After several 12” releases on Dutch and American minimal techno labels (X-Sub, Tape) in the late nineties under his own name, Remco De Jong launched his Phako moniker in 1999 with a noir and loungey signature style, with twitchy IDM rhythms and hip-hop influences.
His first untitled 12” with Clone’s experimental IDM imprint Dub (Djak-Up-Bitch) was a split release with E.O.G (Richard Barendrecht and Alden Tyrell), a Rotterdam duo known for their experimental dance productions. De Jong released three more 12”s and a full length CD,
Shipyards and Engineering Co Ltd(2002). For the
Bolnes Fragmented 12" and the album, De Jong took his cues from the Bolnes shipyard where his studio is located. An old disused dock in the harbour of Rotterdam still filled with large-scale machinery and cranes, the melancholy industrial atmosphere of the place infuses his music. Minimal and mechanical beats are overlaid with floating electronica, evoking the waters of the Maas River moving through the dock.
Phako has been known more recently been a member of Megadebt, Otto Von Schirach’s call to arms mash up group, with tracks appearing on
Misadventures In Global Destruction (Rise and Defeat 2004) and others.
>www.phako.net
Appearances:
> 2007 > MIDI-Street-Instruments
> CTM.06
> CTM.04
> CTM.02
