Boxcutter

Electronic musician Barry Lynn, originating from Northern Ireland, earned widespread underground praise through his Boxcutter alias, whose glitch-laden drum'n'bass breaks merged with grime and dubstep's weighty sub-bass frequencies, earning the "breakstep" tag. The project gradually absorbed Chicago footwork's rapid rhythms alongside smoother synth-funk grooves, edging closer to producers such as Dâm-Funk. Early in the 2000s Boxcutter focused on drill'n'bass productions; by the middle of the decade U.K. garage and the emerging dubstep movement began shaping his direction. Hotflush Recordings released the 2005 debut single "Brood," while Planet Mu issued the debut album Oneiric the next year. Strong underground electronic acclaim greeted that album, which was followed in 2007 by Glyphic, also on Planet Mu, and the non-album single "Philly" on Hotflush. In 2008 Lynn issued Balancing Lakes under his own name, compiling tracks recorded from 2002 to 2005 that echoed Squarepusher, Meat Beat Manifesto, and Boards of Canada.

He returned to the Boxcutter name in 2009 with Arecibo Message, retaining the breakstep foundation while venturing into downtempo electro and funk. The 2011 album The Dissolve reduced the earlier glitch emphasis, favoring disco and relaxed Balearic rhythms and featuring several vocal collaborations with Brian Greene. In 2012 Lynn explored a different path with a self-titled album as the Host, presenting a grainier, lo-fi interpretation of footwork paired with themes of '90s Internet nostalgia. That same year he joined Drew Lustman (FaltyDL) for a house 12" under the name NeferTT, issued by Hotflush. Boxcutter resurfaced in 2013 for the juke-influenced EP Gnosis on Om Unit's Cosmic Bridge label. After several digital EPs on Kinnego Records, Lynn revived the Host for the 2015 full-length Esalen Lectures, a trippy ambient set released by Touch Sensitive, which was soon followed by the Audience Science EP on Kinnego Records.