Basic Channel | Artist

Basic Channel aka Rhythm & Sound is a German techno & dub production duo and record label formed 1993 in Berlin by Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus. The duo became known in the mid-1990s for their pioneering series of vinyl-only minimal techno releases which drew on the sparse production techniques of dub reggae. Early Basic Channel releases showed a strong affinity for Detroit techno and Jamaican music. Their releases in the 1990s are regarded as pioneering examples of the minimal and dub techno subgenres. They established the Rhythm & Sound label imprint in collaboration with Paul St. Hilaire to focus on dub reggae releases. The duo released work as Basic Channel as well as under other project names including Rhythm & Sound, Round One, Phylyps, and Quadrant. The duo's music projects initially grew around Hard Wax, the record store opened by Ernestus in 1989. In order to achieve preferred mastering quality, the duo founded their own mastering house Dubplates & Mastering. Stand-out Basic Channel releases include the EP's Phylyps Trak and Quadrant Dub, and the compilation albums, BCD and BCD-2. Also recommended is 1993-99 Main Street Records (1999) credited to Round One. Under the Rhythm & Sound imprint the duo produced many excellent dub sides for Jamaican artists such as Cornel Campbell and Paul St Hilaire (Tikiman). The compilations Showcase (1998), Rhythm & Sound (2001), Rhythm & Sound w/ The Artists (2003), The Versions (2003), and See Mi Ya (2005) are highly recommended. As a matter of interest, Moritz von Oswald is a member of the historic House of Bismarck. He is the great-great-grandson of German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898), and his parents were Countess Mari Ann von Bismarck-Schönhausen (1929–1981) and the Hamburg merchant Egbert von Oswald (1925–1988).

Artist Website: basicchannel.com

Featured Albums: Basic Channel

Related Artists: Mark Ernestus, Moritz von Oswald, Rhythm & Sound, Round One