Nicholas Jaar - Ishmael

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Biography
At school they said Jason Wallace’s obsession with music may have a detrimental effect on his future. On the contrary… from his infatuation with music his life has been enriched and inspirational.

It all started at a very young age at home when his father would ask him to change a record once they had finished playing. Later, when he was merely 14, he would sit for hours at his father’s club watching, mesmerised by the DJ. It wasn’t long before one of them showed him the ropes and he, himself got to play while the DJ took a break. This was the most exhilarating experience of his life. A life cast to follow the love of the beat.

Jason started hosting school parties for the older kids, just so he could practice, combining old turntables with a cassette player. Desperately wanting to be near the music he got a job mastering and editing in a sound studio in Johannesburg.

1995 was the start of the dj club scene for Jason in London’s The Gardening Club, Milk and Two Sugars and Tribe. During those two years he also played for Girls FM, which was locally based pirate radio station.

On Jason`s return to South Africa he became a resident in the legendary Foundation Club in Johannesburg, at the same time he was gaining all of this valuable experience he was playing alongside international professionals such as Carl Cox, Jeff K (Masters At Work), Judge Jewels, Fat Boy Slim, Sasha and John Digweed, Sonique and Dillon & Dickens, as well as many other stars of that era.

In the late 90`s he hit a real milestone when he started hosting his own nights and taking part in the development of the deep house scene in South Africa.

Over the next 6 years he became resident at Opium, Black Sheep, Ministry of Sound, Tilt, 330, Dream Scapes, Carfax, Mother, Time, Truth…some of South Africa’s top clubs and events.

2006 made a turn again as his migration back to the northern hemisphere, this time landing in Zurich, Switzerland.

It didn’t take long before he had set up his own party label called Digital Love, doing parties in Luzern and Zurich.

As his popularity grew he was offered a resident position in the underground scene in Zurich’s infamous Hive Club, where he is well known for his deep jumping house and techno sets. Hive being voted the 2nd best club in Europe for the 2009 Club Awards for Mix Mag.

Finding his niche in the Rakete (Rocket) party label, number one in Zurich for the past 3 years, each month presenting a music melt down from all around the world, he was able to experience playing along side the best talents of their kind such as Steve Bug, Kollektive Turmstrasse, Christian Burkhardt, Loco Dice, Booka Shade, Jens Bond, Oliver Koletzki, Sebo K, Martin Landsky, Fritz Kalkbrenner.. You get the idea…


Currently he hosts the 4 Jahreszeiten ( 4 Seasons) party label in Hive as well as playing with labels such as, Mobilee Rec, Poker Flat, Soul/Berlin and Watergate/Berlin, Connoisseur Rec.

Blessed by being surrounded by creative, talented musicians and friends since living in Switzerland, his world and passion has been strongly reinforced, his crowds continue to fill up dance floors and get swept along on his sets of ever smoothly flowing styles.

Nicholas Jaar - Ishmael

Ismail Shakil