Artist Access: Dale Howard
- Kaden Kleinschmidt
- May 1
- 4 min read
by Kaden Kleinschmidt - Friday, May 1st, 2026
The current wave of UK-influenced house music feels ubiquitous, but few artists have ridden its turbulent tides quite like Dale Howard. Fresh off the massive success of his House Mentality EP, the veteran producer is experiencing an undeniable renaissance in his career. The project skyrocketed up the Beatport charts, landing at number one on the Hype House chart and two overall, catching even Dale off guard. "I was never going to get the number one because Chris Stussy’s album was out at the same time," he laughs, "But I'm really happy with how it was received."
This win serves as the perfect prelude to his highly anticipated May 2nd Brooklyn debut, Yet, behind Dale’s signature swing and increasing DJ support is a story of creative burnout, paralyzing doubt, and the quiet courage it takes to rediscover your own sound.
Getting Started
Dale’s journey began far from the club stage. He grew up in Parr, a tough pocket of St. Helens, UK, where opportunities are scarce. He managed to steer clear of the local chaos, eventually landing at Liverpool John Moores University. That move proved fateful, but not for academic reasons. "University kind of took a back seat and then it became more about partying," he admits. His obsessive nature wouldn't let him just be a passive listener.
"I wasn't content with just listening... I wanted to play music and DJ. And after that, I didn't want to just play other people's music, I wanted to make the music."
The reality of the early stages of learning production, however, was brutal. He describes his initial efforts as a laborious journey of trial and error resulting in "complete dog shit for a long, long time."
Dale eventually found traction during the 2012 deep house boom. He initially gravitated toward slower, 118 BPM tracks so he could slip them into his student flat pre party sets. As he gained traction and started playing more in clubs, so did his output, pulling him into the chunky tech house sound that dominated the mid to late 2010s. It paid the bills, but it slowly hollowed him out.
"It was quite a while when I was making tech house post COVID lockdown when I just wasn't enjoying it at all," he confesses. "When release day would come, I found that I was just in a terrible mood. I was putting stuff out and wondering, why am I really making this?"
That creative discrepancy bred a dark period of self-doubt. Despite maintaining a distinct signature in his sound throughout the years, Dale was drawing blanks in the studio.
"I can't tell you how many times I've thought this over the last four, five, six years of just thinking that I can't do it anymore. I'm no good, my music's terrible, there's no point carrying on," he says with vulnerability. The lifeline tethering him to his motivation wasn't a chart position or a booking agent. It was his partner.
"I think if I wasn't with my fiancé, I probably would have quit a long time ago. She has always believed in me, even when I haven’t, and is always willing to carry the load of looking after two small children, while I’m in my studio or on the road. It takes a very selfless person to do those things, so every success I’m having at the moment is because of her."
Return to Form
The global pause that was the COVID-19 pandemic, becoming a dad to two daughters and spending time away from the touring scene finally forced a hard reset. Instead of chasing a sound he felt was contrived, Dale returned to his roots.
"I felt like it's better to just make something that you can stand behind no matter what."
The shift unlocked his studio flow entirely. He no longer overthinks. He just creates. "I feel that the sound that I've always preferred to make just so happens to be in at the moment, so it's worked out well. I kind of feel like I've had two careers in that respect really. I feel like I had one pre-COVID and post."
Dale's renewed focus has brought unprecedented validation. The music he loves making is exactly what the global scene is hungry for. "Recently, particularly in the last two years, I don't ever remember a time in my career of more DJs playing my music ever, ever," he notes. His advice to rising producers reflects this hard-won wisdom:
"Just be confident in your own music. If you're putting stuff out that you're only doing it to try to get clicks and likes... and you don't get that, you've sort of wasted your time."
Outside the studio, Howard maintains a grounding routine completely detached from the nightlife ecosystem. He spends his free time with his two daughters, sweating out the weekend's chaos through a grueling mix of CrossFit and Muay Thai, and holding onto a quiet reverence for the band, Oasis. If the music ever did stop, his backup plan is brilliantly simple. "My dream really is to just live on a farm in the middle of nowhere with a load of animals. Some ducks chickens, a horse or two, maybe an alpaca or something like that. Just pretty cut off."
For now, the farm will have to wait. Brooklyn is calling. His upcoming headline on May 2 isn't exactly a standard club show. Hosted by Definitive at Hana House, the Saturday night event pairs Dale’s groove with an unexpected culinary twist. Renowned chef, Cristina Martinez, will be taking over the kitchen to curate a Cinco de Mayo menu featuring world-class Latin American cuisine, complete with complimentary champagne upon arrival. Those looking to catch his long-awaited return to the city can grab tickets here.
When he steps behind those decks, he won’t be thinking about the charts. He won’t be thinking about the tech house years. When asked what he wants the crowd to feel that night, he doesn't hesitate. “Pure joy. Just good times, man. Proper vibes. That’s what house music is about innit.”
