Social Housing by Mark Hawkins

Despite an aversion to the spotlight, Marquis Hawkes is one of the fastest-rising names in house music. A string of 12″s for labels such as Dixon Avenue Basement Jams, Clone and Aus preceded a trio of exceptional EPs for Houndstooth, which won him swathes of new fans, from the DJ booth and the radio studio to, of course, the dancefloor.

Now he presents his long-awaited debut album ‘Social Housing’. Inspired by and named after his surroundings, 'Social Housing' is a sonic celebration of the positive impact that living in not-for-profit, association-managed social housing in Berlin has had on Hawkes’ life and music.

"Social Housing is named as such, because it's the environment I live in, the first thing I see every day when I walk out of my front door, and in effect, influences aspects of my life, including my music. Too often, particularly in the UK, the term is viewed negatively and equated with slum estates, broken windows and criminality. I want to show that something positive comes out of such schemes. The album Social Housing wouldn't have been possible to produce without the stability and security that social housing has given me and my family. " - Marquis Hawkes

Made up of 12 brand new and unreleased tracks, showcasing and transcending Marquis Hawkes’ penchant for soulful vocal cut-ups and jacking drum-machine jams, this stunning debut LP represents over two years of dedicated creation. Tracks including ‘Apple Of My Eye’ and ‘Tim’s Keys’ feature input from Hawkes’ regular collaborator Timothy Blake on keys whilst ‘I’m So Glad’ features the soaring vocals of one dance music’s most recognizable voices, Jocelyn Brown.

Leaving no artistic stone unturned, Hawkes commissioned his friend, illustrator and fellow musician Alan Oldham (aka DJ T-1000) - a member of the Detroit collective Underground Resistance who’s renowned for his graphic novels and cover artwork for labels such Transmat and Djax Up-Beats - to provide us with the visual manifestation of his creation. The cover artwork was drawn from a photo taken by Hawkes’ wife in the area of East Berlin that they live.

Available on 3xLP, CD and download. The vinyl is cut & mastered by Matt Colton. Buy vinyl from this store to receive free WAVs upon release.

Mark Hawkins is a studio based musical artist with a career spanning more than 25 years.

Cutting his teeth in the UK underground party scene throughout the 90s, he has built an extensive body of work collaborating with a wide variety of record labels and artists, in numerous styles of electronic music under many different aliases, including his given name.