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As with most things, the rise and rise of Dave Chambers
has been anything but conventional. A self confessed
hip-hop and breaks freak since he was knee high, Dave's
transition into one of the countryıs most exciting DJs
to have emerged in the last three years has taken a
roundabout route.
Having moved a grand total of two miles in the first
18 years of his life Dave, a born and bred Manc, then
proceeded to move steadily further and further away
until he wound up in Australia, which is about as far
away as you can get without going into orbit. Happily
for him, it's only been his career that's gone interstellar
and with his hobo days behind him, Chambers is back
for good. In common with many of his contemporaries,
26 year old Dave is amongst the second wave of artists
who grew up within a burgeoning but still embryonic
dance scene of the early '90s. Weaned on Stu Allen's
legendary hip hop shows on local Manchester station
Key 103 before the house explosion hit, Dave's musical
CV reads like a who's who of Manchester clubland. Tunes
heard on Sunset FM, picked up in Eastern Bloc and danced
to in the Hacienda- classic names from a classic era
and fundamental in shaping Dave's musical direction.
Which promptly lead him to Leicester and university.
Never one of the nation's hottest nightspots, Leicester
none the less gave Dave his start as a DJ.
Beginning as the resident for all his matesı student
parties, Dave's inexhaustible enthusiasm saw him playing
wherever and whenever he could. His slot on the University
radio station transformed it from deadly dull to party
central, not least because Dave unilaterally decided
to extend their hours of broadcast way past the curfew.
When he wasn't playing, and studying hard as all students
do, Dave's venue of choice was the famed Venus in nearby
Nottingham, which was just about the best club in the
country at the time and certainly the best in the Midlands
with the world's most talented DJs on almost constant
rotation. It was a case of watch and learn for Dave
who was now sold on pursuing a career in music. He had
no option; it was what he was born to do. With university
over, Dave opted to stay in Leicester for the next three
years and took on a succession of soul destroying odd-jobs
as he figured out his next move and waited for a break
that he knew would come eventually. And it did, but
not in Leicester.
With things starting to stagnate, Dave decided to add
a second string to his bow and moved back to Manchester
to begin an Msc in Clothing. From there he was sent
to London for work experience with 3rd Planet, a marketing
agency whose clients included a certain club by the
name of The Ministry Of Sound. Guess where Dave ended
up working? With a foot in the door, our ever gregarious
hero wasted no time in introducing himself to just about
everyone, combining handshakes with a couple of strategically
placed tapes. Once listened to, it was only a matter
of time before someone picked up on him. Even on cassette
it was obvious that there was an outstanding talent
in the building; a couple of weeks later that talent
was rocking Ibiza. Invited over by then Ministry tour
manager Danny Whittle, Dave Chambers was the talk of
the island; and not just amongst the clubbers.
Throughout the Summer of 1998 tales about this new kid
on the block kept finding their way into the music press,
not least via Jon Carter and Derek Dahlarge who both
very publicly stated their admiration for Dave as a
DJ and all round good fella. Back in London at the end
of the Summer Dave was immediately signed up by the
Ministry who took him all over the world before handing
him a prestige residency with Frisky, their renowned
Friday night. After years of sheer bloody-minded determination
it looked like Dave had cracked it. And then just as
things were going good, they got better. On his travels
with the Ministry of Sound, Dave had gigged out in Australia,
on the same bill as Tall Paul. As ever Dave played out
of his skin; the general consensus was that he had stood
his illustrious counterpart toe to toe. Amongst others,
he caught the eye of Mark Broadbent, the main man of
home's Sydney operation, whose stunning setting was
about to make it the most talked about club in the world.
It was only natural that home would want music to match
and, in February 2000, Broadbent took Dave out to Sydney
for a six month stint as resident that cemented Dave's
position as one of the brightest talents in either hemisphere.
What has consistently set Dave apart musically is not
just the immense funk with which he plays but also his
peerless technical ability. Always a great believer
in skills, Dave's hip-hop and breakbeat background,
along with years of constant practice, have made him
an accomplished cut and scratch merchant, a rare commodity
amongst house DJs although he's equally adept at long
mixes that layer the creeping, hypnotic rhythms that
typify Dave's sound.
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