Mike Hulme, aka Introspective, has undoubtedly achieved unrivalled recognition as one of Breakbeat’s rising stars. Since his opening track ‘Time Travel’ (Aug, 03) released on the pioneering Breakbeat label Sinister Recordings, Introspective has received critical acclaim from some of the most established and respected DJ’s/Producers in the business. Rennie Pilgrem quoted, “Introspective is one of the hottest names on the circuit right now” (IDJ Magazine), Meat Katie stating “Introspective will be massive”, URB Magazine saying “Introspective is quickly becoming one of the hottest new artists in breaks, with his superb blend of melodies, heavy beats, and a tinge of funk”. Such acclaim signifies Introspective truly has an exciting future ahead of him. Described as ‘ecstasy in music form’ (Streetwise Records), his debut remix of Splitloop’s ‘Klaxx’ was nominated at the Breakspoll awards for best remix. Introspective’s completely re-vamped version saw it getting heavy radio play on Radio 1 (Koma & Bones/Fergie) and Kiss FM (Tayo/Jay Cunning) and was also short-listed for Bedrock Breaks III mixed by Meat Katie. This remix quickly set the foundations for even better things to come from the talented London-based producer. The second Introspective single for Sinister, “Slavery Incorporated” reached the Breakbeat top 3 world sales charts and at #11 for two months in DJ Mags Beats and Breaks chart it received even more critical acclaim than his past productions. Introspective seems to have the rare ability to improve on his last work. In May 2004, Introspective stepped up along side Lee Coombs to provide a remix of Atomic Hooligan’s “Shine a Light”, released on Botchit and Scarper. The June edition of DJ Magazine Hyper quoted, “This guy’s remix of Atomic Hooligan’s recent single was the clear winner on the package”. The remix received an abundance of DJ reactions from the likes of BLIM, Plump DJs, Hyper, Meat Katie, Elite Force, James Zabiela, etc, Introspective was once again cited by Rennie Pilgrem as a ‘Very promising new act who has turned in a wicked club version of Atomic Hooligan’s latest smash (and grab)’. The remix also appeared on acclaimed ‘Fabric Live 21’ CD mixed by Meat Katie. Off the back of the Atomic Hooligan remix, Mike was asked by world-renowned Trance guru Matt Darey to step up and remix the ‘Eternity’ single for Darey Products. The remix received great support from top breaks & trance DJs alike, whilst also reaching Paul Van Dyk’s top 5 chart for April 06. Matt was so impressed with Mike’s remix that the pair are now collaborating on a joint breaks project working with vocalist Tiff Lacey (ATB, Paul Oakenfold, Lost Witness). Playing funky tech house and breaks, Mike has been heard displaying his DJ skills for Tayo’s Kiss 100FM show, Breaks FM, Angus Robinson’s Proton Radio show, live on Elite Force’s Strong Arm Sessions in Hungary with a live mix on Tilos Radio. After hosting the Melting Pot show on Pulse Radio for 6 months alongside Southpaw, the duo has recently moved stations and secured a bi-weekly slot on iBreaks Radio. Mike’s DJing skills were also seen in full swing at this year’s ‘Drop Beats Not Bombs’ in Birmingham when he played a peak-time set to a 800+ crowd for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament |and Campaign Against The Arms Trade. Following the success of the event, Introspective has been asked back to perform at the next festival. With gigs lined up in Europe and Japan later this year and with more releases and remixes through Sinister, Introspective is by all accounts, one to watch… Discography: Introspective – Time Travel - Sinister|Introspective – Slavery Incorporated - Sinister|Introspective – Skanky - Sinister|Introspective – Fatal Attraction / Inside - Sinister|Introspective – Devil Theory – Sinister Remixography: Splitloop – Klaxx (Introspective Mix) - Sinister|Atomic Hooligan – Shine A Light (Introspective Mix) - Botchit|Benz & MD – Radiance (Introspective Mix) - Release Records|Matt Darey – Eternity (Introspective Mix) - Darey Products|Dobbs – Spectral Combat (Introspective Remix) - Redgrave|REX – Alternate Reality (Introspective Remix) - Sinister Jeremy Rice used the moniker “Introspective” until 2008, when he changed his band name to “Curious Inversions”. Introspective’s music grew from the “Tracker Scene” in the mid-1990s to a hard-and-soft-synth style in the early 2000s. Best known for releasing ambient tracks on netlabels such as Kahvi, Kikapu, and Nishi, Introspective also released some downbeat and chillout music, and on “Gewesen EP”, classic Berlin School style electronica. Introspective’s characteristic sounds were created primarily with a Yamaha EX5, LinPlug Albino, and GeForce ImpOscar, though he made use of a few other synthesizers such as Reaktor (particularly the “Weedwhacker” ensemble) and VirSyn TERA. All of these were stolen in 2007, forcing Jeremy to create a new approach to music, out of which grew Curious Inversions. All of Introspective’s Music (as released by Jeremy Rice, NOT Mike Hulme) is released under the least restrictive licensing available with the label: usually Creative Commons Attribution. Re-mixing, inclusion in collections, derivative works, and even commercial distribution (with attribution) are not only allowed, but encouraged. And, of course, this means all of his music is freely and legally downloadable across the internet. |
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