Blog

Whether you’re a fan of the colloquial word showing approval, or perhaps, you have taken up deep sea diving, there is no denying the talent of Sun City Music Festival acts Ookay and Scuba. We think think that both groups of fans can agree — these guys always go hard, creating great journeys in their sets, even if their two sounds are completely different.

Scuba

Scuba, born Paul Rose, ironically has no certification in deep sea diving, but we won’t hold that against him. Since the Englishman founded his revered Hotflush imprint so early in his career, the label has played host to most of his releases throughout the years. Though his initial productions were primarily dark, spacious dubstep tracks, he developed a looser, funkier, and melodic approach to his sound, while simultaneously using his SCB alias for his house and techno releases. After his and the label’s name became a staple in the London scene, Scuba relocated to Berlin in 2007. His debut album A Mutual Antipathy released a year after his move, showcased the then unheard of marriage of techno and dubstep. His second album, Triangulation explored a wider range of styles, featuring not only dubstep and techno, but relaxed house and minimal drum and bass.

In his recent mixes for Ibiza Spotlight highlight, Scuba has shown the world, yet again, how he continuously evolves and remasters his sound. Scuba has undoubtedly become a key figure in the industry and has his finger on the current pulse of Europe’s music scene. Get your underground, or underwater, experience when Scuba takes the stage at Sun City Music Festival, going down on August 31st and September 1st. Tickets are available online, buy your tickets today!

Ookay

Ookay‘s musical background came at an early age. “I come from jazz and gospel music, I grew up as a little church boy. My dad was a bass player in the church band, and my mom sang in the choir, so I was always around that type of stuff. My dad gave me a lot of insight into that area. When I was younger I listened to a lot of death metal and soul music. I’ve done pretty much every kind of music, that’s why my music is so out there.”

Though he only has less than a year of creating music under his belt, Ookay was recently listed as one of Vibe Magazine‘s top rap/moombahton artist to watch in 2013. Already being associated with acts with other Sun City talents like Borgore and Flosstradamus, Ookay has gained mass popularity both on a personal and musical level. His first ever Beatport release with Ultra Records charted on the Electronica chart peaking at #10.

So what can you expect at an Ookay show? “Word around town is that there aren’t a lot of trap djs using straight CDjs so people are surprised that that’s all I use. I think it helps me connect with the crowd more and put on a show. I get rowdy on stage.” Lets get rowdy as Ookay takes the stage at Sun City Music Festival, going down on August 31st and September 1st. Tickets are available online, buy your tickets today!

Textures and atmospheres come together with skilled beat composition whenever Gesaffelstein takes the stage. Born Mike Levy, this Sun City Music Festival talent stands apart from the current techno scene in Paris because of his dark, yet energetic approach to production.

Born in Lyon, France, this 28-year old was feeding his musical reference library since the 90s, finding a love of electronic music born from Punk and New Wave. “In the beginning I’d never thought of doing music, I was always more into art but it always seemed like an inaccessible goal for the long-term. The first time I heard techno was when I was around 13 or 14 years old, listening to CDs that I found in my sisters bedroom. It wasn’t a sudden thing but little by little I began buying records, not mixing yet as that came through a friend who had decks at his house. At around sixteen I began to get interested in production. Being a producer was something that I could see a future in for myself,” Levy recalls in an interview.

Though he admittedly made many mistakes when he was younger, music had long been something he prided himself on. “I did a lot of stupid things in my youth and hadn’t really done anything with my life so when I found this thing, music, I said to myselfthat I had to concentrate on it because I was passionate about it.” And it wouldn’t be long before he found a ní®che in techno. “Pretty quickly I got into techno andimmediately wanted to know about its origins. I was interested in disco but I really fell in love with New Wave and industrial music from the 80s.” It is that style, currently, that Levy is inspired by, juxtaposing techno with crisp rhythms and dissonant tones creating a “dance metal” sound.

His first EP Vengeance Factory released in 2008 on OD Records was well received to much critical acclaim, and in 2010, Levy signed to the revered Turbo Records, releasing his Variations EP and later, releasing his Conspiracy Part 1 EP in 2011. Although, if you ask him, a producing DJ was never in the cards. “It wasn’t a clear objective to become a DJ/producer, it came more naturally. I have always been very faithful to my first music influences such as New Wave and the electro from Detroit. Today, I’m listening to less and less of ‘entertaining’ music. I’m not listening to music on an iPod in the street or in the tubes… And when I listen to a track that I love, I don’t listen to it a thousand times, I just need to go in my studio and I try to produce something better.”

Mixing the German word gesamkunstwerk meaning total art work with the surname of visonary Albert Einstein, Gesaffelstein will bring his innovative and atmospheric dark techno sound to Sun City Music Festival this August 31st September 1st. Tickets are still available online and in stores!