Mark stumbled into Djing aged 23 spending the mid/late 90s flying the flag for techno, house and electronica, playing alongside alongside such luminaries as Aphex Twin, Jeff Mills, Andrew Weatherall. Autechre, Surgeon, Carl Craig, Dave Clarke, Marshall Jefferson etc.

As well as being resident DJ for seminal Sheffield night Remedy and a founder of Sheffield’s Curfew Sound system (holders of many Yorkshire/Derbsyhire free parties) he also played at various places including Sankeys Soap, Turnmills, Sheffield’s Republic/Bed and Arches, NY Sushi, Scuba and Headcharge* (*in a backroom capacity!).

Much as how prior to DJing Mark played in bands, these last 21 years have also been peppered with musical projects playing with (ex-Cabaret Voltaire, Hula) Nort’s band Yonni and more recently Meat for a Dark Day with Mark Hudson of Fat Truckers.

MfaDD’s double B side single having a side each produced by Sheffield production legends Ross Orton (MIA, Arctice Monkeys, Drenge) and Dean Honer (I Monster, Eccentronic Research Council), boasts the dubious honour of being the first release on Sheffield Phonographic that Steve Lamaq DIDN’T play.

More recently he’s been collaborating with BAFTA nominated film-maker Annie Scott on films for writer Stephen Scott’s short stories and playing an eclectic ‘audio obstacle’ course show on Sheffield Live radio spanning Krautrock to afrobeat, garage rock to electronica, as well, of course as the slightly-rarer- than-they- used-to- be DJ sets.

Hailing from the impenetrable jungles of Snowdonia, Tom Collister aka DJ Moonmonkey has been sending party creatures swinging from the branches at festivals, parties and clubs across the UK and Europe for over fifteen years. Moonmonkey brings the party every time, dishing out his inimitably cheeky homebrew of Funk, Soul, Beats, Jungle, Rock n Roll, Hip-Hop and Reggae.  Glastonbury, Shambala, intimate Parisian bars, the Barcelona Anti Sonar and numerous forests and hills across the UK – they’ve all had a taste of the monkey magic! Has record box, will travel.

SOULCOO DJ’s Northern Soul review PA showcase landmark Northern Soul tracks in a live setting, some of them for the first time in decades!

James Lightfoot is an electronica/dance/drum&bass artist based in North West England. He often goes under the alias of ‘TNJX’ and ‘Deep Technology’. His latest album features the high-flying sounds of old alongside more mystical explorations, ‘Exo Crystallis’ is a adventure through melody and magic

TNJX have made hyper-melodic technicolour tunes to lift the spirit since 2005.

Check out tnjx.bandcamp.com for more info.

3EYE: A SIRIUS PARTY

It’s Friday night at Festival 23 and we are about to enter those Dog Days as we slip into July 23rd, following signals, frolicking through the cosmos to reach the Dogstar itself, Sirius. 3EYE DJS Anie Ujiik and Dolly Dollycore will join forces with Puwaban master Horton Jupiter in a flash dimensional blast of sparking sky spook spectaculars and mind-splitting SPAAAAAAACE music. Plus interventions, obstacles and surprises hosted by our own Verity Spott.

SUNS :: ENTITIES :: REAL HEAT :: REAL MAGIC :: PRIMAL LIGHT :: SIRIUSLY WILD ALIEN TRIBAL DRESS UP :: INTERVENTIONS :: VISITATIONS :: DANCE DANCE DANCE :: SPACETRAIN DANCEOFF (GIVE YOUR ALL :: EVERYONE’S A WINNER) :: MIX-TACTILE PLAY :: ECSTATIC RITUAL :: MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PASSAGEWAYS :: DIY ANCIENT REALITY PLAYTIME :: LOVE IS THE MESSAGE :: HAIL ERIS

3EYE emerged from the Brighton underground a year ago, with light-hearted focus on the best, queer, strange and cosmic end of party music through time and space. We like a good rough and tumble too and take joy in creating parties which are inclusive, playful and energised. Everyone’s Welcome, No Dicks.

http://3eye.space/

Greg began DJing in 1975 and is regarded as one of the most important figures on the UK dance scene. He enjoyed hugely popular residencies in the early eighties at Wigan Pier and Manchester’s majorly influential Legend, having originally started out in his hometown of New Brighton. He was a pioneer of mixing in the UK and in 1983 he became the first ‘dance music’ specialist hired for a regular weekly session at Manchester’s now legendary Haçienda club. Greg was instrumental in breaking the new electronic, post-disco records coming out of New York, a sound he has dubbed ‘Electro-Funk’.

Not only is Greg bringing his Super Weird Substance collaboration with Kermit Leveridge to Festival 23, he’ll also be DJing for us on Saturday night on the Main Stage. Not to be missed.

https://www.mixcloud.com/gregwilson/
http://www.gregwilson.co.uk

Horton Jupiter is a British DJ / Collector of records of broad range, predominantly disco / dance music in its all forms, with psychedelic spectacles.

He has been making mixtapes since age 9, and did his first tape edit (of The Human League) 2 yrs later, 30 years before he’d even HEARD of DJ Harvey or Tom Moulton!

After 10 years as a techno DJ (sort of, his penchant for dropping The Stooges at 3am aside), 4 years as one of the original Club Kosmische residents and 11 years as front idiot of Erisian pop outfit They Came From The Stars I Saw Them, he is currently involved in several different hues of discotheque, including London’s freakiest and funnest dance party PUWABA, and has several new solo records coming out in the near future on Kinfolk, Bahnsteig 23 and Puwaba itself.

Horton will be teaming up with LISA LOVEBUCKET, and not for the 1st time back in the nineties they ran the Legendary Hail Discordia parties, to bring the incredible, not to be missed, Chapel Perilous experience… more on that next week.

Not content with all that, Horton will be playing with his Brighton Cosmic Disco fiends 3EYE at a special TBA Spaaaaace related shindig.

https://www.mixcloud.com/hortonjupiter/

Where to start with the diverse talents of Richard Norris? So intricately woven into the last 36 years of music – from bands to music journalism, production to DJ-ing, it seems there’s nothing Mr Norris has not expertly added as strings to his bow, or that he can’t pull out of his Wizards Sleeve, so to speak.

His major musical projects include early 90’s electronic act The Grid, his current collaboration with Erol Alkan – Beyond the Wizards Sleeve, his new collaboration with Martin Dubka – Circle Sky
and Richard’s previous psychedelic solo project – The Time and Space Machine.

But what does 23 mean to him? Richard told us: “It was around 1987, I was first aware of the 23 enigma by leafing through William Burroughs and Robert Anton Wilson books I found in Compendium bookshop in Camden, followed by a more hands on approach when working with Genesis P.Orridge, specifically co producing the ‘Jack The Tab’ album.”

Richard will be delighting our ears and minds and giving us ample chance to jack to his beats at Festival 23. See you on the dance floor…

richardnorris.dj