John Thomas
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Biografía
- In 2009, John Thomas decides to leave the scene and go to live in Africa. Ten years later, bursting with sun and energy, and now living in Portugal (Lisbon), he goes back to producing with GINGA music, his new label in partnership with Yoyaku distribution.Back in the day. 2009: John is one of Techno's flagship producers, he plays around the world and has been a Rex Club DJ resident for 10 years. His label, Logistic Records, is distributed by Virgin and his tracks are played by legends like Jeff Mills or Robert Hood. But, after 3 albums, and more than 40 EPs, he needs to step back and decides to take a break, this is the perfect opportunity to finally live his childhood dream. With his wife, Barbara Goes, they settle in Africa, more precisely in Senegal. The destination makes sense, John spent part of his childhood, he returns regularly since he turned 18. "I wanted to live there for a while, to do something other than music, because I had always lived only since my 15 years ". If he starts his career so young, it's because his parents had clubs. His childhood takes place between France, Africa, and South America, and it is particularly in Guyana that he plays his first records, mainly Funk and Disco, while at the time, the child 10-year-old who loves to play in nature dreams of becoming a dog trainer. At 14, he quickly replaced the resident of his mother's club to ensure an evening warm up. Impressed by the potential of the boy, the DJ transmits what he knows, including technique like scratch and beat mixing. Also inspired by his parents' entourage, like Sydney from “H-I-P-H-O-P”, a FrenchTV Show, John works on his technique before opening up at House Music. Her mother asks her to listen to two records that she believes represent the future of music: Marshall Jefferson's Move Your Body and Deee-Lite's Groove is in The Heart. John immediately loves it. "Everything I loved was in one piece: Hip-Hop, Funk, Disco" The young DJ discovers “Maxximum” ’s radio and hears about the Parisian club Boy. Still too young to enter by himself, it is accompanied by his parents he finds that, in full week, the club is crowded and that, in a foolish atmosphere, people with extravagant outfits dance on records that he never heard before. Quickly, he makes his first "electronic" sets at La Gargouille, a nightclub in Limoges/ France, where the boss does not take long to give him a room to program exclusively House and Techno. This is how the Storm Club (Serious Trip Of Rave Master) was born, with a capacity of around 300 people. While on weekdays, he officiates in Paris, including the Privilege (Palace) where he is resident Jet-Sex evenings, John welcomes guests every weekend in the province, like Laurent Garnier or Jack of Marseille … The South of France fully participates to its career development. The late DJ Kriss (Toulouse) made him discover the very first edition of Boréalis. If this festival experience makes him want to belong to this scene, it is then still far from imagining that, in this same festival, a few years later, Jeff Mills would play his title External (Logistic 05, 1998 ) three times in the same set! The audio cassettes runs a lot during the 90s, one of his mixtapes allows him to play for Positiv 'Evolution, legendary parties in Montpellier ’s region. It is especially in the South that he meets Eric Dalbin and Alexandre Petit, with whom he creates Logistic Records, then with Olivier Micheli with whom he founded Static Drum. With just a few EPs, John Thomas is recognized as one of the leading producers of French Techno. However, what interests him is to explore his inspirations and make tracks sprinkled with Funk or Jazz, without worrying about whether it's suitable or not for DJs ... Other meetings will then be determining, first of all that with Jean-Guillaume Cabanne. Together, they spend hours talking about music and making Harmonic, their first song, is born on the Logistic 03, but they also produce Mystery (Logistic 04) where John asks him to play a chorus on the guitar. From then on, John incorporates Hip-Hop / Funk interludes on his maxis. Will follow numerous collaborations with foreign artists: Robert Hood, Aril Brikha, Dj Slip, Claude Young, Technasia, Fumiya Tanaka … Blackstage, his first album, was released in 2001. This LP, made of American Techno, Hip-Hop, Funk and Minimal House, contains 17 titles, including 6 written with Cabanne. The album, voted album of the year by Radio Nova, asserts its international recognition, its Logistic label is signed by Virgin, John plays around the world and collaborates with John Tejada, Octave One, Rolando, DBX (Dan Bell) , Losoul ... With Charles Siegling and Amil Khan (Technasia), they set up two new labels, Static Drum and Ethics, new laboratory and perfect playground to work with the artists he loves, the first projects come out in 2005. This same year John meets his wife, Bárbara Goes. Brazilian she already mixes a little and also wishes to compose, they are discovering their musical universe, their references. Attracted by Samba and Bossa, John knows some classics, but Barbara introduces him to a deeper Brazilian musical culture. Since then, they have been composing together regularly. Africa has never left the mind of John, who spent part of his childhood and returns regularly since he was 18 years old. Then, John sells his studio and, in 2009, they leave France. These new adventures last 10 years, but music has never disappeared from his life, especially surrounded by Africans and Brazilians! His friends did everything for John to return to the scene. First those of Senegal, who organize events and who manage to make him participate to one of their parties. John plays Superstition by Stevie Wonder, and several hundred people scream with joy and sing the chorus in chorus, at that specific moment feelings buried in the depths of him resurface! His friends in France, like Cabanne and David Smyle, eventually convince him to get back to production. John and Barbara decide to settle in Portugal, in Lisbon, where they have set up their new studio, and are developing projects, including GINGA Music, their new label, oriented House Music, including influences like Funk, Disco, Samba, Hip-Hop ... First release is announced for November 2019.