London-based artist Mr Assister has been a steady force in the city’s underground for the past decade. Whereas he’s known to some as the drummer in James Blake’s touring live band, his own output as a DJ and producer has seen him carve out a lane on the deeper, more hypnotic edges of prog, tech house, and minimal psy. Since founding his label BEAM in 2016, what began as a home for his own productions has evolved into a small but trusted platform for his wider scene of extended friends, releasing music from Al Dente, Peter Rocket, and Rudefood, and most recently, an eleven-artist compilation that captures the current wave of modern prog-tech haus and off-kilter groove with a finely tuned sense of curation. In terms of his own productions, he took some time away in 2017 to focus on his studies, but has since returned with a renewed sense of production purpose, releasing his Communing EP earlier this year with a four-tracker that moved between rolling grooves, tripped-out textures, and introspective atmospheres. He’s also recently finished a new EP that will be the 9th release on BEAM under a possibly one-off new alias.
For his Truancy Volume, he keeps that same sense of flow and restraint that has recently been found in his productions. Recorded in a single live take, the mix leans into stripped-back minimal and rolling, hypnotic grooves, hovering around 125bpm with plenty of space to breathe. It’s a patient, understated journey to get locked in the groove with, built from years of quiet collecting and featuring unreleased material from friends such Aedis and Jay Duncan.
Hey there! So how have you been recently? What’s the year been like for you so far? Any particular highlights you care to tell us about? “Hi, and thanks for having me! I’m doing well thanks – after a busy few years touring and studying part-time on the side, I’ve spent a lot of this year in my studio. It’s been great having the time to get back into music production and start releasing music again after a very long break. I find that I work best when I’m able to really immerse myself in it – waking up with loops still running in my head and having new ideas randomly come to me while walking or cycling.
My DJ schedule has been sporadic as usual lol, but it’s very much a passion rather than a job for me so I’m happy to keep it this way. Having said that, I’ve had a few really fun gigs this year. Some highlights have included a long awaited b2b with Lora Mipsum at a Slush Records x Imaginary Music party, as well as Gdanse at Spanners, which is probably the best small venue in London. Shout outs to Mary and Tobs! I also played a great gig in Dublin with DIY architecture and party collective Scarlet – the crowd energy hits different in Ireland!
Since March, I’ve also been working on a new project looking to support grassroots nightlife in London. It started after conversations on this subject with a friend Ed Holloway (an unsung hero who works behinds the scenes designing and advocating for grassroots infrastructure), and we began running monthly meetings with venues, promoters, architects, and activists to figure out ways to create a more sustainable ecosystem of grassroots venues and events. I can’t go into too much detail just yet, but we have some exciting developments in the pipeline, so watch this space!”
So as this is your first interview on site, I thought we’d just go back a bit. Could you tell us a little bit about where you’re from and what are some of your earliest musical memories, not necessarily in dance music? I know you play the drums so was wondering if bands were a major part of your formative music years both in playing and listening? “I grew up in London and have lived here my whole life. My first musical memories were listening to cassette tapes in my mum’s old red Peugeot – when I hear Bob Dylan and Tracy Chapman I still think of the musty smell of that car. As a young teenager I was into the all the classic grunge and rock bands, but as I got more into drumming I started listening to a lot of jazz, and later discovered reggae and dub, along with afrobeat, highlife and all the incredible music that was coming out of West Africa in the 1970s and 1980s. Every Friday on my way home from school I would go to HMV in Wood Green and buy an old album on CD, which played a big part in my musical education. Tony Allen – Fela Kuti’s drummer – is still one of my favourite drummers and influences a lot of the way I think about rhythm. He has this completely unique way of playing which is neither straight nor swung, and somehow feels tight but completely loose at the same time. Before things took off with James Blake, I played in various bands in my late teens and early 20s, including everything from post punk and psychedelic rock, to live hip hop and Ethiopian jazz.”
Could you tell us how you first got into electronic music and DJing following that? What were the initial influences, people, music that set you down this passion? Was there any one party you attended too where everything clicked for you and you thought yeah I want to get a pair of decks now. “Growing up in London, my first exposure to electronic music was jungle and drum and bass. I have particularly fond memories of going to Herbal on Kingsland Road in the mid to late 2000s, and you can imagine the ever-present scent in the air from its name… When I went to university in 2007, I met Nick Sigsworth (aka Klaus) who introduced me to dubstep. We lived together for quite a few years and would regularly go to DMZ at Brixton Mass and FWD at Plastic People. I think that was the first time I began to understand how in its best moments, sound, space, and community can come together to make what is so unique and special about dance music. This period was exciting, because it really felt like you were experiencing musical history unfolding in real time. I started buying records around then, but it was mainly just old LPs and reggae/dub 12 inches to listen to at home, and I never had any intention of getting into DJing. Nick already had all the best electronic stuff on vinyl, so I didn’t feel the need to buy any of it myself!
Up until my early twenties I had literally zero interest in house or techno. It never made any sense to me and I thought it all sounded the same haha… I think when you’re used to the immediacy of more ‘UK’ sounds, it requires a completely different kind of mindset and attention. This all changed maybe around 2011 or 2012 when my good friend (and amazing musician) Harry Christelis convinced me to come to one of the Hydra Ostgut Ton nights at a warehouse somewhere in Hackney. I’d never actually locked in to 4/4 music for an extended period before and I definitely had a bit of an epiphany… Rather than focussing on specific tracks, I finally understood that the music was more about the longer form of architecture of DJ sets unfolding slowly over the course of the night. I’d always loved dancing, but I think techno resonated with my body (and drummer’s sensibility) in a totally different way to the eyes down, mediative qualities of bass and sound system music. Since then, I’ve never looked back!
In the mid 2010s, I also discovered the vibrant DIY scene in South London, including parties like World Unknown, Body Hammer, and Puwaba. These were small, often quite chaotic (in the best possible way) affairs, with resident DJs, diverse music policies, and a really dedicated community of regulars. I would often cycle down from North London on my own and met lots of amazing and interesting people. I think these events really opened my eyes to the social as well as musical aspects of dance music and rave culture. At World Unknown at the Flying Dutchman in Camberwell, the DJ booth was set up behind a curtain in a separate room. This created a completely directionless dancefloor – there was no ‘front’ – which placed the focus on the dancers and encouraged interaction. These events also introduced me to different lineages of dance music, including Balearic, cosmic chuggers, new beat, ‘proper’ tech house, trance, and prog.”
Can you share any tracks or mixes created by someone else from this era that really bring you back to a specific time or place?
I remember dancing on the stage at the back of DMZ and watching the room erupt when Mala dropped the bassline. It’s a timeless and incredible track, combining high rhythmic energy with sub bass pressure and it sounds distinctly and unmistakeably London.
Drum Club – Sound System (Underworld Mix)
This track was a bit of anthem at World Unknown and was always a collective coming up moment for the night. It beautifully encapsulates the psychedelic and subtly melancholic euphoria of rave.
Can you tell us a little bit about getting involved with being the drummer for James Blake’s band? You’ve been doing that for a while now, correct? What have been some highlights? It must be great to be on tour actually as a band in this DJ climate. “James and Rob (Airhead) are both very old and dear friends from school – we’ve known each other since we were 11 – so over 25 years! We used to play in bands together at school, and then after James’s early DJ and production career had taken off, he contacted us to say he wanted to put together a live show for a new vocal album he’d been working on. We performed a few tracks as part of his final degree performance, and then within the next year or two we’d toured all over the world – which was an amazing and whirlwind experience as 21-year-olds! I think it’s testimony to our deep running friendship and musical chemistry that we’re still performing together now.
We’ve played literally hundreds of gigs so it’s hard to choose highlights, but one of the most special moments was when we played at Alexandra Palace in 2022. As teenagers, we used to hang out on the hillside of the park when we were too young to get into pubs, so it was an incredible and surreal full-circle moment to be back there playing a sold-out show. After the gig, we took some cans down to the hillside just like old times!
I feel immensely privileged to have been part of this project from the start – both to watch an old and extremely talented friend’s career to grow in the way that it has, and to travel the world with friends, making a living from playing music. The music industry can be a precarious and fickle place, so I feel incredibly lucky to have had this opportunity, while also having the freedom to work on many of my own projects.”
Do you see drumming as something that compliments your DJing style or the way you DJ, or do you see them as two different entities? “That’s an interesting question! I think live music and DJing are inherently different – one involves a much clearer separation between performer and audience, while DJing is more collaborative – responding to the energy of the room in a mutual feedback loop. Having said that, I think there is a connection between playing drums and DJing in the sense that both are mainly focussed on rhythmic and bodily energy. In the live show with James, we often include some more improvised techno jams, which we approach as somewhere in between DJing and live performance.
As a drummer, I think groove and rhythmic flow is always the first thing I’m drawn to when digging for new music. This can be a hindrance though because I always wish I have more records with nice chords and melodies!”
Can you run us through the history of BEAM and the changes the label has gone through too. You started the label in 2016 and have slowly kept at it, releasing a sick compilation this year as well which must feel like a nice culmination of past years. Do you feel you achieved what you set out to do since starting the label? “When I first started the label then was no grand plan whatsoever, aside from creating an outlet to release some of my own productions. I liked the idea of building something from scratch with more creative control, and I was also interested to learn more about all the back-end processes involved in releasing records, including artwork, mastering, pressing, distribution etc. At the start, I even insisted on delivering the records to distribution myself, and managed to badly dent a Zipvan while reversing out of Kudos HQ, which completely ruined the budget for BEAM-02 lol…
After releasing three of my own 12 inches between 2016-2018, the label has since grown to feature the music of an extended network of friends. These are mainly producers based in London, as well as a few people I have connected with from further afield. Rather than accepting random demos or scouring Soundcloud, it has felt important to focus on more personal connections – this makes the whole process a lot more enjoyable and hopefully tells a more resonant story. As the label has developed, I think it has gradually refined into a more specific, but ideally still wide-ranging sound. Beams vol. 1, the compilation which came out earlier this year, felt like a nice culmination of that journey, representing the full range of beam-adjacent sounds, tempos, and styles.
We’re approaching the tenth anniversary and tenth release on BEAM next year, and I hope I can continue releasing my own music as well as that of my friends. I want to do something special to celebrate, but I still haven’t decided what! The release schedule has always been very sporadic, and I put things out when it feels right rather than trying to force consistency or grow a profile. Having said that, I’ve had a lot more time for music production and the label this past year, so hopefully BEAM will become a little more active for the time being at least.”
In terms of your own productions, it seems like you took a bit of a break post 2018 in releasing music but seem to be focused again on changing that. You put out your ‘Communing EP’ this year and have a newly finished one coming correct? What can you tell us about your producing history? Is there a new found motivation at the moment? “From late 2017 I took a long break from production because I was studying part-time alongside touring with the band. I was at Goldsmiths working on a PhD thesis about nightlife spaces and urban politics in London. After a long and drawn-out process of corrections, I graduated at the end of 2024 and became Dr Assister… lol. I may return to academia at some point, but for the time being I’ve chosen to spend a lot more time at my studio and get back into making music instead of writing about it.
When I first started releasing music, it felt very much like a hobby, and I didn’t feel any significant connection with a scene or style. In some ways, this was quite creatively liberating, but as I’ve got more involved in dance music as a DJ and through going out dancing a lot, I think I have a much better sense of how and where I want my music to fit. I think it can be limiting if you focus too much on imitating genre conventions, but it’s helpful to have at least some sense of your music’s place in the wider ecology of scenes and musical styles.
This past year I’ve been working on lots of music which sits somewhere between the sounds I’ve been enjoying these past few years, combining elements of techno, minimal, prog, psy, breaks, and tek haus. I’ve never really had the right kind of brain or patience to master some of the more technical aspects of mixing and production, but I feel like I’ve learned a lot in this respect over the last year which is satisfying. I also recently discovered a massive folder of vinyl samples I recorded in 2013 and totally forgot about, which is a real treasure trove of ethnographic field recordings, percussion records, and sound effects, so I’m having a lot of fun working those into new tunes.”
What can you tell us about the new EP you’ve recently wrapped up? This will be the ninth release on BEAM, and my first release under a new alias, focussing on a slightly more retro (but hopefully still contemporary) take on classic tech house, minimal, and breaks. I’m not sure if this will be a one-off or an ongoing project, but I thought it would be a fun experiment, and rather than aiming for some kind of grand artistic statement, I just wanted to make a collection of DJ-friendly tracks for the dancefloor. It all came together in the last 6 months or so, so feels very current – though inevitably I’m already getting bored of it before it’s even come out!”“
Are there any other producers you’re influenced by? What is it about their sound that you want to try to channel within yours? “For some time now, I’ve been obsessed with music that combines swampy, moody atmospheres with a more playful sense of groove. Two of my favourite artists in this vein are the Swedish producers KAB and Llopis, who released some amazing stuff in the late 90s and early 00s, inhabiting a really interesting space between genres. There’s lots of incredible psychedelic-adjacent music being made at the moment (especially in France and Australia), but there’s something that really resonates with me about the more organic sound palette of music from this era. I’m perpetually on the hunt for more music like this and trying to channel some of it into my own productions. In terms of more contemporary producers, some of my current favourites are Aedis, djfix, Jek, softi, Elsa, Ekkel, al dente, and LOIF.”
Has your musical style and the way you approach DJing or a set changed or evolved much to you in the last decade? If you were to assess your skills from maybe a few years ago in what aspects do you think you’ve improved? “Yes it has changed drastically! My first ever DJ sets were mainly playing dub and digi dub records at the 1-800 Dinosaur parties we used to do on tour and at Plastic People in the early 2010s – I didn’t even know how to beat-match at this point. Once I learned how to mix, I think I spent quite a few years perhaps quite unsuccessfully trying to blend too many different genres and tempos. This approach can be interesting and effective, but there aren’t many DJs who can do it in a way that retains the kind of flow you often want as a dancer. More recently, I’ve been trying to get better at a less is more approach – touching the mixer less, getting less distracted by the temptations of filters, and trying to keep things rolling. For a long time, I only played vinyl – this wasn’t out of some sense of ideological purity, it was just the way I got into DJing. Not long after covid, I bought a set of CDJs, and since then I’ve enjoyed the freedom that comes with combining the two. I’ll definitely never stop playing records and I find record shops by far the best and most enjoyable way to dig for music, but carrying a USB stick opens up a whole world of music and allows for much more flexibility. My rekordbox skills are still quite limited though so it can be quite hard navigating a growing collection of digital music!”
How does music fit into your daily routine? Do you regularly listen to music or search for new records? How do you focus your intentions and craft, and how distinct are your roles as a producer, DJ, label owner and music enthusiast? “Ironically, I don’t listen to music that much. I very rarely put it on in the background at home and I much prefer the more intentional kind of listening that comes with headphones while walking or travelling around London. In terms of searching for new music, it very much comes in phases. When I’m preparing for gigs or a new mix, I might have a few weeks of more obsessive digging, and then I might not seek out new music for months at a time. There are a few record shops around London that I visit whenever I’m in the area, and I’m lucky to have built most of my collection from record shopping all over the world while touring with James. Seeking out record shops can be a great way of exploring new cities, and it means anything I buy will always carry added layers of personal meaning and memory.
When I’m working on new music, I mainly listen back to works in progress. Sometimes I find it better not to listen too much to other stuff during this process – it’s a fine balance between inspiration and imitation.
In terms of production, DJing, running a label, and being a music enthusiast, I would like to hope they all blend together in perfect harmony! Dance music is very much a passion for me, and though I would happily play out more, I could never imagine it being a job. I love it too much and I don’t think I could preserve that relationship with it if I was gigging every weekend and had to make decisions based on what pays the bills. Clubs and parties can be very special and transformative spaces, but they can also be quite dystopian, so I’m glad to be able to pick and choose in this respect. Luckily most of my gigs come via networks of friends, so things tend to flow quite naturally.”
Can you tell us about some of your three favourite sets you’ve seen from other people? What do you think you took away from them? “I couldn’t pick one particular set, but Remove-Me (part of the Sub-System crew) never fails to disappoint and – in my humble opinion – is one of the best and most underrated DJs out there. He has the kind of collection you can only build up over decades of digging, and plays music that is consistently deep, interesting, and musical, but always exactly what the dancefloor needs to hear at any given moment, whether it’s a sweaty room at Adonis or sunrise on Hackney Marshes. He also mixes vinyl with a seamless precision that few people can even manage on CDJs.
Again, it’s hard to pick a specific set, but Sybil always blows my mind. The phrase ‘taking people on a journey’ is perhaps overused when describing DJ sets, but I think she’s one of the few people that can sculpt individual tracks into something that ends up much greater than the sum of its parts, moving between slamming techno, spiralling psychedelia, and moments of emotive euphoria.
I went to Waking Life for the first time this year, and Kia’s sunrise set on the Sunday morning was the last music I heard after being there for 5 days. She has this fascinating way of drawing connections between different genres, and brings a floaty playful quality even with darker shades of techno or drum and bass. Her unique DJing style, alongside her record label, Animalia, have been a constant source of inspiration over the past few years.”
Can you tell us about three albums that a) define you getting into electronic music in general, b) maybe a midway album when you were fully invested in DJing and and c) a more recent one.
“The compilation ‘With The Artists’ by Rhythm and Sound played a big part in my transition from dub and reggae toward getting into techno and electronic music more broadly. It is a masterpiece of minimalism, subtlety, and sound design, and is uniquely timeless.
‘Evolution’ by Xcor (Exquisite Corpse / Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia) was an influential album as I got more invested in DJing and began to discover more of my own sound. It brings together an interesting mix of organic percussion, downtempo, and early iterations of psychedelic techno.
When digging for music I tend to focus more on EPs and singles, but some of my favourite albums at the moment are ‘Trance Mutation’ by Nuel (who sadly died a few months ago), ‘Schleichfahrt’ by Khan & Walker, and ‘Lie Cheat & Steal / You Should Be Ashamed’ by Klute.”
What sort of other hobbies or interests do you have outside of electronic music? Are there any books, films, shows or other things you’ve seen or been reading/watching that you might want to share? “I go swimming regularly, and I find it incredibly meditative being in water with no phone or stimulation. After being recommended it by a friend, I recently read ‘Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl’ by Andrea Lawlor, which is a fascinating and fun depiction of 1990s queer scenes in the US, using magical realism to explore trans identity.”
What was your approach to crafting your Truancy Volume mix, and are there any particular tracks that hold special significance for you? “For this mix, I tried not to spend too much time planning or overthinking it and wanted to capture some sense of spontaneity with one live take. I’ve been collecting some more stripped-back minimal tracks over the past few years, and wanted to try and sustain a rolling, hypnotic groove rather than have too many peaks and troughs. It all hovers on or around 125bpm, and I’ve been enjoying tempos with a bit more space to breathe. There are a couple of tracks by Aedis – one of my favourite current producers, a few unreleased tracks from friends – including Jay Duncan’s track from the debut comp on Excelsior Ruth’s exciting new label – Opera Sunday, as well as some records I’ve had for years, but never found the right moment to play out or put in a mix.”
Looking ahead, what territories, musical or otherwise, are you eager to explore in your upcoming work? What are you looking forward to most in the coming months? I’m not feeling too excited about the shorter and colder days of winter, but I’m looking forward to keep on working on new music and my label, develop the grassroots music project I mentioned earlier, and hopefully find some ways to get back into writing about music and culture after a long and much needed break. The political situation in the UK, Palestine, and much of the world has been more than bleak over the past few years, but I try to find optimism in pockets of DIY culture and organising, and I’m constantly inspired by the work and determination of my friends.” “
Last, usual question from us, what was the last thing to put a big smile on your face and when was the last time you had a proper dance? “The last thing that put a smile on my face was a delicious home-cooked meal with my housemates last night, and the last time I had a proper dance was at Whomp last Saturday, when Jek and softi played an amazing b2b. Thanks for having me! <3″
Mr Assister: Soundcloud, Instagram, Resident Advisor
You can download Truancy Volume 356: Mr Assister in 320 kbps here. No submitted tracklist for this one but we’ll do our best to dig and put one together! Your support helps cover all our costs and allows Truants to continue running as a non-profit and ad-free platform. We urge you to support the future of independent music journalism—a little goes a long way. If you need any IDs though, please leave us a comment on the Soundcloud link and us or Mr Assister will get back to you with the track :)
