It's no coincidence that some of the most consistently innovative "bass music" artists draw primary influence from mid- to late '90s drum & bass. Names like Source Direct, Photek and Renegade Hardware are namechecked time and again in their UK heartland, but it seems as though their impact was being felt much further afield. Ena (Yu Asaeda) is a Tokyo-based producer whose sound reflects a fascination with this golden age but also dislocation. As he alludes to below, his is a sound unhindered by the immediacy of immersion in an established physical scene; you could certainly feel him pushing up against the edges of the canon across his two recent 12-inches for French imprint 7even Recordings.
