New artist Plex – aka Kevin Wilkins - has been producing for some time, building up his studio and perfecting his own style of drum & bass. Having been drawn to both the atmospheric and dark styles within the music, he finally settled on a sound that inhabits the harder edge of the 720 ethos, with his first release, ‘New Episode / Speedfreak’, to be released on the label in the autumn. “I’d been DJing since I was about 15,” explains Kevin. “I was doing bits of sampling and using ridiculous equipment, playing out at pubs or whatever and then about 5 years ago I bought a Roland W30 from Blame and that was it, that started me producing.” From roots as a fan of early hardcore, Kevin kept up with drum & bass through all its incarnations, eventually developing a taste for a mixture of styles. “I just want to be developing new sounds,” he explains. “I liked the Ed Rush & Optical stuff, but I also like Blame’s tunes because they’re a bit more musical and a different way of looking at drum & bass. I think my tunes have got that little bit of a harder edge.” Indeed ‘New Episode’ and ‘Speedfreak’ show off the Plex sound to a tee, fusing futuristic melodies and fx with uncompromising beats and basslines. And the good news is that this is just the beginning: “I’m working on a lot of stuff at the moment,” adds Kevin. “Just basically creating my own style of music for the future.” Definitely one to watch. ARTISTS | BLAME | PLEX | SEBA | K.O.T.P