John Bennett, known as DJ Freak, is an English

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

music DJ and producer. He is credited as one of the first pioneers of the

industrial hardcore Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

speedcore Speedcore is a form of electronic music that is characterized by a high tempo and aggressive themes. It was created in the early to mid-1990s and the name originates from the hardcore genre as well as the high tempo used. Songs are usually clas ...

sound.

Musical career

DJ Freak has released over 50 albums to date. He was one of the early pioneers of

and speedcore music in 1992. He has been released on his own two labels, Boneheddz and Hard of Hearing, and other labels such as Killout,

Epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

and Deadly Systems. In 2011, he began releasing side project material in a different style, dark spacey minimal looped abstract

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

. He releases these as free

downloads In computer networks, download means to ''receive'' data from a remote system, typically a server such as a web server, an FTP server, an email server, or other similar systems. This contrasts with uploading, where data is ''sent to'' a remote s ...

, on his pages on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

and

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

. Freak released a track on Scottish label Motormouth Recordz compilation "Motörheadz - The Album" in 2012 and also a digital only EP on the same label in 2014.

Hard Of Hearing

In the early 1990s, DJ Freak founded the label Hard Of Hearing. It was geared towards

subgenres Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

of electronic music such as

gabber Gabber ( ; ) is a style of electronic dance music and a subgenre of Hardcore (electronic dance music genre), hardcore, as well as the surrounding subculture. The music is more commonly referred to as hardcore, and is characterised by fast beats ...

and

. Practically every release on this label was a DJ Freak release, however, other artists did make appearances on these albums. His most recognised and seminal work was released on Killout. The Hard Of Hearing label ended in 1998. In 2009, DJ Freak released an album called Hard Of Hearing Reloaded.

Discography

References

External sources

DJ Freak on DiscogsDJ Freak Fan Page on MyspaceHard Of HearingB.E.A.S.T. Records
{{Authority control Speedcore musicians British hardcore techno musicians