Zero T

Cian McCann performs as Zero T (formerly Zero Tolerance). He is a Dublin-born producer and DJ best known inside drum and bass and jungle for melodic, often liquid-leaning rollers. He is based in London, UK and began releasing music around 1999 after emerging from Dublin’s Bassbin scene.

McCann’s entry to drum and bass came through that late‑90s Dublin club environment. He started putting records out from roughly 1999 and built relationships with established UK labels as his profile grew. Over the following decades he has released on Reinforced, Signature, CIA (Total Science), Metalheadz, Shogun, Dispatch and other imprints, and he launched his own Footprints imprint.

As a producer Zero T’s work is characterised by precise drum editing, warm sub-bass design and layered atmospherics. His tracks regularly combine tight, swung break edits with sustained harmonic pads and melodic keyboard lines. He uses detailed drum programming and careful low‑end sculpting to keep kick and sub separate while letting midrange bass motion carry the tune. Vocals or vocal fragments appear as textural elements on many cuts rather than as front‑and‑centre hooks.

On the decks Zero T mixes with a focus on harmonic and flow-oriented transitions. His DJ sets and his FabricLive 52 (2010) compilation show extended blends and attention to track sequencing — moving between liquid rollers, deeper rollers and sparser, more atmospheric pieces without abrupt jumps in tempo or energy. The FabricLive 52 compilation (2010) is a documented example of his DJ curation and selection across that range.

Specific career highlights include the albums Cheap Shots (2008) and Little Pieces (2018). Those LPs bookend a period of sustained single‑track and EP activity on respected labels and display both his production range and his affinity for song‑forming arrangements inside drum and bass. He has collaborated with or worked alongside Beta 2, Calibre, Alix Perez and Goldie — collaborations and connections that appear across releases on the labels listed above.

Zero T’s Footprints imprint is part of his output beyond one‑off releases on larger labels; the imprint has been a vehicle for his A&R choices and for pushing the kinds of melodic/deep material he favours. Across releases on Reinforced, Signature, Metalheadz and others, he has contributed tracks that sit stylistically between liquid funk and deeper rollers, emphasising musicality and mix‑friendly arrangements.

Influences and connections are visible in his collaborators and label roster: work with Calibre and releases on Metalheadz connect him to deeper, studio‑led strands of the scene, while associations with Signature and Dispatch tie into the more DJ‑centric and dancefloor roll. His FabricLive 52 mix (2010) and the two albums Cheap Shots (2008) and Little Pieces (2018) are concrete reference points for his sound and career milestones.

Public biographical facts trace a path from Dublin’s Bassbin to London, with a release history beginning around 1999, releases on Reinforced, Signature, CIA (Total Science), Metalheadz, Shogun and Dispatch, the Footprints imprint, the FabricLive 52 compilation in 2010, and the albums Cheap Shots (2008) and Little Pieces (2018).