Brooks

by Andy KellmanAt the tender age of 16, Derbys Andy Brooks released his first production — Electric Dance Machine, on DiYs 2922 Days compilation. Brooks, who releases his oddball house material as Brooks, signed on with the Mantis label and delivered his first 12 in 1999 with Pink Cigarettes. His slow but steady release schedule continued throughout 2000 and 2001, with a single released each year (Clix and The Distance). 2002 was much more prolific, with two additional 12 releases, Miss Bombay 1974 and Colour Me Bad, preceding his debut first full-length. Released in late 2002, the excellent You, Me and Us followed through on the promise evident in the early releases with a fascinating batch of productions that flipped the oft-stuffy field of deep house on its head. Despite being in his early 20s at the time of the records release, Brooks had seemingly devoured all the electronically-oriented R&B that came twenty years prior, in addition to gobbling plenty of knowledge about early Chicago house and Detroit techno. Instead of taking that knowledge and skill to become yet another throwback copyist, Brooks twisted his inspirations into an irreverent yet somehow refined sound.