Dan "The Automator" Nakamura is a producer, in the hip-hop-and-techno sense. Dan can also handle the turntables. IN fact, that's what he started out doing, until he got itimidated by the other Bay Area DJs, and started to produce his own (quite phat) beats. But he hasn't let his DJ skills die, as he displays in his mix-album, Wanna Buy a Monkey?.
Dan has a couple albums of his own, but his work is best seen in albums he's made with various alternative hip-hop groups, mostly one-off concept project such as Dr. Octogon, Deltron 3030 and Handsome Boy Modeling School.
His beats have a notable techno leaning, rather than being straight hip-hop beats. As a child, Dan was a classically trained violinist, and it shows in his beats, which exhibit a solid knowledge of music theory, and take on a far more epic scale than the four repeated measures you're liable to hear on MTV. But don't let the violins and off-beat samples fool you. These are definitely phat beats.
Albums
Credits*
- Beastie Boys -- The Negotiation Limerick File (1999) Engineer, Mixing
- Cibo Matto -- Stereo Type A (2000) Mixing
- Cornershop -- When I Was Born for the 7th Time (1997) Producer
- Cornershop -- Sleep on the Left Side (1998) Producer
- Deltron 3030 -- Deltron 30300 (2000) Producer
- Deltron 3030 -- Tron 3030: The Instrumentals (2001) Arranger, Producer, Mixing
- Dr. Octagon -- Dr. Octagonecologyst (1996) Engineer, Mastering
- Dr. Octagon -- Instrumentalyst: Octagon Beats (1996) Synthesizer, Engineer, Mastering, Mixing
- DJ Shadow -- Endtroducing... (1996) Engineering
- Gorillaz -- Gorillaz (2001) Producer
- Space Monkeyz Vs. Gorillaz -- Laika Come Home (2002) Producer
- Handsome Boy Modeling School -- So...How's Your Girl? (1999) Violin, Keyboards, Vocals
- Infesticons -- Hero Theme (2000) Remixing
- Jack Drag -- Dope Box (1998) Remixing
- Lovage -- Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By (2001) Producer, Mixing
- Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers -- People Get Ready (1997) Engineer
- Mix Master Mike -- Surprize Packidge (1998) Remixing
- Molasses -- Madness] (1996) Mixing
- Pizzicato Five -- Happy End of You (1998)
- Primal Scream -- XTRMNTR (2000) Producer
- Prince Paul -- Psychoanalysis: What Is It? (1997) Violin, Cello, Keyboards, Engineer
- Quannum -- Quannum Spectrum (1999) Producer
- Slide Five -- People, Places and Things (1997) Mixing
- Jon Spencer Blues Explosion -- Acme (1998) Engineer, Mixing
- Jon Spencer Blues Explosion -- Talk About the Blues (1999) Remixing
- Trans Am -- Extremixx] (2002) Remixing
- Original Soundtrack -- Scream 2 (1997) Producer
- Original Soundtrack -- Bombay the Hard Way: Guns, Cars & Sitars (1999) Remix Producer
- Various Artists -- Mo' Cookin' (1994) Producer
- Various Artists -- Music with No Name (1996) Engineer
- Various Artists -- What's Cookin' (1996) Producer
- Various Artists -- www.subaudio.net/cd_01 (1998) Mixing
- Various Artists -- Mi Selecta (2000) Producer, Engineer, Mixing
- Various Artists -- Solesides Greatest Bumps (2000) Mixing
- Various Artists -- Now, Vol. 48 (2001) Producer
*Credits were stolen wholesale from Allmusic.com. If you know of something they left out, let me know.