Music
21 rising British producers it's time you knew about
From grime to drill, house to synth pop, these are the producers pushing British music forwards.
The UK has always been at the forefront of dance and electronic music, an incubator for new sounds and new scenes – and 2019 is looking bright. Read on to see which the up-and-coming producers are pushing British music forwards.
The following selections were made by: Hannah J Davies, Jack Needham, Oli Warwick, Dave Jenkins, Emma Finamore, Will Pritchard, Kamila Rymajdo and Manu Ekanayake
1. object blue
She may have released a track called The Princess Is No Longer At This Address, but object blue can still put on a royally good show. The Beijing-born, London-based producer specialises in expansive house, techno and experimental sounds with an artistic bent, and has supported Yaeji among others. If samples which run the gamut from Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon to Cardi B sound like your thing, then self-proclaimed ‘technofeminist’ Blue might well be your new favourite beatmaker. (HJD)
2. Klinical
A maker of minimal drum & bass with soul and deep, dark weight, West Country boy Klinical is shooting out some serious bullets right now. We’re barely half-way through the year and he’s already dropped damagers on the likes of Overview, Context, Skankandbass, Counterpoint, Four Corners and Lifestyle. His international profile is rocketing too, as he’s just returned from his first Australian tour and has a packed summer schedule. The dubplate-heavy mix below is a great place to get acquainted. (DJ)
Nova Scotia The Truth
© Daniel Hughes
3. Nova Scotia The Truth
Emerging from Glasgow’s DIY art scene, Shaheeda Sinckler – aka Nova Scotia The Truth – is a producer, rapper and DJ, who frequents genres like grime, trap and Afrobeats. Her work is always emotive and frequently channels paradoxes – lush melodies are interwoven with hard-hitting lyricism on tracks like Hoops & Braids. Back in January, she followed up her debut EP, AL-HAQQ, with the Risin' Up mixtape, where she tackled race, gender and class. Now based in Edinburgh, she has a busy summer ahead of her, which includes finishing her next project, Re-Up, and hosting a workshop at Glasgow Centre for Contemporary Arts. (KR)
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4. Loraine James
Recent Hyperdub signing Loraine James is a North Londoner whose debut LP Detail came out in 2017, and who won the PRS Oram award – named for Daphne Oram, of the BBC’s Radiophonic Workshop – in 2018. James’ glitchy, funk-inflected take on electronica is clearly aimed at moving things forward, as befits someone who’s been making music since the age of 11. Now she’s way past those early experiments with a Casio keyboard, with her skill at making machine music with feeling clear on projects like Button Mashing on New York Haunted or her +44 - Thinking Of You project. (ME)
5. Earbuds
From slowthai’s TN Biscuits – with its woozy synths and infectious kick – to the wonky electronic R&B, trip-hop, dub reggae flavours, and more of Greentea Peng’s Sensi EP (which he produced in its entirety), it's clear the Londoner has a knack for the unconventional and off-kilter. Having worked with Travis Scott, Skepta, Wiz Khalifa, Chase and Status and Professor Green, his upcoming solo material will definitely be worth a listen. (EF)
6. Sarah Bates
A loose member of Manchester’s balearic and boogie contingent – which includes artists like Ruf Dug and the Red Laser Disco and Wet Play parties – Sarah Bates crafts analog pop through walls of synthesisers and blissful, artificially mangled vocals. On her SoundCloud, you’ll find snippets of dreamscaping electronica and balearic, while her collaborations with Freekwency and Magic Touch showcase an artist as comfortable with hi-NRG club material as she is moments of transcendence. (JN)
7. Captain Over
Leeds-based Captain Over emerged quietly onto the scene in 2018 with an ear-catching EP of bruk-and funk-indebted grime. There are hints of Swindle or Joker in his noodly synth work, but where he really shines is in his controlled mastery of broken, scattered percussion. Last year's Trim-helmed Sick saw the Roll Deep veteran in inimitable groove on a lilting, sparse construction. This was followed by the Better EP, which put grime scene standard bearer Manga St Hilare to the test on an experimental clutch of instrumentals. The forthcoming Deep Blue EP, defined by its intricate, spaced-out bleeps and blips (and due out in July this year), is sure to further cement him as one to keep an eye on. (WP)
8. Mac Wetha
Part of West London-bred creative collective and former college pals NiNE8 - which also counts R&B rising singers Lava La Rue and Biig Piig among its ranks and boasts its own Depop-only fashion line - Mac Wetha (AKA Lloyd Macdonald) specialises in slightly off-kilter but artfully stripped-back beats. A case in point, recent NiNE8 single Ignant, which sounds both decidedly 90s and as entirely of the moment as Wetha (born in 1998) himself. (HJD)
K4CIE in the studio
© Courtesy of K4CIE
9. K4CIE
Since launching her club night Peach in 2017, Glasgow’s K4CIE has become a mainstay of her city’s music scene, her on the pulse selections of trap, drill and grime garnering a devoted local following, as well as impressing several tastemakers from further afield. Meanwhile, frequent trips to London to record radio shows for Rinse, Kiss and guest mixes for NTS and 1Xtra have helped solidify her links with the capital’s artists and hone her producing skills, which she first showcased on 2018’s deliciously saccharine EP Jetty. More recently, she participated in the RAYE-hosted She Makes Beats writing camp and produced a dark lullaby of track for Glaswegian rapper Chlobocop’s Lil’ Red Ridin’ From the Hood album, with a feature-filled, trap and drill-heavy debut on the way. (KR)
10. LOFT
Rising from the Manchester melting pot with an identity all of her own, LOFT matches artistic rigour with a mischievous sense of fun. Just cop her array of arch pop edits on SoundCloud or the devil-may-care genre-hopping sets from her all-inclusive boygirl parties to get a feel for the supremely talented producer’s broad artistic touch. It’s her own tracks that are truly turning heads (including Björk’s) though, fusing a love for dubstep’s space and low end pressure, with the hi-def dynamics of the most upfront club music, verve and vitality spewing out of every crystalline bar. (OW)
11. Mina
As well as holding her reputation as one of London's most exhilarating DJs, Mina has spent the past two years travelling extensively, collecting samples and collaborating with artists and vocalists in places as far flung as Jamaica, Spain, Peru, Ghana, and the US. The fruits of her globe-trotting came to form earlier this year on the self-released Flight Paths LP: a collection of tracks spanning the syncopated club sounds of Lisbon, straight-to-your-hips dancehall, horn-led UK funky, pounding Durban house rhythms, autotuned singalongs, and, well, just about everything else that's good in-between too. (WP)
12. Good Block
The Good Block duo have been working away behind the scenes for some time now; throwing parties across London, hosting a monthly show on Netil Radio, giving away dozens of club-ready edits spanning slo-mo proto-house to punk funk for free. But with 4 Corners, their first EP of original material, they have grown beyond their pocket of London. Featuring four tracks of bass-heavy rumbles that splice marimba rhythms with Jamaican dub, kwaito and balearic-tinted house music, and with forthcoming collaborations planned with Phonox resident ESA, these folks are just getting started. (JN)
13. Lo Kindre
Capturing a sweet spot between minimal wave, dub and shimmering synth pop, Daniel Magee has managed to carve out a dazzling identity as Lo Kindre. His off-centre machine jams fizz with unpredictable energy and urgency, but they’re also delicate and oh so easy to sink into. It’s no wonder he’s already had releases out on Optimo, Neubau, and more recently 12th Isle and ByrdOut. It’s also worth checking his Luxos collaboration with Cucina Povera, another doyenne of the ever-fertile Glaswegian music scene. (OW)
14. Skantia
These days, rarely does an Andy C set go by without at least two tracks from this Newcastle newcomer. Freshly signed to Ram Records, 22-year-old Charlie Roberts – AKA Skantia – has slapped the drum & bass scene silly with huge reloaders such as Cluster and his highly sought-after remix of Loko’s Bassline Secret – both of which were key tracks during Andy C’s famous intros during his latest XOYO residency earlier this year. Specialising in a powerfully abrasive and groaning bass aesthetic but coming from jump-up roots, Skantia’s sound is hitting all the right spots. He’s clearly not shy of pretty mental bootleg, either. (DJ)
15. Impey
Raised on jazz funk from the 80s, rising Bristol-born producer Tommy Impey brings a free and effervescent edge to grime instrumentals and ambient synth compositions, via a style he describes as “post-twilight”. Having gained acclaim with an NTS show, Ghost Notes, and a label of the same name, his creations range from the subtle to the striking but are always uniformly exciting, including remixes of tracks by Last Japan and AJ Tracey, and Submotion Orchestra. (HJD)
16. Etch
It might be a cliche, but Brighton's Etch is one of those producers who genuinely defies categorisation. It's probably simplest to just describe him as psychedelic and be done with it, since that – along with his mastery of drums and eery pads – is the one true vein that runs through his vast and rangy discography. This is mind-bending music. Etch's tunes are typified by time signature-defying percs, curious movie samples, and irrepressible, bouncy grooves. In recent years, he's hunkered down and reclaimed creative control by releasing through his own labels (Altered Roads, and Bun The Grid) or those of close associates (such as Berlin-based Sneaker Social Club) – and has proven himself all the better for it. Given all of this, it's perhaps unsurprising that he counts everyone from Aphex Twin, to 2 Bad Mice, and Toddla T among his fans. (WP)
ANZ
© India Greenhalgh
17. Anz
A pillar of the UK’s second city music scene, Anz showcases a natural, almost humbling originality that doesn’t need to shout about itself to be heard. A regular face at the locally legendary club night Chow Down, she comes into her own on invitation 2 dance. Released on Finn’s 2 B REAL label, its booty bass claps at 100MPH, bubbling with J-pop tinted electro that demands to be played at high volume in basement raves and records that sound like the love child of Dopplereffekt and the Chemical Plant Zone level from Sonic The Hedgehog. (JN)
18. Thomas Mellor
Hailing from Walsall in the Midlands, Mellor has been powering some impressive grime over last few years. He made the icy, haunting beat for fellow Midlander Jaykae’s massive Toothache in 2016 – as well as on collaborations between Jaykae and another Brummie don, Dapz On The Map – and the chilled yet melancholy That’s Air for P Money. He’s even worked with the Godfather himself, Wiley, on the high-octane Step 6. A hard working, hard hitting beat maker, he definitely deserves his props. (EF)
19. Kleft
The name Kleft may be new to many, but it’s just another step forward for Glasgow’s DIY queer punk instigator Vickie McDonald, who has turned their hand to all manner of confrontational noise, including excellent hardcore band DIVORCE and experimental techno outfit Mourn. Kleft came to light in a hailstorm of vicious, punk-infused machine jams in early 2019 with the essential H+ Sexualis on local label Domestic Exile. The six-track EP marries fiercely rave-ready sonics with bold ideas about trans-humanism and a digital world without gender, delivered with an intensity that makes it impossible to ignore. (OW)
20. Glume
From Bristol with trippiness: Glume’s wry take on 140 bass music has been a powerful force in dubstep circles these past 12 months. Since creeping out of the shadows on the likes of Southpoint and Gradients in late 2017 – often sparring with fellow West Country warrior Phossa – recent releases on the highly respected likes of White Peach, Albion Collective and Subaltern have galvanised his status as one of UK bass music’s most intriguing and singular-sounding artists to watch right now. With a bewitching, cosmic stew that takes the time to reference grime, techno and all things in between, no one sounds like Glume right now. (DJ)
21. Sierre
Sierre is based in Kendal but makes music you 100% wouldn't associate with the Lake District. His new EP eepp 12019 is a collection of weirdly futuristic yet retro dream house, from Nighttimeshowers – with its fluttering synths underpinned by an ominous baseline – to Halley's retro digital bleeps melded with a woozy, winding Moog. The EP’s title is taken from the Holocene calendar’s number for the year 2019, a system that dates us from when humans first transitioned from hunter gatherers into agriculturally locked communities. It seems apt, then, that Sierre’s project feels like it’s pulling between analogue and digital, finding sonic harmony as well as conflict at the meeting point of the old and the new world. (EF)
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