Mikael Johnston is a musician, producer and remixer best known for his work in electronic dance music. Johnston is a founding member of the San Francisco house music group Mephisto Odyssey which originated in the early 1990s.[1] After a string of successful singles on his own label imprint Mephisto Records (starting with the 12" Dream of The Black Dahlia), Johnston signed with progressive west coast label City of Angels, home to future break beat kings The Crystal Method. Johnston's notoriety in the major label music industry began in the late 1990s with his collaboration with Jane's Addiction on a series of remixes for their maxi single "So What" under the name Deep Red. A recording contract with Warner Bros. Records soon followed. While at Warner Johnston worked with Nu Metal act Static-X on a remix for their single Push It. This eventually led to their collaboration on the crossover alternative song, "Crash" which later became a video directed by Len Wiseman that appeared on MTV and in the film Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker.[2] Johnston's other projects include, Deep Red, Seraphim and The Swerve.
Mikael Johnston | |
|---|---|
 Johnston in May 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mikael Wesley Mathew Johnston |
| Born | December 29, 1973 Dover, Delaware |
| Origin | San Francisco |
| Genres | Electronica, House, Dance-Pop, Trance, Rock, Hip Hop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, producer |
| Instruments | Guitar, bass, synthesizers, vocals |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Labels | Mephisto Records, City of Angels Records, Warner Bros. Records |
| Member of | Mephisto Odyssey |
| Website | Dresden and Johnston Official Website [1] |
Currently Johnston is one half of the electronic dance music duo Dresden and Johnston with Dave Dresden formerly of Gabriel and Dresden.[citation needed] Dresden and Johnston's remixes of Lily Allen and Nadia Ali both hit #1 in the Billboard Magazine Hot Dance Club Play Chart in 2009.[3] Other remixes by the duo include BT "The Unbreakable", JD Webb "Better Man", The Crystal Method "Black Rainbows" and Owl City "Hello Seattle".[4]
References
edit- ^ Keast, Darren (2000-09-06). "Dealing With the Devil - Music - San Francisco - San Francisco News and Events". SF Weekly. Archived from the original on 2021-11-07. Retrieved 2019-07-29.
- ^ Allmusic guide: Mikael Johnston Biography
- ^ Billboard: Lily Allen Hot Club Play Chart
- ^ "INTERVIEW: Dave Dresden & Mikael Johnston". Best of House. 2009-02-26. Retrieved 2019-07-29.
- ^ "INTERVIEW: Dave Dresden & Mikael Johnston: Dance Music's Newest Remix Gurus & THE 'go to' producers for EDM!". Best of House. 2009-06-07. Archived from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2019-07-29.