Justin Shave
Shave is moving into heavyweight producer territory these days with a 6 page spread in a recent edition of industry bible Sound on Sound. The interview details his work as producer on Darren Hayes’ new album (he of 25 million selling duo Savage Garden), ‘This Delicate Thing We’ve Made’. As well as penning 7 tracks on the album, he produced several remixes for single release.
The article also investigates the custom-built music making soft-synth-come-physical-instrument, the extraordinary Okkam 01, an invention that recently won him an endorsement by pioneering German company Native Instruments.
He’s also just finished producing two tracks for ‘Supernature’ disco legend Cerrone’s latest album, 'Celebrate', including the single ‘Laisse Touche’ feat. house diva Katherine Ellis, which has been chosen as the tiltle track for the forthcoming film 'Disco'.
Other artists he’s currently co-writing with and producing for include solo artist Antigone and her forthcoming debut album AntigoneLand, due for release June 08. He produced and remixed the single 'More Man than Man' currently being promo'd.
Shave has been producing since he was 19. He came from a classical piano background into pop and jazz keys, and from there moved gradually into programming, production and writing.
His first breaks were with the Deep Forest-esque album Siva Pacifica and love tattoo, whose 12” ‘Drop sum Drums’ was licensed by Positiva and from there landed on Fat Boy Slim’s Live at Brighton Beach comp. A second single from this album ‘The Bass has Got me Movin’ was lucratively licensed in Australia for a commercial.
In 2003 Shave formed the house duo Etherfox with love tattoo vocalist Antigone and signed a latin- house 12” to Ministry of Sound called ‘The Whirled you Live’, which stormed Ibiza, was licensed by several European companies and landed on several massive dance compilations including Hed Kandi’s Beach House. In 2006 they signed second single, a soul-disco-house stomper ‘Something Different to Say’ to they of UK No 1 fame The Shapeshifters’ imprint Nocturnal Groove. It peaked at No 11 on the UK Club Charts last summer and was placed on several comps for Hed Kandi and Fierce Angel. It has also just been licensed by the Miami Herald News as the main theme for their regular video and podcasts.
Parallel to all of this activity, Shave has run up an impressive list of compositions for TV commercials including Bacardi, KFC, AT&T, Toyota and Chrysler.
He also co-writes the odd topline with Antigone for acts like The Shapeshifters.