The name MECK has been everywhere of late thanks to the UK number 1 smash hit single Thunder In My Heart Again. The record gained the support of, among others, Radio 1s Pete Tong, who went on to play it for 10 consecutive weeks and made it his Essential New Tune. As people have subsequently found out, Meck is the DJ and recording alias of Craig Dimech, the former head of free2air recordings and now head honcho at Frenetic Music which he's firmly placed in the epicentre of cool, clubbing culture.
Craig started his career as a DJ in the early 90s and was club resident at one of Londons most loved nights Peach which ran for a staggering 10 years, leading to guest appearances worldwide and a position in DJ Mags Top 100 DJs in 1999. The natural process to Craig was to then develop a keen interest in the A&R process of making and developing records, no longer content with just playing them. He soon became A&R manager for Ministry Of Sound affiliate label Incentive Music in 1999, where he went on to become Head of A&R, signing and developing such diverse acts such as Mario Piu, Matt Darey, Santos, Dino Lenny & The Genius Cru, all major hits in their own right. After 3 very successful years there he was then asked by Edel Records to start his own label. free2air was born in January 2003 and the rest is history as they say, scoring hit after hit at a time when most imprints were being forced to close. With the view that the best form of defence is attack, Craig scored Top ..10 success with Jason Nevins, Narcotic Thrust & Mousse T before producing (with Marc JB & Lee Dagger) and delivering the no.1 smash Thunder In My Heart Again.
2007: How do you follow up the only dance record to be the UK no.1 for 2 weeks in 2006? Well, for Meck it wasn't about resting on his laurels and going down the same musical path again. 'Feels Like Home' utilises the classic, unmistakable riff from Felix's 'Don't You Want Me' but is light years away from what you maybe expecting. With vocals written & sung by the much-underrated Dino (known to most of you as the talented Dino Lenny) and road tested by Meck on his extensive dj travels around the world, this is a true club monster.
Dino - the Italian based producer, known by more aliases than a criminal overlord – Lenny’s more verbally twisted alter-ego and contained the Pete Tong championed ‘Call Me’ which become one of free2air’s most downloaded tracks ever in the UK, spawned a Top Ten hit in Italy and further recognition of his talent worldwide. The duo have actually known each other for over 12 years, dating back to when Dino gate crashed one of Craig’s studio sessions, where he was finishing a remix. “He literally came in and said ‘I heard what you were doing through the door and think you can do it better if you listen to me’. I was like who’s this cocky bastard!” remembers Craig. From that point on a strong bond was forged, with Craig running Dino’s ‘Age One’ label before being snapped up to work for Ministry of Sound imprint Incentive and then leaving to set up free2air in 2003.
So Meck and Dino came full circle, providing a refreshing, sophisticated collaboration - which resulted in the catchy, hypnotic, euphoric anthem ‘Feels Like Home, described as 'Faithless Meets Kasabian'. This planted an early marker as one of biggest club records of 2007 and a Top 40 UK hit to boot which eventually led to a call from Madonna to use it in a mashup with her classic hit ‘Like A Prayer’ on her current Sticky & Sweet 2008 world tour and is viewed by many as the highlight of the whole show. Check it out in a city near you or wait for the DVD soon!
If that wasn’t enough Meck & Dino’s current collaboration is the Buzz Chart no.1 ‘So Strong’ (dipping into The OT Quartet’s Hold That Sucker Down’) is featuring in sets the world over from the likes of David Guetta/Axwell/Tiesto/Steve Angello/Armin/Pete Tong. With the next single also in the bag for early 2009 the signs are good for another steller year…
Discography
Discography:
Meck ‘ Freakism’ (boot of Missy Elliott’s Get UR Freak On & X-Press 2’s ‘Muzikism’)
Meck ‘Now I Can See’
Meck ft Leo Sayer ‘Thunder In My Heart Again’
Meck ft Dino ‘Feels Like Home’
Meck ft Dino ‘So Strong’
Meck ‘Windmills’ (2009)
Remixes:
Ghosts ‘The World Is Outside’ (Atlantic)
The Wideboys ‘Bomb The Secret’ (AATW)
Johnny Depth ‘Magnificent Feelin’ (Frenetic)
Azzido Da Bass ‘Dooms Night’ (Frenetic)
Out Of Office 'Insatiable' (Frenetic)
More information / Official website : http://www.myspace.com/meckonline