DJ Harvey | |
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Birth name | Harvey Bassett |
Born | Cambridge, England, United Kingdom |
Occupation(s) | DJ |
DJ Harvey, (born Harvey Bassett), is a DJ born in London, England. He was an early exponent of the US disco/garage/house sound in the UK.
As a young teenager, he became a drummer for a Cambridge punk band, Ersatz. The band formed an indie label, Leisure Sounds, releasing the single Smile in Shadow, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 1 by John Peel.
On a trip to New York he was inspired by the emerging hip-hop movement. He felt that “cutting up” breaks was an extension of drumming and so purchased his first pair of Technics, brought them home and practised. He was a graffiti artist and member of the group TDK (Tone Deaf Crew), which was later renamed TONKA Hi Fi. The group threw weekend-long parties in Cambridge, Brighton, London and on the festival circuit. The Brighton parties continued for five years, from 1988 to 1993, to The Zap Club, and, after the club closed at 2am, on the beach at Black Rock.
His focus moved from hip hop, electro and disco to house music and garage, and he began playing more parties in London with the US DJs Francois Kevorkian and Kenny Carpenter, playing at clubs including Solaris and Freedom.