DJ Randall, the influential British drum'n'bass DJ and producer, has died, Mixmag reports, citing his representatives. He was 54 years old.
Born in East London, Randall became a fixture on the UK dance scene in the late 1980s and early 1990s, helping Shepherd acid house conquer breakbeat, hardcore and jungle in warehouse and pirate spaces radio. Mixes capturing his jungle sets – and his occasional stand-alone singles – became formative documents of the era, while sets at venues such as London's Blue Note further incubated the dominant underground dance sounds of the 90s. He founded his own label, Mac2 Recordings, with Cool Hand Flex in 1996 and continued to DJ at major dance festivals until his death.
Metalheadz, the label of another Blue Note staple, Goldie, said on social media: “Everyone at Metalheadz is absolutely devastated to learn of the passing of one of our own. A uniquely lovable character with a heart of gold, you will be greatly missed Randall.” Nia Archives, Paul Woolford and DJ Zinc were also among those to pay tribute.
