Michael Cullen (born 1967 near
Lowestoft
Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...
, England), aka Mike Dred, is a British
experimental techno
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a ...
DJ, producer, and sound engineer. He has been a leading DJ since 1983, a producer since 1988, a sound designer since 1992, and is considered an important figure in the development of
acid techno
Acid techno, sometimes known generally as "acid", is a genre of techno that was derived from acid house and developed in Europe in the late 1980s to early 1990s. It saw younger artists apply the "squelching" synthesizer sound of Chicago acid hou ...
and innovative use of the
Roland TB-303.
He is also known as The Kosmik Kommando,
Universal Indicator, Chimera, Machine Codes, Space Avenge. He was the first artist other than
Richard D. James to release a project on
Rephlex. His clear vinyl "Kosmik Kommando EP" was the third release, and was given a catalogue number CAT007 on account of his interest in James Bond. In addition, the Universal Indicator records released on
Rephlex are amongst the most collectible recordings in the history of
techno music. Mike Dred established the Machine Codes record label in 1990 and also recorded for
R&S Records and R&S Records offshoot Diatomyc from 1992 to 1997. From 1994 to 1999, he collaborated extensively with the electro-acoustic artist Peter Green and also produced a one-off collaboration with
techno producer Dr. Fernando. In 2012 he recorded the Overmind LP for De:Tuned in Antwerp and has contributed to both sought after De:Tuned Box Set compilations.
Acclaim
In 2005, Mike Dred received an MSc with Distinction in Sound Design. Mike Dred was the first DJ producer to get sponsored by the Arts Council of Great Britain and the National Lottery. His works are often used for educational purposes and a selection is part of the prestigious Music Performance Research Centre (MPRC) collection at the Barbican Centre, London. UK.
Music Preserved: Rare recordings about Live Performance
The publication ' The Rough Guide to Techno', described Mike as "The Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
of the 303
__NOTOC__
Year 303 ( CCCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. It was known in the Roman Empire as the Year of the Consulship of Diocletian and Maximian (or, less frequently, y ...
" and "Full on Acid
In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a sequ ...
Genius".
As well as presenting new developments in electronic and computer music, Mike has also given lectures on Sound Design and Synthesis. Mike is the inspiration behind Electroacoustic Music being represented on a more popular level after the 1995 Beyond The Box EP with Peter Green. His works with Peter Green dating from 1995 educated & inspired the likes of Richard D. James a.k.a. Aphex Twin to discover the genre culminating in the signing of LPs by Robert Normandeau, Senior Lecturer in Acoustics and Electroacoustics at the Universite de Montreal, Canada and experimentalist Pierre Bastien from France. This helped further establish Rephlex Records as the premier UK electronic label. Mike Dred and Peter Green's early sonic experiments prompted Dave Robinson, then Editor of Future Music (November 1995, Issue 37), to write: "We boldly call ourselves Future Music. But how often do we bring you something so forward-looking, yet at the same time so contemporary that it might - just might set the agenda for the next post-techno, post-analogue phase?"
Mike Dred was on the SPNM composer short list for 2005 to 2008 using his given name Michael Cullen.
Discography
As Kosmik Kommando
*Kosmik Kommando ep (Rephlex Records, CAT007) EP (vinyl) 1992
*Freaquenseize (Rephlex Records, CAT010) 2XLP, 2XCD 1993
* Universal Indicator Yellow (1993)
* Universal Indicator 5 (Ultra-Violet) 1992 / 2000
*Analogue Android (2011)
As Mike Dred
* Rock The People EP (Machine Codes) 1990
* Fu Chin Ra EP (Machine Codes, CODE A) 1993
* Kosmik KonundrumsEP (Machine Codes, CODE B) 1994
* CODE C EP. (Machine Codes, CODE C) 1994
* Beyond The Box EP (with Peter Green) (Machine Codes CODE D) 1995
* EPNOM BYMON EP (with Peter Green) (Machine Codes CODE E) 1996
* DJ Mike Dred - 98K Live (Rephlex Records, CAT069) EP (vinyl)
* Mike Dred & Peter Green - Virtual Farmer (Rephlex Records, CAT070)
As Universal Indicator
*'' Blue'' (1992)
*'' Innovation in the Dynamics of Acid'' (2001)
As Chimera
*Untitled 4 Track White Label (Rephlex Records, 1993)
*Valley of the Spirits / The Future is Upon US (Rephlex Records) 1993
*Valley of the Spirits (Rephlex Records, CAT012)CDLP 1993
*Out of the Valley EP (Machine Codes. CHIME 2T. 1996)
*Shen Circuits (Veil of the Spirits) EP. (Machine Codes, CODE 1110) Digital Release 2016
*Cabeus EP. (Machine Codes CODE 1111) Digital Release 2017
*Fireside Phoenix EP. (Machine Codes CODE x10) Digital Release 2017
References
External links
Discogs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dred, Mike
Living people
1967 births
English DJs
English record producers
English audio engineers
People from Lowestoft
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Rephlex Records artists