DJ Mark John

Hailing from Melbourne, Australia, Mark John is one of Australia's most respected and highly revered disc jockeys. Having mastered a unique sound that stretches the entire breadth of the house music genre, John’s inimitable talent has seen him scale impressive heights to become a nation-wide club favourite.



Abiding by the philosophy, "house music has no rules", Mark pushes the boundaries through infectious sessions incorporating breakbeat, electro, future soul and Latin /afro, with these floor-shaking excursions mixed seamlessly with the grittiest of house and garage.



A trumpet and piano player from a young age, John’s passion for music was ever-present. His embrace of the club scene began during his uni days in the early 90s, with his foray into the DJing world occurring only a couple of years later during a three year stint in Japan. Cutting his wax-spinning teeth regularly playing marathon 12 hour sets, Mark’s incredible natural talent was obvious from the offset.



Drawing inspiration from the industry’s finest musical supremos George Benson, The Jacksons, Quincy Jones, George Duke, Malcolm Mclaren and LL Cool J to contemporary legends such as Roger Sanchez, Danny Tenaglia and Masters at Work, John was hooked. Dividing his time between his DJ sets, his new found passion for music production and his savvy knack for seamlessly combining the best of disco, street soul, jazz, funk and hip hop ensured he was a talent on the rise.



In 1998 he issued his first devastating production blow with the white-hot ‘Into the Fire’ EP on Central Station Records. Receiving an incredible 5/5 from respected magazine ‘Blues & Souls’, the track was signed to numerous compilations around the globe and saw up and comer John thrust into the spotlight. Within three weeks of ‘Into the Fire’ dropping, the spinner had secured tours throughout the US and Europe, playing gigs in Miami, LA, Portland, New York, Athens, Rome, Paris, Geneva and London. Further touring followed in 2001, when Mark’s Vicious Vinyl signed groover ‘You give me everything’ demanded a tour throughout Asia.



In the ensuing years, John’s tireless work ethic and natural musical flair saw him achieve impressive success with local electronic outfit Disco Montego, as the group’s writer/producer/DJ. The band scored three Australian Top 40 hit singles with ‘Magic’, ‘U Talkin to me’ and ‘Beautiful’ which went on to achieve Gold status. Led by ex-Bardot star Katie Underwood, they also toured nationally with the massive Rhumba festival, dishing up a particularly memorable performance at Sydney’s Homebush Stadium, where they rocked the roof off the 45,000-person event.



Together with brothers Danny and Dave Dharumasena under the Navajo moniker, John signed a 12 single deal with heavyweight local imprint Vicious. The accomplished trio also regularly produce music for Dutch imprint Hardsoul, the UK’s 37 Music and American label Look at You Records. At present their ‘Rock with you’ burner is generating heat on dancefloors worldwide and was house luminary Roger Sanchez’s ‘Hot track of the week’ on the S-Man’s ‘Release Yourself’ radio show. Currently, John is also writing tracks with French legend Martin Solveig, with the soul-satisfying cuts due for imminent release



An active participant in almost every facet of the industry, John ran the long-running and highly influential Saturday nighter Family, at Melbourne’s famed Seven nightclub with fellow local Anthony Larr between 2001 and 2006 during which time he was resident dj for the Defected in the House parties (Melbourne & Sydney) . The club played host to the who’s who of house heavyweights, with everyone from Martin Solveig, Chicken Lips, Lenny Fontana, Joey Negro, Brian Tappert, Knee Deep and E Smoove gracing the Family decks.



Currently John holds down residencies at Melbourne’s premier house night 6 degrees (www.myspace.com/sixdegrees), Famous, Q Bar, Love Machine, and Eve, as well as Sydney’s Strangeways, Bedroom in Surfers paradise and frequently makes the trip to Perth to stroke wax at the city’s Metropolis nightclub. His immense popularity has seen him booked for the country’s biggest dance events including Summadayze, Two Tribes and Godskitchen, having supported the likes of Mouse T, Armand van Helden, Erick Morillo, Roger Sanchez, Masters at Work, Frankie Knuckles and Basement Jaxx, among many others.



An invaluable member of the dance music industry, John also runs the Quazimodo Sound Consortium, a company set up to provide production services to the corporate world. Quazimodo currently manages an impressive portfolio of projects, having written music for KFC, Burger King, BMW, Coca Cola, BP, Nike and Nivea. Mark’s razor sharp musical ear has also seen him sought by L’Oreal Professional as their music director, with the talented spinner also starring at a range of product launches including the House of Dunhill, Sportsgirl, Melbourne Fashion Week and numerous Austereo events.



With so much going on it’s amazing to think the talented Melburnian has a single second to spare at all. Still, John’s relentless musical passion sees him make up the 6th piece in electronic band, Black Dogs. Alongside ARIA winners Danny Dharamusena and Tony Coppa, the group’s dynamic fusion of soul, rock, house and funk has been setting tongues wagging in recent times. Keep your ears to the ground for a string of Dogs’ single releases by the end of the year.



A man with an undeniable Midas Touch when it comes to tearing up dancefloors and production studios alike, Mark John’s talent is simply irrepressible. With plans to further spread his wings overseas in the coming years, there’s little doubt the man will remain a name on dance lovers’ lips for a long time to come.