There are not many artists in drum and bass that have created a single track
that defines an era, but Keaton-alongside collaborators Carl and Chris of
The Usual Suspects-did just that with "Killa Bees," the epochal single
released on Renegade Hardware in 1999. Epitomizing the dark, intensely nervy
sound of the late 90s, the single was in near-constant rotation in every
corner of the drum and bass scene. Named Best Newcomers by Knowledge
Magazine and thrust into the limelight virtually overnight, Keaton found
himself in the enviable position of having entered the game on the top
floor.

Incongruous with the intense, synthetic sound he's often identified with,
Keaton followed a familiar trajectory into drum and bass: hip hop. Growing
up on the south coast of England, he was removed from the center of action
in London. At 11 he aspired to become a hip hop DJ, buying a pair of decks.
At the same time, a friend gave him a mix tape by a rising DJ known as LTJ
Bukem. In it Keaton heard an unexpected thing: his beloved hip hop breaks,
sped up and fused with the textures of rave and techno. Astonished by this
tremendously fresh sound, he found himself snapping up singles on labels
such as Reinforced and R&S. He soon found himself emulating the mixes of
Bukem, and by 14, with a pair of Technics in hand, he became a bedroom
jungle DJ. He diligently compiled mix tapes, traversing the spectrum of drum
and bass as it crystallized into a mature form, drawing both on the dark
side and what was then being referred to as intelligent. By the age of 17,
he'd landed his first residency, at Bournemouth's Opera House. Galvanized by
this promising start as a DJ, Keaton moved to London to pursue a course in
sound engineering. It was there that he met future fellow Suspect Carl, and
after forming EB1 with Carl, met Chris, and The Usual Suspects were born.

The full spectrum of the sound of drum and bass that Keaton explored as an
aspiring DJ has remained a steady theme of Keaton's output as a producer,
apparent across his discography. As The Usual Suspects he released
"Doorway," an inspiring and darkly beautiful anthem on Hardware, followed by
the mechanistic growl of "Spawn" and "Shrapnel," and with Loxy, the deeply
brooding, almost minimal "Stalker." In 2000, pursuing the ideal of tempering
the dominant hardness of drum and bass with a warmer musicality, Keaton
befriended Ruxspin, Scandal and Nitrox and together produced "The Craft"
under the name Universal Project. They soon founded a label under the same
name, debuting with "Bleach" and "The Truth," followed by "Vessel," released
on Virus.

Gradually, Keaton began working more aggressively as a solo artist, gaining
commissions for several remixes. He also began working with other artists
such as Dom & Roland, and Loxy, Ink, and Dylan as The Four Horsemen, all
balanced with a continuation of The Usual Suspects and Universal Project
through the end of 2002.

The winter of 2003 found Keaton on the brink of what would prove to be a
huge year, the opening salvo of which was a tremendous collaborative single
with Hive-"The Plague" and "Resolution." Released on Hardware, "The Plague"
became one of the year's great tunes, opening the door to a particularly
strong partnership with Hive, as evidenced by Keaton's current and future
contributions to Violence.

2003 also found Keaton remixing Dillinja's "Twist 'em Out," Klute's "Glue
Sniffer" and Digital's "Gateman." By summer, he'd founded the new label
Xtinction Agenda with Loxy, assigning it a darker mission, balancing that
with his "Invisible Man" e.p. for Hardware, a collection which returns to
the more diversified approach that has informed his career to date.

Attending his successes in the studio has been an exponential growth in his
demand as a DJ, with numerous worldwide appearances. He's toured alone and
with co-conspirators Loxy and Hive.

By the close of 2003, Keaton scaled back his work with The Usual Suspects
and ended his involvement with Universal Project, intent on cultivating his
own abilities in the studio as a solo producer. Amongst a raft of scheduled
releases on labels such as Violence, Metalheadz, Quarantine, Freak, and the
mighty Renegade Hardware, Keaton will be introducing his own label Refuge in
2004 with the intention of cementing his position as a solo producer on the
top shelf of drum and bass. Few producers in drum and bass can claim as
bright a present as Keaton; his future is set to be utterly incendiary.