LTJ Bukem

In the midst of the explosion of the acid house and rave scenes in the late 80s there were no strict genres - back then pigeon-holing was a nonexistent entity - and amongst the raft of visionaries introducing breakbeats into a rave scene still dominated by 4/4 kick drums was a young Danny Williamson, aka LTJ Bukem. With beginnings as a DJ on London's soundsystem scene, followed by the acid house days alongside the likes of Kid Batchelor and Mr C, it was a fascination with the sampler that sprung his career into pace. Whilst the likes of the Ragga Twins were fusing breakbeats with ragga samples and creating proto-jungle, Bukem's masterpiece, firmly rooted in his jazz piano background, was melodically and musically of another planet. His early productions that followed - including "Demon's Theme", "Atlantis" and "Music" - which built the foundations of the nascent Good Looking empire - carved out a defined niche in the developing scene. It wasn't long before other young beat makers rushed to get their music into Bukem's hands, from PFM to one Rupert Parkes aka Photek ("no one had heard of Photek until I was playing out all these sets of his productions"). As the 90s moved on and drum & bass began to develop as a distinct genre, Bukem and long time friend and supporter Fabio set up Speed at the Mars Bar in London's West End, a night that became integral to D&B's development.