CYN BOOKINGS

DJ & LIVE

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It’s been 10 years since Mike Shannon started making a name for himself on the international techno scene as a DJ, producer and label owner. Now, having relocated to Berlin from Valencia via Montreal in 2007 he’s about to crown his first decade of active service with Memory Tree, his third full length to date, and his debut for another notable Canadian export - Richie Hawtin’s Plus 8 Records. Over the years, Mike has well proven that it’s not just his music that makes him such a valuable asset to the techno community, it’s his total dedication to the cause. Whether finding him standing behind a record shop counter or searching out new talent for his labels, it’s always been about bringing people together and investing in the future of the scene.

Mike first got the vinyl bug at the tender age of 12, buying house and techno tunes at Play de Record in Toronto and by 15 his turntable skills were already landing him gigs at local underground parties and clubs. From then on, Mike’s musical world expanded rapidly thanks in no small part to Detroit’s influential WJLB radio station which turned him on to U.R., Juan Atkins and Kevin Saunderson - influences that still play a big role in his approach to music today. To satisfy his appetite for all things Techno, he was soon managing the orders at Speed Records in his hometown of Kitchener, Ontario where he continued his education; importing cutting edge sounds from across Europe.

Throughout that time, Mike was out DJing and clubbing from Detroit to Toronto, making connections and building up a solid network of producers and artists, which led to the inevitable formation of his own label Cynosure in 1999. A couple of years later, he teamed up with Jeff Milligan on the more experimental Revolver Canada imprint. Both labels have since developed into highly respected and trusted sources, subsequently raising the profile of Canada’s electronic music scene by providing then unknown producers such as Akufen and Deadbeat an international platform to spread their distinctive sound throughout the world. Beyond developing homegrown talent, both imprints continue to invite an inspired selection of international artists including Pier Bucci, Monolake and Brett Johnson to name a few.

For Mike it’s always been a question of choosing uncompromising artists who possess a unique and original voice - an attitude that also defines his own work whether recording as John Shananigans, The Sunaj Assassins or under his own name. There’s a distinctive feel to his music that’s both dark and soulful, that stays true to his roots while embracing the future and never fails to deliver a flurry of kick-ass, funk infected beats easily proven by a volley of timeless singles over the years and his two previous full lengths. Take 2001’s Slight of Hand on Force Inc - an album that cemented his reputation as an up-and-coming Minimal Techno producer and 2005’s Possible Conclusions to Stories That Never End - a collection of chilled-out Electronica inspired by his musical odyssey through out Chile in 2003.

Mike’s recent move to Berlin represents the fulfillment of another chapter in his musical career and with so many influential Canadian producers having taken up residence in the German capital over the last few years, it’s a chance to hook up with old friends again and start collaborating on new plans and ideas, just like the old days. Then of course there’s the new album, the accompanying remix projects and the immediate matter of fatherhood to make 2008 something of a milestone both professionally and personally.


More info:

www.cynosure-recordings.com
www.myspace.com/cynrecordings

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RELEASES:

The focal point EP – Cynosure (1999)
Sunaj Assassins part 1 EP - Cynosure (1999)
Biscotti Hotti EP - Blue (2000)
Necessary Pieces EP - Nordic Traxx (2000)
Sunaj Assassins part2 EP – Cynosure (2000)
Bleak Existence EP - Cynosure (2001)
Miser – Montreal Smoked Meat, Force Inc. (2001)
Onom lights – East/West Various EP, Itiswhatitis (2001)
Slight of Hand LP – Force Inc. (2002)
Mamajuana EP – Cynosure (2002)
Know Returns EP – Cynosure (2003)
Second City EP – Onitor (2003)
Sublet EP – Logistic (2004)
The Exercise Mask EP – Tic Tac Toe (2004)
Blind Love - Fist of the North Star EP, Spectral Sound (2005)
For a Few Euros More EP – Dumb Unit (2005)
El Impulso EP – Wagon Repair (2006)
Possible Conclusions to Stories That Never End LP – Scape (2006)
Stairways EP – Num ltd (2006)
The Hang Up EP – Wagon Repair (2006)
Tactile Blue EP – Cynosure (2007)
Tactile Red EP – Cynosure (2007)
Tactile Green EP – Cynosure (2007)
Memory Seed EP – Plus 8 (2008)
Memory Tree LP – Plus 8 (2008)
The Box EP - Cynosure (2009)
The Re-Nag EP - Wagon Repair (2009)
The Man With One Shoe EP (John Shananigans) - Circus Company (2009)
Surrender EP - Haunt Music (2010)

REMIXES:

Mossa “Dirty Bites” – Complot (2003)
Horror Inc. “Siamese Twins” – Revolver (2003)
Crackhaus “Smashie, Smashiee” – MUTEK REC (2004)
Trendsetter and the Followers “Powerpoint” – Musique Risquée (2004)
Bucci/Pink Elln “Mavis 350” – Cynosure (2004)
Fax “Et Cetera” – Static discos (2005)
Deadbeat “Texas Tea” - Scape (2005)
Microesfera “Freak Dancer Let’s Go” – Mule (2005)
Adam Marshall “Black Snow” – New Kanada (2006)
S-max “Taoist Afro Sputniks” – Boogizm (2006)
SLG “Sopot” – Third Channel (2006)
Pheek “Magda Had a Little Troll” – Clever Music (2006)
Lee Van Dowski and Quenum “Ultimate Desert Ambassador” – Soma (2006)
Tom Clark “Motor Lodge” – High Grade (2007)
Carlo Boselli “Lit Jug Lug” – Discos de Lata (2007)
Brett Johnson feat. Heather “Everything’s Electric” – 2020 vision (2007)
Nathan Larson “Standing Still” – Airtight (2007)
Adam Marshall “Chord Tracking” – Kuji (2008)
Mikael Stravostrand “Crushed” – Emprime (2008)
Glimpse “Train in Austria” – Hypercolour (2008)
Reese and Santonio "Bounce Your Body to The Box" – KMS (2008)
Limacon “Rubber Bump” - Thoughtless Music (2009)
Kenny Glasgow "System Overload" - No.19 (2009)
Kaiser feat. Meinoif Ziegler "Know How" - PulseWith (2009)
Hardbrothers "Hardphunk" - Plus 8 (2009)
Mossa "Churros" - Thema (2010)
Maetrik "Paradigm House" - Treibstoff (2010)

SAT 03.07.10 - CH, Basel @ Dumb-Unit Night (Digital Club)
FRI 17.07.10 - DE, Berlin @ Bar25
SUN 18.07.10 - ES, Ibiza @ Cadenza Night (Pacha)
SAT 24.07.10 - GE, Georgia @ Kiketi Open Air
FRI 06.08.10 - IT, Pescara @ Tokyo Club
SAT 07.08.10 - DE, Berlin @ Highgrade Night (Panoramabar)

DJ SET:

• Allen & Heath X:ONE 62 or 92 DJ Mixer
• 2 or 3 Technics SL 1200/1210's
• 1 Pioneer CDJ-800 or better
• Extra set of turntable needles
• High quality sound system
• 2 x high powered stereo monitor speakers

LIVE PERFORMANCE:

• 1.5m table space
• Allen & Heath X:ONE 92 DJ mixer
• 2 x high powered stereo monitor speakers
• 1 power transformer 220v to 110v
• 1 power conditioner

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