Midfield General

For the meaning in sports, see Midfield Maestro.

Midfield General
Birth name	Damian Harris
Born	1969 Whitstable, Kent, England
Origin	London, England
Genres	Big beat, electronica
Years active	1997-present
Labels	Skint Records

Damian Harris, also known by his stage name Midfield General, is the original founder of the Skint Records label.

"Damien came to one of my shows when he was a kid, like 16. I don't remember it, but he does, because I gave him an autograph. Then he moved to Brighton. I used to work in a record shop called Rounder Records and when I ran off to join the circus, he took my job, and so, he was kind of following in my footsteps. Then there was a Brighton label called Loaded Records, which released house records. I made a few records for them as Pizzaman" — Norman Cook

A prime architect of the sound of big beat, Harris grew up listening first to punk rock, later hip hop, and acid house. He then moved to Brighton to study art, eventually taking work as a DJ while promoting clubs around the city. In 1994, his music knowledge landed him a job at Loaded Records, where former Housemartins member Norman Cook - a friend of Harris' since his days working at the Rounder store in Brighton - recorded as Pizzaman. He is a fan of Arsenal F.C. and uses his season ticket at the Emirates Stadium. He has also appeared on episodes of the It's Up For Grabs Now and Tuesday Club - Arsenal podcasts with Alan Davies and Ian Stone. He also released a song called "Midfielding" featuring a monologue from surrealist comedian Noel Fielding.

Discography

Studio albums

• Generalisation (2000)
• General Disarray (2008)

Live albums

• On the Floor at the Boutique – Volume 3 (2000)

Singles

Year	Single	UK Singles Chart	Album
1995	"Worlds / Bung"	-
1996	"Stigs In Love"	-	Generalisation
1997	"Devil In Sports Casual"	-
2000	"Coatnoise"	-
	"General of the Midfield"	-
	"Reach Out"	-
2001	"You Take"	-
2008	"Disco Sirens"	-	General Disarray

'Devil In Sports Casual'

"We were in New York for a record company schmooze," recalled Harris, "and Lindy Layton was there as well, going round recording people talking in the streets. She came back very excited because she'd found this guy ranting in Times Square and mentioning 'Damien'. For the title, I wanted some devil reference because since those fucking Omen films came out I've had people calling me that. The film Devil in a Blue Dress had just come out and I just altered that. A lot of people would take the piss out of me for wearing sports casual gear – which I still claim I looked ace in. I was just ahead of the times!"

External links

• Midfield General's discography at Discogs