David Sumner and Karl O'Connos, it is the Sandwell District is, without doubt, THE underground Techno label of the moment. With support from all quarters (they count Marcel Dettmann, Ben Klock, Len Faki and the Berghain crew, Laurent Garnier, Miss Kitten, Jeff Mills, Sleeparchive, Speedy J, Troy Pierce, among their many devotees) they have not just blurred the boundaries of techno, but have dissolved them and re-built it in their own unique image...

As stalwarts of the hugely influential Downwards Label, Function and Regis have been breaking down and re-arranging the D.N.A of conventional dance music for over a decade. Sandwell District however is very much it's own animal and although it shares many of it's ideals and energy with the iconic Downwards, it is very much a label of the here and now. As Beatportal recently put it, "Influential British techno label Downwards are causing waves with their new imprint Sandwell District, as is Marcel Dettmann, Shed and Sleeparchive, who have all picked up where Downwards left techno in the late 1990s."

With Function already scoring 2 massive hits this year, with his "ISOLATION AND ANTICIPATION EP'S " and Regis causing major waves on the underground as his alter ego KALON, it seems as if in the past 12 months, Sandwell District can do no wrong. Going from strength to strength with every release, so far this year both Function's mighty 'Isolation' and the Kalon and Function Mixes of Silent Servant's 'Violencia' earned DJ Mag Techno Record of the Month, Function's 'Anticipation' held the #1 Bestselling Techno Record position for 6 weeks on Juno, in June the label earned Resident Advisor's prestigous, Label of the Month, and currently the Kalon and Function mixes of Silent Servant are getting major airplay and DJ Support. And now with mixes from Marcel Dettmann and Troy Pierce in the pipeline for the next sandwell 12"s, as well as Function remixing Miss Kitten, Heartthrob (Minus) and the Richie Hawtin, Joey Beltram and Mundo Muzique +8 classic, Final Exposure 'Vortex', 2009 is already promising to be another major year for SANDWELL DISTRICT.