Sean Deason

by John BushAfter a period doing graphic design for hordes of Detroit techno releases, Sean Deason began working on production himself, first for K Hands Acacia Records, but later for his own Matrix label under aliases such as Project X, Sounds Intangible Nature, Freq and X-313. His production style of driving minimalist funk with sublime, quintessentially Detroit melodies was later tempered by his inspiration from the British drumnbass scene, making Deason one of the few Motor City figures to integrate heavy breakbeats into his material.It was while studying at the Center for Creative Studies that Deason first began working on sleeve-design for records by Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kenny Larkin and A Guy Called Gerald, including labels like Generator, Acacia and Carl Craigs RetroActive. After being introduced to the basics of sequencing and drum-machine programming by Kenny Larkin and Dan Bell, Deason recorded his first EP, Code 3s Cyclops, at K Hands Acacia studios; the record earned airplay on local radio by another friend, Alan Oldham (aka DJ T1000). Deason also worked at Richie Hawtins studios before forming his own Matrix Records. The labels early releases included singles by the Deason projects Freq and Sounds Intangible Nature as well as the mini-album compilation Digital Sects (featuring Larkin, Oldham and Claude Young among others). Signed to Studio K7, Deason released his first solo album Razorback in 1996. One year later, Deason released the Freq LP Heaven through Britains Distance Records. In mid-2000, his new full-length Allegory & Metaphor earned comparisons to the likes of Detroit Escalator Companys Soundtrack 313 for its ability to capture the atmospheric feeling of a city (namely, Detroit) in sound. [See Also: Freq]