After nearly a decade of releasing DJ and remix albums with and without crony John Digweed, British DJ/producer Sasha will release his first solo album of original material. It's due in September on Kinetic Records.

He was inspired to finish the album after being involved in a traffic accident last March that temporarily impaired his hearing. "When I missed the Miami [Winter Music Conference] last year because I perforated my ear drum, that incident gave me a massive kick up the ass," he says. "I wrote three or four songs on the album in that two-week period while everyone was away in Miami, because I was so distraught about not being able to go. I just thought to myself, 'I gotta make something positive out of this.'"

Helping Sasha complete the twelve-track effort is a production team that includes engineer/mixer Charlie May (DJ Spooky, Paul Oakenfold), Junkie XL's Tom Holkenberg and programmer Simon Wright. Sasha expects to debut some of the album's tracks -- as well as club-ready outtakes -- at this year's Winter Music Conference, and throughout his upcoming full-scale North American tour with Digweed.

"I really wanted to up the ante in terms of the way we delivered our music to people and the way we toured," he says of the thirty-two-date trek. "We're going to be playing bigger venues. Basically, we're trying to create some of the magic we had at [now defunct New York club] Twilo and take it off around the country." The DJs are enlisting the use of several rock and roll-sized tour buses, including one sixty-footer just to hold the speakers.

Despite his grand touring and recording plans, Sasha is anxious to return to his first love: DJing. "Once I've got the record out of the way, I can focus on my DJing 100 percent for a couple of years," he says. "I can't wait to really get back into it."

Sasha and Digweed's North American tour dates:

3/23: Miami, Miami Arena
3/28: Montreal, Sona
3/29: Boston, Avalon
3/30: Philadelphia, Electric Factory
4/2: Clifton Park, NY, Northern Lights
4/4: Rochester, NY, Water Street Music Hall
4/5: Toronto, Kool Haus
4/6: Detroit, Michigan St. Fairgrounds
4/11: Pittsburgh, Metropol
4/14: Washington, DC, Nation
4/17: Columbus, OH, 303 S. Front St.
4/18: Indianapolis, Murat Egyptian Room
4/19: Cleveland, Agora Theater
4/20: Rosemont, IL, Allstate Arena
4/21: Minneapolis, Quest Club
4/22: Kansas City, MO, Uptown Theater
4/24: Phoenix, Web Theater
4/26: San Francisco, Cow Palace
4/27: Indio, CA, Indio Polo Field
5/3: San Diego, San Diego Sports Arena
5/10: Portland, OR, Exhibition Hall
5/11: Seattle, Chad's Warehouse
5/15: Salt Lake City, SaltAir Pavilion
5/17: Denver, Fillmore Auditorium
5/18: St. Louis, MO, Pops
5/21: Atlanta, Tabernacle
5/23: Austin, Austin Music Hall
5/25: Houston, Verizon Wireless Theater
5/26: Dallas, Bronco Bowl

JOLIE LASH
(March 22, 2002)