Deadbeat^CA

Scott Monteith aka Deadbeat is one of the most solid and adventurous producers Canada has ever given us. You can randomly choose any of his numerous LPs, EPs or singles released since 1996 and always land on a great moment of groove-filled electronica. With a strong anchor in dub, minimal techno and soundscapes, Deadbeat has made us trust his vision as a producer by expanding, mixing or contrasting these foundations with an energy always moving forward. His eighth participation in MUTEK MX will be under the influence of The Lichen Diaries Vol. 1. (Mute Song, 2024) a conceptual piece with an abstract and nocturnal sound that connects with the bass and dark techno of contemporary clubbing, with that distinctive Deadbeat touch that we still can't get enough of.

A master of crackly worlds of dub, undulating reggae scorchers and forward-thinking percussive experimentations, Deadbeat manipulates sonic space with impressive technical command and melodic dexterity. Whether crafting kaleidoscopic house and chugging deep techno or tar-thick, impossibly weighty minimalism, his output is at once soft and hard.

Best known by his Deadbeat moniker, Monteith spent a few years sharpening his focus in Montréal before taking up residence in Berlin. Since the early aughts, he has produced countless EPs as well as ten studio albums of dub-laden, minimal electronics for standout labels such as Echocord and Wagon Repair. His also founded his own BLKRTZ imprint, in a move inspired by his past experiences with community-minded labels like ~scape. Extremely tight quality control, astonishing sound design and adventurous digital production techniques have made him a household name in the areas of techno and dub-inflected electronic music. On his latest full length, 2018’s Wax Poetic For This Our Great Resolve, Deadbeat gets political, crafting expansive, dubwise rhythms around anti-Trump “monologues of hope” from 17 different contributors.