Will Bailey is a DJ and producer from Birmingham, UK, associated with house, electro house, techno, electronic music and electro. He also works under the aliases Bass Weazal and Twocker. He releases on Simma Records.

Background

Bailey develops an early interest in music through his family. His father works as a session keyboard player with major rock bands in the 1980s, including Magnum and Whitesnake, and Bailey learns guitar and drums from a young age. At school he plays several instruments and takes part in different bands and music groups. His musical influences include Prince, Michael Jackson and David Bowie, followed later by The Prodigy, The Orb and Orbital.

While studying in Bristol in the late 1990s, he turns towards house music after listening to Danny Rampling’s Radio 1 show, Love Groove Dance Party, on Saturday nights. He also follows club DJs including Brian Tappert, Louie Vega, Kenny Dope, Mousse T and David Morales. He saves to buy decks, teaches himself to DJ, and begins playing local nights in the city. As his reputation grows, he appears at events such as Wildstyle, Slinky, Funktion and Bristol’s Bank Holiday events at Liquid.

Promotion and residencies

In 2002, Bailey helps start the boat party The Funk Boat with friends. The event becomes Bristol’s longest-running and best-known boat party and later leads to two of the city’s larger nights, Prominence and Electroquisite. He goes on to play at Miss Moneypenny’s, Promise, Godskitchen, L'america, Creation, Liquid, Spin and Fuel, and he holds a residency at Bristol night Kandybox. That residency takes him beyond Bristol as well, including European touring dates alongside Yousef, Seb Fontaine, Tom Neville, Lottie and Danny Rampling.

Production work

Bailey moves into production after establishing himself as a DJ. His first solo release, Rootin, appears in 2005 and draws attention from Rock Solid Productions. His second release, That Piano Track, comes after he returns to the Midlands, and Miss Moneypenny’s signs it for release on its own label. After a short break at the end of 2005, he returns to the electro-influenced house sound that becomes central to his work.

His unofficial remix of MTV - Bleeep! attracts significant attention, and his own tracks And Again, One, Freak, Shaker and Go Sick circulate among club DJs and producers. His productions and remixes are played in clubs, festivals and parties internationally, and his work reaches some of the best-known names in the scene.

Later profile

By the mid-2000s, Bailey’s profile continues to rise through club appearances and residencies, with performances alongside Timo Maas, Eric Prydz, Mylo, Mark Knight, Ian Carey, Paul Jackson, Chris Lake, Micky Slim, Tocadisco, Funkagenda and Dave Spoon. He remains identified with the electro-house wave that shapes his sound and DJ work.