Stevie Kotey

…a style that boarders on dubbed-out abstract New York disco…’ BBC Music

“Milk and two sugars, please!” A sentence every tea boy loves to hear. Back in the days this was a classic position for every youngling who wanted to make his way into the music recording industry. It must have been the same for a man like Stevie Kotey in his tender years. While working for Audio One Studios in Soho, London, he learnt his trade from scratch and his belief in being part of the music industry was cemented. Lucky us! Since then, Stevie Kotey has been on the forefront of British underground dance music in all the various shapes, forms and sizes, you can only imagine and wish for. Brought up in a time, where definitions, scenes and sounds were looser than today, this man managed to remain a free spirit. Be it during the nineties with the wonderful trio Akwaaba (together with Paul ‘Mudd’ Murphy and Tom Lee) and their organic take on all things disco or on his own with one of his charming disguises like Afrobutt, Darkfader or Big Bear; the later one being also the name of Kotey’s initial label. Picking up the echelon and the blades of traditional edit smithies like Black Cock or Noid, Big Bear was the place that cherished the art of a creative (insert disco, balearic, cosmic, pop here) edit in dry times. Infected with and influenced by the anything-goes-as-long-as-it-flows aesthetics by disc jockeys like the surfing DJ Harvey and his first disciples, the notorious Idjut Boys, Kotey developed an impressive style of his own and an exciting label conglomerate. Under the Bear Entertainment umbrella, kids like Bear Funk and Hairy Claw rapidly grew up and it was there, where a wider audience heard names like Todd Terje, DJ Kent, Prins Thomas & Lindstrom, Brennan Green, Michoacan or Lexx for the first time. Extremely well packaged and mastered, the Bear labels are handled with that special care that every vinyl outfit should get.

On top of that, our main man was never a lazy one, when it came to his own original productions or remixes. Always dipping and diving into all things nice, Stevie Kotey never ceased to amaze with his sheer versatility. His aforementioned education led to musical merits that could be house music as well as electro or rocky disco takes on other days. You can spend a rainy afternoon on Discogs going through his efforts in this field.While doing so, chances are second to none that you miss his connection to the mighty Chicken Lips. Dean Meredith and Andy Meecham listened to Kotey’s Dj skills one night and decided that this man sounded exactly like they were hoping to. Glitzy disco balls, drum machines, current cub sounds, electro funk and dubby sounds of all sorts, all come to life, when this man steps behind the tables that turn.Being the chilled and home-loving mates they are, Stevie was taken on board as a DJ and eventually production partner which resulted in a fabulous DJ-Kicks compilation for !K7. Between catering his sounds to Europe’s and the UK’s hippest spots or far-off places like Japan and honing his dexterity more and more, Kotey is one of the lovely key-players of today’s leftfield disco scene and 2008 will be busier than ever for him. The long-awaited label compilation Rools for Rules (mixed by Kotey and DJ Kent), Disco Italia (rare Italion boogie and disco funk) for the re-animated Strut platform and his first artist album in years based on a whole week of live drum recordings in different tempos are finally in the pipeline. A true bear knows no hibernation. Roooooooar!

Chicken Lips

In 1999 Andrew Meecham and Dean Meredith formed Chicken Lips. The original idea was to seek underground salvation and immerse themselves in the musical styles that they grew up with and loved.

Together they also made up the seminal early nineties dance act Bizarre Inc who scored 3 top ten national hits, toured the world and worked with some of the biggest names in the biz.

2003 saw brethren Stevie Kotey join the lips, with Stevie on board to fulfil DJ and tour duties and help compile the now classic DJ Kicks for !K7. In 2005 the final piece of the jigsaw was added in the form of long time friend and collaborator Jonny Spencer aka Jonny Tonic. Jonny provided songs & vocals for the Making Faces LP.

As well as working under the Chicken Lips moniker they also record as Big200 (DC Recordings) Zeefungk (The more dancefloor motivated side of Chicken Lips) Also solo projects White light Circus/The Rhythm Odyssey / Goat Dance(Dean), and the hugely successful Emperor Machine (Andy).

Their approach to production is quite simply unique! Andy is an avid collector and owner of some of the most sought after synthesizers known to man. His studio resembles a synthesizer museum rather than the hub that provides the magic that it does. Dean is also seasoned drum player and percussionist with an acute eye for detail that brings the rhythm section to life either with electronic or live kits. Their continual striving for originality and the un-mundane has led to remix work for the likes of Madonna, Robbie Williams, Mark Ronson, Wolfmother, Nigo (Bathing Ape), Playgroup, Headman, Simian Mobile Disco (to name but a few), all receiving the trademark dubbed out sound of the Lips Their debut album “Echoman” was in many ways ahead of it’s time drawing on eighties NYC influences it sounds as current now (if not more so) than it did back in 1999.

The second album “Extended play” had an underground hit single “He Not In” which is now been quoted by many as one of the most influential dance classics of the last decade.

Making Faces was the third and last LP released in 2006 and since then the collective has been busy with solo projects, making babies and touring all over the world. But 2010 sees the reigniting of the Chicken Lips, with their new label Lipservice providing a home to vast array of talent they find and nurture.

Lipservice is also a home for their own productions and the highly anticipated 4th Album. Lipservice will also dip into their overflowing back catalogue now and then, with up and coming projects Like “Show your shape” The best of Chicken Lips in conjunction with London’s finest Tirk records. This will feature unreleased mixes and will act as an excellent guide into world of Chicken Lips.  Roll on 2010!