High Tone

Formed in Lyon during 1997, the French dub collective High Tone arose as a quintet co-founded by Lionel "DJ Twelve" Dumas alongside guitarist Julien "Aku Fen" Oresta, bassist Fabrice Oresta, keyboardist Antonin "Antok" Chaplin, and drummer Dominique "Selekta Dino" Peter. The group surfaced within the same expanding dub scene that also nurtured Le Peuple de l'Herbe, Brain Damage Sound System, and Meï Teï Shô. Blending inspirations that stretched from Lee "Scratch" Perry through ambient textures into drum'n'bass, High Tone cultivated an intense following for its live shows before inking a deal with independent imprint Jarring Effects, which issued the 2000 debut full-length Opus Incertum. Although the 2001 successor Bass Temperature marked the ensemble's first commercial success, the 2003 release Live stands as the most faithful document of its sound. High Tone further produced a run of well-received joint projects with fellow dub acts, among them Kaly Live Dub on 2003's Kaltone, Improvisator Dub on 2004's Higvistators, and Wang Lei on 2005's Wangtone.