The World's No.1 Hardgroove DJ for the first time in NZ

There's a thin line between hip-hop, d&b, hardhouse & techno Ben Sims crosses this line!

Presenting the new breed in dance music, Ben Sims is a hip-hop dj that plays the kind of hard-dance that technohead listen to! What does this mean? It means he is one of the best turntablists since Jeff Mills, his djing & production work has taken up the reigns and is driving a new large format dance sound that appeals to dancefloors across the spectrum.

Ben Sims biography

London-based DJ/producer Ben Sims has undergone a swift rise to prominence within the global dance music community. His globally extensive DJing performances have earned him a ranking amongst the world's top techno spinners.

Ben's DJing apprenticeship began with hip hop at the tender age of ten.

In the fifteen years since, his multi-styled turntable skills have developed into a precise compound of rhythm, texture and groove. He has steadily built a reputation for ultra-tight techno mixing, infusing hip hop and house elements into his sets.

Snapped up in '99 by esteemed Berlin-based agency Dy-Na-Mix, his skills behind the decks have been much in demand, including regular high profile gigs at long-running UK nights such as The Orbit, Voodoo and House of God.

A self-confessed vinyl addict, Ben's own recordings clearly reflect his long-standing passion for groove and funk based music. His production style - an amalgamation of jackin' Chicago funk, driving filtered loops and dark tribal house music provided popular respite to the deluge of funk-deficient minimal cuts dominating the techno scene during the late Nineties.

The 25 year-old Londoner often describes his production of music as "forging tracks in an energetic metallic mould with a rich, hypnotic consistency".

He also admits that his penchant for producing is secondary to his love of playing out. Hence, he views his studio output very much as dance floor music constructed for manipulation by the DJ.

During 1998 he began to receive widespread recognition for his first Killa bite release - a slamming EP of cut-up warehouse classics hammered by everyone from Jeff Mills to Carl Cox. Although the Killabite EPs were never intended for release, the records quickly gained cult status with DJs on both sides of the techno / house axis, and in many ways set a precedent for the string of sample-based dance floor tools that ensued.

Ben's material has enjoyed success on numerous prestigious labels, such as Primate, Primevil, Code Red, Tresor, Phont Music and Pure Plastic. He has launched three labels - Hardgroove, Native and Symbolism.