026: NEIL DIABLO
Manchester
Music lives for music. While all genres have a place in Manchester’s rich and diverse music history, the city was known as one of England’s epicenters of Northern Soul, a scene which championed rare black American soul and r&b music from cities like Detroit and Chicago, serving it up to discerning dance floors at iconic venues like the Twisted Wheel. While the sounds of Manchester’s clubs have evolved, the scene remains vibrant.
The city continues to be viewed as the less posh and more spirited alternative to its larger cosmopolitan counterpart of London. Today we’re happy to present one of Manchester’s storied DJ’s, Mr. Neil Diablo.
Neil’s name is derived from his former residency at Manchester’s El Diablo Social Club which he held since the early 2000’s until recently. His nights at El Diablo were hailed as some of the greatest and most hedonistic in Manchester; Neil earned his disco stripes in the late 1990s as a record buyer and staffer at one of Manchester’s great institutions, Piccadilly records, which continues to serve the world with some of the freshest cuts of off-the-beaten path music from around the world.
Neil is known for getting the dancefloor into a frenzy with a no-frills mix of leftfield house and disco. He finds the records that people want to dance to, not the ones to be lectured on about for rarity or influence on a micro genre. With that said, Neil continues to push an underground aesthetic, keeping it real and fun at the same time. Neil’s penchant for moving crowds no matter the size or venue has made him a sought after DJ in his native England, in Europe and across the pond in the United States.
As a producer, Neil is known for his now defunct floor friendly edits label ‘To Rack & Ruin’, and his former vinyl only, ‘EDSC Recordings’, which had productions and remixes from key names in the industry like Eric Duncan, Ron Basejam, Ruf Dug, Craig Bratley, Dj Rocca and many more. Most of these productions are now available on Neil’s bandcamp.
Despite the discontinuation of these labels, Neil continues to remain busy on the production front. He just released a single for his Downtempo/ balearic project, North of the Island, and he has two upcoming releases on Manchester labels Drum Chums, an offshoot of Talking Drums, and Red Laser Disco. Keep an eye out for these releases and another under his North of the Island moniker coming out next month.
Neil takes us on a much needed fantasy tour with his mix - 1.5 hours of dream house from the 1990s through today. We’re honored to have one of Manchester’s most mighty and irreverent DJ’s take you on a musical journey for our latest mix. Plug it in, hit play and spread the word.
Neil Diablo Links: Bandcamp | North of the Island Bandcamp | FB | IG | SC | Spotify
