Matthew Styles is one of the true unsung heroes of house music’s underground. From his acclaimed regular appearances at Berlin’s Berghain and Panorama Bar, to his in-demand engineering skills that have landed him on some of dance music’s biggest records, dance music runs deep in Styles’ blood. This of course doesn’t even include Styles’ work as Crosstown Rebels‘ first label manager, navigating Damian Lazarus’ imprint through a run of massively successful releases while racking up production credits of his own on Gerd Janson’s Running Back, Ostgut and Rekkids.
Despite his longtime involvement with Crosstown Rebels and his lauded production chops, he’d never actually given label boss Damian Lazarus a demo of his own — up until now, that is. Sleepless is the four-track label debut from Matthew Styles, a sonic journey through the depths and valleys of house music. “Avon” is a razor sharp break-beat workout featuring relentlessly addicting synth lines and huge electro-bass swells primed for the club. While the first half of the track ups the energy and movement on the floor, the track closes out on a cerebral vibe with the synth lines taking a pensive tone as the drum breaks clatter on. Given his history with the label, it’s hard to believe that this is Styles’ debut on Crosstown Rebels, but it’s a highly impressive EP nonetheless.
Buy Sleepless on Juno
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