Kaidi Tatham

British multi-instrumentalist, producer/remixer, DJ, and artist. Once nicknamed the 'Herbie Hancock of the UK' by DJ [[artist:Benji B]] due to his keyboards prowess, Tatham is a true innovator and virtuoso in sound production, as one of the original creators of the West London broken beat sound. Born and raised in Redditch, just south of Birmingham, UK and classically trained from a young age, Tatham moved to London in 1993 to study for a BTEC in Performing Arts. Here he met [[artist:Kester Lydon]], a fellow keyboard player, who went on to connect him to a new world of musical minds and ideas. Of many people he was introduced to, [[artist:Jake Wherry]] of [[artist:The Herbaliser]] was his first performance credit on release "[Blowin' It ](https://www.discogs.com/master/353042-The-Herbaliser-The-Real-Killer-Blowin-It)" (1995), and while spending time at Lydon and Wherry's West London studios, Tatham met some of the original members of what went on to become [[artist:Bugz In The Attic]] and 'the rest is history' as they say. BITA member [[artist:Alex Phountzi]] remembers, 'I met Kaidi when I was 19 years old. We were working on an early track from our [[artist:Neon Phusion]] project and Kaidi, who was working in [[artist:The Herbaliser]]'s studio next door, came in to check out what we were up to. I think we needed a new bass line on a track we were working on, Kaidi put his hands on a keyboard and started playing something and locked in immediately. We all clicked musically and as friends, and at this point, the [[artist:Bugz In The Attic]] crew was just taking shape.' Immersing himself in this newfound creative scene, Tatham soon went on to make another invaluable connection through fellow BITA member [[artist:Mark Lipka]] (aka [[artist:Mark Force]] and [[artist:G Force]]), who connected him with [[artist:Dego]] ([[label:Reinforced Records]] co-founder and one half of [[artist:4Hero]]) where the two formed a strong musical bond, collaborating to this day. Along with his earlier work with BITA and continued work with Dego and extended [[label:2000 Black]] connections, he also DJ's globally, and has done pioneering work for London production outfits like [[artist:DKD]], [[artist:Silhouette Brown]], [[artist:Blakai]], [[artist:Likwid Biskit]], [[artist:Neon Phusion]], and under [[artist:Agent K]] (his own alias); quietly proving himself as one of the most influential British musicians of his time. Over the years, his musical prowess has gone-on to bless many projects, including with DJ [[artist:Jazzy Jeff]], and [[artist:Andrew Ashong]], along with session work for artists such as [[artist:Amy Winehouse]], [[artist:Mulatu Astatke]], [[artist:Slum Village]], [[artist:Soul II Soul]], and [[artist:Leroy Burgess]], as well as [[label:First Word]] label mates such as [[artist:Eric Lau]], [[artist:Children Of Zeus]], and [[artist:Darkhouse Family]], with later work on labels like [[label:Eglo Records]], [[label:First Word Records]], and [[artist:Theo Parrish]]'s [[label:Sound Signature]], et al. His second solo album "[m=199306]" (2008), and the first under his own name following [[artist:Agent K]]'s "[m=204655]" (2002), pushes the musical boundaries of electronic dance music rarely heard today, retaining its contemporary London influences it allowed Tatham to stretch out musically in a way he hadn’t done on record before, with the majority of the tracks not in the standard 4/4 time signature that most contemporary dance music follows, and some switch between a handful of different time signatures over the course of a few minutes, his virtuosity never gets in the way of coherent groove, melody, harmony, and arrangement. Originally released on Japanese label [[label:Freedom School]], from Tokyo, and recorded on a modest set up at his flat in south London, it became a holy grail record for dance music fans and jazz heads alike, with its mythical status spurred-on by not being available digitally until 2020. Influencing countless musicians/producers who heard the album, in more recent years Tatham's efforts there have been felt outside his immediate musical realm, epitomised when track "Orbit" from album "[m=204655]" (2002) was sampled on [[artist:Freddie Gibbs]] & [[artist:Madlib]]'s track "[m=1516239]" (2019) from album "[m=1571782]" (2019). Madlib said, 'Kaidi was ahead of his time with that album, and he still is. I love that loop and I’m happy we could use it. Kaidi is my brother, he loves what we do, and we love him.' Along with more 12"/singles projects, he continues to grow on later albums. From "[m=2198146]" (2018), on to "[m=2198146]" (2021) (via "[m=2389594]" (2021) with cohort [[artist:43597]]), and latterly with "[m=2746763]" (2022).