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Bugge Wesseltoft

Jazzland, ACT, Norway, Norway

Henrik is a long time veteran of the German deep house scene, cutting his teeth as a DJ in the nineties. But it's been his forays into production that have really set dance floors alight, as his extended, epic approach to tunes both on wax and live with his laptop, have brought a soulful jazzy ambience to the 4x4 groove. The house worship doesn't just stop there – his label Sunday Music was the foil with which to release his anthem to over-thinking, Leave My Head Alone Brain, and since he has lent his unique sense of time to remixes for everyone from The Sunburst Band to DJ Hell and Kuniyuki. Recently rolling with Dixon and Âme as part of the Innervisions Orchestra, and collaborating on their mix CD The Grandfather Paradox, Henrik walks with a four four shuffle all the time. Constantly pushing the envelope of what jazz music can be, this Norwegian mastermind is far beyond any tired ideas of ‘fusion’. Born in Porsgrunn and raised in the neighbouring city of Skien around 65 miles southwest of Oslo, jazz music filled Bugge's world from an early age by virtue of his guitarist father Erik Wesseltoft (who claims that his son was playing the piano at two years of age!). Inevitable as it seemed that young Bugge would grow up a musician, it wasn't all jazz jazz jazz however. Playing tuba and bass drum in his school marching band, he was in a punk band at the age of 16 and experimented with electronics in the early ‘80s when he bought his first synth. All of which might explain the breadth of styles in his New Conception Of Jazz in the early ‘90s, after making a name for himself in several jazz outfits and recording with Jan Garbarek for ECM. Wesseltoft has continued to collaborate and evolve ever since, most recently with his live project with Berlin-based deep house maestro Henrik Schwarz. Got the Bugge? 

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