DJ PAUL SPARKES

World wide DJ
A+R man for Ministry of Sound, UK
Producer on Silver Planet, UK
365Mag Editor
Radio Host Proton/DFR/365Mag On Air
Music Journalist & Keynote Speaker


Paul started out in the UK in the early 90s, setting up a pirate radio station to play the latest vinyl, and promoting parties with friends. He moved to London and held down residencies in clubs such as the Vinyl Frontier and Re:Mission and also landed the job of A+R man for Ministry of Sound in 1998.

After many years of activity in the British scene, Paul decided to move to Holland in 2000 to further his DJing and promote his own nights. He has run regular 365Mag nights at Club Sol and 020 in Amsterdam and now at Panama and Studio 80, and has a new slot at the Escape and the new Patronaat in Haarlem in March 2006. Paul has worked with artists such as X-press 2, Lucien Foort, Parks and Wilson, Danny Howells and Austin Leeds at 365Mag events in 2005.

On the international front Paul's dedication to pushing his music abroad has paid off in recent years, playing regularly US, Israel (Haoman 17/Ultrasound/Coma2), Sweden (Stockholm Electronica), Germany (Munich Stereo Garten), UK (various) and Dubai (Tangerine). America in particular is a point of popularity for Paul, touring the country four times in 2004, playing in New York, DC, Seattle, Philadelphia and New Haven. 2005 has seen him tour Stateside twice, taking in Tampa, Seattle and Philadelphia. He also supplies a monthly mix to Proton Radio (US), to DFR Radio in the Czech Republic and enters the realm of digital radio with a new show to be announced shorlty in the US.

Paul has embarked on a studio collaboration with multi-talented Dutchman Muzikjunki to release Closer Than You (F2 Records) early in 2005 and his single with Philly based BCML entitled Fun/Ladysparkes surfaced on UK label Silver Planet which has been played by Sasha, Digweed, James Holden and Anthony Pappa all summer. The follow-up entitled May Music, is set for release in early 2006. New DJ tours are set for Israel (February 12th-14th) and America in April.

Furthermore, Paul is a highly-skilled music journalist and has delivered content for many magazines and websites, including editorials and music reviews. His award-winning paper commissioned by the University of Hull about the modern music scene and DJ culture led to him contributing to Stockholm Music Festival and the Amsterdam Dance Event. He has also delivered a keynote lecture at the Musica Plus DJ Academy in Tel Aviv, with the focus on the effect of downloading on the music industry and a look at the changing face of record labels and A+R techniques, and presents another four presentations in February 2006 in Israel. Paul is also editor of highly respected industry publication 365mag.com.