Groove Cruise Miami: The 35th Sailing of an American Dance Music Institution

Scottish producer Graeme Shepherd has prioritized the kind of head-down, trance-state dance music that keeps dancefloors alive all night long. Shepherd, better known by his stage name Grum, is a major player on the legendary Anjunabeats record label. His emotive, sophisticated approach to trance and progressive house has an edge to it. The producer is equally as strong in dark, techno-skewed beats as he is in synth-heavy electro house. The term ‘legendary’ often gets overused, but Grum certainly has had an illustrious career so far, and rightly so.

The producer has cited Depeche Mode, New Order, and Tears For Fears as major musical influences. In his debut album 

from 2010, you can certainly hear the electro-pop, synth-heavy influence. The album was lauded as a “cult classic” by Resident Advisor. 

 went to number 1 in the US iTunes Electronic Dance Charts, and at the end of 2010 he was named 'Best Electronic Artist of the year' by UK iTunes.

he continued to release big room hits on his own before he was signed to Anjunabeats in 2015. As his catalog evolved, he began to draw the ears of other popular DJs from the time. His diverse sound earned him support from everyone from Deadmau5 to Above & Beyond, from Armin Van Buuren to Camelphat.

He continued to win recognition and awards from industry monarchies like Beatport and Billboard. His subsequent albums, 

only solidified his position as a master. In June of 2022, Grum was preparing for the release of his fourth studio album 

: "this is about remembering our humanity, which perhaps we lost a little bit over the last couple of years - maybe we can get a bit of it back in the dark, under some strobe lights."

GRUM

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B. I. Empey