DJ Food

DJ Food originated as a joint endeavor linking the Coldcut/Ninja Tune pair Matt Black and Jonathan More with the later additions PC, born Patrick Carpenter, and Strictly Kev, born Kevin Foakes. At first the name applied solely to a multi-volume run of pared-back breaks compilations that Black and More assembled expressly for turntable use, supplying raw material for other selectors. Persistent demands from promoters who treated the name as an actual performer’s identity forced the duo to convert the concept into a lasting group. To expand the lineup and keep the Food sets distinct from Coldcut bills, they brought PC and Strictly Kev aboard; beginning in 1994 the four issued various 12-inch combinations, among them “Freedom”/“Consciousness,” before delivering their first proper album, A Recipe for Disaster, the next year. The same quartet traveled through Europe, Canada, and the United States, focusing mainly on DJ sets, and also shared decks each week on Coldcut’s Solid Steel program for KISS FM. Separately, PC and Strictly Kev were commissioned by Warp Records to select and blend tracks for the Blech series drawn from that label’s experimental techno catalogue. Black and More maintained a split schedule among Food, Coldcut, and the daily running of the widely followed Ninja Tune and Ntone imprints. The project’s next studio album, Kaleidoscope, surfaced in April 2000 and earned favorable notices. Twelve months afterward the original duo launched the Solid Steel CD line with the mix collection Now, Listen! Subsequent years saw Black and More scale back their involvement because of Coldcut priorities, while PC achieved growing recognition through Cinematic Orchestra and eventually stepped away from full-time membership. Strictly Kev reactivated the project in 2011, issuing The Search Engine the following year; PC returned as a guest alongside J.G. Thirlwell and Matt Johnson of The The on the record’s extensive roster of contributors.