It’s difficult to know where to begin with an artist as complex and multifaceted as Jay Haze. On one hand, his upbringing – desolate beginnings in the processing plant-infested lands of northeast Pennsylvania, surrounded by drug addiction, death, group homes and jail – is a tainted window into the complicated soul within. But on the other hand, against all odds, nothing has overshadowed his talents, and the family of like-minded artists he has shaped is testament to his unshakable spirit and unerring ability.
Jay Haze stands out as a visionary in the world of techno and house, a true nonconformist within a blinkered scene. But his work supports his revered status as an exceedingly prolific producer, DJ, live performer, collaborator and label owner. His wide-ranging labels ring true to themselves and never sway, each holding on tight to their own characteristic sound and group of artists: the house-oriented TuningSpork; the harder hitting tech-based Contexterrior and the downtempto dubby tones of Future Dub.
“TuningSpork was always the more housey one. Getting people to laugh is a form of seduction, and that’s what TuningSpork is about: being positive, funny, not taking itself too seriously. Then Contexterrior was more serious, more avant garde, more pushing the limits of sounds. I started TuningSpork with Sean O’Neal, aka Someone Else, and Bjoern Hartman, and then I started Contexterrior on my own. Future Dub was a label that exists, but never really existed. We have had 6 releases in 9 years, it was just for my love of dub reggae; if it comes, I’ll release it. I have so many different musical loves.” – Jay Haze
Jay also brought on the explosion of 2003’s Textone, his inventive creation of an online music magazine and internet label, which was created years before digital stores like Beatport or the now-prevalent online magazines/blogs had caught on. Beyond his own labels, Jay Haze’s genre-expanding, experimental productions have graced the catalogues of Playhouse, Kitty-Yo, Cocoon, Get Physical, and his remixes have been on labels far and wide, from Shitkatapult to Playhouse to BPitch Control to Soma. In 2005, he released his debut LP on Kitty-Yo, ‘Love For a Strange World,’ an album that challenged the world of techno further by questioning genre lines and embracing all that’s unconventional and unpredictable. His more dancefloor (and humour) geared moniker Fuckpony launched his career with Get Physical, the ‘Children of Love’ album being one of the most celebrated underground albums of 2006.
It’s interesting that someone whose life story has so many dark chapters still dedicates much of his music to love – wearing his heart on his record sleeves, for instance, as well as his endless dedication to charity work. “I’ve been homeless two times not by my own doing – by life situations, crazy coincidences. In those times on the street, I have seen the lowest things you could possibly imagine – paedophiles, blood suckers, I know what this world is made of. It’s these things that motivate me to do charity work. I want to help people who have it even worse than I did. When I was younger, I got so stuck on thinking my life was so bad, lost in really dark moments – but as I get older, all I can think about is helping others. I think it comes with the happiness of still being alive.” – Jay Haze
And it’s this that leads us on to fabric 47, an incomparable mix that lends itself to the world, in more ways than one. In addition to donating a piece of himself to the music world, Jay Haze will also be donating all profits made from the mix to the rest of the world, specifically “The Democratic Republic of Congo. I work with different charities, and because fabric is a UK company, I wanted to honour that and do something in the UK, so I’m working with Merlin Health Services. What they do is really positive, and 95% of every dollar you give goes out into the field, and this is provable. Right now, they’re working in Congo, a country of 75 million people that’s been in civil war for 50 years. 1200 people die every day of simple things, preventable things, and it breaks my heart.” – Jay Haze
fabric 47 is the deep, wandering heartbeat of 4/4’s most bold, valiant and versatile character; a bright, cohesive mix that is inherently Jay Haze through and through. Deeply-rooted in his free and capricious spirit, the flawlessly assembled collection of tracks thump with soul and alluring eccentricities. Grooving with an airtight flow across wide-ranging beats and styles, fabric 47 is a charismatic portrait of Jay Haze’s musical clan: the mix not only showcases the peerless artists he works with on his family of labels, as well as the many monikers that comprise Jay Haze, it’s also a glimpse into the soul-fuelled, future sound that they’ve collectively mastered. Teased throughout with samples from his Fuckpony track ‘Lady Judy’ (a song dedicated to our own fabric promoter, Judy Griffith – and a nod to the Daniel Bell classic, ‘Baby Judy’), he takes things dubbier with Alex Celler’s enchanting ‘Trapped In Dub’, trippier with the groove-laden ‘Mellow Dee’ (created with former studio partner Ricardo Villalobos in ’08), and epic with the penultimate Fuckpony track, ‘Burning’, fabric 47 is Jay Haze incarnate; deep, daring and brave. Seventy minutes in the company of this disc leaves you feeling edified and your faith in music’s brilliance renewed.
“I realized this mix was a great opportunity for me to put my people on, and it represents exactly what I stand for in this scene and my contribution. In the beginning I thought, should I put my own labels’ music on here? Is that too daft? But after some serious thinking, I really couldn’t be happier with the way it came together. I was able to get some of the core artists I work with to give me some exclusives, some yet to be released and even some edits of tracks I loved from their pasts. And I was able to combine it with a cause I believe is worth fighting for, so in a sense all the music I used brought my artists closer to me, and made them part of my experience. It’s a very personal mix” – Jay Haze
Tracklisting:
01 – Intro
02 – Jay Haze – Awakening – TuningSpork
03 – Lil Dirrty Ghetto Bastard – An Hour To Fly – Tuningspork
04 – Mike Dunn Presents MR. 69 – Phreaky MF (Mike Dunn’s Original Phreak Mixx) – Robsoul
05 – Lump Ft. Lerato – Confusion – Contexterrior
06 – Catrat Ft. Yah Meek – Freedom (Jay Haze Main Mix) – Best Seven/ Bestworks
07 – Alex Celler – Trapped In Dub – TuningSpork
08 – Miss Fitz – Dimentia – Contexterrior
09 – Jay Haze Ft. Ricardo Villalobos – Mellow Dee – Contexterrior
10 – DIY – Pimp My Saw – TuningSpork
11 – Jay Haze Ft. D:exter – I Can’t Forget (Fuckpony Discotech Dub) – TuningSpork
12 – Chicago Wasted Youth – Mars Or Bust – TuningSpork
13 – The Last Poets – When The Revolution Comes – Charly
Pheek – Soundscape – Contexterrior
14 – Michael Ho – Ain’t Going Out Like that (Exclusive) – TuningSpork
15 – Dirty Bee – Work For Me – Roots 1027
16 – Johnny Fiasco – Conduction – Juan Lopez
17 – Hugo – Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy – Goodvibes
18 – Ms. Minelli – Ancient Blessing – Toys For Boys
19 – Fuckpony – Burning – Bpitch Control
20 – Rockey – Something To Say – Tuningspork
Release Date: 13.07.2009
Minimaland Feedback: As Dj and Producer Jay Haze has always had a classy presence. His genuine taste made him one of the greatest among the tech minimal scene and this mix for fabric confirms all his potential. Refined selection of tracks, great mixing skills and some exclusive tracks turned Fabric 47 into one of the finest editions till now! Full support!
Tuning Spork is clearly becoming one of my favorite labels, their have been doing a great work this year and today I present to you their latest Ep. The original “Stel and Atan” was first released back in 2007 and now, after two years, label founder Jay Haze felt it was time to do the proper revisit of this sort of neglected bomb! So, both Haze and Hugo produced two new versions of the track. The A side is the “S Ivory Pleated Pants Remix”, by Hugo, a funky deep minimal house tune with a great bass line and a hot groovy rhythm that will leave the dancefloor swaying under the moonlight. Next comes Haze with his “S Iridescent Spandex Remix) bringing the track to a deeper level turning this monster into a minimal tech turn on! The rhythm is near to perfection along with the bass variations.. After his great mix for Fabric, Hazy continues to surprise us, we really support his work and we honestly think that his productions keep getting better.. this is a track to be appreciated by… appreciators! Hugo and Haze showing the people what minimal grooves are all about.
