Sweetchilli presents Balance 12 feat Lee Burridge

  • Balance 012 mixed by Lee Burridge is a sublime a collection of house rhythms, techno beats and subtle melodies, culminating in a deep, beautiful, dark, trippy and wobbly soundtrack. Featuring a wide array of cutting edge artists including Martin Buttrich, Jose Padilla, Dennis Ferrer, H-Man, Paul Daley, Alexi Delano, Efdemin, Gabriel Ananda and more, this is a CD that will deliver the complete Lee Burridge experience in one package. There are few DJ’s who love camping, can navigate on road trips, and can’t play the piano … but then again, there are few DJ’s quite like the UK’s legendary maestro of the eclectic, Lee Burridge … Kick-starting his career in the early 1980’s spinning Wham! and The Pet Shop Boys to sell out crowds aged 5-95 at weddings, parties, and the odd ‘upbeat’ funeral, Lee was soon spotted by a local club owner who offered him a regular slot on Saturdays. Content playing a selection of the worst pop music in history (by his own admission) for several years, in 1988 he became acquainted with Acid House … and everything changed forever … Furiously hunting and gathering as many Acid House records as he could, and going to as many raves near the M25 Motorway as he could; Lee became utterly obsessed with Acid House and started throwing his own cool underground parties and club nights. As luck would have it, it was at one these nights in 1990 that a leading Hong Kong club owner witnessed his talents and offered him a residency … in Hong Kong! Realising that ‘big gigs’ in the UK were like hens teeth, and always up for a challenge, Lee packed his toothbrush and records and landed in Hong Kong less than 12 months later. Arriving to discover (much to his chagrin) that there was literally no underground scene to speak of, after a couple of years of persistence, he single-handedly created one by throwing parties – parties that at first attracted 250 people, before growing to the point that international DJ superstars started adding them to their prestigious itineraries. As Hong Kong became one of the world’s uber-cool clubbing locales, Lee went from playing one Sunday gig a week to rocking sets six nights a week for a remarkable three years straight – not too mention sharing the booth with the likes of Sasha, Craig Richards and John Digweed. In addition to playing a pivotal role in the development of Hong Kong’s underground scene, after a visit to Thailand’s Haadrin Island in 1992 Lee also helped establish the now infamous Full Moon dance parties and beach party on its coveted shores. Visiting Haadrin annually for the next seven years (and for several months at a time), Lee still cites playing sunrise sets under the shade of a palm leaf, or the canopy of the Backyard Club, amongst his most cherished career highlights. In 1997, Lee’s career took yet another positive turn when Sasha and Craig Richards offered to help launch his career back home, in the UK. Having both spun alongside him on trips to Hong Kong for several years, Sasha and Craig invited Lee to help create the now legendary Tyrant nights, and the rest, as ‘they’ say is history! Via Tyrant, Lee’s profile grew quickly, and within 12 months he was approached and booked by some of the UK’s premier clubs and events – including Golden, Ministry of Sound and Cream. At the end of 1998, Lee was asked to mix a disc and then his own compilation for Hooj Choons, and, with Tyrant throwing open its doors in London and Nottingham, life became very busy indeed! No less than two compilations for the world-beating Global Underground label followed in the following years … not too mention consistent appearances in the prodigious DJ Mag Top 100 Poll (#10 his ranking) … and two timeless Tyrant compilations alongside partner in crime, Craig Richards. When Sasha bowed out of Tyrant in 1999, Lee and Craig kept growing the night and continue to run it to this very day … making it one of the UK’s longest running and most popular club parties. Amidst the craziness of Tyrant, throughout the late 1990’s Lee started receiving offers to play at some of the world’s leading clubs and events. To cut a brilliant but long story short, the last ten years have seen him hold residencies from New York to Sydney, thrill floors from Buenos Aires to Denver, throw his own annual party in San Francisco, and rock every major festival from Dance Valley and Burning Man to Creamfields and the Love Parade. Indeed, his international itinerary became so grueling that in 2005 he decided to take matters into his own hands and ‘make sense of it all’ via the unique ‘365’ project. Put simply, ‘365’ sees Lee assume two-month residencies at clubs in seven different cities/countries each year – typically New York, Ibiza, Florence, Buenos Aires, Sydney, Denver and Hong Kong. Designed to build a greater relationship between himself and the clubbing faithful in these underground Mecca’s, ‘365’ also sees him hitting the studio with producers/musicians/DJ’s that make them tick. Although he’s been a self-confessed ‘slacker’ in the studio – due in part to a fear of machines that go ‘bing’ – Lee has complemented his remarkable DJ career with an ever-increasing string of popular releases. To this end, his first solo work, the ‘Lost and Found EP’ was pressed by Fire in the late 1990’s and went on to appear on several massive compilations (including James Lavelle’s ‘Global Underground’, Cass’s ‘Prologue’, and Sancho Panza’s ‘Carnival’); while these days his own label ‘Almost Anonymous’ is steadily releasing the fruits of the ‘365’ project – including collaborations with Andy Page and Steve Porter, and several more due to hit online/offline shelves in late 2007 … You now know a little more about Lee’s career and achievements, but what about his actual sounds and musical taste? Revered the world over for his eclectic track selection and seamless skills, it’s a genuinely difficult task to pinpoint Lee’s ‘sound’ – although according to the man himself its perhaps best described as “wonky, wobbly, bassline-driven, trippy, melodic, nasty, gentle, deep, spacious, rocking and above all … 100% cool!!” Offering a premium selection of underground House, Techno and Minimal cuts, Lee’s DJ sets are never the same twice … they have to be heard to be believed … so, what better way to showcase this sublimely varied mixture of vibes than on a triple disc mix for the world’s premier compilation series, ‘Balance’! Having featured the likes of Chris Fortier, Desyn Massielo, Paolo Mojo and Luke Fair, Australia’s ‘Balance’ CD’s have become an industry benchmark … and with Lee commanding his own within the coming weeks, it’s set to reach even greater heights. To support its highly anticipated release in Fall, Lee will be embarking on a world tour … so don’t miss your chance to see him in action, playing exclusively in Sydney for Sweetchilli.
RA