Bio

King Unique is Matt Thomas, an all round studio junkie and DJ with a taste for tripped-out cosmic techno and rough-edged underground house. In a career spanning nearly a decade KU’s distinctive sound has won an enviable global following. A ceaseless schedule of DJ sets and festival gigs backed up by relentless studio sessions resulting in scores of records, remixes and radio broadcasts has made the KU sound an instantly recognizable part of the music-life of millions of the world’s clubbers - and a fixture in the vinyl crates, cd wallets and laptops of the world’s most influential DJs. Consistently appealing across genre boundaries the tracks have been played by everyone from Sasha to Soulwax, Dubfire to Tiesto, and have turned up everywhere from Hollywood soundtracks to mobile ring tones - not to mention countless compilations and mix albums.

Formed in 2001 by Matt Thomas & Matthew Roberts, King Unique hit the floor running, claiming the title of Undisputed Remix Champs by scoring five Essential New Tunes in five months on Pete Tong’s “Essential Selection” Radio 1 show. A US Billboard Dance Chart number 1 for the remix of Dirty Vegas’ “Walk Into The Sun”, plus two more solo Essential New Tunes for Matt under his Watkins and Mainframe alter-egos saw KU firmly cement their place amongst the ranks of first-call remixers. The King Unique production touch has been in constant demand since, appearing on more than fifty remixes and yielding some of the biggest dance floor bombs known to man - Underworld’s “Two Months Off”, The Killers “Somebody Told Me”, Planet Funk’s “The Switch”, The Teamsters “Feels Like Love”, and Chable and Bonicci’s “Ride”.

2006 saw the end of the original duo’s studio partnership, as Matt Thomas took on the King Unique role as a solo artist. The two years since have seen Matt taking the KU sound to new heights with a mixture of euphoric acidic melodies, dark brooding techno vibes and old skool beats. Remixes of Tracey Thorn’s “Grand Canyon”, Fergie’s “Anon” and an ’08 remix of KU’s own “Sugarhigh” have reaffirmed his status as one of the most versatile and consistent producers of the last ten years.

Most recently Matt has produced a stunning reworking of “Heaven” for James Lavelle’s UNKLE project, as well as remixes for James Talk, Paolo Mojo and Infusion.

The renowned King Unique DJ set has made KU a regular addition to the line up of some of the world’s most respected clubs and biggest festivals, playing everywhere from ultra-hip blacked-out sweat boxes in Tokyo to euphoric crowds of thousands on the tropical beaches of Madeira. Regular gigs for super-brands such as Renaissance and Ministry Of Sound coupled with an increasingly hectic international schedule has seen Matt racking up enough air-miles for a free trip to the moon, with gigs in Sydney, Osaka, Barcelona, Shanghai, Lima, Bucharest, Auckland, Bogota, Singapore, Chelyabinsk, Malta, Vilnius - just to name a handful from recent months.

Since the very first shows Matt has pushed at the cutting edge of the technology revolution that’s swept through club culture, taking laptops, new gadgets and studio gear into the booth. 2009 sees the addition of the near mythic Monome controller to the sonic armoury - part track-mangling Ableton controller and part psychedelic light show, lovingly hand built by techno-hippies in the Catskill Mountains.

Matt + Mac + Monome = Beats + Bleeps = KU Live ‘09

See you by the speakers…

Recent remixes to check

Infusion “So Soon”
Dappled Cities “The Price”
UNKLE “Heavy Drug”

Recent video to watch

Here’s a rather good little video from KU’s recent gig in Buenos Aires… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSyExMlL5WE

King Unique December Chart

Einmusik - Altered Beyond Recognition” Einmusika Recordings
The way Einmusik gets from jaunty drunken tech-ska wobblings to Klaus Schulze kraut-synth epicness in just this one tune is staggering. Masterful stuff.

King Unique - “Feniksas” Bedrock
Brand new KU single, big retro-techno meets epic prog monster - coming to a Bedrock near you soon.

Niko Fantin - “The Bad Shepard (Facundo Mohrr Remix)” Frisky Records
Colossal tech-prog in the Henry Saiz/Guy J style. Get on this, a great set opener.

Justin Margovan – “From The Beginning (Ekkohaus Remix)” Phobic Records
Wailing, wobbling, looping diva vox over a brutal tech stabber. Don’t leave Ekkohaus alone with your pets.

The xx vs Alan Fitzpatrick & Reset Robot – “Silicone Shelter (KU Bootleg)” On my hardrive
Huge emo tune of 2009 in a head on collision with the most criminally neglected techno bomb of 2009. Absolutely crass, absolutely mindlessly simple – and it absolutely destroys clubs

Guy J – “Ballroom” Bedrock
Menacing and steady as a burning steamroller pointed at your house.

Mike Monday - “Grace (Justin Martin Remix)” Dirtybird
Fantastic organic genre-crosser of a tune. Precise sub bass, chamber orchestra string vamps, looped vox fragments and a collision of beat styles, all tied together to make a mournful San-Fran classic.

Federico Milani - “Eleven (Loco & Jam Remix)”
Played an unfinished mix of this at Exit, Kaunas and kicked the night into orbit. Curious to see what the finished version will do…

Fergie - “Motion” Excentric Muzik
A little glimpse at Ferg’s forthcoming album. Motion backs off from Ferg’s peak-time sound and locks into the deeper grooves that made his remix of ‘Softy’ such a winner.

Nicolas Masseyeff – “Modul8” Herzblut
Mr Masseyeff brings it again for Herzblut – bass heavy beats and classic house riffery fed into the effects and worked to alarming heights of intensity.