Ryan Sullivan Live @ Baraza - Camps Bay,Cape Town
Ryan Sullivan Live @ Baraza - Camps Bay,Cape Town
This week we welcome talented SA producer and DJ to the listenup stable, below find a bio and the first of hopefully many live sets from Ryan.
“I don’t write music, music writes me.” – Ryan Sullivan, Johannesburg 2003.
Ryan Sullivan was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1982 and from his earliest moments displayed an affinity for music, even creating a double tape deck contraption that allowed him to do some rudimentary mixing before he turned thirteen. By the time he reached his teens proper his musical tastes had outgrown the pop sensibilities of his peers and he went searching for a style of music that suited his quest for music with intelligence, complexity and soul. He soon found solace in the beats and rhythms of electronic dance music, especially left of centre genres like D ‘n B, Jungle, Techno and Acid House.
At the tender age of 15 Ryan had already decided that his future lay within the music industry and he began DJing at friend’s house parties and intimate club venues. However, Ryan found the style of music he was expected to play left him unfulfilled and his attention began to move away from what he terms ‘quick fix music for the masses’ and his quest to find a genre that matched his musical ideals began. He found the answer he was looking for in progressive dance music, “For me, progressive music has emotion and comes from the heart,” said Ryan. “The driving force is 100% pure passion and it’s not based on a quest for money or fame. It was a natural home for me.”
Realising progressive dance music demands more skill and subtlety than can be attained from just raw talent and burning desire Ryan began formally studying audio engineering. He quickly showed an aptitude above and beyond that of his peers and found himself managing Hedgehog Studios before the course was even finished. Ryan grabbed the opportunity this presented with both hands and he recorded and co-produced up ‘n coming bands and artists such as Pyramid Tongue, Even Flow, Head Up (now 16 Stitch) and Adrian Ziller. But, Ryan wasn’t satisfied using his skills in the rock genre and his desire to get himself involved in the local progressive dance music scene saw him resign and move to Glo-Tech Africa, which were at the time, South Africa’s leading exponents of progressive dance music. It was an inspired move as Ryan was able to utilize his DJ, production and remix skills across a broad range of projects.
On the DJing front, Ryan found himself finally in a position to play the type of music he wanted, without interference from venue music policies and dancefloor politics. Ryan’s sets are best described as a merging of tribal rhythms, minimal grooves and emotional melodies aimed at bringing forth a hypnotic, trancelike feel to his energetic, passionate sets. His unique ear for a tune made him a favourite amongst the progressive fans who flocked to Afri-Ground and the Tempos Chillout Sessions.
This exposure quickly created a demand for Ryan’s mixing services and he played at numerous club-based events and outdoor festivals around Johannesburg. “I love the fresh air, the atmosphere and the festive feeling of outdoor events,” Ryan confirms. “But I also enjoy the intimacy and personal interaction that you get between yourself and the crowd at indoor parties.”
Following on the success he enjoyed behind the decks and the studio console Ryan started looking for a way to help promote progressive music. He realized that up and coming progressive dance music producers had very few, if any, outlets for their material, especially at the event level where they could get instant feedback on their work. This lead Ryan to coordinate and host dance events which showcase South African artists and their original musical works. These events allow up and coming local talent to get some richly deserved exposure and creates a rallying point for the DJs and producers of the fragmented South African progressive scene. “We lack unity in this scene,” declared Ryan. “Hopefully with the help of all the people I work with we can help unify and develop the progressive scene. Ultimately, I hope to take these parties to different venues across the country to expose people to our music and instill a taste for it.”
Amongst others, these are some of Ryan’s performance highlights to date:
- Glo-Tech Africa, South African Tour – Dec 2003.
- Glo Music Festival, Johannesburg – Nov 2004.
- Woodstock 7 Festival, Hartebeespoort – Sept 2005.
- Subkulture with Damien Davis, Johannesburg – Apr 2006
- Gut Feel Records & Layered Records Cape Tour (Performed with Lee Burridge) – Feb/March 2007.
- Cold Conclusion (Live set as The Mary Saga), Johannesburg – July 2007
- Earth Dance Festival, Hartebeespoort (Live Set as MNTL) – Sept 2007
- Perc Trax (UK) Summer Tour in South Africa – Nov 2007.
Radio sets on:
- 5fm & UJFM (South Africa):
- Galaxie FM (France)
- TooltimeFM (Germany)
- Radio Cyberstacia (Poland)
- Rat-X Radio (Frankfurt)
- Rautmusic FM (Germany).
Ryan was approached by Chris Palmer, the legendary local mastering engineer, in 2003 to join him at Layered Studios. Working with someone of Chris’s stature was a dream come true for Ryan and it helped polish his production skills to a point where he was able, through Layered Studio projects, to work with some of the top artists in South Africa.
In 2004 Ryan left Layered Studios to focus on his solo music career reckoning that it was time to take the experience he had gained from working with some of the greatest names in South African music and apply the lessons learnt to his own aural journey. He now contributes to various labels around the world as an artist and also manages a label of his own, Gut Feel Records. As with many other dance music producers Ryan works under various names to allow him to delve into different genres and this has resulted in him releasing international chart topping singles as John Smiles, Wholesome Goodness, The Mary Saga and, of course, Ryan Sullivan.
To keep abreast of Ryan’s various gigs, events and production projects please log onto www.ryansullivan.co.za as well as www.gutfeelrecords.net
Ryan is playing at Teknotribe this Friday the 27th of June on the Second Floor hosted by MinTex. For more info make sure you check http://www.teknotribe.co.za
For now, here is Ryan’s set at Baraza make sure you right click “Save Target/File As”
Enjoy!
