Cloak & Dagger was formed in the summer of 1994 to release some cracking tunes put together by two friends of then music journalist and DJ Sherman (At The Controls) and a tattooed ex-sailor from Sunderland named Uncle Al.

Meeting on the London dance music scene at the start of the nineties Sherman and Uncle Al both began dj¹ing, recording and remixing separately until they came together to form the label, after which they combined to become a DJ tag team and dabble with the occasional remix. Uncle Al recording as Obiman ŒOn The Rocks¹ was featured on the album Cafe Del Mar Volume One (React Music) ­ whilst Sherman released on the Guerilla label with Steve Dray (ex-Slab!).

In the labels¹ second year they started The Cloak Room, a monthly night in North London, where memorable nights included The Disciples¹ sound system shaking foundations across the borough, The Woodshed making their live debut with Andrew Weatherall playing hip-shakers afterwards, Red Snapper live with Dean Thatcher spinning the vinyl and an ultra-rare appearance when both halves of Leftfield - Paul Daley and Neil Barnes - shared the record decks.

The Cloak & Dagger label reflected Sherman and Al¹s passion for reggae music and all things dubby, whilst mixing in a generous quantity of breakbeat and electro influences. The label ceased in 2000 with 19 releases under its belt.

As DJ¹s the pair have spun their way across the major cities of Europe including legendary trips to Stockholm and Prague that secured vital away wins. Uncle Al DJ¹d on Leftfield¹s 1995 Leftism tour and together the pair were resident DJ¹s at Leftfield¹s after show parties. Sherman DJ¹d on a number of tours with The Orb and also founded Electrocuted in the late nineties with Andrew Curley, the banner under which they promoted the renowned electro night of the same name.

Sherman and Uncle Al had a long-running residency online at Interface Pirate Radio and regularly appeared on the internet airwaves of Groovetech.com.


Today Cloak & Dagger continues as a DJ tag team specialising in reggae and all things dubby while Uncle Al continues to host the cool after-work party Prekend, which takes in a variety of bar-friendly musical styles.

* Prekend @ Canal 125, Caledonian Road, N1 9RG every Thursday from 6.30pm with guests and free food.