Editing John Digweed (section)

=== The Renaissance Breakthrough (1993–1994) ===

Digweed's national breakthrough came in 1993 when he recorded a mixtape demo and sent it to '''Geoff Oakes''', the founder of the [[Renaissance (nightclub)|Renaissance]] club night in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. Oakes played the tape to resident DJ '''Alexander Coe''' — better known as [[Sasha (DJ)|Sasha]] — who was immediately impressed. The two DJs struck up what would become one of the defining partnerships in electronic music history, despite Sasha twice failing to show up for gigs Digweed had booked him for in Hastings.

In 1994, Digweed and Sasha mixed '''''The Mix Collection''''' for Renaissance — widely regarded as the first DJ mix compilation to be planned and packaged as a full commercial product, with artwork, promotion, and a deliberate marketing strategy. Prior to this release, club mixtapes had been circulated only informally. ''The Mix Collection'' changed the format entirely, setting the template for the compilation series boom that defined the second half of the 1990s. Its tracklist, which included [[Leftfield]]'s "Song of Life" and other [[progressive house]] cornerstones, helped bring the genre to a mainstream audience.