AK SPORTS: Hard, Fast, and Fearless — A Punk Energy for the Dancefloor

Following a breakout 2024 that saw the launch of their label Club Madhouse—hailed by Mixmag as one of the best releases of the year—AK is now in full sprint mode with a string of explosive singles leading up to their new EP, TIMELINE SHIFT, due out August 8th.

We caught up with AK ahead of the July 11th release of "WORK HARDER", the third single from their TIMELINE SHIFT EP, to talk rave roots, queer representation, and what it means to be a "club punk" in 2025.

You’ve been described as one of the most exciting producers to emerge recently, with Dummy Mag naming you one to watch and Mixmag championing your label launch. What’s that been like for you?

It’s a funny business we’re in - sometimes it feels like all the hard-work and grinding isn’t really making an impact but when you have reputable institutions writing these kind words it’s definitely very grounding and encouraging. And even though I’ve been at it for a minute I feel more ready than ever to launch! Perhaps these mags are onto something.

Your sound pulls from rave, techno, breaks, electro, even psy-trance. Has your style always been that hybrid?

100%!!! When I first started, I was being very playful with multi genres and focusing on how to DJ for the crowd without compromising on taste - spinning tracks more experimental like Mr Oizo and deconstructed club and queer c*nty cub to big beat and happy hardcore throw backs, and then often including old and new school breakbeat, jungle & UKG. I’ve now found myself in what many would call “hard techno” or “Neo / new techno“ but I like to call what I do new-world-rave. Many genres that typically would have never been played together are now being merged even within the one record. Music from around the world taking influence from different cultures, languages, all united with a ripper techno kick and higher quality production that matches modern sound systems. I think half the reason why faster harder techno has really taken is because how powerful it sounds on a big system - which is surprisingly hard to produce even though a song might sound simple sometimes. My style is about finding tracks that have a powerful enough techno kick drum / bass combo to fit in a techno set but still remain somewhat multi-genre in their productions. And if I can’t do that I will always make sure there is a journey in my sets - be it chucking in an EDIT of something relevant to place or country I am in paying my respect to the locals and legends, or showcasing up and coming artist productions from the area, or some old school hard trance, shranz or even hardstyle if I’m feeling fruity. I’m not precious about being a ‘serious’ DJ but I am serious about the audience having a bloody ripper time. Putting on a show!

You’ve lived in Australia, LA, and London. How have those cities shaped your sound and your identity as an artist?

Australia and the supportive Eora/Sydney scene was a fantastic place to get my start and then moving to London inspiring and a critical part of my journey. My time there even though short lived due to my covid Brexit was definitely the springboard for me to find my feet on the world stage, and it wasn’t easy. I was called to jump in the deep end of arguably the biggest and most competitive musical space in the world (imo) and I managed to get a radio show on Balamii which eventually turned into a Rinse FM residency, I had a few of my first COOL gigs in London and even went up to Edinburgh and played to 10 people but was still special for me to be a DJ on the move. I went to a lot of inspiring underground warehouse events in London as well as worked as Artist Liaison at massive shows at Printworks - which was thrilling to run around the guts of this iconic space. It was a tough 10 months working minimum wage in hospitality to pay my rent and once every week or two a gruelling 6-hour DJ sets in the corner of less than inspiring places in central London but it was all part of the journey. I found myself in LA by chance and was feeling very displaced both personally and musically but ready for another challenge I found this to be the ripe opportunity to do something “new” here that others weren’t (at the time). Specifically with my warehouse party collective WARP MODE, eventually through proving ourselves including one police detainment - we earned the opportunity (pre KKR sale mind you) to throw one of LAs very first Boiler Rooms which was a monumental experience I’ll never forget and was the next wack on the button of my pinball journey as an artist.

Let’s talk about the TIMELINE SHIFT EP. How did the concept come together, and what connects the four tracks thematically or emotionally?

I’ve always named EPs to reflect the stage of my journey at the time the music was written. These tunes reflect my range and taste as a DJ and producer at the moment - as well as an opportunity to kick start my vocal exploration. I’m doing my best to shift to my highest timeline and I wanted the name to encourage other people to do so as well. I’m ready and so are you - just believe!

You’ve used your own vocals for the first time on this EP. What pushed you to take that leap, and how did it change your creative process?

I wanted to push myself to find my voice for this EP. Which I always knew was some sort of punk’y style yelly sing’y situation. I experimented a lot with various styles, I even sung a more pop’y/happy hardcore break down moment for a forthcoming collaboration which I’ve been playing out and enjoying - but I think ultimately for this music its ended up being a simple catchy vocals that allow the production to shine through. This is to various degrees across the EP as I connect with Keith Flint and Karl Hyde in the way it’s poetic, melodic but still a little conversational rather than proper singing. I also like the personality that comes out in a lot of punk artists like Amyl and the Sniffers and Viagra Boys. I would love this to be the next evolution of my vocal work… let’s see!

Your single WORK HARDER, dropping July 11th, is a bit more stripped back but keeps the energy high. What was the vibe you wanted to capture with this one?

I wanted to make a catchy c*unty number that could be quite versatile in the club. IE I want to hear it in the queer spaces but also in the hard techno raves when the bouncy stuff shines through. My friend ABSOLUTE. and I wrote the first draft of this together in my home studio and actually you can hear him in the background vocals towards the end just squealing - we were just having the best time, so I hope this comes across in the energy of the track. It gets a little chaotic towards the end, but I also feel it touches on some electro vibes - an homage to the first music I was exposed to as a 16 year old sneaking into clubs in the glory days of Kings Cross Sydney/Eora.

You mentioned the late Keith Flint as an influence—tell us more.

He’s the GOAT the ultimate punk rock rave icon (also mega babe). He had such a sweet kind heart I’m still sad about his early passing but his influence lives on both in hard techno and yeah the band is still touring so on stage too in the Prodigy.

Your label, Club Madhouse, launched last year with a VA that made waves. What does the label represent for you? What was the vision behind it?

Launching a label was never my dream to be honest, it was a lot of work to do so but I had encouragement from people who were in the end very right to do so! Even though the market is super saturated with an overwhelming amount of music being released every day that can make it even harder to break through as a producer - I do think the smaller barriers to entry nowadays are a great thing and it almost feels like Bloghouse days where digging for new tunes and different music is exciting and fun. A big motivation for me as well for the label was to provide a space for up-and-coming producers to release their music in this very competitive market. Seeing artists grow and having the platform to support them, particularly minorities in music, has always been a passion of mine. And you know what the branding of the label has been a very fun part of the process and am lucky to employ / bother all my good friends in graphic design and video editing to help bring my vision to life.

What role does community—especially within the queer scene—play in your work, both on and off the dancefloor?

MASSIVE MASSIVE MASSIVE. WARP MODE LA is all about community, the LA underground is ALL about community. The queer spaces, the illegal raves, the sometimes half empty parties we threw to support DJs as they tour - it’s a grind but the passion and community Is the lifeblood of the industry and always has been. Recently we have had to pull back a bit from Warp Mode parties as Bianca Oblivion, Star eyes and my international touring schedules have ramped up, but we threw a free music production workshop in collaboration with Ableton and had guest speakers and producers including ourselves make a little talk. This was mostly for the girls, gays and theys but everyone was welcome, and we had a very cute night in the old XXX studio Hollywood which ended up in some DJ. I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping guide people’s careers and even mentoring where I can - it’s a wild business which I’m still you know attacking myself but it’s important we all help each other along the way.

Your gig calendar is stacked for the rest of 2025—Terminal V, AVA Festival, Drumsheds Tomorrowland, and another Aussie tour. What can people expect from an AK SPORTS live set?

A good bloody time mate.

Finally, what’s something people would be surprised to learn about you?

I played classical guitar for a decade and performed in a guitar orchestra.

AK SPORTS – ‘TIMELINE SHIFT EP’ is out August 8th on Club Madhouse