Dash Berlin http://www.dashberlin.com/ www.armadamusic.com

Dash Berlin is a true deejay at heart with a profound passion for the comprehensive culture of dance music. He is often described as an invigorating and charismatic newcomer, with the unique ability to leave a long-lasting impression upon his audience well after the night is over. Dash is one of those rare individuals that seems to understand the unwritten laws of the nightclub by nature. He keeps his ever expanding, nocturnal following alert, ecstatic and craving for more, with remarkable precision and skill. One could easily mistake him for a superstar deejay. However, the truth remains that Dash Berlin views the world through the same eyes as his public. “It’s virtually impossible to make progress without the continuing support of the people”, he humbly said.

The early years
Dash Berlin was born as Jeff X. Sutorius, in November 1979, in The Hague, the Netherlands. A family with wide musical tastes surrounded him and because of his late father, who was a distinguished drummer in a jazz band; Dash became acquainted with the typical marks of rhythmic music at a very young age. While still at high school, he became a devoted fan of electronic music, regularly enjoying mix tapes that his older sister brought home from the clubs she worked at as a professional dancer.

In his late teens, Dash Berlin started working at a record shop and became a dedicated vinyl collector with a fascination for melodic, synthesized house music, subsequently known as ‘Trance’. Inspired by pioneering figures such as; Sven Väth, Oliver Lieb and Sander Kleinenberg, he slowly but surely started to develop his own innovative style of mixing and producing. His hidden work ethic seemed not to be about producing more, but rather less and differently. It is this vision that still sets him apart in a crowded and highly competitive scene.

Propelled by his passion, he literally performed everywhere, from nine-hour long gigs in shopping malls to the notorious illegal Dutch warehouse parties. During his set on the world famous Love Parade, Dash decided to incorporate the word ‘Berlin’ in his artist name. “It’s an ode to a metropolis and her engaging, urban landscape,” he said, “Where I have seen more than a million people dancing on the streets, in the in the spirit of an ever-evolving Europe”.

The birth of Dash Berlin
In early 2006, he teamed up with fellow producers and close friends, Molijn & Kalberg, who were regular customers at his record shop. “These guys are amazing visionaries and astonishing studio wizards, they are the foundation of my sound”, Dash remarked. “I still learn from them every day.”
Together, they designed an ambitious and unprecedented new sound of Trance, quickly labeled as the ‘Dash Berlin Sound’. Futuristic, scintillating, but above all, moving and emotive music that relates to the universal dance floor experience, shared by innumerable music fans from multifarious cultures around the globe. Although a vigorous believer in political awareness, the message of Dash Berlin is simple; “It’s all about having a good time again,” he stated, “the art of celebrating life resonates inside of everyone”.

In 2007, none other than Armin van Buuren revealed his newfound discovery to the world and featured Dash Berlin’s debut record ‘Till The Sky Falls Down’ on his legendary ‘Universal Religion’ album. The track became one of the most memorable, global anthems that year and remains one of the cultivated blueprints of the new Trance renaissance. The black & white music video that complimented the radio mix was shot in the heart of Berlin proper. The clip grew to be a genuine labor of love, using the latest in digital cinematography, and successfully avoided the typical clichés of contemporary dance music videos.

Expanding the Dash Berlin universe
In the beginning of 2009, under the mighty wings of Armada Music, plans emerged to expand the Dash Berlin universe with his very own label called ‘Aropa’. It represents an eclectic high-quality outlet for Dash Berlin’s avant-garde productions and collaborations. The label also built a solid foundation for rising talent and established like-minded artists. “The Aropa brand holds a deeper connotation too”, Dash revealed, “It also stands for the axiom of sharing art, inspiration and creativity”. The first release was the monster anthem ‘Man On The Run’, which is a prolific collaboration with fellow Armada artists Cerf, Mitiska & Jaren. The track sky rocketed to the top of the international Trance charts and received a prestigious nomination for ‘Best Trance Track’ at the annual Trance Awards.

October 2009 brought the global release of Dash Berlin’s critically acclaimed debut album: ‘The New Daylight’. Besides being a varied collection of styles, it also features instant classics such as: ‘Till The Sky Falls Down’, ‘Man On The Run’, ‘Waiting’ and ‘Never Cry Again’. Each of the individual music videos of these anthems, being pieces of visual art, make up for millions of views on YouTube. With the creation and release of a free Dash Berlin iPhone app, the hard working deejay reaffirms his forward-thinking multimedia mindset.

His dedicated fans actively vote for him when it matters the most. This loyal support already resulted in an astonishing Top 10 position in DJ Mag’s Top 100 of 2011. It also gained him honorable spots on events like Trance Energy and the A State of Trance celebrations, two of the largest and most essential Trance events in the world. These past years of voting rewarded him with several nominations for International Dance Music Awards, resulting in adopting the title ‘Best Hi-NRG/Euro Track’ for ‘Waiting’ ft. Emma Hewitt.

#musicislife
The past three years have all caused a reverberating bang when it comes to the Dash Berlin sound. From the ‘United Destionation’ compilation series, which reflects his recent gigs with a top selection of tracks straight from his record bag into two seamless deejay mixes, to making a great rise in the DJ Mag Top 100, taking in a solid number 8 position. 2012 promises to be another momentous year for Dash Berlin. A year all about the follow-up of ‘The New Daylight’.

With his brand-new ‘#musicislife’ album, aptly named after one of his most popular Twitter hash tags, the ‘Flying Dutchman’ shows no signs of slowing down and is all set for his monster #musicislife World Tour. Dash Berlin’s much anticipated follow-up record contains signature hits such as ‘Disarm Yourself’, which features the angelic vocals of Australian singer Emma Hewitt, ‘Better Half Of Me’ & ‘World Falls Apart’ the epic duology with top vocalist Jonathan Mendelsohn, the magical team up with German DJ superstar ATB on ‘Apollo Road’ and of course exciting new collaborations with artists such as Emma Hewitt, Shogun, Kate Walsh, Shanokee, Chris Madin, Hoyaa and Sarah Howells. British singer-songwriter Howells joins Berlin on his new single ‘Go It Alone’ accompanied by a gorgeous music video shot in South Africa. The video got half a million views within the first week of its appearance on YouTube.

April 27th 2012 is the date. #musicislife is the future. Dash Berlin is happening here and now.