MN Presents… is proud to welcome back one of our favourite veteran’s from the Motor City, Mike Huckaby on the 7th January. As clichéd as it may sound, Mike is one of Detroit’s heavyweights and true pioneers; evident from his productions, a plethora of top class mixes, the gone-by days as local record jock at the highly influential Record Time store and the work-shops he helped set-up for youths in Detroit, to share his in-depth production knowledge. A dedicated man with an unrivalled passion for music, Mike was never one to churn out any piece of music instead adopting a quality over quantity approach. The result is music which oozes in depth and character. He applies the same logic when mixing records offering a set with a natural flow which completely engages the listener. Since his last appearance at MN, Mike has been very busy. He released a mix for one of techno’s primary institutes, Tresor, who celebrated their 20th birthday. The mix captured the soul of Tresor with uncompromising techno and electro classics from Rob Hood, Surgeon & the ethereal Drexciya. He also submitted two fine podcasts for RA & XLR8R exhibiting a variety of talent and styles. His second volume of Sun Ra edits landed on Kindred Spirits too featuring a fine re-working of Space is the Place.
Mike Huckaby – LWE Podcast – October 2010
Mike joined us many moons ago, last May to be precise, in a unique occasion where he played two very distinctive sets. On the Friday night he brought down his reel-to-reel player to mix up some cosmic jams, in birthday celebrations of the futurist Jazz musician from space, Sun Ra. The night also marked the first volume of his excellent Sun Ra edits series. On the Saturday he got down to business with a bag of records with bits of disco, deep house and then picking it up towards the end. We felt this gig was cut prematurely just as Mike was getting into his groove, a two hour set was simply insufficient for showcasing Mike’s capabilities for working a crowd. With this in mind, we made it our mission to bring Mike back to Irish shores at the next given opportunity, except this time with the added bonus of him manning the decks for the entire night. Mike had expressed an interest in playing at the Twisted Pepper after a succession of compliments on the Pogo basement from him contemporaries. It’s win win, Mike plays the Twisted Pepper and we get to see him playing in his element, all night long!
Similar to the last outing, this gig will be a double-barreled affair. Back in May, it became quite clear to us that Mike is extremely well schooled in music production and only too enthusiastic to share his wealth of knowledge. Influenced by the harmonies & complex chord progressions of classical composers like Jean-Phillipe Rameau and not forgetting Sun Ra himself, Mike has been studying music theory for over ten years. He applies his influences into a modern context with knowledge of synthesis. Mike will be conducting a seminar prior to the gig. The event will be co-hosted with Real Sound and held in the stage room of the Twisted Pepper. DeFeKT, Ed Devane & Eoin Smith will warm up the workshop before Mike’s arrival, this is an event not to be missed for any aspiring producers. Whether it’s a case that you want to hear Mike’s seminar or simply just to dance off the excess Christmas calories, try save some pennies over the festive period, as this promises to be another special day of Mike Huckaby related treats!
