Sugarcane Family Signs to Dustpan

We are proud to announce that Chicago’s Sugarcane Family has signed to Dustpan Recordings and they will be releasing a full length album that is to be out this coming October. So keep your ears peeled and your tongues wet for some tunes coming your way – further reading below…

Blake and Sean met in 2009 at a bar in the West Loop of Chicago that they both worked at. They soon discovered that they both had similar likes and taste in regards to the Chicago house music that they grew up on in the early 90’s, as well as what they were liking and listening to currently. They swapped stories about labels, djs, and producers they liked and Blake realized that he owned several tracks that Sean had put out in the early 2000’s, while Sean was learning that Blake was a solid dj with motivation and connections. So the two formed a partnership.

They started with a house music night in Chicago that they named and branded “Open House”. Open House was an inclusive showcase for all genres of house music and welcomed anyone and everyone, both well known talent and up-and-comers shared the decks with the weekly Open House resident, DJ Blake Walker. Open House went on for 5 years strong with a rotating roster of guest djs such as: Lady D, Diz, John Simmons, Gantman, Paul Johnson, Gene Farris, Jason Tyler, Gene Hunt, Karl Almaria, Mark Almaria, Rees Urban and CZ Boogie amongst many others. It was during this time that Sean was inspired to start producing again after several years of being on hiatus. With input from Blake on what he felt the crowd would dig, they started making tracks, and Blake[pullquote_right] Open House @ Crocodile Lounge, Chicago.

[/pullquote_right]“test drove” them during Open House every week. After a few months (and several dozen “test” tracks), they started getting some positive feedback from fellow producers and djs asking “who is this”, and/or “can I get a copy of this”. This motivated Sean and Blake to tighten up a few of their more “popular” tracks and really give them a good push into the public realm, not just at Open House but anywhere Blake was spinning. Then one day, a long time patron of OH, Kris from South of Roosevelt asked if anyone was going to release a few of the tracks he heard, and Sean and Blake said not yet. Kris then mentioned that he and his partner JP were starting a new label (Elevated Tracks) and wanted to release a few of the Sugarcane Family’s tunes. Sean and Blake said “sure and thanks mucho”; that was the beginning of Sugarcane Family, at least “officially”. There is also going to be an Elevated Tracks mixed compilation cd by dj Mark Farina featuring a Sugarcane Family tune or two coming out late 2014.

Additionally, Sean had produced songs on and off during his hiatus and had caught the ear of another inspirational producer and dj; Frique. Frique released and remixed two of Sugarcane Family’s earlier tunes and now offers them on his label Lea Recordings (along with the originals) via his website: www.frique.com. The summer of 2014 was a busy one for the Sugarcane Family in the studio and in a promotional capacity as well. With a desire to use this new momentum, they pushed hard to get their newer tracks heard and hopefully released. Blake was a guest on the Los Locos del Techno radio show in Minneapolis, MN and spun a live set as well as discussing his latest productions. Shortly after, the Vivaro Records label out of South Wales, UK signed several singles, as well as Upsize Records out of Singapore. Sean and Blake are currently discussing an album with Dustpan Recordings and will hopefully have some exciting news late 2014/early 2015.

Stay up to date with the latest news at their pages: Soundcloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/sugarcanefamily Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sugarcanefamily