DJ Madskillz

Although Madskillz can be found behind his turntables every weekend in clubs throughout the country, he takes producing just as seriously as DJ’ing. Because of his unique sound, DJ Madskillz is a much sought-after producer/re-mixer. In the last 20 years DJ Madskillz aka Gertjan Schonewille has worked with many leading House & techno labels such as, Plus 8 Records (Richie Hawtin), legendary Djax-up Beats (Miss Djax), Stealth (Roger Sanchez), 100% PURE (2000 and One), Area Remote and Bitten. Together with 2000 and One, Madskillz was part of classic Acid House "Edge of Motion" in the early 90's. In 2006 he formed a producing partnership with Gregor Salto (G-REX Music) and their first successful collaboration was ‘Embryo’(DJ Madskillz & Gregor Salto, 2006). The hit was played by all the top DJs throughout the world. In the last years he also remixed tracks from international artists such as Axwell, Shinedoe, Christian Smith, Alex Celler, Roger Sanchez, 2000 and One, Sandy Rivera, Microfunk, David Penn, Till West, Eddie Thoneick and Bob Sinclar. These productions have seen them join the ranks of the top DJs. Currently, Madskillz is in favour with his releases on the highly rated tech-house label 100% PURE, Area Remote & Bitten. His latest releases (Kliniek, Surface, Airmiles remix) are banged and played by Adam Beyer, Luciano, Paco Osuna, Tiefschwarz, Marco Carola, Karotte, Shinedoe, 2000 and One, Kabale und Liebe, Bart Skils and Anton Pieete. History DJ Madskillz, aka Gertjan Schonewille (1969), developed his enthusiasm for music when he first encountered the upcoming hiphop and electro sound in 1985. “I can remember that I was particularly fascinated by the music which was played on the well-known pirate stations in those days; music that was completely different from the top-40 tunes of that time.” He discovered house music and he got mad about this new sound after visiting club RoXY in Amsterdam in 1989. “I wasn’t really enthralled by just spinning records; I was particularly interested in new techniques to make music.” Gert bought a drum machine(Roland TR-909) and a bass synthesizer(Roland TB-303) and started to experiment in the studio. And how! In 1991, he produced, together with Dylan Hermelijn, ‘Edge of Motion’, his first 12" ‘Set Up 707’, which became the ultimate worldwide house classic. From that moment on, he has been producing different styles, from trip-hop to drum & bass, from techno to house, under different aliases.