Born and raised in the western suburbs, Carter was into music
from a young age, but during his teens Chicago's house scene sucked him
in for good. Before long Carter became a strong presence in the city's
underground dance scene. "When I got my driver's license at 16 my sneak
ability was validated," he laughs. "I was a fierce bedroom jock for a
long time. After you mix for the love of it for six or seven years, you
get it pretty tight and you can take it on the road." He got by working
at dance-music specialty stores like Gramaphone and gigging at parties.
Later he landed regular DJ stints at Shelter, Foxy's, and Smart Bar.
Though he doesn't spin much locally anymore, when he does he attracts
large crowds. His sets are rooted in house, but he freely travels
outside club tastes, seamlessly incorporating old-school disco, soul,
jazz, and whatever else catches his fancy. Most of the time he works in
Europe, where he's become a minor celebrity among dance-music
aficionados. Carter says that due to his growing notoriety his
production talents have been requested by pop-oriented acts. But he
prefers to remain underground. Although enthused about his own Blue
Cucaracha label and a new UK-based imprint he runs called Classic, he's
reluctant to offer much explanation of either label's MO--other than
each releases records when the mood strikes him. "I like to keep myself
pretty invisible. You may think I'm somewhere, but I've already left."
