English Biography

Ski Oakenfull : Producer / Composer / Remixer / Musician

Ski first made an impact in 1991 with The K-Creative(link is external), one of the initial singings to the then newly established Talkin' Loud(link is external) Records. Co-writing & co-producing their debut album 'QED'(link is external), he toured extensively throughout Europe and Japan. After his tenure with the The K-Creative(link is external) ended, Ski joined UK soul-funk band Raw Stylus(link is external) as keys man (touring & recording with legendary Steely Dan(link is external) producer Gary Katz(link is external)) and regularly performed with the in house band at Gilles Peterson's(link is external) seminal club nights at Bar Rumba(link is external) in London alongside visiting luminaries such as Guru(link is external) from Gangstarr and iconic Brazilian superstar Flora Purim(link is external).

1994 saw Ski join ex-label mates Galliano(link is external) as keyboard player. His relationship with the band grew, culminating in him co-writing and co-producing their final album '4'(link is external). The next few years saw Ski develop his writing & production skills further including writing sessions with Incognito(link is external) and the release of the club classic 'Justify'(link is external) on Bob Jones'(link is external) short lived yet much missed Black on Black(link is external) label. Ski also contributed tracks to a unique global collaborative project called 'Sun Sun'(link is external). This featured exclusive material from some the finest exponents of alternative contemporary dance music including DJ Cam(link is external), Bob Sinclar(link is external), Kruder & Dorfmeister(link is external) and DJ Die(link is external). It was Ski's contribution, a deep & funky rolling number called 'Montreux a Marseilles'(link is external) that brought him to the attention of Sony Columbia(link is external). They immediately signed him up and he recorded a version of the late Joe Henderson's(link is external) jazz classic 'Tress Cun Deo La'(link is external) featuring the vocal talents of Valerie Etienne(link is external). This was well received throughout Europe and it caught the ears of Philly's very own aqua boogie monster, King Britt(link is external), who supplied a beautiful remix.

Ski followed this with the release of his debut album 'Life Changes'(link is external). The album showed Ski as a true musical polymath, embracing influences and inspiration from house, disco, electro, jazz, soul and funk. 'Life Changes'(link is external) is the distillation of musical experience, innovation, absorption and adventure. Over the next couple of years Ski went on to persue his passion for remixing and writing. High profile reworks of tracks such as 'I can See the Future'(link is external) by Incognito(link is external) (Talkin Loud(link is external)), 'American Dream'(link is external) by Jakata(link is external) (Rulin(link is external)) and 'Freak Like Me'(link is external) by The Sugababes(link is external) (Island(link is external)) firmly established Ski as a true Nu-Jazz(link is external) innovator and lead to countless remix offers.

Not one to stick to studio productions alone, Ski has provided his keyboard talents for many different bands such as Earl Zinger(link is external), 2 Banks Of 4(link is external), The Bays(link is external) and even a brief spell with Kylie Minogue(link is external)! ...and of course not forgetting playing his own gigs all around Europe, including a gig at Cargo(link is external) in London for Gilles Peterson's(link is external) Glenfiddich Independent Mix. Ski is also not averse to spinning the odd record or two and has played at clubs across London and Tokyo.

For his second (and most recent) album 'Rising Son'(link is external) in 2005, Ski teamed up with Bluey(link is external) and DJ Venom(link is external) to produce an intoxicating blend of classic Old skool house to Nu skool soul and uplifting funktronica. It features Amp Fiddler(link is external) on 2 cuts, Chi Turner(link is external) on 3 cuts, Tony Momrelle(link is external) and Earl Zinger(link is external) and Valerie Etienne(link is external). It was initially released in Japan on Pony Canyon(link is external) and later worldwide on BBE(link is external).

Most recently Ski has completed a new project under the guise of Ayota. Initially inspired by a Japanese friend's book of Poetry entitled Helicopter Flying In A Cloudy Sky, Ski wrote soundtracks to three of the poems. This quickly developed into an album project continuing a Japanese ambient theme. The result is 'Helicopter Cuts'(link is external). Ski has had the opportunity to showcase the album live at the Big Chill Festival(link is external), Bestival(link is external), and most recently at Nick Luscombe's(link is external) Flomotion(link is external) night at the Big Chill House(link is external). The album was released in Japan only on Third Ear Records(link is external) in 2006, and will hopefully see a release in 2010 on Third Ear UK(link is external).

2010 has seen Ski play live at a number of club nights & festivals with The Bays(link is external), complete two new remixes for Incognito(link is external), release a new EP featuring a cover of the classic YMO track, 'Thousand Knives' and also write and produce demos for the newly signed Murray James(link is external).

Biography originally written by Tony Higgins(link is external) and later adapted by Ski