DJ Sneak

by John Bush
One of the second wave of influential Chicago house producers and a member of the vanguard of late-90s American house producers, DJ Sneak wasnt born in the Windy City but began listening to house soon after his family arrived from Puerto Rico in the early 80s. Because he could speak no English, Sneak gravitated to instrumental music (as well as graffiti art), and became inspired by Chicago legends such as Marshall Jefferson and DJ Pierre. Many of those early innovators had left Chicago for the East Coast by the late 80s, when Sneak was ready to start in the business; by 1992, however, Cajmere had begun a resurgence in the citys classic sound by starting up Cajual Records. Sneak aided in the revolution with a series of singles on Cajuals sister label, the harder-oriented Relief Records. Besides other productions for Strictly Rhythm, Henry St., ZYX, 83 West and Feverpitch (several of which feature Armand Van Helden on co-production, building on the Latin vibes of their heritage), DJ Sneak has also released mix compilations including 1996s Kinky Trax Collection and the following years Buggin Da Beats.