Ben Keen, aka BK, is recognized the world
over as the most successful and prolific hard dance producer
of all time. With worldwide dance chart hits like "Music
Is Moving" and "Revolution", BK has reinvented
the genre of hard house and breathed new life into the style.
And in addition to having conquered the world of hard house
with his production skills, BK is positioned to take over
the global DJ scene, ranking since 2001 as one of DJmag's
top 50 international DJs. He calls his sound "ever-changing
and full of energy,” with innovative infusions of trance
and techno that redefine the hard house style. He believes
that “the sound of hard house has definitely changed-it's
got to,” and whether producing or playing, the sounds
that BK creates represent the future of the genre.
BK began his production career at age 16 as a trainee engineer
at a London studio and gradually progressed into writing music
for film and television. In his spare time, he used the studio's
equipment to experiment with his own sounds, and it was later,
at Media Records, that he began producing original tracks.
BK later joined Nukleuz Records, the world's top hard house
label, and immediately became known for his profusion of definitive
hard house tracks. Since 1995, BK has produced more than one
hundred 12”s and remixes, including remixes of Mario
Piu ("The Vision"), Mauro Piccotto ("Iguana"),
Storm ("Storm Animal"), DT8 ("Destination"),
and Tony De Vit ("I Don't Care"), and recorded tracks
for labels ranging from Positiva, Data, and Ministry of Sound
to NuLife, Ffrr, and Tidy. Many of his tracks have become
UK Top 10 hits, but BK is best known for "Revolution",
which with the support of Judge Jules and Dave Pearce, entered
BBC Radio One's daytime rotation in 2002 - a singular accomplishment
for a hard house track. BK's albums and Compilations have
also garnered huge success, with his series of Nukleuz Presents
Compilations (including HardHouse Anthems) earning multiple
Mixmag "Album of the Year" awards and the 2003 release
Extreme Euphoria Mixed By Lisa Lashes, BK, and The Tidy Boys
on track to become the highest-selling hard house album ever.
BK's tracks are irresistible to both clubbers and critics,
but the true measure of his talent can be seen in the number
of fellow producers and DJs who clamour for a slice of BK's
skills. The admiration of his peers is typified by such comments
as, “If one man has single-handedly shaped what our
world is dancing to, then it's he.” (Mixmag, June 2002)
This feeling is evident in the tracks found on BK's 2003 solo
album, Klub Kollaborations, which represent cooperative projects
with eleven of the world's top producers, including Andy Farley,
Lab4, Christopher Lawrence, Paul Glazby, and Rob Tissera.
In 1999, BK enlarged his creative scope to include the DJ
circuit, proving that his talents are not restricted to the
studio alone. By 2000, BK was already playing clubs around
the world, headlining and appearing at all of the biggest
dance events, including Dance Valley (100,000 people), Global
Gathering UK, Gatecrasher Summer Sound System UK, Impulse
NL, Frantic HardHouse Academy UK, Creamfields UK, Godskitchen
NEC UK, Judgement Sunday Ibiza, Lashed in Ibiza, Gallery UK,
Slinky UK, and Code Japan. He currently calls three of the
most forward-thinking UK hard dance events home, holding residencies
at Frantic's Convergence, Nukleuz's Riot!, and Kinky's Trade.
Much of his success is due to the same experimental approach
that he utilizes in the studio. “As a DJ, I've been
looking at other genres, and I've found that kind of music
is something I like and that I like to play, and no one's
complained!” In an extremely short period of time, BK
has become recognized as not only a genre-defining producer,
but also an influential DJ in the hard dance scene. His prodigious
talents have created a new direction for the future of hard
house, but BK is not ready to stop yet. “I've made every
sort of music in the past, even stuff for television commercials.
I've mic'd up a 60-piece orchestra at Abbey Road… And
now I want to start bringing that into the kind of tracks
I do now. Do that, but make it danceable and club-friendly—find
a new sound for myself.”
ANDY
FARLEY DJ SETS (2001 - 2002) ANNE
SAVAGE & LISA LOUD DJ SETS (1994 -
2008) BK
DJ SETS (2002 - 2007) FERGIE
DJ SETS (1999 - 2005) LAB
4 DJ SETS (2001 - 2004) LADY
DANA DJ SETS (2002 - 2003) LISA LASHES DJ SETS
(2000 - 2007)
TIDY
BOYS DJ SETS (2000 - 2007) TOM
HARDING (1995 - 2005)
TONY
DE VIT & TRIBUTE DJ SETS (1995 - 2001)
YOJI
BIOMEHANKIA (2002 - 2007)