DJ Bam Bam

Following the footsteps of pioneering Chicago hard house trendsetter Bad Boy Bill, DJ Bam Bam similarly established a rabid following with his relentlessly mixed, breakneck-packed sets of pounding house tracks. He entered the big leagues at age 18 when he signed to UC Music as a producer, churning out tracks as simply Bam Bam for the Chicago-based label also home to Angel Alanis and Alex Peace. In addition to his production work for UC, Bam Bam recorded a few mix albums for Strictly Hype beginning in the late '90s: two volumes in the House Blend series as well as two volumes in the Hard Beats series. He then moved to Topaz Records in 2002 for Do You Like It Hard?, a similarly styled mix album except with a bigger budget for marketing and licensing. That summer he embarked on a Topaz-sponsored tour and extended his growing following beyond the Midwest. ~ Jason Birchmeier