Features
2015: The Mixmag Awards
Kinda serious, kinda tongue-in-cheek
Best festival on a pinger: Dirtybird Campout
For their festival debut, the Dirtybird squad took everyone back to their youth with their very own Campout. The only differences between Camp Dirtybird and summer camps in American movies were that no one was preaching sobriety and the camp counselors were actually semi-famous DJs. Claude VonStroke, J.Phlip, Justin Martin and more led the 'campers' in all sorts of wholesome games like ultimate frisbee and tug-o-war – who knew activities were so much fun? While the daytime games made for good laughs and lots of rolling in the grass (pun intended), it was the single stage bumping the signature Dirtybird house and techno that had everyone wide-eyed and properly stuck to the floor. Kill Frenzy and J.Phlip brought the right dose of techno that sent everyone into a weird and wonderful place, just as they needed it the most.
The bounce back: Craig David
Despite rising to household-name status with a string of chart-topping, silky r'n'b singles at the start of this century, Craig David had faded into relative obscurity in recent years, his name lingering on in mainstream culture only through repetition of the tired Bo' Selecta! meme from the mouths of the type of people that still quote Channel 4 sketch shows a decade after cancelation. We missed him dearly, so were delighted to see Craig roar back into life in 2015 and overcome the ridicule of parody with legitimacy. A straight up banger cannot be mocked, and his Big Narstie collab 'When The Bassline Drops' is just that. Welcome back Craig, we love you.
