At the dawn of the new century, Germany emerged as a rich source of producers specializing in dub-tinged deep house, with Dub Taylor ranking among the leading figures next to Luomo and Mathias Schaffhauser. Berlin-based Alex Krüger, working under the Dub Taylor name, delivered his second 12" for Force Tracks in 2000 and achieved a notable dancefloor success with the single "I Can't (Fall in Love With Another One)." The recording featured a powerful, pulsating 4/4 beat saturated in ambient dub atmosphere and finished with sentimental, New York garage-inflected male diva vocals, delivered in a thick accent by Per Fourier. This release elevated the Dub Taylor alias—among Krüger’s many others—into wider recognition and paved the way for his first album, Forms and Figures, issued on the respected Raum-Musik imprint in early 2001. Comparable to the impact of the "I Can't" 12", Forms and Figures generated considerable attention, as Krüger’s spare, minimal approach to house, punctuated by vocal passages, met with strong demand. Force Tracks followed with a second Dub Taylor album, Detect, less than twelve months later. The collection compiled ten Krüger tracks dating from 2000 and 2001, among them "I Can't," serving as an ideal entry point for newcomers. Thanks to the extensive reach of the Force Inc. network, a broad audience encountered Krüger’s output. Beyond the higher-visibility outings on Raum-Musik and Force Tracks, he also placed Dub Taylor material on the Konfekt and United States of Mars imprints.
