Tessela

Growing up on a diet of techno, early-'90s hardcore, and gabber provided by his elder brother Tom (Truss, MPIA3), Ed Russell's journey into music production was almost a given. Born in Bristol, U.K. — home to some of the U.K.'s earliest proponents of bass music — Russell's education in all things musical started with his purchase of a pair of turntables at the age of 11 and, while his skills in mixing left something to be desired, it would be this grounding that prompted Russell to move to Leeds in 2007 to study a degree in music technology. With the dubstep scene in Leeds growing — mainly due to the Ruffage club night hosted by Hessle Audio founders Ben UFO, Ramadanman, and Pangaea — Russell's early work would be influenced by this bass-heavy sound. Moving back to Bath in 2011 after university, Russell's production increased and saw the release of his debut 12" Slugger for Irish label All City Records. A year later in 2012, Russell joined forces with Hackman for the track "Feel Like Loving Me," which saw Russell's sound move more into the 4/4 style of house and techno. The clanking garage sound of D Jane followed and was quickly picked up by DJs and likeminded producers, while the release of Darlene, Please continued with the garage theme while being influenced by early-'90s house. Russell rounded out 2012 with a collaborative release with his brother Tom under the guise TR // ER. 2013 saw the release of the early rave-referencing 12" Hackney Parrot for his own Polykicks label.