Paul Van Dyk

Homemade T-shirts from the early days of Paul van Dyk's career boasted the slogan "No E, pure PvD," a clever entendre addressed to the media (who kept adding an extraneous "e" to Dyk) and to his fanbase, which was then widening to include non-ravers and/or those who practiced PvD's openly drug-free lifestyle. The relative anonymity hinted at with those T-shirts is a vintage irony not lost upon his followers. Now internationally acclaimed, PvD's highly evolved mixing techniques for his In Between tour — including two MIDI keyboards for playing software synths live — border on real-time musicianship. In Between, which was nominated for Best Full-Length DJ Mix CD by the 2008 International Dance Music Awards (IDMA) is progressive house and/or danceable trance by definition, and it features mysterious, melodic synth overtures and easily recognizable beats.