Representative Albums: "Best of Wildtrax," "The Wildchild Experience: The Best of Wildtrax"
Biography
Roger "Wildchild" McKenzie was the author of the big-beat club anthem "Renegade Master," which became a British hit upon its release in 1995 but gained considerably more worldwide exposure in 1998, more than two years after his untimely death. Based in Southampton before he moved to the future big-beat capital of Brighton around 1991, McKenzie worked as an underground house DJ and recorded four EPs for Loaded Records, each subtitled Wildtrax. Indebted to the sampladelic hip-house of Todd Terry, singles like "Bring It on Down" and "Jump to My Beat" were large club anthems presaging the rise of big-beat techno of the sort popularized several years later. McKenzie also formed his own label, Dark & Black, and recorded "Renegade Master" for Norman Cook's Hi-Life Records; a reissue of the single hit number 11 on the British charts in 1995. Wildchild had only recently switched bases to New York (with his manager and partner Donna Snell) later that year, when he died of a heart condition in November. Wildchild releases continued to flow nevertheless, with a remix of East 17's "Do U Still?" appearing one year later. Norman Cook himself remixed "Renegade Master" in 1997 (under his Fatboy Slim guise), and the track became a club hit once again. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
Roger McKenzie (1 January 1971 - 25 November 1995[1]) also known under his production aliases of Wildchild or DJ Wildchild, was an Englishmusician and DJ. Born in Southampton, England, he released many singles on labels such as Hi Life Recordings, Ultra Records, and Polydor (UK). The tracks "Jump to My Beat", "Renegade Master" and the subsequent "Renegade Master 98" were his most successful. Fatboy Slim's Old Skool Mix is perhaps the most famous version of "Renegade Master 98". "Renegade Master" was his first in 1995, peaking at #11, but was surpassed by the success of Fatboy Slim's remix "Renegade Master 98", which peaked at #3 in 1998.
Just before his death from an undiagnosed heart condition, he formed his own record label, 'Dark & Black'.
References
^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 602. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
