London-based producer Ryan Lee West better known under the name Rival Consoles, is notable for making synthesisers sound human and atmospheric. Over the course of a critically acclaimed fifteen-year career, Rival Consoles’ music has diversified from the challenging electronic output of his early EPs to gradually become more conceptual and metamorphic, such as Articulation (2020) which used drawings and sketches to imagine and develop each track, to Overflow (2021), which explored themes of the human and emotional consequences of life surrounded by advancing technologies including social media. Rival Consoles' 2020 studio album Articulation was followed by a sold out UK Tour and the release of Overflow — a resonant and explorative soundscape of original music, composed for renowned choreographer Alexander Whitley’s contemporary dance production of the same name.
His consistent desire to create a more organic, humanised sound sees West often draft early ideas on traditional, acoustic instruments like the guitar or the piano; forming pieces that capture a sense of songwriting behind the electronics. Considered one of the UK’s most influential creators of electronic music, lee West is marking a new chapter in an ongoing quest for refinement and evolution. More playful and melodic in nature and style to previous years, his latest album draws on outside influences including music, art and film alongside colours, shapes and human emotions.

I am neither afraid of showing my emotions nor including them in my music - Stimming

Few people bring a truly original sound to house music. At a relatively young age, Hamburg's Martin Stimming did just that, demonstrating a sophisticated yet accessible sound that is beyond his years.

Two years after hooking up with Solomuns Diynamic Music, his 2008 breakthrough hit Una Pena made the electronic world sit up and take notice, and before long acclaimed labels like Freerange, liebe*detail, Buzzin´ Fly, Green and Poker Flat were snapping up his work. 2009 saw him release his immaculate debut album Reflections to great acclaim, cementing his reputation as one of the most exciting new producers of his generation.

His second album, Liquorice, eschews the normal kick-clap/snare template by and large to explore more interesting and progressive territories, but always with that trademark magpie-like sense of texture, emotion and discovery.

His productions are filled with a multitude of his own unique, charismatic field recordings, and he never uses the same sample more than once.

2010 saw him pick up an award for Best Newcomer at the Ibiza DJ Awards, following on from his live show (Stimming does not DJ) stunning the crowds at the islands legendary Pacha, and the finest danceries around the world from Berlins Panoramabar to Sao Paulo´s D-Edge, Brussels Fuse, London´s fabric and Paris Rex, and plenty more beyond.

Remixes for the likes of Sascha Funke, Claude VonStroke, Deadmau5, Stephan Bodzin and Tom Novy to name but a few have further spread his influence amongst the discerning house and tech community, and cemented his reputation as one of the scene´s most exceptional producers.

Clearly, Martin Stimming is a precious talent indeed. But then again, not everyone loves liquorice...

Austrian guitarist, composer, and electronic musician Christian Fennesz is recognized as a key figure and one of the most distinctive voices of electronic music today. His wide international reputation has been consolidated through his substantial overall contribution to new musical expression.

At the beginning of the 1990s, Fennesz became involved with the Viennese techno scene. Though formally educated in guitar and ethnomusicology from an early age, Fennesz decided to pursue composing and developing his own sound world in the distinctive electronic idiom. By plugging his guitar into his laptop and transforming and processing it, he managed to create a specific sound that is difficult to mistake for another's. On his first full-length solo release, Hotel Paral.lel (1997, Editions Mego), he introduced a mix of raw textures and twisted guitar sounds. The album was awarded the Prix Ars Electronica. Two years later, plus forty seven degrees 56‘ 37” minus sixteen degrees 51‘ 08” was released by Touch.

His milestone third album Endless Summer (2001, Editions Mego) was acknowledged as one of the most important releases of the decade, helping to change the perception of electronic music today. On it, he gave significant importance to melody, appearing delicately beneath (or on the top) of his shimmering electronic soundscape-often described as “symphonic” for its enormous range and complex musicality.

In 2004, Fennesz released Venice, in which he combined ambience-rich sound textures with pop-song elements. Black Sea (2008) has proven to be a bold step in experimentation with longer tracks that outline and construct sonic space without necessarily filling it with musical narrative or a predefined concept. His 2014 studio album Bécs was followed by his 2019 album for Touch, Agora.

Within the last 10 years, Fennesz has collaborated with many musicians, filmmakers, and dancers. These encounters of diverse art forms have resulted in numerous stage performances and several exceptional studio releases. He has recorded and performed with Ryuichi Sakamoto, David Sylvian, Keith Rowe, Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse, Mike Patton, and many others. Fennesz has also worked alongside Peter Rehberg and Jim O'Rourke as the improvisational trio Fenn O'Berg.