John Loveless is a DJ, radio host, writer and producer, whose unusual trip through alternative culture is defined by passion and perpetual motion. A lifelong immersion in music has helped define Loveless not only as a respected, instinctive club DJ, but a constant conduit for the creativity of others in the scene. 

Originally from the North West of England, Loveless’s long weekend in Berlin has since lasted a decade, where he maintains a unique position. As well as his own Hot Concept imprint and party series, Loveless is known for his creative work alongside Erol Alkan and Palms Trax on the labels Phantasy and CWPT, introducing diverse talent to record shelves, refining an instinct for music of rare character.

This open-minded philosophy has also defined Loveless’s approach to radio, as heard across two long-running residencies. His monthly ‘Display Resolution’ show has broadcast on Cashmere Radio since 2017, and will conclude in 2025 after one-hundred episodes, each blending house, techno, disco, dub, indie and experimental music with unfiltered curiosity. Since 2020, Loveless has been a fixture on Refuge Worldwide, the community-focused station where he has also established an occasional, anecdote-heavy residency with Palms Trax, and curated several takeovers.

In unison with fellow Brit-turned-Berlin Gramrcy, the pair enjoy a lockdown-born studio partnership, one that has expanded beyond remixes for Discovery Zone, W.H. Lung and Real Lies, to a lightning bolt of an original production in ‘Highdive’. Released on Phantasy Sound in 2022, the track memorably anchored sets by DJs from 2ManyDjs and Peggy Gou, before soundtracking catwalks for Moschino and Hugo Boss. 

Having extensively contributed as a writer to The Guardian, CRACK and Bandcamp Daily as John Thorp, Loveless was responsible for both the introduction and a number of essays for ‘Techno is Boring’, a book of photography from Daniel Avery and Keffer. Humorous and introspective, earning compliments from Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh, the book was introduced by a European tour, including a transcendent back-to-back with Avery at Berlin’s ambient-oriented kwia, and an alternately thunderous appearance at FVTVR in Paris.

Loveless has passed at various tempos through iconic nightlife institutions such as The White Hotel, Ohm, The Warehouse Project and Hang Dai. At Alkan’s request, his versatile ear broke down eras on 2020’s ‘A Psychedelic Sensibility’, a compilation blending highlights and obscurities from the history of Phantasy Sound, which was awarded Compilation of The Month by Groove Magazine. A sequel, ‘A Psychedelic Sensibility II: The Remixes’, followed in 2023.

Following two compilations raising funds for charities Doctors Without Borders and Habibi.Works, Hot Concept continues to introduce like-minded underground talents like Teplice, Yr Lovely Dead Moon and Beigean, pairing their productions with boundary-free remixes from esoteric artists such as Peder Mannerfelt and aya.