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Hard work and lots of hustle. These are the qualities that have brought young veteran DJ Mario Bee from humble beginnings in the bedroom to the stage as a DJ, and most recently, the official digital release of his debut single, ‘Tomb’ on progressive label Tiefparterre Records, out of Graz, Austria.
Music was never far from Mario Bee as a kid, surrounded by his mother's singing of 80s new wave classics or the radio blasting soulful house throughout much of his childhood during the 90s. Acquiring his first pair of decks at 17, he began regularly practicing scratching and beat juggling routines. Soon after discovering grime he began following artists like Dizzee Rascal, Wiley, and Mike Skinner’s now defunct label ‘The Beats.’ He felt compelled to immerse himself in anything and everything grime or bass driven coming from the UK, finding himself frequenting physical and online record shops, developing a deep passion for mixing records, and vinyl culture.
In college he took a late night slot on the radio playing the same dubstep and grime 12”s he’d been collecting, lugging both gear and vinyl from his dorm room to the studio each week. His efforts on the radio gained him respect and made for a smooth transition into the local club scene. Before he knew it, he had his first residency gig at a club he wasn't even old enough to enter, playing Hip-Hop, R&B, dancehall reggae and Baltimore Club.
Throwing events with local DJ crews and experimenting with a laundry list of sub-genres, Mario carved out a small niche for himself where his personal style as a DJ began to blossom and locals took notice. His tendency to challenge the audience's perception with dark sounds and unique track selections creates a particularly moody vibe, something he likes to call ‘club politics’. Each set is an attempt to strip away the veneer of conventional mixes, exposing the heart and soul of the music itself.
Versatility and style spontaneity eventually landed him gigs sharing the stage with some of his personal heroes and DJ icons including Diplo, Drop the Lime and Harvard Bass, as well as house legend Charles Feelgood. In the last two years Mario has opened for independent Hip-Hop acts Schoolboy Q, Juiceboxxx, and Mr. Muthafuckin Exquire, dubstep pioneers Caspa and Rusko, and an impressive ‘local openers’ set in his hometown for Grammy award winner Skrillex.
DJ Mario Bee has now taken the next natural step into music production. ‘Tomb’ is the culmination of everything he has learned so far on his journey from bedroom to club stage. The tune is dark and made strictly for the dance floor, two elements that reflect Mario Bee’s love for UK bass music. Its haunting, echo-chamber sound is a mixture of early dubstep and grime at a slower rolling 120 BPM, instead of the genre's typical rapid 140 BPM cadence. His debut on Tiefparterre marks this artist’s promising first efforts toward a progressive direction in electronic music.’ The whole release comes complete with remixes from APLOT, SIMON/OFF, 222OCEANS.
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