If you have ever seen Antal dj, you know the amount of energy he brings to his rotary mixer is unparalleled. Here is someone who feels the vibe and understands how to bring it across. Apart from being an exceptional DJ, Antal is also an entrepreneur, a curator, football trainer and co-founder of Rush Hour Records. Still, “I spend between three and six hours preparing for a gig”, he once confessed during an interview with RA.

With a record collection as huge as it is wide in taste, he is just as comfortable spinning Chicago and Detroit influenced house as he is playing rare Afro funk, forgotten Surinam disco or a beautiful boogie gem. Yet, this wide range of styles comes naturally. “Often, the best nights are the ones where I feel I can play anything, no matter how sharp my selection is.” It is this selection which is key, here. Antal can make you dance to an obscure track, because he knows exactly how and when to drop it. He plays songs you never knew you needed in your life.

Things all got an extra push after a magical gig at the famous Lowlands Festival in 2014, together with Hunee. He started playing all over the world, from Oslo to Singapore and from Tokyo to San Francisco. There is a worldwide community that understands the power of a good tune on the dancefloor. And this community is growing, its roots are getting stronger. “That has become more important to me over the years”, he confesses. “Otherwise there is no progression. Things have to move forward, in order to survive.”

Since 1997, Antal runs the mighty Rush Hour Records in Amsterdam with a close group of hard working people. It’s a vast empire that encompasses a reliable distribution wing as well as a much-loved record store chock full of vinyl, bought during on-going crate digging trips. The label, in the meantime, releases house and techno from the vanguard at the same time as reissuing long forgotten classics that serve to educate whole new generations about what has gone before. You could say Antal himself serves the same purpose when DJing.