Nero

Nero say that they’re best known for ‘Ragga Puffin’, but they’re possibly being a bit modest here (as they are almost certainly being ironic when they say that the future of DJing is Paris Hilton).

They first shot to notoriety – in drum & bass circles anyway – with their 2005 release ‘Ragga Puffin’ on DJ SS’s Formation offshoot Reformed Recordings, a track with an epic intro that would only hint at what was to come from this hugely talented production/DJ duo. Daniel Stephens and Joe Ray had a No.1 single in the UK with ‘Promises’ in August this year, and simultaneously held the No.1 album slot in the UK with ‘Welcome Reality’. These immense achievements – as well as supporting and remixing Deadmau5 – marked the culmination of Nero morphing from a d&b act through dubstep and into all-conquering EDM. Dreamy banger ‘Innocence’, featuring Alana Watson on vocals, was their first big dubstep record on MTA Records, the label run by Chase & Status, another junglist duo who broadened out their palette to embrace other musical styles. And they haven’t really looked back, having bigger and bigger hits with ‘Me & You’, ‘Guilt’ and then ‘Promises’ as 2011 progressed. “The last 12 months have been incredible for us,” Nero tell DJmag. “We’ve been so lucky to have the chance to DJ around the world and do things like work with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. We can’t say thanks enough to fans and those who’ve supported us.”