Full circle with Phantom 45, Daz-I-Kue and Sinceelay June 21 at Detours DNB

I wore out the Vanilla Gorillaz Vol. 1 mixtape* by Phantom 45 and Terry Mullan. It traveled between Atlanta and Durham and Tennessee in my 1995 red Honda Civic coupe, aka “Lil Red.” I could recite the sample, “my record of choice … the turntables” on cue en route to raves at Nike Pavilion, or randomly in the midst of chores in my two bedroom apartment in Reynoldstown.

So having Phantom 45 grace the decks in Atlanta at Detours Drum and Bass on June 21 – after nearly 20 years – is coming full circle in a way that only those who’ve been at this for 25-plus years would understand. Our shared hometown of Chicago is an added bonus.

Learn more about Phantom 45’s start as a house DJ to true-school drum and bass legend here.

As Detours DNB aims to do, we’re putting together the right people, at the right time, at the right place. This edition is bridging the gap between drum and bass, broken beat and hip-hop.

A legend in his own right, Daz-I-Kue, aka Darren Benjamin, is the best man for the job of connecting the genres. He was part of the pioneering broken beat Bugz In the Attic crew, and literally helped define the UK’s grime sound. He’d go on to remix critically acclaimed artists such as Amy Winehouse, Soul II Soul and 4 Hero, and spent years in Atlanta working with some of the city’s top-tier artists including Khari Cabral Simmons (Jiva/India Arie), Anthony David, Avery Sunshine, Rhonda Thomas, Heston, Kai Alce and DJ Kemit.

Now based in Nashville, where he continues to be prolific with I-Kue Recordings, Atlanta fans new and old are stoked for Daz’s return.

Setting the scene for the night, Sinceelay of the Team Rollers crew brings an all-vinyl set steeped in hip-hop with elements of jungle and drum and bass mixed in. Fresh off a gig at Block & Drum, he’s promising “a very special set” that will reflect his deep connection to both genres and beyond.

Tickets are available now – $20 in advance, $25 at the door.

*Matt “Dough” Donathan was the one to hook me up with that mixtape – as he often did with so many things, music being just one of them. How he got his hands on the tape from Middle Tennessee, I’ll never know, but I’ll always be grateful.