Matthew Nelson aka the legendary Slipmatt, the Godfather of rave. Unquestionably one of the fore fathers of the scene, crowned by clubbers and industry movers alike, when he was awarded by Kiss FM for ‘Outstanding Contribution to the Industry’. Matt’s reign over the scene has been long but arduous, a testing but rewarding journey through one of the most exciting industries in the world. The high points of which have taken him all over the world, mixing and spinning over every continent, and nationwide all over the UK, and have ensured that he was of the UKs busiest and well respected DJs.

With a strong passion for music evident even from the of 18 months, by 10 the vinyl had already grabbed Matt’s attention and he found his home behind the decks, soon DJing at private parties! Amazingly at the age of 12, Matt donned his production hat and began playing about with bits of music, sampling and creating his first track on 4 track! After getting further into the music and acquiring a set of Technics 1200 mk II, he spent every hour learning to mix and scratch, at that time Matt’s flava being Hip Hop, he also entered the legendary DMC mixing competition alongside greats such as Carl Cox.

In 1986 Matt discovered House music, and with this new musical passion in 1988 he began to create and blend Acid House with Hip Hop. Matt’s desire for music at this point only growing stronger and alongside musical colleague DJ Lime and a few other friends, found their voice on the airways, setting up the infamous pirate station Raw FM.

In 1989 he and DJ Lime joined forces as the notorious production duo SL2, and their first release was born Do that Dance on B/WARE Records. This was the beginning of a particularly successful musical partnership. Also in 1989 Matt landed his first major gig at the renowned Raindance parties, this was the rocket launcher for his career after which bookings soon flooded in. He went on to conquer yet also helped to create many of the massive and now legendary clubs such as Club Kinetic, Die Hard, Fantasia, Rhythm Section, Dance Paradise, Elevation, Dreamscape, Temptation to name but a few.

As Matt’s DJ diary was filling up so was his discography, after the success of his first production, and the advent of their new label Awesome Records in 1990, Slipmatt and DJ Lime gave the label a suitable christening with The Noise/Bassquake which sold an amazing 3500 units in the underground market. This release gained the SL2 duo the attention of XL Recordings, pushing the next release DJs Take Control/Way In My Brain to number 11 in the national charts! Matt went on to experience untold successes as SL2 with the legendary On a Ragga Tip which hit the national charts in April 1992, settling at a highly respectable number 2 and achieved the number 1 top spot in the network charts, staying in the top 7 for an incredible eight weeks. This propelled Matt and partner DJ Lime into the media spotlight, with several television appearances including the hall of fame; Top of The Pops on a couple of occasions. Their chart success continued, when they released a remix of ‘Way in my Brain’ coupled with ‘Drumbeats’ on the flipside, which settled at number 28 in the charts.

In 1993, the whole scene began to change, with rave splitting into different generic variations, with Hardcore rising. Matt took set to set to lead the hardcore route and took the reigns of hardcore path, playing dark jungle fused with hardcore. Slipmatt and Lime decided to put a hold on the SL2 project, while Matt concentrated on shaping and creating his specific style of Hardcore. Lime carried with Awesome while Matt set up a new project with the SMD series. The first release SMD#1 sold nearly 10,000 units, pushing a new style happy hardcore sound. He followed this up with a further 5 instalments in the series along with a CD compilation of the singles. Also in 1993 Matt released the only track to be on Awesome under his Slipmatt title, this was the last Jungle/Hardcore cross over track released that bridged their ever increasing generic gap, and again sold a staggering 10,000 units. It soon became evident that Matt had to make a choice between styles, he successfully took the hardcore route.

A new label Universal was launched in the beginning of 1995, mainly created for Hardcore releases with artists such as Hixxy, Sy & Unknown, Force & Styles, Ham and DJ Demo. Slipmatt went on to compile a CD for Kickin Records, a label established since 1989, having featured other top artists such as Juan Atkins, Josh Wink, Masters at Work and Roger Sanchez. 1997 Matt remixed ‘On a Ragga Tip’ with a massive Slipmatt remix, accompanied by a Force & Styles mix and a Goodfellas remix, the track again checked in at number 32 in the national charts! In 2000 Slipmatt extended his talents to presenting his own radio show on Kiss 100, which he shared with only a handful of others such as Hixxy, Dougal and Sharkey, pushing their sound across the airways to a vast audience and supporting their scene. To date Matt’s work has not gone unnoticed by his adoring fan base, and many of those involved within the scene, some achievements are undeniable, with Slipmatt becoming a household name! Both Dream Magazine and M8, voted him ‘Best DJ’, with a nomination for the title against extreme international competition in 1997 in Muzik Magazine. Matt also received the title of ‘Best Remixer’ from the readers of M8, and deservedly was awarded for ‘Outstanding Contribution to the Industry’ from Kiss FM. September 2001 Matt completed a mix CD for the mighty Moonshine organisation in LA, the compilation was titled ‘The New Era’ introducing the US market to Hardhouse/Hard NRG delivered in the Slipmatt way, featuring Hardhouse/Hardcore crossovers such as; Daniel ‘Billy' Bunter, Vinylgroover and The Pranksters. Matt has several Compilations to his name, including a further release on Kickin Whole Lotta Hardcore Also in 2001 Matt was asked to compile a CD for the mighty Moonshine called ‘The New Era’ a mix of Hardcore and Hard NRG for the US market. Having in recent years moved away from Hardcore, Matt now plays a blend of all of his favourite style with a popular and reminiscent old school influence including elements of trance, a touch of funk and house.

Phenomenal success throughout the generic dance scenes has established Matt as a DJ transcendental of style maintaining the old crowd as well as accessing the new market of dance fans. Playing every weekend up and down the country including several regular trips to the USA, Australia, Ireland and Ibiza. Matt’s mixes and production have also recently been a regular feature on Radio1, he has also taken part in various television programmes about the clubbing scene and rave culture. 2003 looks set to be busier than ever for Matt, who is in massive demand all over the world as well as within the music media.

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