has collaborated with DJ Silver, Amaning, Will Miles, and Sol.ID, among others. Forthcoming collaborations with the likes of Saburuko and Jazz Thieves promise to up the ante. Recently Stereotype has joined forces with two fellow Miami-based D&B enthusiasts, long-time collaborator Singer/Songwriter/MC Sopheye, and Producer/DJ/MC/B-Boy extraordinaire George Young. Together as The Substitutes, these three individuals have stumbled upon a sound, which has the Florida Drum and Bass scene buzzing.
STUNNA has been deeply immersed in the Chicago music scene for many years. Schooled in piano study from an early age, his love of jazz music turned him on to the sounds of HERBIE HANCOCK, especially his early-70's work with synthesizers and electronics. At the age of 12, STUNNA acquired a drum machine and an 8-bit sampling keyboard and began to experiment with the jazzier sounds he'd listened to and also with the current sounds of Chicago House that was at the time, in its formative years. A number of years were spent performing in bands on the keyboards and alongside DJs at parties. His discovery of Rap music and the walls of layered samples by groups such as PUBLIC ENEMY fascinated him and he made it his personal mission to dig and find the sources of these diverse sounds he was hearing. STUNNA realized that many of the current sounds within these layers were actually pieces from the jazz and funk he'd heard only a few years before. He was now hooked on the science of connecting his own sounds with various parts of music's funky past. He joined local Chicago funk bands and began working with House producers such as ROY DAVIS JR. in the mid-to-late 90's, playing keys and collaborating on original tracks and remixes. Around this time he began hearing more and more of the sped-up breakbeats of many of his favorite jazz-funk drummers that were now being used by Jungle and Drum+Bass producers. After accumulating many vintage synths and new studio gear, STUNNA delved into creating his own brand of D+B and locked himself in the studio. When he emerged, he'd written over 50 tracks and began DJing out to fine-tune his tracks. Currently, STUNNA continues to work on D+B and DJ's around the United States as well as Europe. He has signed tracks to STRICTLY-DIGITAL, PHUZION, DEFUNKED, FOKUZ, VIBEZ, PHUNKFICTION, BIOS, BS1, SANTORIN, OUTSIDER, NEW IDENTITY, VAMPIRE, HAVE-A-BREAK, POINT 9 AUDIO, SIDECHAIN, INFLUENZA, LUCKY DEVIL, GOLDEN ORB, LEVITATED, FUTURE RETRO, BASSWERK, FORESTRY SERVICE, RED MIST, PEER PRESSURE, URBAN CHEMISTRY, TELLURIC, performed on THE FAREED HAQUE GROUP's first release for MAGNA CARTA RECORDS, and has also co-produced/performed on tracks and remixes for NEW ORDER, ESTHERO, BEYONCE, AC/DC, ENRIQUE IGLESIAS, KYLIE MINOGUE, ERIC MORILLO, PATTI LABELLE, THE KILLERS, TERRY CALLIER, MISSY ELLIOT, RON CARROLL, BARBARA TUCKER, BOMBAY RECORDS, NITELIFE COLLECTIVE, SONY, WARNER BROTHERS, STRICTLY RHYTHM, DEFECTED RECORDS and TALKIN' LOUD. Currently, he's working on his own original Drum+Bass productions as well as collaborations with artists worldwide such as AMANING, BACHELORS OF SCIENCE, BIONIC1, CONTOUR, CYBASS, DECADE, DONNIE DUBSON, FX909, GRINDA + ZIGZAG, HENREE, J-CUT, JAY ROME, KHARM, KUBATKO, LENZMAN, MAD VIBES, MARTYN, MATIZZ, MECHANIC, METHOD ONE, MIXMASTER DOC, NAIBU, PEYO, REDEYES, SABURUKO, SMOTE, SOL.ID, SUBMORPHICS, SUBZ, SWITCH, TYLER STRAUB, WILL MILES, and Chicagoans PIPELINE, RELEASE, RADIATA,.
FLACO (Adrien Smadbeck)
Flaco is a drum & bass producer/dj from Florida, US. Since 1998 he has been writing music on a computer using various programs and learning how to sequence beats and has always appreciated a wide range of music. Flaco was raised listening to a lot of his father’s vinyl. In 2006 he had 3 tracks reviewed in the unsigned artist section of Knowledge Magazine, a drum & bass music magazine from the UK. Then in 2008 he started a radio show with Bassdrive.com a streaming audio site that has djs from all over the world playing 24 hours a day, and has been getting much support from many of the djs that play there as well. He also plays on a local radio station KISS 105.3 every Sunday night on the electronic music show "The Perimeter". The future holds much in store for Flaco and is always working on new music solo and collaborative, constantly trying to improve his sounds.
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