Sub Focus

London native Nick Douwma performs as Sub Focus and has risen to international prominence in electronic music by steadily releasing drum'n'bass productions that balance broad appeal with sonic exploration and meticulous craftsmanship, while folding in touches of house, dubstep, dancehall, and rock. After joining RAM Records in 2005, he established a regular presence on the U.K. Dance charts with that year's chart-topping single "X-Ray." Acclaimed original material and reworkings for acts including the Prodigy, Deadmau5, and Basement Jaxx came next, leading to his wider breakthrough via the 2013 album Torus, which climbed to number 11 on the U.K. album chart and yielded multiple hit singles. He has kept delivering anthemic drum'n'bass and house cuts, teaming with Rudimental, Wilkinson, and Dimension while logging additional successes in the U.K. and New Zealand. His third solo album, Evolve, arrived in 2023 and also performed strongly on the charts.

Douwma taught himself production, starting on a home PC at age 13 and acquiring skills through software documentation. One of his early demos reached Andy C., co-founder of RAM Records, a leading U.K. drum'n'bass imprint. Initially signed to the RAM subsidiary Frequency, he debuted as Sub Focus in 2003 via the 12-inch Down the Drain/Hot Line. Additional 12-inch releases appeared on Frequency in 2004, followed by one on J Majik's Infrared label. His breakthrough occurred in 2005 with the RAM debut X-Ray/Scarecrow and the later Frozen Solid/Juno. These singles were compiled on the Frozen Solid/X-Ray maxi-single to meet demand after "X-Ray" earned Single of the Week on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 program. That same year Douwma was selected to remix the Prodigy's "Smack My Bitch Up" for the group's 15-year anniversary compilation Their Law: The Singles 1990-2005.

Douwma maintained his RAM association in the years that followed, issuing roughly one 12-inch per year and appearing as a resident DJ at venues such as Fabric and at festivals including Glastonbury. In 2009 he released his debut full-length, Sub Focus, which mixed futuristic house, dubstep, and electro-rock. The next year he produced "Kickstarts" for British singer/rapper Example, which reached number three on the U.K. singles chart. In 2011 he signed with Mercury and intended to issue his second album under the Sub Focus name in late 2012. Recording stretched beyond the original timetable and produced five singles that steadily increased his profile, culminating in the euphoric U.K. number ten hit "Endorphins" featuring vocalist Alex Clare. Part of the single's impact stemmed from its striking video, which depicted riot police suppressing dissent in a dystopian future that had outlawed music. Several prominent vocalists, among them Bloc Party's Kele Okereke, contributed to the finished album Torus, released in September 2013.

Following the final Torus single, a version of "Close" with Daniel Pearce, Douwma toured extensively and built a new studio. He returned in 2016 with the singles "Love Divine" and "Nobody Knows," both highlighting his jungle and garage influences. The retro direction persisted on 2017's "Lingua," a drum'n'bass track with dancehall inflections featuring vocals from Stylo G. Several months later he issued "Don't You Feel It," a collaboration with Finnish vocalist Alma. He also co-produced Rudimental's "Trouble," which featured Chronixx and Maverick Sabre. In 2018 came further joint releases with Wilkinson ("Take It Up") and Dimension ("Desire," which charted in the U.K. and Scotland).

The 2019 single "Solar System" and two follow-up collaborations with Wilkinson, "Illuminate" and "Just Hold On," all reached the charts in New Zealand. Sub Focus and Wilkinson then released the full-length Portals in October 2020, topping the U.K. Dance chart. The digital remix set Reworks I appeared in 2021. Sub Focus began unveiling singles from his third solo album in 2022; the Dimension collaboration "Ready to Fly" became a hit in both the U.K. and New Zealand. Evolve arrived in 2023, featuring guests Gene Farris, Kelli-Leigh, and AR/CO.