Skee Mask

Munich, Germany's Bryan Müller produces bass-heavy experimental techno under the name Skee Mask. While his work as SCNTST is generally brighter and more accessible, his Skee Mask tracks are heavier and more cerebral, placing more of a focus on intricate yet insistent rhythmic patterns. The project started out anonymously with a pair of deep, dubby, white-label EPs, which both appeared in 2014. As it progressed, it became hazier and more melodic as well as more influenced by mid-'90s IDM and jungle, particularly on releases such as the acclaimed 2018 full-length Compro and 2021's Pool. Skee Mask ventured into grime with 2023's Patchworks, Vol. 1 EP, and Resort, the project's fourth proper album, arrived in 2024. Born in 1993, Bryan Müller was raised in Emmering, a small village near Munich. He played in rock bands as a youth and starred in a musical at the age of ten. He taught himself to make electronic music using Ableton Live in 2010 and quickly began producing tracks at a rapid pace. As SCNTST, he began posting electro-house and techno tracks online and soon caught the attention of Boys Noize, who immediately signed the young producer to their eponymous label. His debut single, "Monday," appeared in 2011, and first album Self Therapy arrived in 2013. While still actively working as SCNTST, Müller also began developing more experimental material, and after coming in contact with the Zenker Brothers, he began producing records for their Ilian Tape label under the pseudonym Skee Mask. The project was initially presented as an anonymous moniker, since Müller was tired of journalists focusing on his age and wanted the music to speak for itself. Skee Mask's 2014 debut EP, Serum, combined swirling distortion, choppy breaks, and distorted kick drums. Following 2015's Junt EP, Skee Mask's debut full-length, a hazy mixture of atmospheric breakbeat techno titled Shred, arrived in 2016 and established the mysterious producer as the breakout star of the Ilian Tape roster. The following year brought two Skee Mask EPs, 2012 and ISS002, which incorporated more of a jungle influence. In May of 2018, less than two weeks after the release of the third SCNTST full-length, Müller released Compro, Skee Mask's second full-length and most accomplished release to date. Compro was immediately praised as one of 2018's best dance albums by the likes of Pitchfork and Resident Advisor. Following the album's release, Skee Mask issued several EPs, with 808BB, ISS004, and ISS005 focusing on breakbeat-driven techno and electro tracks, and ISS006 consisting of ambient pieces. Skee Mask released the eclectic Pool in 2021, consisting of 18 tracks ranging from ambient dub to atmospheric drum'n'bass. A and B, two batches of previously unreleased tracks dating back to 2015, both appeared in 2022. The producer also released two EPs that year, the ambient ISS007 and the clubby ISS008. The jungle-influenced ISS009 followed in 2023, and Patchworks, Vol. 1, an EP with grime producer MJK and emcee Riko Dan, surfaced later in the year. Skee Mask started 2024 with the release of C, another set of unmastered tracks from his vault of unreleased material. Resort, a mellow, refined full-length, appeared on Ilian Tape in June of 2024. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi