Nero (band)

Nero (stylised as NERO) are a British electronic music trio composed of members Dan Stephens, Joe Ray and Alana Watson. On 12 August 2011, they released their debut studio album, '' Welcome Reality'', which reached number one in the UK Albums Chart. In August 2012, " Promises" received a Gold certification in the United States. On 10 February 2013, Nero won a Grammy Award for their collaborative remix of "Promises" with Skrillex. Their second studio album, ''Between II Worlds'', was released on 11 September 2015.

History

Ray and Stephens were both born in 1984. Ray grew up in Northwood, London, whilst Stephens grew up in Notting Hill. The boys met Watson when they were 18. Ray played classical guitar and Stephens played cello with encouragement from his free-jazz musician father. By the time a mutual friend introduced them at the age of 17, Stephens was attending the specialist music school at Pimlico. Outside school both were making electronic music on home computers. They began working together at 17, setting up a studio in Stephens' bedroom. The latter had already been a fan of jungle music after seeing M-Beat featuring General Levy on Top of the Pops in 1994. Ray's epiphany (according to ''Q''), happened in the London club Fabric where the duo's ideas about producing were cemented.Stubbs, Dan. Q magazine. December 2011. They Came From Outta Bass. pp 88-92.

Nero's debut release was "Space 2001" as part of the "Straight Outta Leicester" three piece vinyl LP on Reformed Recordings in 2004. Watson started featuring on Nero's songs from 2008, namely "Solid Air" (Punchy Recordings) and "This Way" (Audio Freaks) which was their debut dubstep release, and is now a full-time member of the band.

Nero released the EP, 'Requiem', 10 May 2006, predominantly hard drum and bass, which quickly saw their acknowledgement rise within the dance music scene.

Sasha Frere-Jones, journalist for the ''New Yorker Magazine'', listed Nero's remix of The Streets, "Blinded by the Lights" in his top songs of 2009. The track had radio airplay in the U.K. as well as being played by DJs including Chase & Status, Skream, Tiësto and Diplo.

''Welcome Reality'' (2010–2012)

The trio released their first single on MTA, " Innocence", in the United Kingdom on 26 April 2010. The single was released as a double A-side with the track "Electron" as a digital download, as well as on vinyl. The track peaked at number one hundred and sixty seven on the U.K. Singles Chart besides peaking at numbers sixteen and eleven on the Dance and Independent charts respectively. In November 2010, Nero unveiled their BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix. The mix went on to extreme critical acclaim and has been widely regarded as "The Greatest BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix of All Time". The mix was recorded at the height of the dubstep popularity and features a wide variety of genres such as; Drum and Bass, French House, Dubstep and Electronica. The 2010 Nero Essential Mix also later became a talking point on 4 September 2015 as there was a wide debate upon Reddit users on 'the best Essential Mix of all time'. On the website, users had a heavy favour of the mix (slightly edging out Zeds Dead in second place) even though it was recorded 5 years earlier, furthermore, it received the publicly voted awards of "Greatest Essential Mix of All Time" and "Fan Favorite Essential Mix" On 6 December 2010, Nero was nominated for the BBC
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