The first time I heard Nightmares On Wax I had little to no knowledge of house music. I knew it was a genre, but not one that I had ever delved into myself. I picked up a copy of In A Space Outta Sound when it came out (2006)  really for no other reason than I liked the name and found the cover interesting. I put it on when I got home and was instantly transported to another world. DJ E.A.S.E (George Evelyn) mixes all kinds of different noises to create a whole new sound I was completely unfamiliar with. I haven’t spent too much time looking further into house music, but I know that I often return to that particular album any time I need something to just chill with or if I’m just looking for a good vibe-y hour.

I had no idea who was behind the music-a band? DJ? Robots? Didn’t matter to me. The music was good and that’s all I ever care about. With this new retrospective, N.O.W. Is The Time, covering his whole career, people will know that Evelyn is the one behind all this great music. There’s a short documentary that you can check out below that tells his whole story-in his words-in a very short time (the abridged version). As he talks about growing up in England, joining  a B-Boy crew, getting into NYC hip-hop you can really start to pinpoint some of those influences in his work.

This opening track from In A Space Outta Sound had me transfixed when I heard it. I must’ve played it a million times driving around the little town I was living in at the time. It reminded me a lot of the French duo Air, without some of the heavy-handedness that they seem so fond of. It was really a great intro into Nightmares On Wax. It hit at the right time, I guess, when I was ready to let something new into my musical spectrum and it opened up a lot of new avenues for me to follow. Without it I probably never would’ve given artists like Pretty Lights or Paper Diamond a chance.

Nightmares On Wax will be on tour in the States from June 18th through July 21st, with a stop here in Chicago on July 3rd at Concord Hall. For ticket info go HERE. To pre-order a copy of N.O.W. Is The Time go HERE.