The Machinists

The Machinists Aka Hugh McMahon

Released on:

7th Sign (Glasgow, U.K.),

Rubber Taxi (Glasgow, U.K.),

Anecdote (Sheffield, U.K.),

Absoloop/Orange 82 (Ohio, U.S.A.),

Armed (Argentina,) K-84 (Chile),

Panel Trax (Hungary),

Miss Electric Records | MER (Austria),

Pentax Records (Spain),

Different is Different Records,

Binary trax

Backspin Records

Based in Glasgow Scotland, Hugh McMahon has been around in the electronic music scene since the late 80’s, going to clubs such as the Sub Club and Tin Pan Alley in Glasgow.

Later on in the early 90’s, Hugh hooked up with an old school friend, Mark Paul, to form a band called TAB, which performed in and around Glasgow, playing their take on acid house/techno; from this collaboration, Chunk Recordings was formed, and they released on vinyl an EP Music for Rhino’s, which subsequently received air play by the legendary John Peel on BBC Radio 1.

During their partnership, Hugh and Mark both played mostly in the underground party and early rave scene, along with the Desert Storm Crew, in and around Glasgow, while enjoying the freedom to party after the clubs had closed for the night.

Their second-release went out on Dom Cappello’s label, 7th Sign, in early 2000.

They then went under the name DJ Pivo with their: “On The South Side”-E.P., which was a mixture of techno and acid, which was then followed by a solo-release from Hugh, which appeared on a various artists compilation, now under the moniker: “The Machinists”, with a Chicago style minimal house/techno track, which was very well received at the time.

After a long hiatus from producing (approx.. 8 years), Hugh soon got in touch with another old friend, whom he met at Club 69, back in the mid 90’s; Chance McDermott asked if Hugh would remix one of Chance McDermott’s tracks for a then pending new release! This was the pivotal moment that restarted Hugh’s love of making music, and he went on to remix a few more of Chances tracks.

Around 2012 Hugh started producing music again, and released on Panel Trax Records in Hungary; this was another big moment for Hugh, as he was an avid follower of this label; later on Hugh went on to release a few more tracks with this label.

This in turn got Hugh more and more into playing live so he then focused on creating a full-on live show of his own, taking old school, hard techno and playing them in the clubs not only of Glasgow, but also around numerous other venues and events around in Scotland as well.

Hugh to this day still continues to release on various labels around the globe, and has enjoyed making new contacts and sharing musical ideas; most recently Hugh has been playing at Binary School in Aberdeen.

Hugh McMahon, as The Machinists, has no set approach to producing music and likes to explore various musical styles - it’s mainly hard techno, which Hugh focuses on playing live to audiences.

His inspirations come from bands such as: The Velvet Underground, Joy Division, Talking Heads - just to name a few, whilst he gets inspiration likewise from the techno scene’s producers such as: Chance McDermott, Jeff Mills, Woody McBride, Luke Slater and the Advent.

Initially Hugh started producing music by using hardware; then as the technology caught up and matured, Hugh then went completely digital, but still uses the same techniques! For Hugh, the first take is always the best mix to him, as it captures the initial excitement of making a new track; furthermore, his preferred method is to record live (and with minimal editing) so the track is practically already finished.

He makes music for himself to listen to; however, this music has also been shared in certain circles, which in return has brought attention of his sound to other producers and labels, which increased demand for his output!

Whilst the demand for Hugh’s musical output has yet to give any financial success, this is not why he does it! Hugh McMahon is happy to enjoy his favourite pastime, composing, producing and releasing underground techno - just for the love of it

https://soundcloud.com/themachinists-1

https://www.facebook.com/TheMachinists666/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC50wYZvc8oYNogx9CXokkhQ

https://www.beatport.com/artist/the-machinists/35769

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOd0uP2vmYE&feature=share