Ivan Smagghe

A Thursday at Pulp and the art of not fitting in

At Pulp in Paris, a queer Thursday with no ticket office or dress code, Ivan Smagghe turned bewilderment into a craft. There, Kill The DJ was born, a party and label that for over a decade stood up to the monopoly of a single rhythm. The motto that still defines it—the style of having no style—was born in that booth: there are no sacred genres, only records that work and records that don't.

Rough Trade, Radio Nova and Black Strobe

Raised in Paris, he studied at the Paris Institute of Political Studies (communication and human resources in 1992; DEA in 20th Century History in 1993) and sold vinyl at Rough Trade before writing for Nova Magazine and Les Inrockuptibles. On Radio Nova he hosted the show Test and interviewed more than four hundred artists. He became a DJ almost by accident around 1992, after Belgian nights at Boccaccio in Ghent. In 1997 he founded Black Strobe with Arnaud Rebotini; the duo signed a dark and dirty electro until Smagghe said goodbye in 2006. He also formed Volga Select with Marc Collin and It's A Fine Line with Tim Paris, with remixes for Superpitcher or The xx.

The mixes from that era put him on the international map: How To Kill The DJ (Tigersushi), Death Disco (Eskimo, an electroclash reference), Suck My Deck for Bugged Out!, Fabric 23 (2005) and Live at Robert Johnson Vol. 3.

Les Disques De La Mort and Channeling

Based in London, he founded Les Disques De La Mort in 2014 with Leon Oakey: 12-inches, compilations and rarities, from Manfredas, Red Axes or Roman Flügel to Zillas on Acid. Kill The DJ closed in 2018. With Rupert Cross he released Ma (2017) and 1819 (Offen Music, 2020). With Quinn, from Paranoid London, he works as Ivan & Johnny. During the pandemic he opened Amor Fati with Niv Arzi (Red Axes), a channel for free edits.

For over ten years, Channeling on NTS Radio, together with Nathan Gregory Wilkins, has been his bi-weekly laboratory: post-punk, minimal synth, leftfield disco and everything that resists being put into a single box.

Dresden, the Adriatic and the dancefloor today

Dresden, the duo and party with the Lithuanian Manfredas, has gone from residencies in London and Vilnius to all-night sets at Corsica Studios and appearances at Glastonbury, Houghton or Love International. In 2026 he published the book Nul si découvert and the compilation The Sound of Love International 008. He continues to subvert dancefloors at Rex (Paris), Nitsa (Barcelona), Lux (Lisbon), fabric, DC10 or Waking Life, with worldwide booking handled by Pieces. A selector of selectors: the dancefloor as a place where rarity can still be functional.