Silk Royal Showcase 01 represents the sound of international progressive label Silk Royal Records, as well as the weekly radio show and podcast that give the compilation its name. Jacob Henry*, label manager of Silk Royal Records and one of four Silk Royal Showcase radio show co-hosts (along with Schodt, Ad Brown, & Zack Roth), has compiled and mixed the first of two discs. The second is mixed by acclaimed artist and frequent label contributor Tom Fall**.
Photography: Kittu Tipirneni
Cover Art Design: Mike Alexeev
Mastering: Aeron Aether
*Jacob Henry, co-owner of Silk Music Publishing and manager of Silk Royal Records, has been interested in electronic music since first hearing Robert Miles' now legendary album, "Dreamland." The soothing and melodic sounds of Chicane's "Far from the Maddening Crowds" and BT's "ESCM" were also influential in defining his electronic musical taste. A Philadelphia-based DJ and producer, Jacob's style can best be described as melodic progressive house.
DJ Highlights: Over the past few years, Jacob has performed throughout the Mid-Atlantic area, including events w/ Markus Schulz, Kaskade, Activa, Tom Colontonio, Creamer & K, Stoneface & Terminal, and Ronski Speed. Most notably, Jacob has performed on several occasions at Pacha NYC, a 2500+ capacity club in the heart of NYC. In conjunction with his label, Silk Royal, Jacob also hosts a monthly DJ event in his native Philadelphia at Vango Lounge & Skybar; past guests include DJ Eco, Ad Brown, Matt Lange, Dezza, & Dave Cortex.
Radio Appearances: Every fourth Thursday of the month (4-6pm EST, 21:00-23:00 GMT), Jacob hosts the Proton Radio show "Silk Royal Showcase," which features the latest from Silk Music and its affiliates. The show is also now a podcast on Itunes and is syndicated on DI.FM, Pure.FM, Elemental Radio, Ensonic.FM, DanceRadioGlobal, Nugen.FM, Mugasha, and various other platforms. In the second half of each show, an accomplished international progressive house DJ-producer provides a guest mix. Matt Cerf, Matt Darey, Ruben de Ronde, Eelke Kleijn, Jaytech, Proff, Solarity, and Mango are amongst the celebrated artists who have appeared on the show. In the past few years, Jacob has also been featured as a guest DJ on various international radio shows, including Nosmo v. Kris B's "The Influence" (Chicago), DJ Endgame's "Vital Radio" (Toronto), Yvel & Tristan's "Foundation Hours" (Budapest), Andrew Howlett's "Dancefloor Radio" (Adelaide), and Max Flyant's "Only Silk" (Moscow).
Production Credits: Jacob's debut, the atmospheric progressive track "Talisker," arrived in February 2009. The track has been played on various radio stations around the world, including Frisky Radio, Proton, and DI.FM, and strong feedback and support have been given by Miss Nine, D:Fuse, Mango, Derek Howell, and Solila. Also arriving in the first half of 2009 -- Jacob's tech house experiment "Regular Fellas" [microCastle Music]. The release, which includes remixes by Ad Brown, Stallos, Glide, and Peter Martin, received a number one ranking on the Progressivehouse.com promo charts and has been supported by Hernan Cattaneo, Cid Inc, Darin Epsilon, Matt Rowan, & Kris B. Jacob teamed up with the label side of Proton toward the end of 2009, as he contributed to the well supported Fall Particles 2009 compilation with his original track, "Small Moves." In the early part of 2010, Jacob released "Yesterday's Tears," which broke through the Beatport Top 100 Prog House charts and was supported by Matt Darey, Kenneth Thomas, Chris Reece, and many more. In December 2010, Jacob's "Cloak & Dagger" was voted one of the Beatport's "Top Ten Must Hear Tunes" in Progressive House and was supported by Ruben de Ronde, Mike Shiver, and Tydi. Stay tuned for more original releases on Silk, as well as new tracks from "Civil Servants" -- a collaborative alias with singer-songwriter Karen Gross.
Label Profile: May 2009 marked the arrival of Silk Royal Records. As label manager of Silk Royal, Jacob intends to showcase more club-oriented progressive tracks, which still have the sophistication and emotional energy characteristic of all Silk work to date. With recent top-charting tracks on Beatport by Proff, Schodt, Solarity, Matt Lange, Mango, and Sundriver, Silk Royal looks forward to releasing innovative club-oriented music for years to come.
**Tom Fall was born in Lohja, Finland. Tom started his musical life at the age of 10, when he picked up his brother's guitar and started to play. At the he age of 16, he found electronic music listening to Gary D. D-Trance collections and fell in love with trance music.
His first steps as a producer were made with the legendary modplug tracker, followed Jeskola Buzz and finally Cubase.
Tom is a very passionate producer and has sacrificed almost all of his life to music. To this day, he spends countless hours in the studio, always learning new ways to produce and develop his sound.
2010 was a breakthrough year, starting with his debut single ‘Cubic’ released on Anjunadeep to his latest works ‘Reflections’ and ‘Dive’ released on Silk Royal Records. Tom has also made some tremendous remixes for artists like Audien, Faruk Sabanci, Karanda and Mango. His tracks and remixes have gained a huge amount of support from such names as: Above & Beyond, Armin van Buuren, Ashley Wallbridge, Marcus Schossow, Kyau vs. Albert, Super8 & Tab, Dan Stone, Dash Berlin, Andy Moor and many more.
The future looks bright for this young producer, so keep your eyes pealed for new releases from labels like Silk Royal, Armada, etc.
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