Midland

Midland is the performance name of Harry Agius, a UK house musician, DJ, producer and label owner from the United Kingdom. He starts DJing while at university in Leeds, where his alias comes from the road he lives on as a student. In Leeds, he plays club nights including Momentum, Metropolis and Subdub, and warms up on the Valve Soundsystem for DJs such as Grooverider, Andy C and Dillinja. After university, he continues living in Leeds, where he meets producers and DJs including Pearson Sound, Ben UFO and Pangaea, and attends nights such as Exodus, Subdub, Louche and Back to Basics, which shifts his interest towards slower tempos.

Labels and releases

Agius founds Graded in 2013 to release his own productions. In 2015, he starts Regraded as a sublabel for more house and disco-oriented music, releasing work by artists including Gerd Janson and Hubie Davison alongside his own tracks. In February 2016, he contributes to BBC Essential Mix, and the set closes with the unreleased track “Final Credits”, which later becomes associated with dance floors and festivals. The mix wins Essential Mix of the Year, and “Final Credits” is named Mixmag’s song of the year for 2016.

Style and career

Midland’s work sits within house and electronic music, with links to deep house and tech house. As a touring DJ, he plays clubs and festivals including Berghain’s Panorama Bar, Glastonbury and Dekmantel. He is also an advocate of LGBTQ+ rights and culture, and his 2024 album Fragments of Us includes samples relating to the persecution of the LGBTQ+ community.