HOBBES & ERIK D'VIKING (TROUBLE DJs) - SHORT BIOG

In over seven years of hosting the capital's Radio 1 award-nominated Trouble club night (originally Trouble At The Bluenote) and holding down other residencies all over Edinburgh and beyond (with regular spots in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee and London), the Trouble DJs have also toured the globe, from tiny sweat-boxes and after-hours affairs in London to super-clubs in Shanghai and Beijing, Rob Da Bank's massive Big Top tent at Bestival to wee hot-spots in Warsaw, Sardinia, Vienna, Paris, Berlin, Derry, Ghent, Zadar and Belgrade (not to mention other UK festivals, the Big Chill, T in The Park, Knockengorroch and Secret Garden). They know exactly how to rock the party and always recognise a good groove when they hear one, no matter what musical pigeon-hole people are stuffing it into this week.

HOBBES & ERIK D'VIKING (TROUBLE DJs) - LONG BIOG

The Trouble DJs don’t have much truck with the ‘music policies’ of the British clubs of yesteryawn and really just like to play the best of everything and anything they can lay their grubby mitts on.  Provided it will keep people moving on the dance floor, they’re happy to drop anything from old soul, p-funk, boogie and rare groove to the freshest nuggets from the global disco, house, techno, dubstep, 2step, b-more, baile funk, hip hop and electro scenes.  Basically this means dance music of black origin.  However, that’s not to say they won’t play a classic rock record or the latest indie-disco banger, say, to spice things up and keep people guessing.  Trouble is about having a good party first and foremost and if the record’s got a decent beat, a good tune and enough soul coursing through its grooves, the Trouble DJs will probably be into it.

Well-established players on the Scottish scene, Hobbes & D'Viking currently hold down residencies and guest spots across Scotland’s clubs, bars and other salubrious nightspots, including the Bongo Club, Cabaret Voltaire, the Jazz Bar, The Voodoo Rooms, Villager, Dragonfly, 99 Hanover St and Hawke & Hunter in Edinburgh, Slabs Of The Tabernacle (Glasgow), Snafu (Aberdeen) and The Reading Rooms (Dundee), among others...

Trouble DJs on tour and other guest spots:

Bestival (Big Top), Isle of Wight, 2009, 2008, 2007
Belgrade, Serbia, 2009
Soundwave Festival, Zadar, Croatia, 2009
Knockengorroch Festival, Dumfries & Galloway (Dance Tent), 2008, 2009
T In The Park, 2009, 2008
Soho, Sopot, Poland, 2008
Mandala, Warsaw, Poland, 2008
Bacardi Sino Sessions, Shanghai & Beijing, China, 2007
Snafu, Aberdeen, 2009, 2007
Reading Rooms, Dundee, 2009, 2007, 2006
Lockside Lounge, Camden, 2008, 2007
Bestival (Bollywood Tent), 2006
Now For Something Completely Morgans Spiced, 2007 & 2006
Dust Bar, London, 2007 & 2006
Glenfiddich Independent Mix, Edinburgh, 2005-2006
Fat Tuesday with Southern Comfort, 2004-2005
Projekt Praga Festival, Warsaw, Poland, 2006
Decadance, Gent, Belgium, 2006
Sosa, Sardinia, 2006
Medicine Bar, London, 2006
Gary's Bar, London, 2006
King’s College, Cambridge, 2006 & 2005
Sandino’s, Derry, N. Ireland, 2006
Remedy, Dublin, 2006
Mono, Belfast, 2006
The Arches, Glasgow, 2006
School Of Art, Glasgow, 2005
The Big Chill, 2005
Knockengorroch Festival, Dumfries & Galloway (supporting Desmond Dekker RIP), 2005
Po Na Na, Aberdeen, 2004
Leo's Legendary House Parties, since 2002

Acts with whom the Trouble DJs have worked:

The Black Seeds live (Sonar Kollektiv / Rough Trade)
Horse Meat Disco (Strut, BBC 6Music)
Shapeshifter live (Truetone)
Horace Andy & Ashley Beedle live (Strut)
Marlena Shaw live (Blue Note, Cadet)
Jürgen von Knoblauch / Jazzanova (Sonar Kollektiv, Berlin)
Greg Wilson (Tirk)
Gilles Peterson (Radio 1, Brownswood, London)
Roy Ayers (Polydor, New York)
Dixon (Innervisions, Berlin)
Mr Scruff (Ninja Tune, Manchester)
Rob Da Bank (Radio 1, Sunday Best, London)
Norman Jay (Good Times, London)
Fat Freddy's Drop, (Kartel, New Zealand)
Aim live (Grand Central, Manchester)
Mark Rae (Grand Central, Manchester)
Jazzy B (Soul II Soul)
Ashley Beedle (X-Press2)
Daddy G (Massive Attack)
Kenny Dixon Jnr AKA Moodymann (Detroit)
Ame (Innervisions, Berlin)
Spektrum (Non Stop, Playhouse)
Recloose live (Planet E, Detroit/Wellington)
Claas Brieler / Jazzanova, Germany (Sonar Kollektiv, Berlin)
Rainer Trueby (Compost, Truby Trio, Freiburg)
Benji B (BBC Radio 1Xtra)
The Unabombers/Elektrons (Electric Chair, Manchester)
Alex Barck / Jazzanova (Sonar Kollektiv, Berlin)
Kyoto Jazz Massive (Especial, Kyoto)
Ollie Teeba (The Herbaliser, Ninja Tune, London)
Quantic (Tru Thoughts, Brighton/Columbia)
Jackson (Warp, Paris)
Drumagick (Trama/Sambaloco, Sao Paolo)
Fernando Porto (Trama/Sambaloco, Sao Paolo)
Quantic Soul Orchestra live (Tru Thoughts, Brighton)
Crazy P live (Shiva, Nottingham)
Mocky live (Fine, Berlin)
Jaga Jazzist (Ninja Tune, Oslo)
Dego/4hero (Raw Canvas, London)
Alice Russell (Tru Thoughts, Brighton)
Spanky Wilson live (Tru Thoughts, Philadelphia)
Max Sedgley (Sunday Best, London)
Platinum Pied Pipers live, US (Ubiquity, Detroit/Brooklyn)
Lady Sovereign live (Def Jam, Universal/Island, London)
Schneider TM live, Germany (City Slang, Berlin)
Sonic Boom feat. Magnetephone (Warp, Manchester)
King Creosote live (Fence Collective, Fife)
The Beautiful Newborn Children live (Domino)

Awards, Endorsements And Other Recommendations:

“Sick of clean, safe clubbing and shiny superstar DJs? Top Embra duo Trouble are back 'in black' and promising the perfect antidote. Their dark new night is all about the buzz of hearing great new music, be it soul, rap, disco, electro, house or boogie.” The List, 2009

'Insider's perspective of Trouble' for the 7th Birthday Celebrations & Easter Weekender. The List, 2009. Read it here:http://www.list.co.uk/article/16852-trouble-weekender/

Chart Position: 86 (Hobbes) The List Magazine Hot 100 Chart, 2008'

“DJs, promoters, music junkies and rabble-rousers, Edinburgh’s finest young exponents of hip-hop, neo-soul and bruk grooves....” Bestival Programme, 2007

“DJs, promoters, music junkies and rabble-rousers, Edinburgh’s Trouble crew burl in an open-minded aural fervour, wherein dancehall nuggets nuzzle afro-reggae; wherein jazz, house and techno flirt with disco, electro and Latino; wherein seventies dub, eighties boogie and nineties rave converge to forge a feverish “freestyle”, beat-freaked hoe-down.” Triptych Festival Programme, 2007

"In the face of adversity and the harsh times Edinburgh club and gig venues faced throughout 2005 and 2006, the Cab (Cabaret Voltaire) stood out as a haven for live music and DJs. Totally committed to bringing new bands and tours to Edinburgh and constantly pushing the boundaries with an enviable club roster (including the likes of Ultragroove, Soul Biscuits, Trouble and Sugar Beat), without it the capital would be a far quieter city." Chart Position: 60, The List Magazine, Hot 100 Chart, 2006

“The Trouble crew have lost none of their style, panache and enthusiasm for championing fantastic new music and old school party jams" The Guardian Guide, 2006

"Trouble's musical tastes know no boundaries, they play for the party." Bite Magazine, 2006

Runners Up (Best Club Night) Gilles Peterson's Radio 1 Worldwide Awards, December 2005 (also nominated in 2004).

"...a great example of a club night that was born out of a love of music, not a desire to make money…. Having spent the last couple of years pushing the music forward rather than seeking a profit, let's hope Trouble gets its reward..." Edinburgh Evening News, 2004