There is no denying that the eyes and ears of the world’s dance music fraternity are focused firmly on Hook N Sling in 2011. In just a few short years the man has gone from aspiring disc jockey to in-demand DJ, remixer and producer property.
Hook’s formative years saw him chalk up some impressive feats, in 2007 scoring an ARIA nomination, a DMC Buzz Chart #1 and several Pete Tong plays for his breakout tune The Bump, and later straddling both club and commercial radio success with The Best Thing and Gotta Make A Move. Add to that a swag of head-turning remixes for Calvin Harris, Fedde Le Grand, Miike Snow, Miami Horror and Ou Est Le Swimming Pool, the acclaim of mixing the Ministry of Sound Annual in 2010, and rocking gigs such as Pacha, Space Ibiza, Global Gathering and Future Music Festival, the early warnings of his impending ascent were clear.
But it’s been in 2011 that Hook has come out swinging hardest. First with his breakout mix for Hard Rock Sofa & St Brothers’ Blow Up for Axtone (#1 Buzz Chart), and soon after with his impressive collaborative original Diamonds In The Sky with TV Rock and Rudy, released through Fedde’s own Flamingo Records (also garnering Tong support and climbing to the top 10 of the Dutch Tipparade). Edge Of The Earth (with Richard Dinsdale and Sam Obernik) on Sanchez’s iconic Stealth Records followed, with a smash remix of Wolfgang Gartner and Will.I.Am’s Forever in close step – all releases cementing his rightful ‘one to watch’ status by exhibiting his trademark production acumen and versatility.
So what would one see watching the one to watch of late? A Hype Machine #1 with his latest goosebump-inducing offering, Take You Higher (with Goodwill), due for release on Ministry of Sound later this year. And probably his biggest mix to date for compatriots NERVO – elevating their hit original with Afrojack and Aoki We’re All No One to bonafide banger status. Also in the not-too-distant future is his haunting forthcoming singleTokyo By Night, coming soon on Axtone. La La Land, Friday.
