Drumsound & Bassline Smith

Drumsound & Bassline Smith are a British electronic music production and DJ trio formed in 1998. The group comprises Andy (Andrew) Wright and Ben (Benjamin) Wiggett — who perform together under the Drumsound name — and Simon "Bassline" Smith (Simon Smith). They work primarily in drum and bass and related styles including bassline, drumstep, dubstep, jungle and liquid funk. The trio originate from Derby, England, and have operated across the United Kingdom, including activity in London.

Andy Wright, Ben Wiggett and Simon Smith formed the project in 1998. In 1999 they founded Technique Recordings to release their own material and label cuts. Their recorded output includes three studio albums listed on the label: Nature of the Beast (2004), Wall of Sound (2013) and Wardance (2017). Across singles and remixes the group have earned mainstream recognition: the single "Close" reached number 49 on the UK charts and in 2012 won Best Track and Best Video at the Official Drum & Bass Awards.

As producers, Drumsound & Bassline Smith focus on tight, technical drum programming and sculpted low end. Their productions characteristically use layered break edits — chopped and re-sequenced funk and amen-style patterns — combined with parallel compression and precise transient shaping to give drums a punchy, forward feel. Bass design centers on deep, engineered subs and midrange growl: multiple bass layers are blended so a sub layer carries the low fundamental while mid-bass elements provide movement and character. Atmosphere is often built with pad and string textures, reverb-draped motifs and processed vocal hooks that sit above the breaks without masking them. On tracks that lean toward drumstep and dubstep they employ half-time bass patterns and stretched snares while keeping drum clarity through tight quantisation and editing.

Their DJ sets and mixing style mirror their production values. They programme sets that move between rollers and harder, club-weight tracks, sequencing original productions, Technique releases and select remixes to control energy across a set. Technically their mixing favors precise beat-matching and careful EQing to protect sub-bass during transitions, and they often use edits and VIP versions from their own catalogue to anchor peak moments. As a trio they split roles between studio production, label management and DJ bookings, with members frequently appearing individually or together for club and festival dates.

Career highlights and concrete contributions include the founding of Technique Recordings in 1999 and the three studio albums referenced above. Nature of the Beast (2004) marked their first full-length statement. Wall of Sound arrived in 2013 and followed a decade of singles and remixes on the label and elsewhere; Wardance was released in 2017. The single "Close" stands out in their commercial record: it reached number 49 on the UK charts and secured Best Track and Best Video at the Official Drum & Bass Awards in 2012. Beyond those headline facts, the trio have released numerous singles and remixes over years of activity, using Technique Recordings as the primary platform for their work.

Publicly available biographical sources list the group’s formation, membership, label and album details but provide limited, on-record statements naming specific individual musical influences. What is verifiable is their linkage to the UK drum and bass scene since 1998, their role as producers and DJs, their founding of Technique Recordings in 1999, the three albums Nature of the Beast (2004), Wall of Sound (2013) and Wardance (2017), and the chart and award achievements for "Close" in 2012.

That combination — three core members, a self-run label, a steady sequence of singles and remixes, three albums across 2004–2017, and the chart/award success of "Close" — is the factual backbone of Drumsound & Bassline Smith’s contribution to drum and bass.