international news _ JONTY SKRUFFF _ 26th September, 2005

Seb Fontaine Savages 'Progressive' House

British big name DJ Seb Fontaine launched a ferocious critical assault on progressive house this week, branding the genre he was once associated with 'dull nonsense'.

"There was a time when all these people would be sending me in progressive CDs and I'd be thinking 'oh my God, if I hear one more CD like these I'm going to slit my wrists', they were so fucking dull," Seb recalled, "They created no atmosphere on the dance floor."

His comments starkly contradicted those of Way Out West's Nick Warren who this week told Australian magazine 3D World that he remains fully committed to progressive.

"I think I've always been a prog DJ. Progressive house is forward thinking dance music," Warren suggested, "There's this whole electro fad at the moment, I've never gone down that route. There's a few interesting tracks but I think a lot of it lacks energy." (3D World)

Chatting to Skrufff, Seb avoided using the term electro ('If someone asks me what I play I say 'electronic house',") though admitted his favourite producers of the moment are Tiefschwarz.

"Tiefschwarz are fantastic and there's loads of great music out there at the moment, that electronic sound, certainly this summer, has got bigger and bigger, though some of it is too minimal for me," he said.

"I think electronic house has really revived dance floors, people are smiling again and jumping up and down. A bass line is coming in and you get the whole club cheering. You don't need all that dull nonsense."

The ex Radio 1DJ has been touring extensively since leaving the station last year, and performs his first gig in Thailand shortly, where he'll be showcasing his new sound.

"Due to the internet the world is a much smaller place these days and musically it's no longer the case of seeing somewhere like Thailand as being the other side of the world; clubbers, wherever they are, are listening to the same music online," said Seb.

"With any new territory I always approach a gig with the knowledge that the set could go in a number of different directions but it's not like I'm visiting virgin territory. Clubbers are clued up all over the world these days."

Seb DJs in Bangkok, Thailand on November 2 at Flix RCA.(Jonty Skrufff)