Keoki
Discography
On Tour
He arrived on the mainland with
forty records, a bag full of
clothes, $200, and without the
slightest idea he would become a
key figure in a groundbreaking
social movement, an artist whose
music would shred the sonic
spectrum for a digital generation
jonesing to transcend the old
ways of doing things.
That is exactly what did happen
to Keoki, whose incredible life- part “Oliver Twist,” and part
“Johnny Mnemonic,” – is a unique cyberpunk saga. He has become a
record spinner of international renown, the charismatic “Bad Boy
of Techno,” and a figurehead of the vital and controversial
“rave” movement. He can claim even Bart Simpson among his fans.
If you haven’t heard of him yet, you soon will!
“Ego Trip” was the first full-length album of original material
by Keoki-- a performer who, until then, had been mainly
recognized as one of America’s premiere electronic music mix
masters. Whether you’re a longtime fan or completely new to the
form, you have never heard anything like it. Built from the
underground up, “Ego Trip” is like a wild and wonderful funhouse
ride, an album in which Keoki injects everything he’s ever
learned about sound and its ability to captivate us. “Ego Trip”
is the culmination of a unique audio odyssey that began over a
decade ago.
That was the year in which Keoki, born in El Salvador, raised on
Maui- and nicknamed for the mysterious bastard son of a legendary
Hawaiian king- arrived on the US mainland. He laded a job with
TWA in New York tracking lost luggage. Though the gig allowed him
to travel the world for free, it was while moonlighting as a
busboy at Danceteria, a hot Manhattan nightclub, that Keoki saw
the sights and heard the sounds that would change his life- and
perhaps the future of pop music.
Fascinated by the powerful connection a DJ could make with a
crowd, Keoki himself began to play records, putting his own
distinctive spin on other artists’ music. Flamboyant as hell, he
dubbed himself “Superstar DJ” Keoki. “I wore a jeweled crown, big
furry collars and gold chains,” he recalls with a laugh. “It was
a gimmick, but the fun of it really caught fire.” Though it
started as a lark, the “Superstar DJ” Keoki phenomenon quickly
became sought after in Manhattan. He worked legendary parties for
the likes of Lou Reed, Deborah Harry, and The B-52’s. “All the
glamorous creatures of New York were there,” he says.
The former baggage handler was soon jetting, first class, to
perform in America and overseas. He discovered dramatic new ways
to keep a crowd in the palm of his hands. His was a sonic
sleight- of-hand in which funk could meet punk, and where a
barking Scooby Doo would mix perfectly with a ranting Jimmy
Swaggert. “New York really showed me that I could draw on
anything around me and make something of it,” he says. “There
were just no limits.”
By the early nineties the underground dance music scene had
swelled to a critical mass. The rave scene in America was born
and Keoki, as one of the first traveling DJs was thrust into the
limelight. Through his numerous performances at Los Angeles
raves, Keoki caught the attention of Steve Levy, president of
Moonshine. His personality, flamboyance and obvious musical
talent led to Keoki and Moonshine joining forces. Although signed
as a recording artist, his immediate skills lay in his DJ-ing
ability, and as a result, a series of top selling DJ mix albums
including “Superstar DJ Keoki- All Mixed Up” and “Disco Death
Race 2000” were released. In the meantime, Keoki began crafting
original material.
Keoki’s message began to shine as brightly as a welder’s arc.
“This generation, this rave culture is so highly intuitive, that
communicating to them through pure sound is absolutely possible,”
he states. “But since I had their attention, I figured, why not
take it a little further and give them a story, a theme?” Keoki
the pied piper was born.
Keoki’s first single, “Caterpillar,” which teamed him up with
co-producer Dave Aude for the first time, was released in early
’96. It featured the catchy “I just can’t cope without my dope”
hook that made a playful mockery of drug abuse. Blazing to #3 on
the Billboard Dance Chart, the song earned Keoki a spot on that
summer’s Lollapalooza tour and was even featured in an episode of
“The Simpsons.” “Majick,” its follow-up was released in January
’97 as a precursor to the almost finished “Ego Trip” full length.
With lyrics suggesting that the communal euphoria which his
audience sought could only come from the “magic” within
themselves, it, too, rocketed up the charts.
Having moved from New York to Los Angeles (via Denver), Keoki’s
album was now in motion. Three months later, “Ego Trip” was
completed. It was nothing less than a stunning leap, even for
someone whose name is already synonymous with breathtaking
invention. From the harrowing, multi-layered “Madness” to the hit
singles “Caterpillar” and “Majick,” and on to the aural sex drive
of “Space,” “Ego Trip’s” 10 songs are a seamless musical
excursion that carry the listener effortlessly from one hook to
the next. With its trance-inducing synth-lines, mega-ballistic
breakbeats and carbonated vocals, “Ego Trip” crackles with
energy.
How does Keoki himself characterize it? “The music can deliver
the ultimate orgasm,” he insists.
Every generation produces a key performer who, by the sheer force
of his talent and personality, pushes a new form into mass
acceptance. For the increasingly influential realm of electronic
music, Keoki is that key, and “Ego Trip,” his breakthrough.
“This is the beginning,” he says, “of a whole new kind of musical
expression.”
Keoki's 2nd album, yet to be titled will be out in Late 1999. In
the meantime, "Altered Ego Trip" a collection of remixes from the
"Ego Trip" album is currently available.
äÉÓËÏÇÒÁÆÉÑ:
djmixed.com/keoki
keoki
DJ Mixed Compilation
(CD - Full Length)
(listen)
(Breaks) (DJ Mixed) (Trance)
the first new
keoki mixed cd in 2 years
altered-ego-trip
keoki
(CD - Full Length)
(Big Beat) (Breaks) (Drum 'n'
Bass) (House)
it's all the
hits from ego-trip remixed by today's hottest
artists
inevitable alien nation
keoki
DJ Mixed Compilation
(CD - Full Length)
(Breaks) (DJ
Mixed) (House) (Techno) (Trance)
one of keoki's
most insane mixes to date - only from the
mind of keoki
ego-trip
keoki
(CD - Full Length)
(listen)
(Big Beat) (House) (Techno) (Trance)
(Trip
Hop)
it's keoki's
artist debut cd - a moonshine classic
majick (the single)
keoki
(12" Vinyl Single)
(listen)
(Breakbeat) (Breaks) (House) (Techno)
the transatlantic move
keoki
DJ Mixed Compilation
(CD - Full Length)
(listen)
(DJ Mixed) (House) (Techno) (Trance)
keoki mixes
tracks from the key artist that played the
transatlantic
move
disco death race 2000
keoki
DJ Mixed Compilation
(CD - Full Length)
(listen)
(DJ Mixed) (House) (Trance)
keoki's best
selling mixed cd, includes "speed racer"
all mixed up
keoki
DJ Mixed Compilation
(CD - Full Length)
(listen)
(DJ Mixed) (Trance)
journeys by dj keoki
superstar dj keoki
DJ Mixed Compilation
(CD - Full Length)
(listen)
(DJ Mixed) (Trance)
keoki's classic first dj mix for moonshine.