Kate Simko & Tevo Howard's Most Wanted: Chicago

This Saturday we have two artists inspired by the windiest of all cities and one of the USA’s foremost homes of house music, Chicago. Kate Simko and Tevo Howard are both journeying to RM3 this Saturday from their new European bases and have decided the platform of our Most Wanted feature was the perfect place to speak about how, even though they now both live in London and Berlin, they both look to Chicago as the pinnacle of inspiration in their music still to this day. Tevo: The land of Chicago has always been my dreamland... As a child I remember thinking about being from other cities and possibly a small town, but every time I would travel I would miss Chicago at some point. Sometimes greatly. Today, I do enjoy where I am and I am content, but the time I spend in Chicago nevertheless feels like an island dream in the summertime, for example. During the early 90s I remember attending underground loft parties at places like 301 South Jefferson, and in the south loop... Leave alone early wicker park loft days. Mid 90s I recall attending SHELTER nightclub, and hearing artist like "DJ Chunk a Bud" play tunes... Those were beautiful days in Chicago. Some might say that Chicago has changed, but I would entirely disagree by saying that we as Chicagoans are still ahead of our time... It is simply that we've always been misunderstood... Today is no exception to that. Some might say that there's no scene there, but the scene has always been underground... When people say that I should reply that we are all Chicago, I say sorry, but you have to spend time there to understand the city... Kate: Growing up as a teen in the 90¹s, Chicago was a major influence on me as well. By the time I was old enough to start questioning things, and find myself (cliché but we've all been there), it was underground dance music that spoke to me more than anything else. I started going to parties every weekend in Chicago and a couple other cities in the Midwest, and fell in love with dancing until dawn - escaping the cold winter nights and stresses of life, and surrounding myself by inspiring music and people each weekend. My favorite Chicago DJ's back then were Traxx, Mystic Bill, Boo Williams, and Mark Almaria. I loved that it was mainly music without words (besides vocal and disco house ¬most of us Chicagoans will always be suckers for that), which was what I was used to growing up playing piano. The layers and polyrhythms were completely entrancing, and I was instantly attracted to this music. Chicago house is timeless, that is for sure. It might not always be in fashion (remember the minimal days) but yet it doesn¹t change. It’s soulful, energetic, and pure. No gimmicks, no compromise. DJs and producers from Chicago generally are real artists because DJ’s don’t get paid a lot, and house and techno is still very underground. Chicago is a blue-collar, industrial, working class city. People aren’t generally fancy, and that is really reflected in house music. It’s a down-to-earth scene, from the record stores to the DJs at the clubs. So I guess my Most Wanted aspect is that a little bit of Chicago rubs off on the scene worldwide. It's a big world out there, and as DJs it’s good to stay humble as we carve a niche and express ourselves through the music we love the most. Chicago taught me that better than any other place could have and I’m happy to call it my hometown. Tevo Howard & Kate Simko - Polyrhythmic 1