Last updated: 19 November 2008
Culprit 1 (aka James Hannam) is an electronic producer from Newport, currently residing in London and signed to Exceptional Records.
Taking influence from legends such as Boards of Canada, Timbaland, DJ Shadow and The Prodigy, Culprit 1's unusual arrangements and three-minute sampladelic symphonies have won praise across the entire musical spectrum. His musical ability was honed over years of study in both conservatoires and clubs, with early demos gaining support from both press and radio.
My music's a hybrid of DJ Shadow, Chemical Brothers and The Prodigy. It's a mash-up of big drums, phat synths and strong melodies.
Culprit One
Hannam's debut single What I Use was released on the Boobytrap label back in July 2003. Following a trio of follow-up singles on the My Kung Fu label, Hannam performed at Austin's SXSW festival in 2004. He then remixed a series of chart singles for Kaiser Chiefs, The Automatic and Orbital's Paul Hartnoll before embarking on a three night residency with a string quartet at London's Big Chill House.
Following a UK tour, Hannam released the critically-acclaimed debut album Running in Order on London label Exceptional. The LP's orchestral closer Strings Outro proved extremely popular, being picked up by Classic FM and countless chillout compilations. The Southbank Centre also employed the tune on a promotional video for the Hayward Gallery's 'Walking in my Mind' exhibition of ten international visual artists.
Hannam has recently completed his second album for Exceptional, with the first single due in late 2009.