Stereo Labs

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.

Steve Bug is one of electronic music’s true originals. His relentless commitment to quality - both in his own work and in the many producers he has championed - has made him one of the world’s most revered artists and curators, and along with his label Poker Flat has made a sizeable contribution to building the European house and techno scene as we know it. A dedicated, energetic and constantly innovative talent, Resident Advisor once called Steve Bug the “gentleman of techno” referring to his sense of duty and dependability as one of the world’s most renowned DJs and producers. That same professionalism that means he’s hardly ever missed a DJ gig is evident in his work as a composer, producer and owner of the Poker Flat Recordings label: a label whose influence on house and techno cannot be overstated. Every step he takes is well considered, but always tempered with his own fine sense of humour and innate love for his craft. Having grown up in Germany’s techno and acid-house heyday, Steve Bug’s love for a perfect groove is as apparent now as it was back then. His DJ skills and a keen, innovative ear led him not down the typical path of the early nineties trance and harder dance scene, but instead towards a fresher, hybrid sound–merging stripped deep house, tweaked out acid and more minimal forms of techno and electronic music. Although dedicated to his own labels – first and foremost the aforementioned Poker Flat – Steve’s talents have naturally attracted the attention of other imprints. Bedrock, Knee Deep In Sound, Minus, Cocoon and Defected are just some of the labels that have championed original tracks and remixes. Steve is also one of the few electronic artists capable of putting out a ‘proper’ album. Having released no fewer than five full length LPs over the last two decades, his latest Paradise Sold alongside Langenberg - a full ten-track album of exquisitely crafted house music on Poker Flat –was released in 2018 to critical acclaim, and described as “elegantly euphoric” by Mixmag, while a remix package of Paradise Sold with new interpretations from Rodriguez Jr., Frankey & Sandrino, Cassy and Virginia was supported by DJs and tastemaker publications across the board. In 2019 Poker Flat celebrated its 20th anniversary, marking this impressive milestone with a series of remixes of some of its most iconic releases from an incredible array of talented artists including Tim Engelhardt, Michael Meyer, Catz ’n Dogz, Acid Pauli, Guti, Butch, Matthias Kaden and Francois K. The anniversary remix series continues into 2020, with Harry Romero, Catz N Dogz and Acid Pauli amongst the producers given the keys to the hallowed Poker Flat vaults. 2019 also saw the launch of a new sublabel for Poker Flat, Sublease Music. Sublease was set up to champion deeper, more club-ready, tracky cuts from exceptionally talented producers that deserve a platform for people to hear them. This was the ethos with which Steve originally set up Poker Flat, so it seems fitting that as he celebrates 20 years of Poker Flat it’s time for Sublease Music to bring a different sound to the world. Hitting its seventh release in summer 2020, Sublease has already made its mark, with exceptional releases from Kellie Allen, MANIK, Buraq and more besides. In 2020 Steve released his sixth studio album, Never Ending Winding Roads, with much of it produced during the months of enforced isolation due to the coronavirus pandemic. Many of the track titles reflect Steve’s headspace during this time, with themes of solitude, contemplation and reflection brought to the fore perhaps more than with any of his previous work, with the 11 tracks exploring a range of different styles, including minimal house music, moody techno and effervescent breaks.