Seb Fontaine

Seb Fontaine became one of England's favorite DJs after affiliating himself with Radio 1 and the Global Underground series of DJ mix albums. Of course, he also built up his mammoth following with countless DJing gigs throughout the '90s, including residencies at many of England's top clubs such as Cream and Ministry of Sound. Fontaine changed his style over the years, beginning in the late '80s with rare groove and transitioning toward progressive house as the '90s came to a close. His series of Prototype mixes for the Global Underground series documented his progressive house phase and are typical of what he'd spin at a club. Conversely, his Radio 1 shows documented his taste for more popular and cutting-edge tracks that aren't necessarily in line with his normal mixes.

Born to a semi-professional DJ mother, Fontaine grew up in West London and became aware of club culture at a young age. He began DJing professionally in the late '80s after dropping out of college and he never looked back. His first notable residency was in 1989 at the Fridge in Brixton followed by another residency at the Wag; he spun mainly rare groove at both clubs though also dabbled with hip-hop and ragga. More residencies followed — Subterania, Glitterati, and more — though it was Fontaine's stay at Malibu Stacey alongside Craig Richards that established his reputation as an up-and-coming DJ. At Malibu, he began spinning deeper, darker, and harder tracks; the kind of tracks that would become his trademark. In 1998, Fontaine got his big break, a bi-weekly residency at Cream. Soon after, his residency became a weekly affair, and within a year he was spinning in Ibiza, where Cream hosted parties at Amnesia. During this late-'90s run, Fontaine's career progressed quickly. He not only took on more impressive and more frequent gigs, but also began his series of Prototype albums for Global Underground and his show for Radio 1. He quit his residency at Cream in late 2002 to focus more on touring but recently returned to London to being a new monthly called "Type". A mix for Thrive records presented by Perfecto was released in July of 2003.